Thorn and Misery - Chapter 4
A quarter of an hour later, Murtagh heard a knock at the door. He opened it and saw the same serving woman that had taken him to Galbatorix two days earlier. She smiled prettily and curtsied, all semblance of politeness, but Murtagh could tell she was nervous.
"Your new suite is ready for you, sir," she said apprehensively, as though unsure whether he was going to snap at her. "If you are ready to leave, His Majesty King Galbatorix wishes you to get settled in as soon as possible."
"Yes, I'm ready," replied Murtagh. "One moment." Murtagh stepped back into his old rooms and gathered his few belongings. They consisted of little more than his armour, weapons and the clothes on his back. He crossed to the writing desk in his bedchamber, where Thorn was still curled up in sleep.
"Thorn," Murtagh said, prodding the dragon gently, "you have to get up. We're leaving."
Thorn shook himself awake. Glaring at Murtagh, he hopped lightly down from the desk and padded out of the suite.
Murtagh carried his belongings outside, where a small, wheeled cart waited for him. The servant smiled. "If you could please put your things here, sir, I will take you to your new rooms."
Murtagh nodded. "Do you want a ride?" he asked Thorn, motioning for the dragon to get in the cart. Thorn shook his small, scaly head, opting to walk. He positioned himself at Murtagh's feet, and the trio set off down the dark, winding halls.
As they walked down the corridors, they passed several men and women in the grey and white livery of palace servants, all hurrying down the corridors to one task or another. A contingent of heavily armed guards passed, bearing shields and spears.
Murtagh grew more and more confused as they continued down the halls. As the minutes wore on, they seemed to be moving deeper and deeper into the bowels of the castle. The halls soon gave way to carved stone tunnels, and he realized they were burrowing right through the tor around the citadel. Murtagh was just beginning to wonder whether Galbatorix meant to stick them in a cave when the tunnel opened onto a wide, airy corridor. It took Murtagh a moment to notice that it was naturally lit, the afternoon sunlight glinted off cut glass panes.
The servant led them down the hall to their right, stopping at a set of oak doors. She took a ring of keys from a pouch on her apron and opened the doors, revealing to Murtagh the grandest set of rooms he had ever seen.
The enormous suite had a high, domed ceiling, which was patterned with silver stars. Elegant mahogany chairs were clustered around a heath with a brilliant white marble mantle. A fire was already crackling merrily in the grate. The floors were of highly polished oak, partially concealed by thick, intricately woven rugs. Crystal-paned windows stretched from floor to ceiling. A peek into the bedroom showed Murtagh an enormous four-poster bed, larger even that the one in his old suite, covered with the softest of down comforters. Murtagh was impressed.
The serving woman smiled at Murtagh's satisfaction. "I take my leave, sirs," she said, addressing both Murtagh and Thorn. She ducked outside and wheeled in the cart bearing Murtagh's belongings. Curtsying again, she strode off down the hall.
Following Thorn into the bedroom, Murtagh flopped down on the bed, pondering what had happened to him that day. In a few short hours, he had become a Dragon Rider, with countless possibilities ahead of him. While the fact that he was under Galbatorix's control was a hindrance to be sure, Murtagh felt certain he could grow strong enough to escape the mad king. After all, he had done it before, and that was without the might of a dragon by his side.
Looking fondly at Thorn, Murtagh saw the dragon raise his snout and sniff the air. Thorn jumped off the bed and raced out a pair of double doors leading out of the bedroom. Murtagh followed him out side and found himself in a grassy meadow, bordered by a thick barrier of tall spruce trees. He took a deep breath, savouring the sweet spring air. He was immensely pleased to be outside again. For the first time since arriving at the castle, he felt like he could breathe.
At the far end there stood a strange three-sided metal structure, padded with mounds of hay. It was quite large, and seemed very sturdy, but Murtagh could not guess as to its purpose.
Suddenly, he felt something brush his leg, and looked down to see Thorn chasing a rabbit through the tall grass. Though he could have caught it in an instant, he allowed the terrified animal a few yards of freedom before pouncing on it. He snapped the rabbit's neck with a sharp shake and began to eat greedily, not stopping until that last of the rabbit had disappeared down his gullet.
Murtagh knew why the dragon was so hungry. Aside from a few drops of Murtagh's own blood, he had had nothing to eat since he had hatched. After watching Thorn eat, Murtagh discovered that he too was ravenous. He wandered back into his suite, searching for sustenance.
As Murtagh's stomach was beginning to growl painfully, he heard yet another knock at the door. He opened it, but this time it was not the serving woman he had come to expect. This one was a man, attired as the other servants were in dark grey and white. He was carrying a tray laden with a slice of juicy venison, roast potatoes and a pitcher of water.
"Good evening sir." Said the servant. "Here is your meal. I also carry a message from King Galbatorix."
"Go on."
"His Majesty wishes that you take this meal here, in your suite, but that all others are to be served in the dining hall. Food will also be provided for you dragon, but there is plenty of wild prey in the meadow outside your suite if he wishes to hunt. His Majesty expects you in the dining hall as soon a you awaken tomorrow." The servant handed Murtagh the tray of food. "Please place this tray outside your rooms when you have finished." Without waiting for a response, the servant bowed low and retreated.
Taking the tray of food into his suite, Murtagh sat down and devoured the meal, to hungry to talk to Thorn, who had wandered back into the suite, his eyelids drooping heavily. Murtagh too was growing tired.
Though he felt lazy, sleeping so much, Murtagh reminded himself that, with the exhaustion of the battle under Farther Dur and the days that followed, and then his removal to Uru'baen, he had the right to rest a while. His sense of time, though, was still oddly skewed. Murtagh didn't know how long he had been unconscious, nor when he had arrived at the castle, but it seemed like years since he had fought in the battle, visited Eragon in the herbalist Angela's rooms and hunted Urgals in the tunnels.
Murtagh finished his meal quickly, placing the empty tray outside the door of his suite. He lay down in the enormous bed, sinking comfortably between the satin sheets. Thorn hopped up to the foot of the bed, staring at Murtagh intently, as if he were concentrating.
Then Murtagh felt another mind touch his own. Unlike Galbatorix's malignant probes, this one seemed harmless.
Murtagh.
Murtagh stared at the dragon, who was gazing directly at him.
"Is that you?" he asked, completely bewildered. How could the dragon have learned to communicate so quickly? It was not even a day old.
Yes. Thorn. Thorn!
There it was again, but stronger this time. Thorn seemed to be testing out his new name.
Thorn and Murtagh.
As Murtagh closed his eyes, he felt Thorn's consciousness touch his one last time.
Dragon and Rider.
Murtagh smiled as he succumbed to his exhaustion, then plunged into heavy sleep with Thorn curled at his feet.
A/N: So I'm having issues with this chapter, but it's not just this one - I'm debating whether or not to change my description of Uru'baen to match the gigantic stone bluff in Inheritance. I like the image, but changing it will cause me much grief. I pretty much have to change how it looks every time they go outside. As this is also one of the bigger projects (coming to the end of those, I promise!) it will wait for a while. I'll gradually change the easier stuff right away, though. If it's too much of a pain in the ass, I could always settle for "semi-Inheritance compliant," but I'd rather not do that if I can avoid it.
- Miss Maddie