Lover of the Legacy: A Hidden Desire

Chapter 10: The Battle Begins

The sound of a horn awoke Satine. She shot up in bed, panting. When she realized what the sound was, she quickly got up and put on her armor. Grabbing her sword, she left her tent to look for Nasuada. She found her giving orders to Jormundur, who was in charge of the cavalry. When Nasuada finished, he bowed. "Be careful milady." He then turned to Satine. "You be careful as well. I heard word from Orrin, he is worried about you and sends his love. Would you like to send him a message back?"

Satine forced a smile and nodded. "Tell him that I want him to be careful as well." Jormundur nodded and said nothing when she mentioned no sentiments of love. When the commander left, she faced Nasuada, "What would you like me to do?"

"I want you to come with me. We will lead the foot soldiers. Eragon is on his own and will be working on defeating Galbatorix's spell casters." Nasuada led them to a makeshift stable where their horses rested. They were both saddled and had some armor. Satine mounted Chestnut and led him out of the tent. Nasuada followed behind her and soon took the lead. They galloped towards the battlefield where Galbatorix's vast army waited for them. Satine swallowed past the lump in her throat.

The Varden's men and women filed in behind them, as planned. Jormundur and his cavalry were at the far end of the line. She saw Eragon, Saphira, and the dwarves as well as Angela and Arya. They all had hard expressions that hid their nervousness. She took a deep breath and unsheathed her sword, ready to fight. Nasuada unleashed her battle cry that sent them all charging towards Galbatorix's army. Her blade met with her enemies as she began forging a path of dead bodies. Her stomach lurched at the smell of blood, but she managed to refrain from vomiting.

For the next hour, she did nothing but hack away at her enemies. The screams started to become normal as did the smell death. She made sure to stay close to Nasuada, but at times she found herself becoming surrounded by soldiers. Another hour passed in the same manner, until she felt pressure inside her head. Instinctively, she guarded her mind, but the task was not so easy while she hacked away at her enemies as well.

Soon, her head buzzed and her vision started to become fuzzy. She shook her head to try to stay focused, but failed. Chestnut neighed violently, and stood on his hind legs, kicking with his front legs at the soldiers. A sword found its way into the horses flesh and sent Satine flying to the ground as he squirmed in pain.

Satine groaned and rolled onto her back, looking up at the soldiers surrounding her. "Looks like you lost, little princess." The next few seconds felt like hours. She felt her defenses break within her mind as the magician broke through, and she saw a blade coming down upon her. She heard herself scream as her life flashed through her eyes thinking that she was going to die. An angry voice cut through the haze. She felt herself being lifted onto a horse and then everything went black.

When she awoke, she learned that she was not in among allies. A middle aged man pored over her with black eyes and crooked smile. She tried to move, but found herself chained. "Stop struggling," the man hissed.

"Who are you?"

"No one of consequence."

"What do you want?"

"I don't need anything from you right now; you already gave me all the information earlier when you opened up your mind to me."

Satine let out a cry. "Then why do you have me chained up like some animal?"

"To ensure that you will not get away before my master arrives." The man pointed a bony, dirty, finger at her. Satine became pale and tears streamed down her face as she trembled. "Good, you should be afraid."

Satine only waited about ten minutes before she heard a swooping noise, followed by a growl. Her heart leapt for joy at the thought of Eragon coming to rescue her, but the magician seemed untroubled, which confused her. "Why aren't you afraid? You cannot defeat the mighty Dragon Rider."

He laughed. "You foolish girl. That is not Eragon, it is…" He was cut off when a young man with black hair and brown eyes entered the tent.

"Murtagh?" Satine yelled. "How is this possible? I heard that you died?"

"You heard wrong. Unbind her." The magician unclasped her hands, and after, she charged at Murtagh. He grabbed her by the arms before she could hit him.

"Why are you working for the King? You hate him."

"I have no choice. I have orders to take you and Eragon to Galbatorix."

"No!" She screamed as he dragged her out of the tent. At the sight of the huge, ruby red dragon, she fought harder, but to no avail. Murtagh managed to get her onto the saddle with him, and before she knew it, she was soaring through the air towards the Varden.