Sorry it's taken so long to update, again. School and work were taking up all of my time, so that I barely had time even for art. Work is over for the season, though, so I have a bit of free time for the time being.
I've decided to rename the story and chapter titles to something more reflective of Alexander… Any comments?
Murtagh, Thorn, Galbatorix, and Alagaesia © Christopher Paolini
Everything else © ME.
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You're not going to restrain her? Thorn asked, astonishment in his mind-voice.
She's not going to kill him, Murtagh assured the dragon. She's only going to scare him…and maybe give him a few scrapes and bruises to teach him a lesson.
He could feel Thorn's scepticism and expected the dragon to say something more, but received nothing but silent watchfulness from the other end. A smirked crossed Murtagh's face; his dragon was going to watch out of curiosity.
Alexander had been slowly creeping toward the doorway, keeping out of Mendhem's line of sight. Suddenly, when she had reached the edge of the doorway, she spun into the room, kicking a small wooden box off a display table toward Mendhem. Murtagh's eyebrows raised as the box hit the intruder squarely in the head.
Mendhem swore loudly and dropped the chest of cloth, standing with his fists raised. His rage was quickly replaced with terror as he noticed Alexander's sabre swinging toward his head. He ducked and avoided the swing, but had to quickly leap away as the blade's point stabbed toward his chest.
To Mendhem, Alexander's attacks looked very real and deadly, but Murtagh could see that she was deliberately missing; her attacks were slower than what Murtagh knew was her full speed from their first encounter in the forest.
A powerful sidekick sent Mendhem flying out of the sitting room and into the front entry. Murtagh quickly scooted out of the way as Mendhem leaped up out of the way of Alexander's next sword sweep. As fast as Mendhem moved out of the sword's way, he was still sent into the wall by the door by Alexander's follow-up kick. Another loud curse erupted from Mendhem's mouth as he jerked out of the way of the next stab. The sabre point embedded itself two inches into the wood. Mendhem grabbed the door handle and swung the door open as fast as he could. It still wasn't fast enough. Alexander landed one last well-aimed kick on his rump that sent him airborne as she freed her sword. Mendhem landed on the porch with a resounding thump and rolled down the steps onto the ground in front of the house.
Alexander walked calmly out onto the porch and stood a few feet from the door. Murtagh stayed just on the inside of the doorway. He couldn't see Alexander's face, but judging from her stance he guessed it was an ice-cold glare that could freeze a boiling pot of water in a second.
"I thought you were stupid before, Mendhem," Alexander said, her voice as sharp as her sabre, "but this surpasses anything and everything with even a minute resemblance of human intelligence." She paused as Mendhem started to push himself off the ground. "If you ever touch my things again, I will give you a beating so vicious you'll be crippled for life. I want you to stay away from me. Now, get out of my sight before I decide to spit you on my sword."
Mendhem stood, and Murtagh could see a few nasty scrapes on his face. "Damn you, you whore!" Mendhem yelled and spat on the ground. "May your limbs rot off!"
Then, he lurched off toward his home. Once Mendhem was out of sight, Alexander heaved a huge sigh and turned tiredly to Murtagh. With a small rueful smile, she shrugged and remarked, "He didn't put up near as much fight as I'd hoped. What a pity…" With a wistful expression, she skirted around Murtagh and walked back into the front entry.
She's scary when she's angry, Thorn commented drily. Did you see howher sabre stuck in the wall?
Of course I saw it, Murtagh replied, turning back inside and shutting the door. Alexander had returned her sabre to its drawer and was leaning against the wall, staring into space with an empty expression. Feeling concerned, Murtagh walked over and stood in front of her.
Putting his hand on her shoulder, he inquired, "Alex, are you alright?"
Alexander continued to stare into space, her head tilted slightly to the side. "I'm tired of this town, of him. I'm leaving to Uru'Baen tomorrow. You can come with me, if you want."
Now, isn't that convenient? Thorn exclaimed as the young woman walked into the room opposite the sitting room. Murtagh could practically see the dragon's toothy smile.
He remained silent, not answering Thorn's cheeky question. Instead he followed Alexander into what he found was a dining room. Alexander was sitting at the large oaken table, resting her head on her crossed arms. Murtagh's first thought was that she was crying, but he quickly saw that her breathing was calm and steady. He sat down next to Alexander, but couldn't think of what to say. Luckily, she spared him the awkward task of fumbling for words by speaking herself.
"I'm tired of this town," she murmured, the weariness in her voice clearly audible despite the muffling of her words. "I'm tired of the people. I've never fit here, and I don't feel like trying any more. At least I have friends in Uru'Baen."
Murtagh managed to find his voice. "Will you leave all your things here?"
Alexander laughed wryly and lifted her head to look at Murtagh. "I've already relocated most of my belongings to my residence in Uru'Baen. All that remains here are the swords you saw, a few clothes, and a few chests of random things. I have a small cart and mule at the stable that can carry it all easily."
"All right then. What needs to be packed up?"
"My clothes are already in a trunk, so that leaves only the swords," Alexander said. With a thoughtful frown she muttered, "I suppose I'll have to sell the house. I'd rather pull my own teeth than sell it to Mendhem's family… luckily, the stable master has been eyeing my house. He made me a decent offer a few weeks ago."
A loud rumble interrupted her musings. Murtagh raised an aeyebrow.
"Hungry, are we?"
Poking her stomach, Alexander pulled a face and gave him a grudging, "Yes…"
Laughing, Murtagh stood and patted the young woman on the back. "I'll make us something to eat. I can use your oven, right?"
"Yeah; I have a vegetable garden behind the house. I'll see if there's anything still growing." She paused in the doorway. "The wood pile is next to the stove, before you ask." With that, she walked out.
Murtagh sighed, watching her leave the room. As he loaded wood into the oven, Thorn connected with his rider again. She's an interesting woman. She has all the strength of character to be a dragon rider, and more.
Yes, but do we want to sell her out to Galbatorix if she is, indeed the next rider? Murtagh questioned sullenly as he stuffed another log into the oven and whispered, "Brisingr." She'll hate me for it.
All he received from his dragon was an uneasy silence, in which he could almost physically feel Thorn's fidgeting.
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VixenHood: Thanks! I prefer strong female characters.
alsdssg: Yeah… I never intended Mendhem to be the brightest crayon in the box. I have to admit, though, his stupidity surprised even me. Galbatorix is probably coming in the next chapter; if not then, the next, I swear!
EragonWriter: Thank you. I agree that their manner of speaking isn't very representative of a medieval time period, but I'm not nearly familiar with those dialects. Were I to try that speaking style, the dialogue wouldn't feel natural and would restrict the story. Also, true medieval English is entirely different from modern English, almost another language. Plus, I'm trying to imitate Paolini's writing style or world; rather, I'm creating my own unique interperetation.
Dreamfantasy13: Lol Thank you! I'm actually still not sure whether we will have Alex/Murtagh. We'll see. If we do, I won't rush it.
The Gandhara: Murtagh doesn't want to antagonise Alexander! He wants to cultivate a friendship with her.
A Kiss Before Dying: Thanks! I have tried to steer Alexander away from Mary-Sue-dom…. Dang; what a word…
Aaaaaand another chapter done! Sheesh… took me long enough, huh? I'll try not to take so long with the next chapter.
I'll try to introduce Galbatorix in the next chapter, too, as well as a few more new characters. No more Mendhem (I hope; I really do hate him XP)! W00t!
