Truth be told, Hal was grateful to take first watch. Her mind was too full of information to grant her any sleep tonight. So instead she pulled her sketchbook out of her bag and paced the floor of the cave, trying to read her notes to calm her mind but hardly paying them any attention.

She stopped mid-pace and, once again, found her gaze resting on the sleeping form of the rider. He slept on his side, his back to her, and yet she still felt foolish and self-conscious staring at him. She didn't know what made the least amount of sense: the sudden and nefarious appearance of the Ra'zac or the notion that she could actually be enjoying the rider's company.

Hal felt Thorn's gaze on her and turned to face him, finding his eyes teasing. "Oh, shut up," she whispered, flustered and hoping he would not report her strange behavior to the rider. She continued to walk back and forth, closing her book and hugging it to her chest, no longer able to pretend she was doing nothing more than reading. Her head was beginning to hurt from the multitude of thoughts vying for her attention and dissection.

Feeling too much confliction thinking about the rider, she instead focused on the Ra'zac. All she knew about them was what Murtagh had told her. Her first instinct was that they were perhaps the reason the little girl Murtagh was looking for was even in danger. The timing of it all was too coincidental — and Hal had always been taught that things happened for a reason, whether she liked the reason or not. And if she thought about it…

The appearance of the Leatherblaka — or whatever it was called — would coincide with the strange behavior of the lovuk. Especially if she assumed that they had shown up around the same time Eragon had started having visions of the child, which would have been a few months ago as well. A predator of that size would disrupt the natural order of things, especially if it fed on the same population of animals that the lovuk did. Hal bit down on her lip to keep from gasping out loud. That was it! The lovuk were looking for a new food supply, it would explain why they had changed their hunting patterns and were coming dangerously close to the village. They were desperate, they had no choice. And then add Thorn into the mix, and the balance of the island tilted completely.

Hal sighed. It was almost too easy.

With one mystery solved, Hal decided to then focus on trying to figure out how she could help the rider with his dilemma. There were not many villages on Illium to begin with, and Hal was only closely familiar with one, aside from her own. And there was no child matching the description he had given her in either village. It was still possible that the child was somewhere else — although apparently Illium was the only option according to Eragon. Would any of the other villages listen to them long enough to cooperate? It seemed far-fetched, but Murtagh insisted that Eragon was adamant about the child's safety. Hal didn't want to leave it to chance if she could help, but she needed more information.

Hal sat down against the wall near Nani, crossing her legs and closing her eyes, trying to think. She could feel a vein throbbing on her temple in frustration. There were so many holes, clues and key details she was missing. It wasn't long before she was back up and pacing again, Thorn's eyes following her diligently, and she half wondered if Murtagh had told the dragon to literally keep an eye on her at all times or if the dragon had just taken the request to heart. Either way, the thought made her smile and, teasing Thorn, she stopped and winked at him.

He winked back.

Grinning hard, Hal continued moving about the cave to keep herself awake and alert. She sharpened her blades, stole arrows from Cado that he owed her, and went through Amon's bag for snacks. Confident she had successfully killed half-an-hour of her time, Hal dragged herself out towards the entrance, sitting out of the view of any potential assailants, but still granting herself a bit of the night sky, unperturbed by the spray of the falls.

Despite the danger around them, Hal felt a strange stirring of peace. There was an innate comfort to be found in the forest. One that quelled the nerves in her heart and the fear in her mind. She breathed. She wished it could always be like this.

"I know that sigh," a voice said from behind her.

Hal turned and grinned. "Don't you need your beauty rest, old man?"

Amon shot her a reproachful look as he settled down beside her. Then, too annoyed by the spray from the falls, stepped around her so that he was a little further out. Hal moved closer. "What are you doing up anyway?"

"Couldn't sleep. Too anxious."

"About the Ra'zac?"

"Among other things."

Something in his tone made her look over at him, and his gaze was heavy. She knew immediately what — or rather who — he was referring to. "Can we not do this now?"

"Then when, Hal? What do you really know about him? Can we trust him?"

"It's not about trust, Amon —"

"Then explain it to me, Halen. Because it took you years to open up to us and you are chatting with him like you are old pals. Need I remind you of the crimes he stands accused?"

"You know I love you all to death, but I'm getting sick and tired of you all presuming I'm incapable of common sense. I'm aware of what he's done and who he has served. But it does not negate the fact that he was there when no one else was. Or has it not occurred to you that I am the only one from the village here right now?"

His expression indicated that he was very much aware of that, and Hal felt a sting of remorse at her outburst. "I do not trust him," she continued in a low voice. "Nor does he trust me, I am sure. But I am in no position to turn down his help when he has offered it from what I believe to be an honest and kind place. His sins are his own and between whatever god or gods he serves. My priority is getting you all home and making sure that Ra'zac does not follow."

Amon nodded. "All right, all right, I won't bring it up again."

"Thank you." As an afterthought, she added, "You know, if you tried talking with him, you might be surprised." He certainly managed to surprise her on occasion.

The man stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Perhaps. I will be sure to keep that in mind."

