Twin2: This chapter was originally a lot shorter, but while Twin1 was sleeping, I got a little carried away. This was originally about a thousand words, now it's two thousand three hundred or so.

Twin1: I have got no idea how she did this, as she was also working all morning. And her editing complex is bordering on obsessive, I swear…

Twin2: Speaking of which, I need to finish rewriting those chapters of Winging It, don't I… (begins to shuffle through hard drive looking for missing files)

Twin1: See what I mean? Now REVIEW! Or I'll set the dragons on you!

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Chapter Twenty: Defiance

Keira looked on with disgust as Lasol swung himself onto his horse. It was a huge, black and somehow just as mean as his master. She cried out in surprise as someone grabbed her from behind, but it was only a manservant lifting her up to sit in front of the baron in the saddle. She scowled at Lasol as she was placed in front of him, and the moment the manservant released her, she slid down the saddle and crushed into him with enough force to knock over a medium-sized quadruped, getting no small amount of satisfaction from hearing him wince.

He clamped an arm around her waist in obvious retaliation and, with no warning, spurred his horse to a bumpy gallop. Now it was Keira's turn to wince. She was riding side-saddle, which isn't the most comfortable way to ride in the best situation. Adding in the baron's death grip and a horse that bounced like a ball, it was pure torture. Longing for Dreamrose's smooth canter, Razi's silky flight, and her sister's warm hugs, she closed her eyes and wondered how much worse things could get.

----

Tria was pacing around the fire, muttering to herself and idly scratching her hand. Eragon was meditating, thinking over possibilities, and wondering, somewhat miserably, if Keira was even still alive.

"My sister is very much alive, thankyou," said Tria sharply, without looking around. "How big is Uru'baen?"

Eragon, slightly taken aback, took a moment to collect himself and wonder how she could read his thoughts, and then replied, "Big enough."

Tria's wanderings were getting more and more vague as she waved her hands around. "I can't even contact her! Whatever that blasted spell was, it's completely cut me off! Razi, too, and it's driving him off the deep end!" She flicked her head at the unusually quiet dragon. Then her legs just gave out under her and she sank gracefully to the floor. "We've never been so far apart before," she muttered.

Slowly her eyes began to close. "Dammit, Eragon, quit using the bloody sleep magic," she growled, raising her head slightly. "I wasn't tired until you intervened!"

He just cocked an eyebrow at her. Daine growled too, annoyed. -Please refrain from enchanting my Rider. She is stressed enough and sleeping will only make her angry. She's weird like that.-

Tria raised one hand, then dropped it again. Rise. Drop. Rise. Drop. She did this four or five times, until everyone was completely silent and staring at her as if she was the one going off the deep end. Her eyes were beginning to waft out of focus, and she closed them as her mind remembered and spoke out, "Draumr kópa." And another word she didn't know, "Eitha!"

The wind was in her face, hair flying everywhere, even though Tria always kept it back. She was riding… side-saddle? What the hell? She never rode side-saddle! She shifted uncomfortably and glared at the horse beneath her as it bounced. That was on purpose!

And then there was the tight grip around her stomach. Tria wanted nothing more than to sink teeth and nails into this impertinent person! And what was with this horse?! I've had smoother rides on Tempest when she's in a bucking mood!

Tria tightened her leg muscles slightly and was pleased to find them responding slightly, digging into the dark horse underneath her and forcing it to bend into its own gait, smoothening out the ride considerably. It put its ears back at her.

Now… what the hell was going on?

Tria was seeing things from two points of view at once. The double-vision effect was dizzying. On the one hand, there was her, prodding the horse mercilessly every time it tried to stiffen up again, considering elbowing the rude person clinging to her as if she was a sack of potatoes, wondering what was going on and determined to find out.

On the other hand there was another sight, the view slightly to the left of her own, muscles tense with fear and anxiety, a different set of muscles from the ones Tria herself was using. The heartbeat was racing, breathing elevated a little and fearful thoughts flickering through the mind.

