A/N: A first for me, I have put in what happens to characters on the other side of the story. Normally, I only deal with the good side, but I decided that this way would give it a little more suspense, and some depth. Thank you to

Eragon's training continued. He learned more spells, more about the history of Alagaesia, and more about the other races of Alagaesia. Eragon kept busy, as did Saphira. Soon, their worries about Voldemort and Galbatorix dwindled, still there but not thought of constantly.

Several weeks past, and it was just after dusk. Hearing a screech, Eragon looked about. Outside the window of Oromis's hut was a snowy owl, and Eragon recognized her as Hedwig.

"What's the matter, Eragon?" Oromis asked when Eragon got up.

"There's an owl. It's got a message for me," Eragon said. "The wizards of the other world use owls as messengers." Eragon let the bird in, and Hedwig promptly dropped the message into Eragon's hands. Eragon read the message quickly, then shook his head. He read it again, this time tears streaming down his face as he finished it again.

"Dumbledore…" Eragon trailed off. He shook his head again, trying to clear it. He had liked the old Headmaster, even though they hadn't really had a chance to get to know each other well. The loss was almost akin to when Brom had died. Almost. "Dumbledore died. Betrayed by one of the professors he trusted. According to Harry, who was the closest eyewitness of the event, a boy named Draco Malfoy, the one who magically upended sludge onto Saphira's nose, led an attack on Hogwarts. It seems that when it came to killing the Headmaster, the boy couldn't do it himself. So, a professor named Snape did it for him."

Eragon looked at the snowy owl, who had hung around, seeing if a return message would need to be sent. Even the owl seemed upset by the news. "The challenge gets harder, now. How do we deal with Voldemort when his followers are everywhere? I need to learn more, about both worlds," Eragon sighed. "We have no time, though. Surely Galbatorix will launch another attack, thinking that perhaps the Varden killed Murtagh. Has a message been—" Eragon started.

"Yes, discreetly. I've talked to those who need to hear it, and who will spread the news when the right time comes," Oromis said.

Eragon nodded, knowing that the elves did not like sudden changes. He did his duty by informing Oromis of the change. He could not be responsible anymore for not informing someone of the change.

Hedwig gave an impatient hoot. She was still waiting to see if a message would need to be sent back. Eragon decided then that it would at least be polite to send a reply.

Eragon wrote quickly and neatly. His reply read: "I am sorry for the loss. There isn't enough time to learn everything I need to know, now. The Varden, the elves, and I must strike the Empire while there is still some confusion. Our enemies mustn't join forces."

Eragon watched as the snowy owl flew off, then he turned to Oromis and bade him goodnight before returning to his quarters.

Draco Malfoy was nervous as he was called to the Dark Lord's presence. The Dark Lord, Voldemort, had set up headquarters in the old Riddle house. Malfoy was nervous because of his failure, though the attack had succeeded. He was charged to kill Dumbledore, and he failed. If Snape hadn't done the deed, Dumbledore might still be alive.

Facing the Dark Lord, Draco's knees began to tremble. There was no telling what mood Voldemort was in, and Draco hadn't done his duty.

"So. You lead the attack on Hogwarts, but failed to kill Dumbledore. Instead, Severus Snape did it for you," Voldemort said.

"Y-yes, my lord. I-I'm sorry," Draco said. Damn, he thought, I sound just like Wormtail!

"Stop stuttering like Wormtail!" the Dark Lord raged. "I put up with enough of it as it is."

"Sorry, my lord," Draco said, controlling his fear and nervousness.

"Tell me about the Rider that came to the school you used to go to," Voldemort ordered.

Malfoy was surprised. He was expecting some sort of formal punishment, not to report on that giant lizard's friend. Snape must have told him about the Rider.

"Well, he knows magic, a different sort of magic, and his world is in a war. Something about an evil king who controls an empire. Supposedly, his dragon is the last female of her race. I don't know much, because he usually hung around Harry and his two friends, and I was focusing on the attack on Hogwarts. There was another, but he was detained and moved within the day. That one was working for the evil king, I think," Draco said, some of his old confidence creeping back in.

"Did you happen to get either name?" Voldemort asked, annoyed that he had to ask such a question.

"The one that stayed was called Eragon. I never learned the other's name," Draco replied.

"Eragon, hmm. If he's made friends with Harry Potter, then he may be a problem," the Dark Lord said. "This evil king… do you know any more about him?"

"No, I don't, my lord," Draco said.

"No matter, I'll find the information I want, soon enough. I have agents checking out the new places that have appeared here in Europe," Voldemort said. "Your job is to find out where this Eragon is, send an owl back to me, and detain him. Since you apparently can't use the death curse, we'll have to send someone else to do that job." He sounded annoyed because of it.

Draco prudently kept his mouth shut. He wanted to forget that he'd failed to do his first job. Well, it wasn't a complete failure, just that he didn't do the deed.

"Now go. And make sure you do this job properly," the Dark Lord commanded.

About a week after receiving the news about dumbledore, a different owl approached Eragon, this time while he was getting ready for bed. This one was a barn owl. It too had a message, which read: "This owl is yours. And you're right: our enemies mustn't join forces. Take good care of your new owl." It was signed by the entire trio.

Eragon looked at the bird, who was gazing with curiosity at Saphira. The blue dragon was sleeping on her dais.

"Fearless little thing, aren't you?" Eragon spoke to the owl. It hooted back.

