Ilirea. They knew of our arrival; a small army of dwarves and humans stood anxiously outside the city. Several dragons flew above it, and none dared to fly beyond the shadow of Ilirea's overhang.

It was a clear and crisp morning, with very little clouds to hide colorful wings. The quiet seemed unnatural, as if the land itself was poised for battle. No birds sang, and scavengers patiently waited for their meals. But my legs itched to see her eyes, and to find refuge when I could only hear noise. The sun had yet to peak over the hills leading to the desert, but I could feel today would be another scorching day of summertime. Allies or enemies, we would all suffer from the effects of its warmth.

To break my thoughts, Maelorum's senses reached me. Protectiveness, and apprehension creeped from him. He hid them well, but once I recognized them, nothing could erase that knowledge. The bridge connecting us seemed to creak with every shared experience. Where I once felt confidence in his presence, a facade remained. It was to be maintained around me, instead of the others; much like a rider would to a worried crowd or a politician to everyone else.

I retreated from Maelorum's mind as best as I could manage. If only I could be done with this war. The distance growing between us would fade, and soon we would both forget any distance had existed. In the larger scheme, Galbatorix had the strength, and the plans to begin the assault. I was having enough with the noise and stagnation. As if to enunciate my point, another presence echoed in my ears. Regoria fought her thoughts to my attention. Her shouting was familiar by now, and her voice returned to the quiet hum which only I could hear. Its ethereal waves of anguish met nothing but a restless elf.

I had placed many wards around the eldunarya, both for their protection and mine. It was far too easy to drown in their emotions of anger and grief, and so I had finally taken their suffering away with a few words. But on occasion, a memory would resurface and their minds would quake in remembrance. Their pain ended quickly, as the enchantments placed on Maelorum's saddlebags mitigated their ability to communicate their thoughts. My two listless hearts were merely vessels.

The gentle breezes above the trees faded to the rhythmic 'thump' of a dragon. Maelorum rustled loudly through the treeline, one of the first of our lines hidden within the forest to breach it. If my eyes had been open, I would see no creatures with the ability to speak. Before me, only the rough landscape of the plains sat between Taylyn and I. Though I could not see the armies nearby, smoke from the campsites of Ilirea's army trickled into the sky. The air grew heavier as the wind brought them to us.

When I opened my eyes, a haze had filled the morning air, both from the natural morning mist, and the distant armies. Maelorum's neck and throat entered my gaze at the capital's ledge first, followed by the beginning of his chest before he stopped. The heat from his belly broke a small sweat over my face, but I ignored it.

I do not want to leave you in the city. He grumbled. I glanced up at his black scales and back to the distant towers.

You fight well enough on your own. I will only risk both of us if I fight from your back.

If only you had been born with wings, little one.

My wings may not be the same as his, but motivation still drove me forward. There were a great many things even a dragon could not accomplish, and as an elf, even an ocean could face defeat. Desert sandstorms could be weathered, and mysterious mountains were conquered. Just as Ilirea would be today.

I see Ignant. He marked. I searched the sky for her distinctive orange-golden glow. She flew low over the city - keeping within distance of Laudra, no doubt - as she circled the training grounds possessively. Laudra would likely fight to protect Taylyn, along with the other riders under Taylyn's watch. But one thing was certain, I wanted Maelorum to avoid that section of the city. For Taylyn's safety, at least.

Have the elves joined?

My question was met with hesitation, King Evandar will be forced to expose himself once he hears of their defeat. Their weary travels will be met with battle, I hope. I overheard Vandar's excitement yesterday morning. He is overjoyed at the idea of collecting dwarven and elvish heads alike.

And yourself? What do you think of King Evandar's likely ill begotten fate? What did Maelorum have to say of the king of elves? The very king my house and father were previously loyal to. The implication of public opinion failed to worry me before I sought Galbatorix's aid. What fate would befall the descendants of house thorn-apple if the elves see me openly opposing them?

Evandar fights against us, I can only wish him the death he deserves to pay for not seeing reason.

Anyone can be reasoned with. We must remember that not every elf is guilty. Did you not understand me in Ceunon? We were better than that.

Maelorum replied stiffly, I heard you clearly then, as I do now. Despite myself living as an extension of you, my beliefs are not required to be aligned with yours. We do not have the option to be sympathetic; not when our foes share our hide.

