Dear Readers,

The beginning of this story is under reconstruction. When you read a chapter that has nothing at all to do with what you have just read, please keep in mind that is the previous version of the story and I am redoing it as quickly as I can. I apologize for the inconveniance. I am not trying to confuse you! Later on, after chapter 28, things mostly fit together with the revised chapters of the story.

This is Chapter 12, revised.

Thank you and enjoy!

DragonRider2000

"His name is Thorn, Taya."

"How could you, Murtagh? How could you give in to Galbatorix? After all that's happened-"

Murtagh glared at her and pointed at the little red dragon. "He happened, Taya! I never dreamed of giving in, and then Thorn hatched and I had no choice… you wouldn't understand, Taya, because the bond between a dragon and a rider is so strong, and he was so small, I couldn't let Galbatorix hurt him!"

Taya stared at him with wide eyes. "He would never kill a dragon, Murtagh." She said softly.

Murtagh snorted in disgust. "That didn't matter. As a rider your mind is no longer your own. You share your thoughts; you share each other's pain. And you would do anything for your partner."

"Which includes binding yourselves to a madman?" She was furious, and while she knew she didn't understand his situation, she knew she would never do such a thing… even if she was a rider.

"Yes." He replied easily, and Taya's heart sank.

"Taya, do you want to know why he's named Thorn?"

"You want to tell me."

He took that as a yes. "Yesterday, while I was thinking of what to name him, he accidentally stabbed me with one of his talons. It hurt, and then I thought about how much we would hurt our enemies, even with a little wound like he'd given me, and I thought, we will be like a thorn in the sides of our enemies. I've learned that is often what reveals the name of a dragon. I was tired of looking in the history books, trying to find a good name from the past. I thought I'd never find a name that fit him… and then that happened." He seemed incredibly proud of himself, but Taya shivered at the thought.

'We will be like a thorn in the sides of our enemies'. This statement rang through her mind over and over again. Galbatorix was succeeding in creating a monster out of her best friend.

"I wish I could say I was glad you found the perfect name for him, Murtagh." She said quietly, looking at the baby dragon, which was not as small as it should have been. Her skin crawled. She knew he would be able to catch his own food sooner than normal. His wing span was already huge, so she knew he would have no trouble hunting from the sky….

Taya awoke with a start, her skin tingling, and a single word etched in her mind. Her room was completely dark, and slightly cold. She sat up shivering, forming the word on her tongue before she spoke it.

"Kabarak."

Beside her the little dragon started awake, and there was a thrill in the air around them. She felt the dragon's eyes on her, and then he asked in his gravelly voice,

What… what did you say?

Taya's heart began racing as she realized what she'd said, and said it again a little louder.

"Kabarak."

The little dragon shivered from head to tail and growled suddenly.

Kabarak. He said, testing it, and Taya held her breath, waiting. Her own emotions mixed with those of the dragon, creating turmoil across their link, and then the dragon touched her hand with its nose, and the mark on her palm began to glow ever so slightly.

That is my name, Taya. He said proudly, arching his neck. My name is Kabarak.

They both shivered, and between the two of them they could feel a powerful new strength flowing around them, bonding them closer together. To Taya it felt like a shockwave, and the mark on her palm glowed almost as bright as it had when he had touched her for the first time… when Kabarak had touched her for the first time. The naming of the dragon was nearly as important as their bonding, and it bound them tighter to one another, for she had created the name and he had accepted it, just as she had found his egg and he had accepted her.

Kabarak looked at her with his deep emerald green eyes, and Taya detected a new light in his eyes.

