Galbatorix's Wrath
Disclaimer: I own all things in this fic that are not canon Eragon. If it is canon Eragon, it belongs to Christopher Paolini (a.k.a. the genius who creeps the heck out of my friend.)
Throne Room
Galbatorix paced around the throne room. He leaned over the black scrying bowl. He muttered, "Draumr kopa," and looked into it.
He saw Ardis and the escaped slave girl Shaheen riding. He wasn't fooled by their disguises as boys. Their hair had been stuffed into their caps and they had bound their chests. It was a spotty job. They didn't exactly look overly masculine. It wouldn't raise too much suspicion since Galbatorix hadn't put out wanted posters yet. He had only realized yesterday that Ardis had gone with the escaped horse thief to Surda. She had told Deandra that she was visiting Lady Alera. Galbatorix hadn't believed her at first, but he realized it was true when he checked her mind. He was sure his other daughter had known. This operation had Luce's name written all over it in bright red ink. That was why he was going to send his newest slave, a girl who had previously belonged to Elra Andrickai, to get her.
Ardis could've planned this herself, master, Shruikan replied.
Dragon, why must you question what you know must be true? Galbatorix asked. Why did this dragon annoy him so much at times like these?
Ardis has made attempts to gain help before, the dragon replied. You told me she sent Er-the blue rider a dream begging for help only a few weeks ago. There is know need to kill her and give the dragon Iormungr another rider until you are sure she did this. The dragon would be strongest and a more willing servant with her. Luce had been on shaky ground with Galbatorix. One wrong move and her life were forfeit. Shruikan sighed. Cora, his old rider, hadn't been this mad, this driven, this controlling. Shruikan felt a sharp stab of pain.
Stop mourning that slut! You should be glad to be rid of her! Galbatorix yelled. He then muttered a word in the ancient language that was Shruikan's true name. The black dragon's expression went blank. He was Galbatorix's slave again.
Galbatorix broke the image in the bowl. He had learned the runaways' location from their own mouths; through hard riding, they had reached Lithgow, a city near Aberon.
He looked at the petite, attractive, raven-haired slave kneeling before him. Her expression was cool and calculating.
"You may wonder why I chose to buy you, girl," he uttered coolly.
"Your majesty has shown me a great honor," the girl replied respectfully.
"It is because of you aunt. Selma was her name. She was killed by persons currently unknown," Galbatorix continued. "She came to me a slave. Her sister and her husband, your parents, went to the Earl Andrickai. I quickly put her talents to use. She made an excellent spy. No doubt relatives of the traitors she handed over to me were responsible for her…unfortunate demise. I have observed the same talents in you. In short, I want you to replace your aunt as a spy. In exchange for that, I shall give you your freedom."
"What would you have me do?" the slave asked.
"I would have you begin by keeping track of the red rider and perhaps the green one," Galbatorix explained.
His expression changed a bit. He fingered a lock of her hair.
"Beautiful," he whispered. "Your name means beautiful snake in one of the old, forgotten tongues. Did you know that? How fitting. Belinda. Yes, very fitting." He stroked her smooth face then dropped his hand as his face assumed its original countenance.
"Go fetch the green rider. She should be in the practice courts," he told Belinda, his face stoical.
Practice Courts
Luce parried Murtagh's blow just in time. This was their third match of the day. Murtagh had already beaten her the first two times. It looked like this one would have the same outcome; it would just take him longer to win. He was gaining ground quickly. She could only defend, not attack. She had to keep backing up. He bore down on her. She managed to keep his blocked blade away from her throat. He was pushing her to her knees now. If he managed that, he would win again.
Murtagh seemed to grow impatient with her resistance. He pushed himself against to get her to back down. She was on her knees. She was still holding Zar'roc away from her throat. She put one hand on the ground, lifted her long legs out from under her, kicked him in the chest, and pushed him on his back. She climbed on top of his well-muscled torso, pressed her blade against his throat, and panted, "Dead." She had only beaten him twice before in past three weeks.
Murtagh stared up at her, shocked. He hadn't expected that. Luce looked shocked too. She was still straddling his chest and holding her sword against his neck, panting. This particular battle had been going on for twenty minutes.
"Good," he said once Luce rolled off of him. She lay on her back, her hair splayed around her face. He sat up and studied her. Her lanky figure had grown more muscular in the weeks of constant practice. Her chest heaved. She looked understandably worn out. Today, she had mastered two spells she had been struggling with for the past few weeks and beaten him, a rare occurrence. His technical skill was as good as hers, he was stronger than she, and he had had more practice and better tutelage.
"Thanks," she said. Her voice was more breathless than usual.
He got up and offered her his hand. She stayed sitting. He let it drop.
"I just beat you," she teased. "I can't get up yet."
Murtagh laughed and pulled her up. She sat back down, laughing too. Murtagh rolled his eyes at her. She rolled them back. He forced her to her feet again. When she tried to sit down a third time, he swung her over his shoulder.
"Put me down," she yelled, laughing and punching his back.