It had been spoken. He seemed glad to be rid of the burden of hiding his contempt, but I voiced mine shortly after.

If you wish a tree displaced, you do not gouge it out. It is barbaric to generalize your instinctual bloodlust.

Maelorum's mind reflected on my words and returned them with spittle, The humans and elves, dwarves, even, you are all two-legged beasts, are you not? Beside your behavior and theirs, you share their shape in appendages, hair, the idea of marriage and ability to create more of you. The only difference is how utterly blind you are to the evidence of corruption in front of you. We spent years chasing criminals, and healing the sick and injured. Yet you do not see the hypocrisy of your own actions.

He continued, chiding, If you cannot stomach war, then you will never know peace. This is a path you wanted. This is the wind you forced me to fly you on. If you are loyal to what you have claimed to oppose, then perhaps Galbatorix should remind you of what lengths he may require you to serve him.

A slight snap of twigs reminded me that we were not alone at the edge of the forest, and I broke my eyes away from nothing of importance to see Ashai and Formora joining me to my left. I gathered myself and cleared my throat for speaking.

A man followed them, his eyes gleaming with multi-colored eyes of azul and coal. His armor held a remarkable shine, and for a moment, I felt dissatisfied at my lack of dress.

I wore clothes designed for battle, but they were slightly worn from weeks of inattention. I had been prioritizing other duties, such as our survival and storing energy in Laufsbläd's gem. How the glistening and raven-haired rider managed to tend to his own ego was a mystery.

Ashai approached me, and I took my eyes from the human to greet her. Formora looked onto Ilirea as Ashai spoke gently to me.

"I have not been here in years." She started, "We can rebuild it." Her slight whine betrayed her attempt to sound nonchalant.

"Your sister is there as well." I commented.

Ashai gave me a sideways glance, but said nothing. She left me to return to a conversation with Formora. Maelorum brought my attention back to him with a rumble.

Morzan is giving us the command.

I looked back to the human with his sword now outstretched. Misery glittered like his armor, and my legs moved to climb Maelorum with beguiled purpose. Maelorum's excitement countered the rebellion in my own mind. I was not Morzan's puppet; so easily ordered by a human. Galbatorix should be giving the command. I would not follow this follower. Not even if he clearly asserted himself above the rest of us.

When I secured myself to Maelorum, he turned back to face me with a single emerald iris. We may need to defend ourselves in the sky before I can land within the city's limits. His head returned forward and his wings stretched for the first time today. They fanned out and over the trees, making his form seem twice his actual size before he jumped up to greet the clouds.

I squinted for the customary moment as my eyes adjusted to the sudden change in brightness. Why would we attack in the morning? Dragons were highly contrasted against the blue sky; not to mention the wear a summer day would bring on the armies and riders below.

Maelorum took no issue to the warmth, at least for now. He would likely change his mind with dragonfire swirling around him.

I drew my bow from my back and leaned to my quiver. The fletchings rustled securely within, and next to them held the essentials; small amounts of food, water, Regoria and Umber's eldunarí, and the empty pockets where my paper and ink should have been.

I stared at the saddlebag as their disappearance dawned on me. They had not been there for months, or perhaps years. We were a long age away from a simple exploration of mountains. But how long had it been since I held a quill in my hand or a proper book in my arms? The saddlebags waved back in sorrow for their missing partners.

The first battle cry called from my left. I rushed to look over Maelorum's side to see Misery's glistening wielder and its dragon. Morzan's vocalizations were quiet in the sky's whistling, but his dragon's roar became his. Another booming screech joined theirs from somewhere below and behind us. Maelorum warned me before making his own.

I grimaced at the world as it vibrated for the short span. I recovered quickly, and returned my attention to the city. Their army seemed less like ants than before, now almost below us in a sheet of bodies with no means of reaching us in the clouds. The air felt much cooler on my cheeks than on the ground, but the reprief was doomed as the detailed faces of our first defender flew up to greet us with a foolish roar.

Maelorum dove to meet the centurial dragon and its rider. Its size was smaller than Maelorum, and about the same size as Hadoc. I knocked an arrow, and waited. Its rider prepared himself by drawing a pale blue sword. His features were dulled by distance and the movement of dragonback but broad shoulders and a messy beard gave him away.

I drew my bow and held it until his dragon flew too close. Maelorum's mind growled in preparation, deciding he would use his rear claws to grapple the dragon's front; to leave its neck for his jaws and Maelorum's front talons to hold its wings from allowing its rider to retaliate.

