A week. That's how long it had been since he'd been gone. This was the longest time in between subjugations that he'd allowed. Makeeda sat in the corner of her room, her knees brought up to her chest lazily, her head leaning against the brick wall. She was half awake, but she felt like she was only half alive. She knew Gabriella was alive only because she could hear the screams across the hallway at night. Everytime she heard footsteps outside of her room, she flinched slightly, expecting the door to come flying open at any moment. The scratches on her face stung as she did so, the open wounds being brought apart slightly when her skin bent.

She lifted her head sleepily, feeling something inside herself wake up. She recognized the familiar feeling, her mind being probed for access. A tear escaped her eye, stinging at the scratches as she heard a faint, smooth voice.

"I am coming."

She remembered her dragon, what he looked like, what he sounded like. She remembered his wisdom, and his friendship. It seemed like so long ago that she had seen him. Her mind was again drawn back to the memory of telling him to go search for her Kings and Queens. She thought of what could have happened to them, still oblivious to where they were. She was able to keep herself together when she thought of this, though she was not able to do the same when she thought of what happened to Edmund. She missed him, her partner, her King. She wondered what he would do if he knew what she'd been put through since arriving in Talmar.

She jumped out of her thoughts as the door opened, the man returning to the room now. He sneered at her tears and she wiped them away quickly.

"How have you been, witch?" he asked. "Have you missed me?"

She sniffled, her nose tickling her as it tried to run.

"You are a sight." he said, kneeling down to her. "You truly are."

He tried touching her face, but she pulled away. He sighed.

"Why do you fight me?" he asked.

She looked up to him again, feeling her stomach turn as she reminded herself that she was a proud Dalish being probed for information that she did not need to give.

"I fight you because I am not yours to touch." she spat.
"I don't see your King coming to save you."

Tears again came to her eyes, but they were from anger now. She knew if Edmund or Peter were here, there would be a war started by now. She swung at him, but it was a failed attempt to hurt him. She was weak, her energy drained from the lack of food and the abuse she was given daily.

He caught her wrist after she missed his face, pulling her up to her feet as he stood. She felt the muscles in her legs shaking, begging her to take the pressure off of them.

"Do you need punished some more?!" he growled in her face, shaking her around slightly. "Perhaps I should actually kill you this time!"

Makeeda had wished he'd kill her instead of what he really did to her. He slapped her for not answering, but she refused to speak even after this. He slapped her again, the scraps on her face stinging at the harsh contact. Again, he hit her, shoving her to the floor as he did so. She felt his foot beat into her ribs as she tried picking herself up. She double over on her knees, holding her abdomen as the pain flew through her. He grabbed her hair, pulling her head up as she cried out.

"Get up." he said. His voice was surprisingly calm now. Makeeda knew what this meant. She stayed down on the floor until he pulled harder on her hair, forcing her to her feet. He brought her over to the bed, which Makeeda had left untouched since she'd been in the room. He shoved her down, pinning her arms up over her head as she winced in pain. "Do you know what I find so fascinating about you, elf? That you do not fight back. You only fight when I insult your Kings and Queens. You only fight back when I talk about him."

Makeeda opened her eyes to look into the man's. She spat up into his face, making him recoil slightly. After wiping it away, he slapped her, making her face swing to the side. She kept it there, not wanting to watch him as he tried to claim her as his own.

Makeeda could hear a scramble outside of her door, which made the man stand up to see what it was. She got up too, looking around for something to hit him with. Her door burst open, a light reaching through it that knocked the man to his back. He cried out in pain as an woman ran through the door and put her foot on his chest. She had a bow drawn, pointing it at his face.

"Where is she?" she hissed at him.
"Me?" Makeeda asked, making the elf glance up slightly.
"What has he done to you?" she asked, looking back down to the man.
"Today?"
"Since you've been here, lethallan."
"What has he not done, would be more of an easier question to answer." Makeeda replied.
"Has he defiled you, my Lady?"
"Yes."

Before Makeeda could protest, the elf shot her arrow into the man's head. His body went limp underneath her foot. She lowered her bow, looking up at Makeeda to bow to her.

"I am Fae." she said. "I am here to take you to safety."
"The Varden?"
"Yes, my Lady. Come with me quickly." the elf lead Makeeda out to the hallway, leading her halfway down it before she turned back to her room. "We must not dally, my Lady."
"I was brought here with the High Queen of Narnia, and I will not leave without her." Makeeda said. "I am her protector."
"She has been brought to safety." Fae said.

Makeeda hesitated, but trusted her elf sister. She ran with her down the hallway, finding their way out of the castle gradually. Upon arriving outside in the courtyard, Makeeda heard the roar of a dragon, making her turn. There, descending from the sky, was her big black companion. She smiled at the sight of Shruikan landing and roaring at the soldiers that fought the Varden back from the castle. She ran over to him, Fae right behind her for protection. Makeeda climbed up onto him with great strain, unable to find strength in her weakened muscles. She felt someone grab her, and she kicked.

