I did not know what I felt by the end of the night. All I could do was wrap my arms around Vascar as my mind throbbed with a raging torrent of emotions. Anger, betrayal, confusion, and sadness at the forefront. Vascar did his best to comfort me, but I was so engrossed in my thoughts I did not hear his words. But I felt his presence and his love, and that was exactly what I needed. I did not cry. I was not weak. But I was still hurt.

'Oh Little One,' Vascar said his warm breath caressing my face.

I didn't respond as I snuggled closer to Vascar's side. I did not bother to get into my cot, but instead decided to sleep next to my other half. With his strong and steady heart beating in my ear, it helped calm my mind. Finally, his soothing words and deep breaths lulled me to sleep.

Luckily, I had a dreamless night. I was worried that my night would be haunted by my sorrows. But instead the minute I fell asleep, it seemed I awoke again. Vascar's wing was draped over me protectively, and through its membrane minimal light seeped in. It was probably approaching dawn. Suddenly, I remembered that we were supposed to meet Oromis before the sun rose.

I panicked the slightest bit as I pounded my hand on Vascar's side, causing him to jolt awake. Unconsciously, he lifted his wing, allowing me to slip out and change into the clothes I had laid out for today. As I glanced back at the large orange dragon, I noticed that his eyes were once again closed.

Prodding him with my mind, I am shocked when his musical voice booms through mine, 'I am awake. I'm just waiting for you.'

Huffing under my breath, I shouldered my pack and lifted Vascar's saddle into my arms. I placed its heavy form on his back in the space between his spikes. He kept his eyes firmly shut, shifting his body when needed so I could strap his saddle. Finally, tightening the last leather band, I slapped my hand against the top of the saddle and stepped back. Vascar allowed one blue eye to lazily open before he pushed himself up off the ground and stretched his claws out across the stone floor.

'Finally ready?' He attempted in a joking manner. I smiled half-heartedly, not wanting to let him know how much my heart still hurt. This was an exciting day, and I was going to push aside my emotions, if not for my sake, than Vascar's.

I did not bother strapping myself into the saddle. Instead I just told Vascar to fly to the Eragonian Training Center, and I would hang on tight with my legs and to the spike in front of me. He shook his head but didn't argue as he extended his wings and pushed off into the rapidly lightening sky. The clock was against us as he flapped hard through the air, attempting to make it there as fast as possible. But, the sun had not yet risen, so there was still a chance.

With each stroke of his wings, I could feel his body lurch forward dramatically, pushing us forward faster than he ever had before. I couldn't help patting his neck, giving him moral support and edging him on. The sun was determined to beat us, and I could see its light peaking over the horizon, but it still had not technically risen.

Finally, Vascar tipped straight down and tucked in his wings. We hurtled like a speeding arrow towards to to large opening in the roof. I had lost the fear long ago of Vascar crashing into the earth, all I cared about now was making it to Oromis's study on time.

Throwing his wings open at the last second, he slammed into the ground, bending his legs to help cushion the blow. Glad that I had not strapped myself in, I leaped off his back and set off for a sprint through the group of riders, pushing towards the halls and Oromis's study. I heard several disgruntled comments at my rudeness but paid them no mind. And, seeing a certain green dragon at the edge of the hall only made me push harder and faster through the crowd.

Please don't see me, please don't see me, I thought to myself, keeping my head low.

I finally pushed through one last huddle of younger girls and was in the clearing. I did not slow as I continued my mad dash to his door. It was just a few more steps and my heart was in my throat. I had to make it in time or they may punish me by not allowing us to go and visit the wild dragons. I couldn't allow that to happen.

With renewed sense of determination, I flung through the door and slammed it shut behind me. Oromis looked up, his eyes full of amusement at my heavy breathing. But, my eyes were focused on the sky, where the sun had just appeared. If I had made it, it had been close.

Luckily, it seemed Oromis was not looking for technicalities. Instead, he stood and grabbed the large ornate saddle from the chair next to him. The straps were enormous, large enough for a dragon twice the size of Glaedr. He looked at me with his wise, knowing eyes and I attempted a smile.

"Are you ready to depart Talia?", he asked, readjusting the saddle in his arms.

"Yes Ebrithl," I replied, reaching behind me for the door handle that I had just closed.

"Then let us not tarry, Glaedr is waiting for us outside."

I nodded then opened the door once more. Hopefully, Vascar would be waiting for me in the Entrance Hall. And more importantly, I hoped I wouldn't run into him. I did not want to deal with whatever his problem was now with Oromis around.

'You can't keep running from your problems,' Vascar growled in my mind as we entered the Hall. I looked up at him and was shocked to see him glaring over at Jarnunvösk with his icy blue eyes. She stared back at him defensively, but I was unable to see Galbatorix through the group of riders.