Saphira cracked one eye open, and closed it again. She wasn't as deeply asleep as she seemed. Eragon quietly got ready for bed. Looking at the owl again, he sighed. The only problem was that they were going to have to figure out a way to code their messages in case an owl got intercepted.

The following day, Eragon told Oromis about the owl. The old Rider merely nodded.

"We need to strike the Empire while there's still a little confusion. Galbatorix should be dealing with plenty of riots and such," Eragon said.

"We could be attacked by those we want to save," Oromis pointed out.

"I haven't thought of that. But surely there must be something we could do, to weaken Galbatorix while there's some confusion?" Eragon asked.

"I'm afraid the only thing that could even or tip the odds into our favor is that last egg. Unless we could enlist the help of the wizarding folk, which I doubt, since they want to stay hidden, that egg may very well be our last hope," Oromis. "Especially if Murtagh escapes."

Eragon suppressed a shudder. Murtagh had passed Eragon in terms of magic skill. Though they were once evenly matched in swordsmanship, Eragon's transformation had given him greater speed and agility, making him better. Eragon only hoped that the Rider of the red dragon stayed in confinement.

Murtagh woke again, hearing his guards talking. He knew he was in a different world. Question was, was he still bound to Galbatorix? There was no clear way of knowing. Murtagh sighed and listened to his guards.

"Did you hear what happened about a week and a half ago at Hogwarts?" the guard on the left asked.

"Yeah. Sad that Dumbledore died. Who'd have thought that one of his own professors would betray him?" the second guard asked back.

Murtagh winced a little at the word betray. He did betray Eragon, he realized. But, he made an oath that is impossible to break. He had to be loyal to Galbatorix. He and his dragon.

"There were some who thought Snape was too untrustworthy. Now's not the time to rub noses, though. Death Eaters in the school! You-Know-Who is getting even stronger than before. Could we even hope to win this time?" the first guard's question wasn't answered, then, as two more people came up to the guards. The guards nodded, and left, while the newcomers took up their post.

Murtagh shook his head. He tried to talk to Thorn, but couldn't reach past the stunning spell laid on his dragon. He sighed, and sat on the bunk of his cell. He looked around, trying to think of a way to escape. He wasn't drugged. Only two guards guarded him. He could use magic, he realized. But what about Thorn? Could he wake the red dragon up so that they could escape this place?

Murtagh listened to his guards, once again. This set spoke in low voices.

"I have an aunt in that area. Riots are breaking out where the place called Alagaesia is in Europe. Some Muggles, witches and wizards have completely disappeared. I hear it's the same for those in Alagaesia," the guard on the right said.

"Will that Rider put a stop the Empire's king? He supposed to be good at the Alagaesian brand of magic, and a good swordsman to boot," the other asked.

"If the Muggles don't kill that king first, the Rider may be their only hope against him," the first one said.

So, the worlds have combined, Murtagh thought. He had to escape now. Or at least try to. Until he knew that he was in a combined world, he wasn't being disloyal by not trying to escape. But it would be disloyal now that he knew the truth. He had to report his failure to capture Eragon. Much as he hated to, for last time he was punished. This time would be worse.

The guards continued to talk, completely unaware of Murtagh's restlessness. They moved their conversation to the Death Eaters, a group Murtagh only heard of moments before.

Murtagh muttered a spell, and a red fireball appeared in his hand. With a cruel smile, he threw it at the back of the guard on the left. The guard cried out in alarm, and dropped and rolled, trying to put out the quickly spreading flames. The other guard uttered a spell, and water poured from the tip of his wand. The flames were dowsed, but Murtagh had the information he needed. He could use magic, and he used it to blast a hole in the cell's back wall. He heard the guards shout and open the door to follow him. He uttered a spell, and flung some rubble at the two guards. Then, he was outside and free. It wasn't hard to find Thorn, for the dragon had been chained right behind the building.

This is easy, Murtagh thought as used a spell to break the collar that had been put around his dragon's neck. He then proceeded to try to wake Thorn up. His first two attempts failed, but he soon figured it out. Just then, a few wizards and witches rushed up to him, wands pointed. He hurled them away.

He mounted his dragon, and wished he still had the saddle. Oh well, he'll get a new one. Thorn leapt into the air, and they flew off, heading southeast towards Uru'baen.

Eragon was surprised to see Hedwig, once again. This time, the news was even direr: Murtagh had escaped. Eragon wrote his reply: "The world is in trouble now. If you need me, send Hedwig. I've named my owl Garrow. I'll let you know if there's anything on my end to report."

Eragon watched as Hedwig flew off, reply in her beak. Garrow hooted, as if in farewell to the snowy bird. Then, Eragon turned around to go to bed. He needed to rest before reporting Murtagh's escape.

The next day, he and Saphira went bright an early to Oromis' hut. Eragon gave the Cripple Who Is Whole the note that he had received. Oromis sat down after reading it.

"We need that last egg, now more than ever," Oromis said.

"I'm going to go back to the Varden, make sure all is well there, then I'm going to find Harry and try to come up with something to deal with not only Galbatorix, but Voldemort as well. Our enemies mustn't join forces," Eragon said, echoing what he had replied to Harry in response to his first letter.

"True. From the little we know about Voldemort, if he joins forces with Galbatorix, they may be unstoppable. Go ahead, then," the old Rider replied.

Eragon then prepared for departure, wondering if there would be enough time, and a way, to secure the last dragon egg, let alone hatching it and raising it. The wars were only just beginning.