But Hal was only half paying attention, distracted as a few rocks that had fallen loose from the structure above tumbled down behind Amon. She watched them, and her eyes grew wide at the implication. She looked up, but the Ra'zac had already moved to strike. Its beak clamped down on Amon's shoulder and the man's face twisted from surprise to pain, screaming as blood spurted from the injury, his arm dangling limply at his side.

Hal shouted, unfurling as she drew her dagger and lunged for the Ra'zac. The creature released Amon, whose eyes fluttered close as he went into shock. Hal scrambled to catch the man, but he fell from the ledge and into the dark water below.

"AMON!"

The Ra'zac easily dodged her attack, moving with an inhumane speed. It gripped her wrist and twisted so tightly that Hal dropped her weapon, falling to her knees out of fear it would break her arm. Then it slammed its fist into her stomach so hard that she momentarily blacked out, fighting the urge to throw-up as her body went limp. The Ra'zac tossed her over its shoulder and began the hasty climb back up the cliff wall.

"HALEN!"

She couldn't tell whose voice it was, but she could hear the urgency. She tried to loosen her tongue. To warn them about Amon. But she couldn't think straight, struggling to maintain what little consciousness she did have in the wake of such a painful blow.

By the time the Ra'zac reached the top of the cliff, however, feeling and movement were returning to her limbs. She began to struggle so violently that she actually managed to catch the Ra'zac off guard, and they both went toppling to the ground. She scrambled towards the edge, but the creature was fast, grabbing her ankle and dragging her back. Hal dug her fingers into the ground, trying to find something to grip. She kicked mercilessly, but the Ra'zac seemed unfazed by her efforts, which frightened her all the more.

Suddenly, the light from the moon went out and Hal felt a chill sweep over her. But her worries were soon cast aside when she recognized the bulky shape of Thorn. She cried out in relief as the dragon righted himself, his red eyes menacing and unforgiving as it eyed the Ra'zac, who let out a loud shriek at the threat. Murtagh sat atop, his mouth pressed into a hard line, his eyes cold. Even Hal flinched, momentarily frightened by the look on his face.

Thorn angled himself towards the ground and shot towards the Ra'zac as Murtagh raised the sword in his hand. And Hal's momentary delight was short-lived as a fully-grown Ra'zac seemed to appear out of nowhere, teeth bared as it latched on to Thorn's neck, knocking him off course. And Hal realized then that the noise the Ra'zac had made had been a cry for help, not one of fear. It hadn't come alone.

"No!" Hal shouted.

But before she could move, the Ra'zac got a fistful of her hair and yanked hard before slamming her head down into the ground. Not once, but twice. And Hal knew no more.

…

Murtagh was furious with the Ra'zac. But worse of all, he was furious with himself. He had not been paying any attention to his surroundings, so focused he had been on reaching Halen and destroying the Ra'zac. And now he could only watch helplessly as the Ra'zac violently knocked her out and sprinted her off. He should've anticipated there would be another Lethrblaka, and now it would cost Thorn and Halen greatly.

My injuries are nothing, Thorn snapped, pulling Murtagh out of his reveries. I need you to focus, young one. I cannot worry about you and this monstrous snake at the same time.

Murtagh shook his head, trying to clear his mind so that he did not bog Thorn down with his worries. But he feared for Halen in ways he did not anticipate. He could not leave her at the mercy of the Ra'zac.

Gritting his teeth at his own failure to properly protect her, he steeled his resolve.

I must keep my magic to a minimum since we will also need to rescue Halen and I am still weak, he admitted, feeling irritated with his own uselessness. But I will aid in whatever way I can.

Leave it to me!

Thorn seemed increasingly enthusiastic at the opportunity to take down the beast. Although it had been a while since he had faced a true opponent, not including the Nïdhwal of course, Thorn still had his brute strength and overall ferocity as an advantage. Although the Lethrblaka was strong and fierce in its own right, Murtagh could sense Thorn's overwhelming determination to finish the fight as quickly as possible.

Although dragons were at ease fighting in the sky, it still gave Murtagh a strange rush as Thorn twisted and turned, making sure Murtagh stayed out of the way of the Lethrblaka's beak and claws. Thorn soon got the beast between his teeth, tightening his grip on its neck.

"Thorn, keep him down!"

Murtagh jumped up from his saddle and ran down his dragon's neck, careful not to look down and using his momentum to keep his balance. Although the thrashing Lethrblaka threatened to knock him to the ground, Murtagh moved quickly. He jumped from Thorn to the winged beast, where he had a much harder time maintaining his footing. Using the spikes protruding from the back of the creature's neck to hold on to, he reached the top of the beast's head and turned the blade of his sword down, shouting as he impaled the Lethrblaka.

The creature screamed, writhing in agony as it attempted once more to throw Murtagh off. But it was no matter. He pulled back his blade and jumped, Thorn easily managing to catch him with his tail. The Lethrblaka crashed into the ground, still fighting for its life as Thorn descended towards the ground. He set Murtagh down first, who was attempting to catch his breath, before stalking towards the Lethrblaka with murder in his eyes. He took the flailing neck in his jaw again and tore it from the creature's body, throwing over the cliff in a silent victory.

"Rider!"

