The Truth About Lies (An Inheritance Cycle Fanfiction)

One Last Time

"I don't care what you thought you heard or saw," Murtagh growled threateningly, his fists balled tightly at his side. "If there was anything out there, I assure you, my dragon would have noticed it long before your idiotic senses did. Now do as I say, and return to your post!" I'd never heard him use such a tone before, and the effect was truly frightening. With Thorn's added growls in the background, the man let out a tiny squeak of fear and turned quickly on his heel, scurrying away like a rat towards a sewer.

As he disappeared down the battlements, Murtagh watched after him, and I kept my gaze fixed solely on him. He looked thinner than the last time I'd seen him, so many months ago. There was a haggard look to his face, like he hadn't slept in many nights, and his hair and clothes looked disheveled. I'd never seen him like this before, and I could feel my heart slowly breaking.

When the man was finally out of sight, and there was no one else around, Murtagh let out a heavy sigh, rubbing his eyes with a calloused hand, a hand that I so desperately wanted upon me. He sighed again and looked down at the stone beneath him. "You shouldn't have come here," he whispered gently. I felt my heart freeze and my eyes go wide with fear. But... how? "Come on, Tabatha, I know you're there. Come out of hiding."

Slowly, I stepped down from where I'd been crouching atop the wall and removed the hood from my face. His aura suddenly disappeared and I saw his features more clearly. Dark circles ringed his eyes, and a dark stubble covered his chin and cheeks. Though his eyes were still as intense as ever, and they still held the same hold over me, they looked immensely sad. "Murtagh," I sighed softly, unsure of what else to say. "How...?"

"I would know your mind anywhere," he said quietly, in that deep, rumbling voice of his. "The moment you returned to the Varden, I felt your presence. Why did you come here, Tabatha? It isn't safe. Galbatorix has been taking control of my mind more and more often lately."

"I needed to see you," I replied, taking a tentative step forward. "And I needed to tell you..."

"About your dragon?" he cut me off gruffly. There was a newfound anger blazing in his eyes, an anger I hadn't seen before. My fears were slowly being confirmed.

"Murtagh, you have to understand. I... This wasn't my choice."

"You always have a choice." His voice sounded small, and almost...defeated.

"I didn't," I repeated, firmer this time. "It's... it's not what it seems, Murtagh. I swear to you."

"Then explain it to me." His hard stare bored into my own eyes and I felt my resolve weakening slightly. How could I make him understand?

"I didn't want this, you have to believe me," I started slowly. "Not after discovering who my father is... No, I never wanted this. But my mother's people, they were the beloved of the goddess Ashola, and she blessed Amera's egg... specifically for me. There's... there's a prophecy. I couldn't have run from my fate. Don't you see? This is the only way I can defeat my father. And maybe, the only way that we can be together." It was quiet for a long time when I finished. I stared into his grey eyes that seemed to be clouded in confusion.

"We will have to fight one another, Tabatha," he finally whispered, his voice strained. "Your father will take control of me and he will kill you. I won't be able to stop him." Thorn rumbled deeply behind him, staring at me with his huge orange-red eyes. Murtagh's sadness was echoed in their depths, and I felt my heart wrench. He was just as trapped as Murtagh was in this.

"He won't kill me," I replied. "Amera and I...we're different. We are unlike any other dragon and Rider that there ever has been, or ever will be. And besides, Galbatorix won't kill me because he wants to use my power too much. He'd never risk my safety. And especially now that I am a Rider..." I let this last statement fade away, not wanting to draw attention to the similarities between me and my father.