The Rogue Rider (An Inheritance Fanfiction)

Chapter 35: Flight

Akaysha flew with Sashi back through the mountains, beating her wings with new enthusiasm. The mountains passed with a blur. The exhaustion from lack of sleep for the previous few nights was pushed to the back of her mind. She had a goal now, and she wasn't going to let anyone stop her from achieving it.

They reached New Doru Araeba after nearly an hour and a half of flying. Akaysha hadn't realised how far she had gone the previous night, and by the time she landed she was breathing quite heavily. She felt the mental nudge from her mentor, the golden dragon a little worried, but Akaysha sent back the reassurance she would be fine. She needed to do this.

The two of them walked through the gateway and into the city, padding down the large hallway to the double doors leading into the council room. It seemed most of the dragon rider authority as well as others of importance had gathered to talk about what would be done with Ragin, now that he had betrayed their trust twice.

The doors were opened before the dragons even arrived, Sashi having communicated with those on the inside that they were coming. As Akaysha walked in all eyes turned toward her. She glared back at them, refusing to back down knowing her rider's life may be at stake. The amount of people there astounded her. All of Ragin's classmates and their dragons were seated to the side. The council were around their usual table, and her confidence stumbled a little when she noticed Saphira gazing down on her with nearly unreadable curiosity.

She took a deep breath for turning her head to Eragon. She gently reached out her mind to the rider in order to talk to him.

"Akaysha," Eragon said solemnly, "Sashi said you have some information that may be useful."

'Yes,' the dragoness let herself be heard by everyone as she spoke, 'But before I answer what are you going to do to him?'

Silence was the response to her words. Glances were exchanged and she could nearly see the unheard conversations being thrown throughout the room.

"What do you think his punishment should be?" Eragon asked, startling her for a moment.

Akaysha glanced at Sashi, not expecting the question. The golden dragon nudged her, and once again the younger female found herself taking a deep breath and forcing herself to stand tall as she spoke.

'I do not think Ragin was at fault for what he did, or at least I don't think he wanted to,' she began.

"Are you sure of that?" the rider asked, "I was told you were... distressed."

'I was... what he did hurt me, and everyone... but I know Ragin. He wouldn't have done what he did without a good reason,' Akaysha spoke in the ancient language, so they knew she was telling the truth.

"Do you know the reason?" Eragon's questioning annoyed the dragoness.

'No... but that doesn't change anything. He could have been sworn to secretly or something,' Akaysha snorted.

"That is one thing we have considered," the man nodded his head.

No one was surprised when Theaden spoke up to this, "How can what he did be an accident? He snuck into the hatchery and tried to steal an egg, and failed. He manipulated a friend to break his oath, something that had to be planned. He then broke out again, and forced a young dragoness to fly him away with her egg. He betrayed his trust as a rider, and betrayed his loyalty to you, his own dragon! How can you continue to defend him? Not unless you are blind to his faults."

'I'm the only one that can see him as who he is,' hissed Akaysha, 'You don't know his thoughts, nor his feelings. You don't know the distress he felt when he talked to me that night. He was hurting as much as I was. You are the one that is blind.'