'I can't do it Vascar,' I said to him as I split away from Oromis, who then headed for the front doors towards Master Glaedr.

I approached his side and prepared to climb up, but he blocked my path with his large orange head. He stared hard at me with his large, blue eye before growling low and deeply.

'Are you a rider or a coward?'

I was shocked and angry at his words. How dared he say that to me! It was nothing but....

The truth.

I was about to let my anger go, to sink back into my sullen reserve, but instead it returned in full form. Just directed at someone different, someone who deserved my anger. Galbatorix.

Vascar raised his head and allowed me to scale his side as he said, his voice full of pride, 'There is the rider I chose.'

A real smile crept upon my face as I settled into the saddle, strapping myself in this time. I did not know how long of a flight this would be, so I decided to be safe.

'Talia?' Vascar said gently.

'Yes?' I asked with the slightest amount of trepidation in my voice.

'Why are you so angered by Galbatorix?'

His question completely blindsided me. Being my partner in mind and heart, he should already know the answer. I began sputtering madly, about to explode, but Vascar cut me off.

'Because I do not want you to anger yourself for the wrong reasons. I can sense your thoughts Talia. The fact that Galbatorix slaughtered those Urgals is not even a part of the reason for your rage. You are mad because he acted different around you. Yes, he was arrogant. Yes, he was rude to you, and you do not deserve a second of it. And, if you are angry with him, then you know I will back you no matter what. But, I also believe that you should consider your reasoning.'

'Are you saying I should not be mad with him?'

Vascar growled as he took off into the air, slipping out of the building into the open air. Below us I noticed Glaedr with Oromis perched in his back. Seeing Vascar in the sky above them, Oromis and Glaedr also launched up, leveling off at the same height as us. After flying directly in front of us, their meaning was obvious, we were to follow them.

'No, you should be enraged with him for his cruel actions. That is what has angered me. And perhaps you could be disappointed with how he acted, but please prioritize. Is killing innocent lives less important than his attitude? And do not forget your promise to the Urgals to bring justice to the murderer.'

I did not respond but dipped my head in silence. His words made my heart ache. I had acted childish. Vascar did not push me, but instead embraced my mind in condolence. Despite his words, and how wrong I was, I still knew that he would stand by me no matter my choices.

Soon Vascar's wing beats, along by Glaedr's, were the only sound to accompany the wind rushing through my ears. Below us the land slipped by, and in front of us was nothing but endless prairies, stretching on for what seemed like forever. In order to keep my mind from wandering back to its gloomy reserve, I began telling riddles to Vascar. I was surprised by how much he loved the challenge, and even more-so by how clever he was.

'What is easy to get into, but hard to get out of?' I asked him, remembering a few riddles from the storytellers in Daret. It had taken me a few minutes to figure it out when I first heard it, but Vascar had no trouble with it.

'This riddle must have been created for you, because the answer is trouble,' he said within seconds, his tone smug.

I scowled and grumbled something incoherent, but allowed my frustration to pass as he told me his next riddle. Even though I was terrible at answering them, I allowed him to confuse me with his words.

'Look at me. I can bring a smile to your face, a tear to your eye, or even a thought to your mind. But, I can't be seen. What am I?'

I furrowed my brow as I began to think about the riddle. Something that couldn't be seen, yet could? And could cause a hoard of emotions? My mind worked extremely hard, overthinking each minuscule detail until my head hurt.

'I do not know. What is it?' I finally relented.

'Memories.'

I silently cursed. The answer made complete sense now that I had heard it. But, instead of brooding over my stupidity, I told him my next riddle. I was determined to stump him this time.

'You hear it speak, for it has a hard tongue. But it cannot breathe, for it has not a lung. What is it?'

I was satisfied when he did not respond but instead settled into a curious silence. I quickly blocked him from my mind, not wanting him to sneak a peak at the answer. I was sure that I had fooled him when the minutes continued to stretch on, but, like always, he eventually found the answer.

'Tis a bell.'

'Bah! Why is it that I can never trick you?'

'It is because I'm so wise, obviously,' he teased, dipping down into a quick dive before flapping back to his original height.

'Oh, just tell your next riddle already,' I said rolling my eyes at him.

He snorted and smoke rolled out of his nose, along with a few tongues of flames, but he did not hesitate in his words. 'I'm the part of the bird that's not in the sky. I can swim in the ocean and yet remain dry. What am I?'

I felt like I should know the answer, but it evaded me. My anger boiled up as I felt the clues at the forefront of my mind, almost connecting and tempting me with their secrets. Yet, I still could not grasp the solution.

'Do not tell me, I want to figure it out. When I do find the answer, I will tell you. Until then let's continue,' I finally said when the answer continued to elude me.

