ARGGGGGGGGGHHHHHK.
As of writing this AN right now, I am writhing in pure misery. The movie SUCKS, okay? It sucks so badly that I almost cried from sheer pain at the end of it. They wasted all those millions of dollars to make some fancy piece of dramatic crap that doesn't fit the book at all.
Anyway, I won't rant about it too much because I don't want to give it away for those who haven't seen it. Suffice to say, it is really, really rushed—and as a result, very, very bad. A lot of minor characters have been cut out, and Murtagh—ARGH, Murtagh has about five minutes of screen time and that's about it.
On with the chapter. Btw, Orca's the third Rider, not Llynis. . A lot of people seem to be confused…
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Llynis huddled in a chair, bewilderedly staring around the room with the air of a cornered cat. Biting her lip, she sneaked a furtive look at the creepily handsome man who lounged in on a pile of cushions like he belonged here. Which he did, probably.
This is his room, she thought with increasing dread, staring around. She was in the middle of the secret room she and Derek had found earlier, with Orca sitting to her right. Will he kill us for trespassing?
The man cleared his throat softly, and Llynis jumped in surprise. He looked at her calmly, understandingly—looking into his eyes, Llynis felt her fear dissipate. He was so wise, so benevolent—how could he possibly hurt her or Orca?
"So," he said in a gentle, melodious voice. "Don't be afraid, Llynis. I won't hurt you."
How did he know her name...oh well, that didn't matter. Llynis found herself relaxing, gaining an instinctive trust towards him. How could she have ever thought he'd rape her? She didn't know who he was, but he wouldn't hurt her...
There was a small scratching sound to her right, and the two of them turned as one. Sitting on a pile of rugs, Orca studiously ignored them both as she held a strip of meat in her fingers. Curled in her lap was the tiny green dragon, wings flared as it begged for the meat.
"How...?" Llynis asked softly, watching her. Lowering her eyes with a blush, she murmured, "If it's not too bold to ask, my lord..."
He laid a hand over hers, and Llynis felt a shiver run up her spine at the touch. Smiling shyly at him, she self-consciously tucked her hair behind her ear with her free hand. She was all too aware of his gaze upon her—mild, curious, and infinitely kind.
"Don't be afraid to ask questions," he said quietly. "You came in here, didn't you? Both of you. No, I'm not angry, my dear...I'm very pleased, actually." His fingers brushed her chin, and involuntarily she looked up. "Evidently, Orca touched the egg, and thus it hatched."
Llynis swallowed, shaking her head. A pleasant numbness was settling over her, making it hard to think—with an effort, she said slowly, "So she's now a...a..."
"A dragon Rider," he completed for her, smiling slowly.
Llynis turned, her eyes settling on Orca. After a long, agonizing pause, the child looked up and met her gaze squarely. In her lap, the dragon was asleep.
"A dragon Rider," Llynis repeated faintly, her head spinning. "Orca's a..."
"Don't fret your pretty head about it," the man said, patting her cheek indulgently. "No harm will come to the child, I assure you." His voice was soothing, hypnotic—"Nothing can go wrong now. Come. Sleep, now."
So Llynis did.
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The woman was completely under his power, slumped peacefully in his hands with a slightly vacant expression on her face as she slept. Galbatorix laughed quietly, tracing the lines of her face—she wasn't overly pretty, but not too bad-looking either. Still, she had another, more useful purpose besides sex—she could take care of his newest Rider, watching to make sure she was trained properly...
Speaking of the newest Rider, Galbatorix turned slightly to look inquiringly at the girl—Orca. She didn't look up at him, running her thumb over and over the dragon's head.
Laying Llynis down on the cushions, he walked carefully over to where Orca sat. She didn't seem to know he was there, staring distantly at the wall, not moving even when he tapped her lightly on the shoulder.
"Orca?" he said gently.
The dragon in her arms opened a sleepy eye and burped, but otherwise there was no response. Miffed, Galbatorix tried again, adopting a firmer tone. "Orca. Look at me."
Still nothing. Galbatorix sighed, rubbing his forehead, finding himself praying to any nonexistent gods out there that he wouldn't be trapped with two rebellious Riders instead of one.
"Orca, I have some business to take care of," he said, enunciating clearly. "I will be back soon. Don't touch anything, all right?"
He might as well been talking about the weather for all the response he got. Galbatorix's mouth twisted slightly with displeasure—he couldn't go down to handle Murtagh if he wasn't absolutely sure that the girl wouldn't accidentally set off some of the more delicate objects in the room...but neither did he want to spend the better part of the day babysitting her.
Maybe he could combine both roles. After all, if Murtagh had changed in the way he predicted, a good first impression would be very important.