Two views for one mind. Tria felt a headache coming on, but ignored it, even though she was seeing a pair of slightly blurred horses attempting to buck, and as one was forced to conform to her will the other followed suit. The hold on her waist tightened and the double-vision sharpened, somehow becoming even more painful as it grew clear.

The second mind that Tria was tied to winced with pain at the harsh grip and wailed with an inner sorrow that seemed convinced nothing could ever vanquish it and that things could only get worse.

The mind was familiar, the tone of the thoughts one she'd known all her life.

Immediately Tria abandoned her own 'sight' and let it meld with the one beside her, steadying her view and taking her deep into the other's mind.

Fear. Fury. Anguish. Hatred. And deep, deep, deep down, a spark of hope.

Tria took in everything, all that the other knew, and wanted to cry along with her. But she couldn't. She was the strong one, the one who would destroy whoever hurt her sister, the one who was the pillar of strength for both of them, the one whose aggression could scare others while her sister's meekness hid behind her, ready to put up the defence Tria never remembered to.

She gave her sister a mental hug, letting her courage flow through into her anguished twin. Courage and Wanderer. Without meaning to, they had named their dragons after themselves.

Courage. Daine. Fire, anger, brave, focused, daring, reckless and fighting. Tria.

Wanderer. Razi. Ice, serenity, cool-headed, dreamy, cautious, swift-minded and falsely submissive. Keira.

One was not complete without the other. Fire put the fight in ice. Serenity put cautiousness into anger. Bravery drew on cool-headedness and focused the dreams into more than they would ever have been alone. False submissiveness created a façade of docility while the fighter strove for freedom.

Tria.

Keira.

The twins of fire and ice.

The sisters of caution and recklessness.

The fighters for all that they knew.

----

The king sat in his magnificent throne, looking down at the shivering girl before him. She sat quietly, not even examining the object in her lap. He leaned forward and spoke.

"Girl, tell me your name."

The girl looked up, and the king thought he saw defiance flash through her eyes, but she simply said, "Keira."

"Do you know why you're here, Keira?" the king asked.

"A tea party, sire?" she replied innocently. The king almost laughed. It had been a long time since anyone had dared to speak sarcastically to him.

"No, girl. I have heard you are unhappy with your betrothal. I'm here to help. To offer you a new life."

"Yeah," the girl said, still sarcastic, "I'll believe that. You really care about one fifteen-year-old runaway. Right. Okay."

"I do care, Keira. I care about everyone in my kingdom."

"Naturally. That's how you became the great king you are today."

Galbatorix's lips twitched. This girl was mentally capable, and not in the least bit gullible. Usually this speech had people won over by now. And she wasn't afraid to be rude. Time for a change of tactics.

"Are you afraid of me, Keira?" he asked.

"Terrified. But I'm trying to imagine what my sister would do in this situation."

"Ah, yes. Your twin. I'm so sorry she died."

"She's NOT dead!" the girl exploded. It had been a long time before anyone had dared to yell at him either. The king changed the subject again. Time to bring up the dragon egg she held.

"Do you know what you hold in your lap?"

"A pebble?"

"No!" roared the king, making Keira jump, "Girl, that is an egg!"

The girl looked up at him, unimpressed. "Big chicken."

"A dragon egg, girl. You are one of the last people it would hatch for. You have rider's blood in your veins, and rider in your heart. You are the last chance for this dragon to be free!"

"My heart bleeds for you," she said mockingly, uninterested in his 'freedom' speech. "There is no way this egg will hatch for me."

The king narrowed his eyes. How would she know? With the speed of an elf, he dodged down from his throne, grabbed her arm and jerked her upright. The egg rolled down her long skirt and settled on the floor. Galbatorix grabbed her right wrist and the girl began to struggle, suddenly terrified. The king twisted her wrist cruelly so that her palm faced upwards. He held it up to the light and gave a malicious smile. "Hello, Argetlam."

Keira jerked her hand out of his grasp and snarled, "I am so sick of men man-handling me!"

"Guards! Take this girl to our guest room, see that she doesn't leave. You will bring your dragon to me, Keira. Congratulations. You are now part of my army."