Just as I was about to say my next riddle, I was interrupted by a large presence pressing against my mind.

'We will be arriving shortly,' Glaedr said, his voice booming through both of our minds, 'as for riddles, answer me this. Lives without a body, hears without ears, speaks without a mouth, to which the air alone gives birth. What is it?'

I had to admit that I was stumped. And, sensing Vascar's thoughts, I could tell that he was clueless as well. But, instead of satisfying our curiousity, Glaedr pulled away from our minds and left us to discuss the riddle without results.

But, we soon placed our thoughts of riddles behind as a large structure came into view in front of us. It was obviously made by humans, but it seemed the large building had been adopted by nature after years of contact with the wild. Around the building perched glittering colors which I recognized as the scales of dragons. They were tiny compared to the buildings size, and as we flew closer more details became clear to me.

The building had crumbled inward on the top level, leaving an open ceiling and only a corner of the wall still standing. The normal stone colored walls had turned a mossy green color and had several vines had creeped their way up the sides. The building was massive, each doorway was large enough for two dragons the size of Glaedr to walk through side by side. I could see about three wild dragons outside of the building and swore I saw several scales glitter in the sunlight through some of the windows. The dragons outside the building glanced at our rapidly approaching forms and roared. Immediately, six other dragons exited the building, all of different sizes and.

We landed in front of them, and I quickly compared Glaedr and Vascar to the wild dragons. Vascar was smaller than all but one of the dragons, a pink dragon with bright eyes and a playful demeanor. Glaedr was of medium size compared to the dragons. He was not the largest, yet he still could hold his own in size to most of them.

All of the dragons were noble, like the elves. Just looking at them, I could tell they were very proud and would be angered easily. They looked unpredictable and wild. Their scales sparkled great in the sun, almost blinding me in their shimmering light. And their colors were some of the most beautiful I had ever seen.

Two of the dragons were of a dark green color, one a slightly lighter shade than the other. They stood side by side, their emerald eyes glittering down at us. Next to them was the smallest, bright pink dragon. The pink dragon looked up at a brown dragon, one of the largest.

I quickly scanned the remaining wild dragons I observed their remaining scale colors. There was a light grey colored dragon, like the clouds on an overcast day, a sky blue dragon, a yellow dragon with the slightest hint of orange, a dragon that was a dark blue-grey color, and finally one of a coal color.

All nine of the wild dragons stared down at us with intelligent eyes, sizing us up in case we were a threat. But, several of them seemed to recognize Glaedr and sniffed his head curiously. As for Vascar, he tried to puff up his chest and make himself look larger than he was. At this, the pink dragon began to rumble in her chest, amusement clear in her sound.

Finally, as my observations were made, a bone-jarring force made the ground shudder. I gripped the saddle in front of me hard as a dark shape blocked out the sun and covered me in darkness. It was the largest dragon I had ever seen, and as his large form created a massive silhouette on the ground, I could not help reaching out to Vascar.

'Vascar?' I said, taking in the burgundy red scales of the massive dragon.

'Yes Little One?'

'A shadow.'

'What?'

'I just realized the answer to your riddle. It's a shadow.'

Despite the situation, his strange laugh could be heard at my realization. 'Of course, you figure it out now when the answer is staring you in the face.'

After our moment of humor, I looked back to the largest of the dragons, it's dark red scales seeming to absorb the light of the day. The dragon radiated authority, and I knew that it was a force to be reckoned with. My nerves rose to unprecedented levels as the great dragon lowered it's head to Vascar's level and stared at us with one large yellow eye. I almost froze and fell of off Vascar's side when a vast presence touched my mind. It's thoughts were ancient and wise, yet strong and powerful.

Finally, I could not take the tension anymore. I reached out and embraced the mind, curiosity getting the better of my better judgement. But, surprise was soon replaced by the curiosity when the dragon did not use words. Instead, he presented a series of images and feelings to me, but his meaning was clear.

He was in charge, not us.

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AN: HI GUYS!!!! OK SO, NEXT UPDATE WILL BE COMING SOON AFTER THIS ONE :) PLEASE SIGN UP FOR A CHARACTER FOR THIS STORY, ONLY A FEW SPOTS ARE LEFT!!!! OTHER THAN THAT, HOPE YOU ENJOYED THOS CHAPTER, THE NEXT FEW WILL DEFINITELY BE INTERESTING. OH, AND PLEAE....

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THANKA YOUUU

~Bert

Ps. I am going to take a leaf out of another authors book and give you a little challenge. Whoever can answer the riddle in bold will be able to choose the name for the largest wild dragon. The one "in charge". Sorry I forgot to post this before, hopefully people will see it even though I already posted the update. Well, good luck everyone!