Unmagicking the door briefly, he headed out to tell a nearby soldier to bring Murtagh up from the dungeons.
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Orca was aware that the man left, but she wasn't particularly interested. Far more important was the dragon, and Orca was idly running names through her mind.
Names were important, she knew that. Names were a mark of respect, of—of being. Aunt Llynis had a name. She had a name. The man didn't have a name, but who said he was somebody to respect? She didn't know him.
The trouble was, she didn't know that many names. With a frown, Orca ran all the names she'd ever known through her mind—Aunt Llynis. Orca. Amarine. Sussy. Arin. Pollia. Maynil.
None of them fit. With a sigh, Orca laid her cheek against the dragon's scaly back. Maybe if she combined some names? Llyca. Llyline. Omarine. Sarin, Sullia, Parissy, Sunil. No, but none of those worked either.
Curiosity came from the dragon as it sat up, eyes bright and inquisitive. It wanted to know about what she was thinking—what was a name? What were those strange sounds she was thinking?
Orca hesitated, trying her best to explain just what a name was. The dragon cocked its head, considering, silently demanding more sounds to play with.
Aris. Mussy. Llyris. Inllia. Maynis.
No. No.
Ariya. Pollin. Mamarca. Surin. Anil.
Anil?
Anil?
The dragon gurgled softly with satisfaction, bracing its talons on her arm. Yes. Anil.
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With a grunt, Galbatorix slid back into the room with an unconscious Murtagh hoisted over his shoulder, somewhat relieved to see that nothing had been destroyed in his brief time away. Llynis was still fast asleep, curled up on the cushions—but Orca had moved ever so slightly, staring directly at him with a preternaturally calm gaze.
"What?" Galbatorix said challengingly, unused to being stared down by anyone, much less a five-year-old chit. There was no response, of course, and Galbatorix gave a small huff of annoyance as he set Murtagh down next to Llynis. Gazing down at them, Galbatorix could almost imagine that they were two lovers, fallen asleep after a night of passionate lovemaking.
Almost. Something just didn't fit—maybe it was the slight snores coming from Llynis, or the strange paleness of Murtagh's skin (courtesy of a week kept underground…). The picture just wasn't very convincing.
Oh well, nothing's perfect, Galbatorix thought amiably. His finger brushing Murtagh's forehead, he closed his eyes and reached out, forming the words that would wake him out of his coma-like state.
Easy, now. Don't rush. Nothing to worry about...
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Light. Too much of it, too painful, too...
"Don't try to sit up too soon," a gentle voice said from not too far off. "How does it feel? Are you all right?"
All right? He groaned faintly, his mouth paper-dry—from the corner of his mouth, a drop of blessed coolness fell, soaking into the parched skin. Water.
"It's all right," that same voice said after he had drunk. "Just breathe. Can you tell me your name? Do you remember?"
"Murtagh," he said weakly after a moment of horrifying blankness. There was a noise building in his head—rising steadily, an annoyance and distraction. Trying hard to think, he managed, "What—happened...?"
"There was an accident," the voice said calmly. "What do you remember? Can you recall?"
Murtagh hesitated, searching his memory. An accident? What kind of accident? Something red...something graceful, and a blue streak of something...
Thorn? Dragon?
"Thorn," Murtagh said indistinctly. "Thorn—dragon—all right?"
"He's fine," the voice said after a moment. "Listen to me. What can you—"
But Murtagh couldn't hear him anymore—the noise was defeaning now, echoing and building and throwing itself around in the crevices of his mind. Hard to think. Hard to focus.
"Can't..."
A cool touch brushed his forehead, and instantly the sound was—muted, sort of, faint and out of focus. Murtagh relaxed slightly, still struggling to fight his way out of the haze that clung onto him.
"Try to focus, Murtagh," the voice said soothingly. "Can you tell me the last thing you remember?"
The last thing he remembered? Broken images flashed through his mind—faces, colors, places—he should know them, but he couldn't concentrate enough to piece them together. Carefully, flinching from the light, he opened his eyes.
A face hovered in front of his—blurry at first, but soon the shape steadied to produce a strangely handsome man, his features gracefully shaped. They reminded him of somebody (or something), but he couldn't work out who it was just yet.
"My name is Galbatorix," the man said in a low, kind voice. Hands wrapped around Murtagh's back, helping him sit up. "You're all right now."
Murtagh hesitated, his eyes searching the room. There was a sleeping woman beside him: once again, vaguely familiar, but nobody he could identify. Across from the room was a girl, no more than four or five years old, a dragon cradled in her arms.
"Dragon," Murtagh whispered. "The third egg's hatched…"
The words popped out of his mouth before he could stop them, and Murtagh blinked in surprise. The third egg hatched. There were only three, weren't there? Thorn and that green one and…and a…
A black one?