Three guards grabbed the girl and dragged her, kicking and screaming, to her room.

Galbatorix remained standing by the chair. He bent down and picked up the egg at his feet. "It seems we were wrong," he murmured, "There are more dragons than we thought." In the half-light, it was just possible to see him smile. "I will rule them all!"

----

Tria was sitting on a log, one cheek twitching. Eragon was checking her pulse for the third time that hour, insisting that her blackout yesterday could have been something serious. But as annoying as it was Tria found herself slipping back into thinking about the dream-stare, ignoring the older Rider.

It was as if she had really been there. She hadn't been looking at a blank screen with Keira jolting uncomfortably, an unknown person gripping her painfully and an unseen horse galloping along. Tria had been there, felt the bad gait, had corrected it, had felt that tight hold and had felt the need to do something about it (but had been too distracted to act on the impulse). And then, when she had concentrated, she had blended with her sister, getting more information than she'd hoped for, such as how far away they were and how long it had been, how upset her sister felt and the desperate longing for her sister to miraculously turn up and a vehement hope she would do no such thing.

"Leather-flapper," she said suddenly, making Eragon jump.

"What?" he said stupidly, staring at her as if she was morphing into a dragon in front of his eyes.

"Lethrblaka. Leather-flapper. The demon-birds, lethrblaka, leather-flapper, bat!" She yelled this out very fast, getting quicker and louder the longer she continued.

Eragon gave up on getting sense out of her and instead turned to the dragons, hands open in a sign of pleading. -What the hell is she on about?-

"Draumr kópa eitha! Dream stare leave!" she shouted, springing to her feet and dashing towards her dragon, who was unmoved by her sudden actions. "Jierda brisingr!"

-She's not even making sense,- Eragon noted worriedly to Saphira.

The blue dragon was unconcerned. -Her grasp of the ancient language is slim. I think she's barely getting the point across to herself, forget us.-

-Ebrithil!- Tria yelled at them in her mind, hanging off Daine's neck. -Draumr kópa eitha! Ebrithil du… du… dammit, what's the word? Oh, blast it, masters of silence! Gates of danger!-

Razi suddenly seemed to get the point and leaped to his feet, letting out a furious roar. -You're joking!-

"What the hell is going on?!" Eragon demanded, aloud this time.

Tria leapt off Daine and began to pace around the clearing again, twice as fast, half-formed sentences flitting around her mind and lips. "Wyrda hljödhr dras vranga–"

-Keira – fear – pain – anger – I am going to kill him–-

"Eitha, eitha, eitha, why didn't I see it before?! Kópa!"

-Brisingr jierda, jierda brisingr, sköliro, sköliro, jierda brisingr! That's it!-

She was casting furious looks around, pure desperation and recklessness burning in her eyes, dividing her glares between the cheerfully crackling fire, the dragons, Eragon, and the pair of Roran and Katrina. In seconds she seemed to have reached a decision and burst out with, "That does it, we're leaving them," she jerked her thumb viciously at the two startled humans, "behind."

Eragon glanced at her, a disbelieving expression already in place. "What on earth do you mean?"

"I mean, that on this mission to rescue my sister from the very heart of Uru'baen – which is where she is, by the way – it will be too dangerous for us and them for them to be on board. They waste space. They could give the enemy leverage. And all they're going to do is sit around and make goo-goo eyes at each other anyway!" Tria's voice hit a note of blended desperation and disgust. Roran had the grace to turn red.

Eragon considered her words before nodding slowly. "This is going to be dangerous," he admitted. "We're going to go up against the entire of Galbatorix's army and it's not going to be easy. It'll be safer for you two if you went back to Surda."

Tria nodded energetically. "Much safer! Eragon, they can ride Dreamrose and Tempest back. If we want to move fast to get to Keira, and you know I do, it'll be quicker to fly and I can't leave the horses on their own. Keira would kill me," she muttered the last part to herself.

There was a faint twinge of pain from her arm and Tria flinched, barely hiding the shift in her facial expression from Eragon. The pain wasn't hers. It was Keira's. The sooner they got to her twin, the better.