Never doubt why I chose you as my rider, Taya, because in you there is such a beacon of strength and hope that people will rally to you as they have to no one else. You are a natural leader, and when I was in my egg and Galbatorix would bring people to touch my egg I could sense only petty feelings, even if they were strong in spirit. Some only wanted, some were afraid, some were unaware of the possibilities, and some just did not care. Murtagh touched my egg before he touched the red egg, and I felt his hesitation, his hatred, his pain, his inner most thoughts of grief and anger, and an awareness of evil, among other things. I shrank from those feelings. Why would I want a Rider who would possibly take me down a road I never wanted? I wanted to build my strength with a partner who valued life, who valued others, who wanted no pity, who did not want such power as I would give him or her. When you took me from Uru'baen, it took a little time for Galbatorix's spells to wear away from my egg, but I had a feeling from the moment you touched my egg, that you were the one. There was such urgency for good in you that I had never felt in anyone before, and it made me want to hatch more than anything, to help you, to defend you and stand beside you in whatever came at us. That urgency began to mold me even before I hatched. I developed far more quickly than my kin usually do because I knew you needed me, and you needed me to be as strong as I possibly could. Now, I have a name that describes me, that makes me who I am, and that ties us even closer together. There is already such an understanding between us, and I think we can take what it means to be a Rider and Dragon to a whole new level of understanding… do you agree?

Taya reached out her hand and touched his head, awe flowing from her. How many times would she have wondered why such a creature had hatched for her? His words wiped away any doubt or uncertainty that might have been growing inside her, and replaced those feelings with joy and a certain amount of determination. He was right; she'd never wanted the power of being a Rider, nor had she ever really wanted to be one. She had stolen his egg from Uru'baen to bring it to the Varden, for the good of Alagaesia.

She smiled widely. "I do, Kabarak. I really do."

Something had begun that could not be undone.

Taya looked up into the darkness towards the door, suddenly excited. He had a name! She had to go tell Sasha and Raya. Who cared if it was the middle of the night?

Kabarak knew what she was thinking and so he curled up on the bed, knowing he must stay in the room.

I'll be right back! She said, bouncing up and stepping lightly to the door.

Be careful. Hereplied, but she could feel his own excitement at her venture. Grinning to herself, she slipped into the hall way and avoided the noisy spots on the wooden floor, gliding down the steps like a ghost. She'd turned the corner and was about to enter the back part of the Inn, which was the Tatanya's house, when she stumbled in surprise and sudden fear as she felt an all too familiar consciousness reaching out past her, and she was dragged into the probing thoughts of the dragon Thorn.

Murtagh, I felt… I felt another dragon. A powerful dragon, but a young one. It's out there somewhere… where? How far could it have gotten? And what could possibly cause such a shock, such a feeling inside me? What has happened? What-

In a panic Taya threw up all the barriers she could imagine around Kabarak to shield his presence, his feelings, his thoughts and life from Thorn, from anyone searching for the young dragon. Her action was so sudden that it accidentally left her unguarded and she was vulnerable to Thorn's probing thoughts for a brief second. Frantically she restored what barriers she'd had around herself, hoping beyond all hope she had been fast enough and he had not detected her presence.

Taya leaned up against the wall, closing her eyes, her breaths coming short as her heart raced painfully in her chest.

Something had begun that could not be undone.

She felt Kabarak reaching out to her from upstairs, and she reached out to him.

It was Thorn, Kabarak. He somehow felt you when you took the name. I don't know how he could have; there must be some sort of link since you were both close to one another when you were in Uru'baen. He was trying to find you… I shielded you from him. I am positive he never even came close to finding you.

And you? Did he feel you?

She hesitated. I don't know. I do not think so, but what I did was so sudden I was not protected for a second. I didn't feel any surprise from him, but I could feel little once I had my barriers up. That was close.

Very close. And we do not know if the other two dragons felt anything. I will be extra careful now, I promise.

As will I. It will do us no good to let our guards down, especially now. We are not safe until we reach the Varden, and even there we will not be completely safe. Now I really have to talk to Sasha and Raya, not just to tell them the good news, but to warn them as well.

Taya pushed off the wall and entered the back part of the Inn, going to Raya's room first as it was closer. She pushed open the door soundlessly, and crept over to Raya's bedside, and whispered in her ear,

"Kabarak."

"Wha…?" Raya groaned, rolling away from her, still asleep. Taya grinned and touched her shoulder, causing Raya to jerk into an upright position. The room was totally dark so Taya couldn't see her sister's expression, but she knew it would have been priceless.

"Kabarak." She said again, sounding very matter-of-fact.

"What? Kabarak? Taya? What time is it?"

"Kabarak."

