Hey… look… it's an extra chapter! Completely brand-new!
Tania huffed frustratedly. "You just couldn't wait till we were up in the air, could you?" she muttered, placing the hatchling gently on the ground. It stared up at her, red-gold eyes glinting in confusion, as she reached under Murtagh's arms and legs and hefted him into the air.
Her knees nearly buckled at the sudden added weight. What did Galbatorix do, stuff him with rocks? Tania groused.
What do you mean? Ophelia asked curiously.
He's surprisingly heavy for being half-starved, the Rider replied, staggering back up the stairs. The hatchling followed, limping.
Ophelia was waiting patiently, disguised as just another part of the wall. She crouched as low to the ground as she could manage so that Tania could settle Murtagh into the saddle.
As she moved, the hatchling jumped back, squeaking in alarm. Tania dropped to her knees, hastily trying to quiet its cry. The tiny red dragon huddled closer to her, trembling, eyes locked on Ophelia's vastly larger form.
In response, the dragoness made a deep, gentle sound somewhere between a hum and a purr, reaching closer to touch her slender snout to the smaller red one. Almost instantly, the hatchling relaxed, and let Tania carry it with her as she mounted Ophelia behind Murtagh.
She was just strapping their legs in when Ophelia warned sharply, Men coming.
Ophelia felt her Rider start, then wrap her spindly little human arms around their newest passengers. Satisfied that they were secured, she quickly grabbed the walls with her front talons, pulling herself up, folding her wings expertly to hide the others.
Moments later, four soldiers rounded the corner, no doubt to replace the four soldiers who had been standing guard outside Murtagh's prison.
The four soldiers who were currently lying prone on the ground, having been knocked out by Tania.
The four new men shouted in shock and anger. "Terrus, alert the king!" one of them ordered. "Caldan, Firr, split up, each of you take one of the corridors. We can't let them escape!"
The other three men nodded and ran off. The first hastily checked the four previous guards, shaking his head piteously when he found them alive, then peeked inside the cell and—finding it empty—sprinted off to help with the search.
Relieved, Ophelia dropped to the floor, bounding forward. She retraced their earlier path, climbing once more to the rafters as soon as she could.
They passed one of the soldiers searching for the escaped pair, muttering frantically, peeking into every door he saw, checking behind every pillar and tapestry.
Thank you for your stupidity, Ophelia murmured to herself.
It seemed like an eternity before they found the dragonhold doors again. After sweeping the corridors and making sure the coast was well and truly clear, Ophelia dropped to the floor silently, and nudged one of the doors open.
Or, well, she tried.
But it was locked.
Tania! she hissed.
What?
It's locked.
The Rider was silent for a moment. I… I don't think I learned how to unlock—
Try! Make something up! Experiment!
Exactly what Brom told us not to do, Tania muttered, but she quickly dismounted and placed a hand on the double stone doors. She took a deep breath, gathering her thoughts, then murmured as softly as she could, "Mor'amr thornessa grind."
It creaked open with a sound akin to that of a screech owl, with twice the volume. Tania swayed on her feet, her eyes drooping. In a sudden rush of claustrophobic panic, Ophelia surged forward, snatching her Rider in her claws, leaping into the air and out through the dragonhold's open roof.
Her open wings caught an westward wind, and Ophelia let it carry them away from the castle, her scales now the deep purple-black of a moonless night.
The hard part was over.
She hoped.
And that's all for this chapter… this brand new chapter… this hopefully-far-more-interesting-than-the-original chapter…
Nearly forgot that I put AL in here.
Mor'amr thornessa grind—open this gate (I couldn't find the word for door, or unlock)
FF