"I won't put you down until you promise to stay standing," he joked.
Someone cleared their throat. Murtagh half dropped half put down Luce. They both turned to look at the source of the sound. A petite, raven-haired slave neither of them had seen before stood there.
"His majesty requests your presence in the throne room," she said.
Luce picked herself up from the ground and followed the slave.
When they had finished the travel to the throne room, the slave entered the room first. She was announcing Luce. The female rider was reminded of the day her egg had hatched. Her stomach clenched as she thought of what might have caused this summons. Perhaps he had discovered that Ardis had not gone to Lady Alera's sooner than intended. Thankfully, Luce had been able to store her memories of helping Ardis in the same place she had stored her true name. Very few things could be stored in that part of her mind, or else it would undo the spell and kill her. Luce only used it for important things.
The slave appeared at the doorway. Luce went in without saying a word to her. Perhaps her imagination was playing tricks on her, but it seemed to have taken the slave a long time to announce her.
Galbatorix looked her square in the eye. She felt his probe in her mind. The pain made her sink to her knees. After what seemed like hours but had really only been minutes, the mad king stopped his attacks. Surprise was evident in his face. He had seen nothing to indicate that Luce had helped her sister escape. He knew she had. He just couldn't know how much. If she had, it must have been a miniscule amount of help. She couldn't have done enough to warrant an execution. It was too much trouble to break the bond between rider and dragon and give the dragon to another.
"I see that you have not participated noticeably in your sister's escape," he said slowly.
Luce pretended to look surprised at the news. Galbatorix didn't elaborate on it.
"She and an escaped horse thief are nearing the town of Lithgow," the king continued. "Dragon," he added so that Luce could hear, "I understand that certain creatures similar to dragons fly in the Beor Mountains. They are called Fanghur, I believe. They are not quite as intelligent as dragons, and they can't breathe fire. I think you could gain influence over them because you are a dragon. The blue one would not even think to do so. You should be able to do so. You are older, wiser, and far stronger than she. Besides, you shall have my help. I think two Fanghur should be able to wipe out Lithgow and perhaps four for Aberon."
"What about Ardis?" Luce asked.
"She is of no use to me. She could be of tremendous use to the Varden, however, and I wouldn't want to give them another rider, now would I?" Galbatorix asked. His voice was practical, but his eyes were glinting happily. Shruikan's face was screwed up in concentration. He was summoning the Fanghur.
"Now watch and learn, daughter," he continued. He cast a spell over the scrying bowl, and an image of Ardis and Shaheen appeared.
"So they started dressing as girls again," Galbatorix observed.
Lithgow ,Surda
Ardis and Shaheen rode along the dirt rode. They were away from any forestation now.
"We should be getting close to Surda now," the latter remarked, looking at the map.
Ardis nodded. She was happy they could abandon their boys' clothes. It had just barely worked. They had both found it uncannily difficult to remember that their names were Art and Sanchez, not Ardis and Shaheen. There had been several near misses in the cities along the way to Surda. They continued riding. In about ten minutes, they came to what looked like a city. At least it had been. Buildings had been destroyed, and there wasn't a living creature in sight. Both girls looked at each other nervously.
"What happened?" Shaheen asked, regaining her power of speech first.
"Do you think we read the map wrong?" Ardis asked carefully.
Shaheen looked at it again. She ran her finger over it. A few seconds later she looked up and said, "It looks right."
"What happened?" Ardis asked.
"Your guess is as good as mine," Shaheen replied. At that moment, Isadora and Ambriana began to neigh. Ambriana actually reared. Ardis barely managed to hang on. She muttered words in the ancient language to soothe the beast. The normally calm chestnut stopped rearing, but she still looked nervous.
"The horses are ready to bolt," Shaheen observed. She was trying to calm Isadora down just as Ardis had.
"Maybe we should go," Ardis said slowly.
"Yeah," Shaheen agreed. Something flew overhead, and Ambriana reared again. Ardis couldn't hold on this time. She felt winded. She could here both horses whinnying.
"What was that?" she asked.
Shaheen didn't answer. She had jumped off Isadora and was staring transfixed ahead of her. A long, serpentine beast stood before them. It was similar to a dragon, but Ardis didn't think that was what it was. The answer hit her; it was a Fanghur.
Aberon, Surda
Eragon stood there, arguing to Roran. The dragon rider hadn't appeared yet, despite the fact that nearly citizen of Surda and the Varden had touched it. Roran wanted to leave for Ellesmera now. Eragon could see the point of his arguments. He told Roran he was going to ask Nasuada about it. As if on queue, the Varden's leader came running towards them. Jarsha, the messenger boy, was running behind her.
"Four Fanghur are attacking the city, Eragon," she panted.
"What?" he yelled.
"What are-?" Roran began to ask.
"You'll find out soon. Just get on Saphira," Eragon told his cousin. Roran picked up his hammer and bow, and they both mounted the blue dragon. Saphira took off. He heard Nausada yell, "There are two in Lithgow," before she was out of sight.