No, that wasn't quite right. Maybe blue? Or white? Or purple with polka dots?
"It's temporary amnesia," Galbatorix said softly, patting his arm reassuringly. "It was quite a traumatic accident…you're all right now. Just take a moment, try to gather your wits, and eat a little something. Don't strain yourself just yet—you're not fully healed."
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Llynis woke up to the faint sound of murmured voices, uncurling herself slowly from her sleeping position. The lamps still lit up the room as strongly as ever, giving no indication as to the time.
Stretching discreetly, she sat up, eyes flicking uncertainly over her surroundings. Orca was asleep in a chair, with that green dragon sprawled lazily in her lap. Not far across from her were two men—the handsome, charming one and the same man that had taken her on that horrible ride on the dragon. Llynis gulped, backing up involuntarily as they stopped their conversation, glancing at her.
"Welcome back to the real world," the handsome one said, standing up. "Do you want anything to eat or drink, Llynis?"
She froze, staring almost fearfully at the one who remained sitting. He looked like a wreck, to be sure—weary, filthy, smelly—but that didn't mean he still didn't intend to hurt her. Cowering, she looked at the handsome man for reassurance, finding it in his gentle eyes and protective demeanor.
"It's all right," he said softly. "That's just Murtagh. I'm Galbatorix. I know this has been very stressful for you, but there's nothing to be afraid of."
Llynis nodded, comforted. After all, the handsome man—Galbatorix would never hurt her. He would protect her.
Feeling calmer now, she smiled tentatively at the filthy one—Murtagh. He didn't return it, staring intensely at her with a strange grimace on his face. Unbidden, her hands rose to her face, trying to cover the blush rising into her cheeks. What? What did he want?
"Now, Murtagh, you're scaring Llynis," Galbatorix said with a small chuckle as he dug through a small chest, emerging with a wrapped bundle. "Come on, now. Don't stare so. Both of you must be hungry—now, eat."
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Five-ish pages, you can't lynch me now. XD Yeah, I know it's boring, but Galby has to implant his lies and all before he can get on with the really fun stuff…
Galby/Llynis pairing? –laughs- Don't worry, I haven't forgotten Derek…
Not in a very peppy mood right now. So excuse my sugarless responses.
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Namine3419: Llynis is a wimp! Third Riderness shall never be hers. Besides, I have other plans for her…something with a guy whose name begins with a D…or is it G? –shifty eyes-
Rotem: Murtagh is reclining in Galby's secret little hole having tea with Llynis and Galby and Orca. One of the fun parts of being a Rider.
Lady Hikari-Yami: -grimaces- Oh, speak not the name of the movie. I hate that piece of crap. It's driven me into incurable depression.
BlindSeer220: Yeppy yep yep, Orca's the third Rider. –blushes- Did I not make it clear enough? My mistake.
Fredsonetrueluv: Derek/Llynis hasn't completely died yet—I mean, I'm not going to let him out of the picture considering what's gonna happen to Llynis...and Orca, too. And Murtagh. To all of them, really. I have a really morbid imagination... –foreshadowing cackle-
Rock Not War: Wait, you mean the power just died like that? Wow. I would've thought theaters had emergency power (or whatever) to keep the movie going.
Coffee Grounds: -pokes chapter- Enough Galby/Llynis for you? I mean, I'm going to spin this on for a little while, but soon Derek –dun dun DUN!- will sweep in and save Llynis from corruption. Or something like that.
Ariel32: -nods- Yeah, I know. I've been poring over the Wiki entry for Empire. There must be a lot of avid fans working on Wiki because there are so many entries! Character analyses, events, places—I haven't found another book as of yet that has had so many different sections on Wikipedia.
Dark Seroph: -snort- You're more charitable then I am, then. I hate that movie. It sucks. They cut out all the best parts, they totally screwed up Angela and Murtagh, they killed off a lot of the minor characters, and they made the Arya/Eragon relationship into a sappy, "Oh, I love you" kind of thing when it couldn't be more obvious that Arya and Eragon DO NOT FIT EACH OTHER.
Dreamgirlhoo: -coughs politely- Sorry, maybe I didn't make it clear enough or something. Llynis isn't the third Rider, Orca is…
Llynis is about seventeen-sixteenish, and Orca is five. Or so, anyway. And yeah, Llynis is a wimp. But you can't really blame the poor lass, can you, considering her horrible life?
Alsdssg: Llynis is pronounced 'Lih-niss'. Anyway, how's your opinion of the movie? Man. I was so pepped up earlier and now that I've actually seen the movie I feel like crap and a half. -is depressed-