He looked over his shoulder, turning in surprise as the men rushed forward. Between Cado and Ayo was Amon, soaked and covered in blood from an injury on his shoulder. Murtagh swore, rushing forward as they set the man down carefully. He was about to question how they carried him up so quickly when he saw the horse being cared for by Sam.

"That bastard took Hal," Amon groaned, his face sickly as Murtagh kneeled down in front of him.

"I know. I'm going to get her back." And he was going to carve a hole in the Ra'zac's chest when he found her.

After he healed the worst of Amon's injury, the man rose to his feet, still looking unsteady because of the amount of blood he had lost. But his face was determined, as were the others, and Murtagh knew what was coming.

"How can we help?" Cado asked quickly, following him as Murtagh headed towards Thorn.

"You can stay here and out of my way. Halen won't forgive me if anything happened to you." And he would work faster if he didn't have to worry about any more innocent lives.

"Then you don't understand that we cannot sit idly by and do nothing if that bastard has her!" Cado countered hotly.

"Use us, rider," Sam cut in. "For whatever you need to do. However you need to find her. Use us. The more of us, hopefully they faster we can work."

His argument made sense, but Murtagh still hesitated. This was not their fight. This shouldn't even be Halen's fight. Hell, he didn't even know if this was his fight. But the thought of getting anyone else involved with the Ra'zac made his stomach curl. These weren't court royals or Varden dignitaries or even soldiers, playing with the lives of others like it was a chess game. These were innocent people. People who have likely never seen war, who have never seen anything like the Ra'zac. And the thought of opening that exposure even further than it already was…he couldn't bring himself to do it. Couldn't bring himself to further soil a place that, up until now, Galbatorix hadn't been able to taint.

Halen had come all this way to save these men, and now they were risking everything to save her. It was honorable, and Murtagh could not help but admire it.

"I cannot protect you all if things go wrong," he warned them.

"Halen is your priority, as is ours," Ayo said smoothly without batting an eye.

Murtagh still had his reservations, but if they insisted…

"Thorn, can you still pick up her scent?" Murtagh asked.

Aye, but we must hurry. The Ra'zac is moving quickly in the cover of night and we do not know how much ground we will need to cover. I fear they have a grave advantage over us.

Murtagh nodded. To the men, he said. "Get the horses. Keep up if you can, but I will not slow down for anything until I've reached Halen."

…

Hal had not stopped shaking since the Ra'zac bound her wrists together and hung them from something — a hook perhaps, but she couldn't tell — above her head. She was kneeling on the wet ground, her pants soaked at the knees. Her clothes were filthy from where she had dragged herself through the dirt, trying to slow the bastard down, trying to escape. But they had traveled so quickly, inhuman speeds, that it seemed like they had already traveled several miles. How much time had passed?

And they were underground, no less. Deep. She could hear parts of the river passing overhead. Had these tunnels always been here, or did the Ra'zac make it themselves? She could discern nothing because it was disturbingly dark. There was no waiting for her eyes to adjust and no hope of light from above filtering in. And yet, she could hear the Ra'zac move around like it was nothing.

She didn't dare speak, trying to twist and pull at the rope confining her arms in the hopes of either hand breaking free, ignoring the burn it left on her wrists.

"You cannot essscape the Ra'zac," the creature hissed, closer than Hal had anticipated. She yelped in surprise, jerking away. But she could feel the creature following her, and no amount of shirking away would dissuade it. She heard it take a deep breath, smelling her, and she had to bite down on her lip to keep from crying out.

"Yesss," it hissed. "You sssmell exactly like our massster. Could it be…could it be…"

"P-p-please," Hal whispered, feeling pitiful and small as she spoke. "I d-d-don't kn-know anything."

"We ssshall sssee, won't we? Yesss, massster will reward me handsssomly for thisss. But firssst, mussst be sssure. Mussst be sssure."

She heard the smooth sound of a blade being pulled from its sheath, and Hal began thrashing and screaming in a panic. Everything felt worse, felt heightened, because she may as well have been blind. There was no gauging when the attack would come, only fighting back as best she could until it did.

When the knife tore through the material of her vest and tunic, Hal's mind went completely blank. No, no, no, no, no — this wasn't happening. Not again. The creature ignored her as her back was exposed, and she stiffened as it ran the blade down the skin and scars that adorned it. Hal flinched as her legs became wet and warm, the stench of her own urine hitting her, flush with humiliation at a response that she had no control over.

Hal thought it would at least ask her a question first, assumed it was trying to gauge what she knew about whatever master this thing served. But no questions came, nor did any warning. Something liquid was poured down her back. It didn't feel like much, but it didn't take long before a scream was ripped from her throat. Whatever was inching down her back felt like liquid fire, eating away at the top layer of her skin.

The burn waned, but it was still there, and Hal's screams fell to tightly gritted teeth, tears running down her face as she tried begging one more time. "P-Please, whoever you th-th-think I am, you're w-w-rong.

Its only response was to click its beak before pouring more liquid down her back. Hal screamed again, arching her back in the blinding pain.

Please.

The liquid was poured again.

Anyone.

The Ra'zac hissed in irritation, as if it was expecting something to happen.

Save me.