"Be still, Rider."

That voice. It made her turn at the sound. She smiled down at the man, loving another friendly face.

"Eragon." she said.
"Climb." he told her. "I will follow."

He helped her the rest of the way up before Shruikan flew away from the castle. She looked behind her, watching Eragon call off his attack force. She held on tightly to Shruikan as he flew without stopping to wait for them.

Makeeda sat on the grass, hidden underneath Shruikan's wing as they watched soldiers return with Eragon and Saphira. Makeeda got to her feet, using Shruikan as support as she did so. Eragon stopped in front of her, bringing her into a hug. She didn't think she would cry when she were to find someone that she knew, but she did. He held her for as long as she needed him to, letting her get out a few good sobs before she let go. Her eyes wide, she could barely speak, her voice hoarse.

"Have you found them?" she asked.

He looked to Shruikan, then back to her, shaking his head.

"They're gone." he said.
"Gone?"
"I'm sorry for your loss."

Makeeda felt the anxiety well up inside of her chest, wishing she could say or ask something that would clear her doubt. She knew by the way Shruikan looked at her that it was the truth. She swallowed the lump in her throat.

"How are you here?" she asked.
"I am a Rider, I do not age."
"Where is Gabriella?"
"She is resting."

Makeeda shook her head, half in horror of what the Telmarines had done to her.

"What happened?"
"She is well. She has been with us for a few days now."
"How did she get out?"
"She was released from the castle, sold as a slave to some miners. She ran as soon as she could, and we found her."
"You were looking for us?"
"Yes. We heard word that two maidens calling themselves Queens of Narnia were taken to Telmar. Shruikan found us about a day afterwards, and we knew it was you."
"Thank you, Eragon."
"Do not thank me, Makeeda. You are dear to me, and the people here." he replied. "I imagine you are tired though, and we have prepared a place for you to stay."
"I will stay with Shruikan for tonight."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."

Eragon nodded, putting his hand on her shoulder.

"I will return in the morning."

He began walking away, but Makeeda stopped him.

"Wait." she said, making him turn back to her. "Could you… Stay here with me?"

He nodded, walking back over to her.

"Are you hurt?" he asked, watching her sit back down carefully.
"No." she replied.
"I have no doubts that they beat you." he said, taking in the appearance of the scratches on her face.
"They told me I did not look normal. They tried to scratch the painting off of my face…. "
"What else did they do to you?" Makeeda shook her head at him. "Makeeda…"
"A man… I do not know what his authority was amongst the soldiers but… He… He was unkind to me."
"Did he defile you?"

Makeeda wondered then how many more times someone would ask her this now that she was free of the prison. Eragon sat down at the fire Saphira had made for them, Makeeda sitting too.

"Yes." she said. "He did."
"I suppose Fae killed him, then?"
"How do you guess that?"
"She was very willing to be your rescuer."
"Why?"
"You are their Lady." Eragon said, looking at her now.
"I am not their Keeper."
"Ah. Yes." Eragon said, looking out at the camp. "The Dales have lost the ways of their ancestors. Your old clan is gone now…"
"Where are they?"

Eragon looked back to her.

"It has been one thousand and three hundred years since we last saw each other." he said.

Makeeda realized what he was saying, but hated the feeling of everyone she had ever known being dead now.

"How am I here, in this time?"
"I do not know…" he said honestly. "It makes me even more confused to know that your High Queen is here as well, as she does not possess any magical talent."
"This confuses me too." Makeeda agreed.

They sat in silence for a moment, thinking over what had happened. Makeeda couldn't keep her thoughts on a solution for long, thinking about Edmund as she toyed with the ring on her finger. She looked down at it, not daring to ask how it had traveled with her through time; she was just happy she had something of his still. Tears came to her eyes, wishing she could have convinced him to stay that night, instead of leaving with his siblings. They all should have stayed, she thought. She looked up, noticing that Eragon was watching her.

"Talk to me." he told her.
"What is there to say?"
"You are upset."
"Really?" she said to him. "I have every reason to be upset. I should have made them stay, I am their… I was their protector. I let them go, I could have went, at least…. Now my Kings and Queens are gone. My husband…."

Makeeda let herself cry, knowing she wouldn't be able to hold it in if she wanted to.

"My husband is gone…. Edmund is never coming back…" she cried. "I am widowed without any of my friends for comfort."
"I am your friend." Eragon told her.
"As are we." Shruikan said, indicating Saphira as well. He nuzzled her slightly, making her sit back against his scaly leg.
"You should get some rest." Eragon said. "We will be here when you wake."

Makeeda listened to Saphira and Shruikan talk quietly as she let herself fall asleep, Eragon watching over the camp protectively.