"Stop saying that! I know it's you, Taya, so help me I will…" Raya trailed off and then gasped.

"Kabarak!" She hissed, swinging her legs over the side of the bed, hitting Taya. "You mean… his name?"

"Kabarak." Taya said simply, and Raya made a strange high pitched noise of excitement. Taya shook her head, grinning madly.

"It's perfect!" Raya's voice was not so quiet, so Taya shushed her. "Oops, sorry…"

"That's alright. It is the middle of the night, though, so we don't want to be loud otherwise we'll wake someone up. I wanted to tell you immediately after we chose the name. We agree; it is a perfect name."

"Wait… it's the middle of the night and you came up with a name? How?"

"I had a flashback while I was dreaming of when Murtagh named Thorn, when he told me what had helped him come up with the name, and then I had a thought, and that was Kabarak. I woke up with that name, and Kabarak accepted it. Speaking of Murtagh and Thorn… Raya, Thorn felt Kabarak. He was trying to reach out and find him, but he accidentally went past me first. I blocked Kabarak, and then me, but now we just have to be extra careful. So, use what we taught you and guard yourself."

"Right… ok. Have you told Sasha yet?"

"No, you were closer to the door."

"Yes! Aha, I was the first one to know! She's going to be so annoyed."

Taya shook her head. "Go back to sleep, Raya. I'll wake you up later… hey, I was right! I did manage to wake you up early in the morning!"

"Oh, go away." Raya grumbled, crawling back under her covers. Taya chuckled softly, and touched her shoulder again before leaving her alone and creeping to Sasha's room. She opened the door, and instantly Sasha was half awake.

"Who's that?"

"It's me, Sasha, don't worry." Taya shut the door. "Goodness, do you sleep lightly."

"I have for the past couple of years… blazes, what time is it? Surely it's not even close to morning yet!" Sasha struck a match and lit two candles on her bedside table, casting a faint glow around the room, illuminating Taya standing close to the bed. Taya sat down in a chair next to the table, and looked at Sasha. Her cousin was bleary eyed, but awake.

"It's the middle of the night." She said simply, and Sasha closed her eyes and lay back down.

"What the blazes are you doing waking me up in the middle of the night?" She growled.

Taya's mouth quirked as she tried not to smile. "Don't worry, I woke Raya up first to tell her the good news."

"Good news? In the middle of the night?"

"You'd never guess."

"Certainly not. Tell me, before I fall asleep."

"It starts with a K, ends with a K, and now belongs to something green."

Sasha opened one eye and stared at her incredulously. "Oh I could just…" she growled, and then paused. "Something green?"

"Mhm." Taya watched in growing enjoyment as her riddle slowly began to click in her cousin's mind. Sasha turned over on her side slowly, staring at her with wide eyes.

"You mean… he has a name?"

Taya nodded, and a brilliant smile lit up her face. "His name is Kabarak."

"Kabarak." Sasha spoke the name slowly, listening closely to it while trying to picture the dragon as she spoke it. "Wow… that is his name."

"I knew I'd come up with it sometime, I just needed a nudge in the right direction. I had a flashback/dream with Murtagh in it, and it was back when he told me how he had come up with Thorn's name, and at the end I had a thought, and then I woke up with the name in my mind."

Sasha stared at the opposite wall, thinking hard. Or maybe she was just trying to stay awake.

"Sasha." Something in Taya's tone of voice alerted Sasha that something was not quite right, and she looked back at Taya questioningly. Taya met her eyes. "Thorn felt Kabarak when he accepted the name. There must have been some sort of shockwave of feeling from him, from us, and Thorn felt it. He was trying to reach out to find Kabarak, and he brushed past me. I saw his thought, and threw as many barriers as I could around Kabarak, and then around me. I do not know if he felt me… there was a split second where I was vulnerable, but he certainly did not find Kabarak. I want you to be aware of that, and guard yourself extra carefully."

Sasha nodded, worry in her brown eyes. "And if Thorn did feel you?"

Taya hesitated. She didn't want to think about that possibility, but it was staring her in the face.

"Then," she said slowly and softly, "they may be able to track me here, or look in this direction. If he was able to pinpoint my position, then it would not take long for Murtagh and Thorn to come looking."