They flew over the city. Eragon saw the damage the beasts had done. Where were they?
A creature hurled itself at Saphira. She dodged it just in time. Roran leapt off Saphira despite Eragon's protests. His cousin had spotted another one.
Roran leapt on the Fanghur's back. It noticed the added weight and turned its head to get at Roran. As the creature did this, Roran smashed its skull in with his hammer.
The beast screeched in agony. It fell to the ground dead. Roran leapt off it before the crash. He felt himself freeze. Another, though not the one Saphira and Eragon had been battling, had caused the stupor.
The Fanghur slithered up to him. It put a long claw on his chest. It was going to cut out his heart first. Before the thing could do this however, someone leapt on top of it, pulling to the ground. It was Nasuada. Roran's stupor ceased and he went to help the Varden's leader. He couldn't get at the creature's head without hurting Nasuada. At last, the dark woman drew her sword and cut off its head.
Arya ran toward them. A dead Fanghur lay behind her. She looked them both over as though to assure herself they were alright. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that they were. The last Fanghur crashed down between them. It had been the largest by far. Eragon and Saphira landed next to it. All three looked relieved as the Shadeslayer climbed off his dragon. Nasuada smiled warmly; Roran clapped him on the back; and Arya heaved a sigh and smiled radiantly. Eragon turned red.
"We must go to Lithgow now," the she-elf said.
"Eragon and I'll go," Roran put in. Eragon nodded.
"Saphira can't carry four," he explained.
"Be careful," Arya and Nasuada said together.
Eragon nodded as they took mounted Saphira and took off.
Lithgow
"Shaheen!" Ardis yelled. The former slave snapped out of her trance just in time. She threw herself on the ground, and the Fanghur passed over her head. It spun around and went for Ardis. She pulled out her bow and shot. The thing had been pierced in the eye. It shrieked, and Ardis shot again. The thing howled more fiercely. It began to sniff around for them.
Ardis stepped out of its way just in time. The thing turned its head towards her. It sniffed. She backed against a wall. She had no where to turn. She tried to resist its stupor. She was failing.
Something else made the beast howl. Shaheen had set a pebble on fire with magic and hurled it at the monster. Ardis followed her lead, picked up a handful of gravel, set it on fire, and hurled it at the thing. She slipped around it. Both girls continued to pelt the beast with burning gravel. It couldn't put them in a trance because of its agony. It hurled itself at Ardis again, and Shaheen took advantage of its distraction to hurl her body on top of it.
Ardis joined her friend, and they both wrestled with the thing, trying to keep away from its jaws and claws. (A/N: Hehe. That rhymed.) Shaheen pulled a dagger out of her boot and stuck in the things throat. The Fanghur made a gagging noise and collapsed. The girls untangled themselves from the dead beast.
"Do you think there are more?" Ardis asked. Shaheen was too winded to speak. Suddenly, Ardis felt more winded, and she knew the answer to her question. There was another Fanghur, and it had entranced them both. It flew over head and landed in front of them. It looked from girl to girl. Its gaze came to rest on Ardis. It was going to eat her first.
Before the thing could do this, a blue dragon flew down and landed in front of it. Two boys left off the back. Ardis knew who they were: Eragon and his cousin Roran.
All three fought the Fanghur. It was larger than the other one and put up a fierce fight, but it was no match for a dragon, a rider, and a human. Eragon killed the thing by beheading it with a plain sword. For some reason, Ardis felt angry at Murtagh for taking Zar'roc. Eragon should've had it instead of this weak sword.
"Thank you," Ardis heard a voice say. "Thank you so much." It was Shaheen. The slave girl seemed to be overcome. Whether this was because she hadn't seen many men as good-looking as Eragon and his cousin or because her life had just been spared, she couldn't tell. Ardis sank to her knees and wept. Even when Menander had held that dagger to her throat, she had never been so certain that her life was at an end. The relief was almost too much. She could here Shaheen telling Eragon and Roran her name. They hadn't asked her what Ardis' was yet.
Eragon looked at the two girls. The one who was thanking them had skin almost as dark as Nasuada's, bronze eyes, a full figure, average height, and thick black curls. The girl who was weeping was small and compact with chestnut hair that obscured her face.
"Why do you weep?" he asked the girl kindly.
She put up her head and smiled. Eragon almost gasped. She was one of the most beautiful humans he had ever seen.
"I..I thought I was going to die," she whispered.
"Well, you're not," Roran interrupted. Eragon smiled back at the girl. There was something familiar about her voice. What was it?
"What's your name?" he asked.
"Ardis," she replied.
Eragon did gasp this time.
"Ar-," the girl whispered before fainting.
Eragon was certain this was the girl from his dreams.
So how did you like it? I wanna know what color the you all think the Varden's egg should be. I can't decide. Please give an opinion on the subject. Also, which pairing do you like better? Eragon/Arya or Eragon/Ardis? If Ardis isn't with Eragon, whom should she be wtih? Keep in mind that they're going to Ellesmera.