"Meet the dragon's talon." I ordered the arrow, losing it to the wind. Any competent rider would protect their dragon from projectiles, but most wards ignored the movement of their own dragons in relation to outside objects. I would not be harming the dragon with a loose arrow, the dragon would fly into my arrow of its own volition.

My weapon hit its mark as the dragon shrieked in surprise. The four of us met, however, before I could knock another. Maelorum lashed at the smaller adversary, and their wings collided.

Sky-blue fire blocked my view of Maelorum's head for the briefest of moments. My neck tickled from the barrage. The spell would require specific words, with its fire ignited to provide a path of least resistance. Breath, and wind, to tear tough scales in movement of each other; their constant battle to be felt within the dragon's lungs or maw when needed. It would choke itself with fire in a single cauterized breath designed to end the battle quickly. The dragon's last sensation would vanish before it met with the ground; an honorable death for such a wonderful creature.

Maelorum dipped his head slightly, and the dragon took the opportunity to face me. Its rider prepared himself as if a sparring match were possible, and I readied another arrow along my bow. Broad shoulders, and beard. My bow poised with his locked gaze, but my eyes met the dragon's.

Upon opened-mouth and the creation of fire, break the string resting above the heart of hearts.

I stared at the dragon's mouth as a flicker began in its throat; cut off by a sharp jerk backward in retreat. No sound escaped from the dragon as it spasmed, but its rider's last action in my presence clutched at his chest. Then, Maelorum drove his wings down roughly to detach from it.

A whisper shot past my ear, and then another. Metal clashed with the weight of the dragon below us. Screams erupted from some battle below, and then faded as Maelorum climbed furiously to avoid more arrows. He brought my attention to another dragon approaching from the city. From the mocking, rushed a familiar orange. A small change in air pressure forced me to look upward at a sudden shadow falling on me.

Maelorum twisted sharply, my body jerking painfully at the motion. I dropped my bow to string it around my arm to grasp the handle on Maelorum's saddle as the world flipped. I looked down, into the sky, to find Verdigra attempting to punish Maelorum for something. He refused to yield to her assault, and I caught sight of Vandar on her back. His grin widened unnaturally, but Verdigra let Maelorum go, and he kicked off. I fell backward in the saddle, easing the unnatural movement forward. As he righted himself, his thoughts were anxious from the bout.

I will not hesitate to kill her as well before this war is over.

Maelorum righted us, and the blood returned to my face again. If she thought of him as a toy again, I would defend him. This was no longer a petty joke. As Maelorum kept an eye on Verdigra, Ignant and another muddy turquoise dragon flew to intercept us. The wind shifted, and I gripped the saddle in another dive.

Instead of a dragon beneath us, a wall of arrows and feathered tips raced up to meet Maelorum's face and neck. I ducked, just as his wings folded in on himself. My wards created an unbroken barrier as they flew past us.

The archers scattered shortly after, as Maelorum enveloped the ramparts in black fire. We retreated quickly, as a magician sought to force her way into my mind. An elf, though unfamiliar. She found a lichen-encrusted statue at the base of Vroengard's dragonhold. She played my game, though I sensed her thoughts a mere extension of two others.

I leaned over Maelorum to find her, picturing the statue shaking off the moss to take flight. In her mind, one of the connected magicians expressed unease at the image they witnessed me conjuring. I watched through the statues' eyes to the figures of the minds as they glanced at each other.

My image exploded in their eyes, replaced by the very real sight of Maelorum. I decided to untangle my thoughts from them as I fell forward. I caught Maelorum's back spike with my hand to keep myself from flying forward at the jarring stop.

We landed roughly on the outer wall of the city as Maelorum clawed the stones to a screeching halt. The minds no longer existed for me to distract them. However, I shook the notion from my own mind. An arrow shot past the spike to my left, and I knocked an arrow before Maelorum had a chance to turn around. Several archers, mostly humans, fled to escape Maelorum's reach. Where his mouth failed to doom the individuals, I emptied my quiver into those who remained.

May you be shielded from misfortune. Maelorum thought somewhat affectionately, his mouth covered in red scales. He swiped at an object out of my sight, and exhaled. The courtyard flashed ablaze as the archer's oil drums ignited.

I twisted my bow around my shoulder and prepared myself to disembark Maelorum's back.