Sasha shivered. "That would give us far less time here."

"I know… but don't think about it as the more likely possibility. I think I was able to block myself fast enough. Don't worry about it Sasha."

"Right. Now that you've told me, you expect me not to worry. Good luck."

Taya cracked a smile. "Yeah, right, good luck. Alright, I'll let you go back to sleep now. I just had to tell you two!"

"And you told Raya first! I know who rates higher in your book now." Sasha was totally joking, but remembering Raya's half asleep statement of joy, Taya laughed.

"Raya knew you'd be annoyed."

"I'll never hear the end of it."

"It is doubtful, very doubtful. See you in the later morning, Sasha."

"Yes, later morning. Don't go getting any ideas."

Taya shook her head and left quietly, and Sasha blew out the candles, settling back down into her bed. She lay awake for a few minutes, staring into the darkness up towards the ceiling. Her mind was miles away, in a city she had never been to, close to a man and a dragon she had never met and would rather not meet. More danger and fear, just what they needed, but maybe Taya was right and Thorn hadn't felt her…

Sasha Tatanya drifted back off to sleep with that thought in her mind, with a picture of a green dragon named Kabarak in the forefront of her mind.

Taya slipped back upstairs and into her room, quickly getting back under her covers. Kabarak curled up next to her head, putting his head on her shoulder. She closed her eyes, basking in the warmth emanating from him, and she was asleep within minutes, completely content. The green dragon Kabarak watched his partner's face relax, and growled with pleasure and closed his own eyes, putting away his thoughts of any danger that might be close by. They would face it whenever they were ready, in their own time, and he knew they would win. Even thinking about Thorn didn't daunt him. He would be big enough to fight him sooner than later, and Taya was strong enough to win against Murtagh, in more ways than one. He was not worried, not tonight. He was Kabarak, the dragon partner of Taya Corsallen.

Eragon… did you feel…?

Eragon Shadeslayer looked up into the dark sky, understanding Saphira's question. He was still shaking from the shock of the feeling that had come out of nowhere across their link. At first he had thought it was from Saphira, but she had obviously felt it too.

What could it have been? He wondered, looking around as if the answer would show itself.

Eragon, do you not understand? Saphira asked in surprise, and when he could not figure out what she meant, she explained.

Eragon, we felt the last dragon. That feeling came from the last dragon. Only, it felt like it was someone other than just the last dragon… I cannot place the feeling, but it was so powerful. That you and I could feel it…

Do you think Murtagh and Thorn felt it?

I would not doubt it. Perhaps there is a connection between the three of us, since we were held together before the Varden recaptured me. But there is no doubt in my mind that they felt it.

I wonder if the last dragon knows that the feeling went so far.

How could he?

I don't know, but I hope he does. We have to find the last dragon, Saphira. We have to find him before Murtagh does.

Believe me, little one, I know. My race depends on him; depends on a free dragon.

We'll get this job done, Saphira, and then we can really look for him. Who knows, maybe we will get lucky and he will find us. Have hope.

I always do, little one. As do you. Now, go back to sleep little one. This puzzle can wait until later.

Yes, Saphira. Goodnight, again.

Goodnight, little one.

The woman in the company of three listened as one of her companions sighed and rolled over, and she looked towards the dying coals of their fire, and then at her other sleeping companion. She sat up slowly, staring into the starry sky, wondering. She had awoken to the faintest feeling that something very important had just happened. But on reaching out with her mind, she could sense nothing more. The feeling lingered, but the meaning of it escaped her grasp.

Her eyes narrowed. Could it have been something related to his restlessness? She looked over at the one man who had finally drifted into a comfortable sleep and she shook her head. She must ask him in the morning, when her brain was not addled by sleep.

She lay back down on her blankets, staring straight into the sky. Their destination was close. Soon, they would be in even more danger, risking their lives yet again in a ridiculous way for their cause. She knew she would wish to be nowhere but where she was, however. The danger mattered, but only in a slight way. Their mission was important, and would hopefully bring them one step closer to defeating Galbatorix.

Or maybe two steps closer. Who knew what the future might hold?