Author's Note: This story was born from reading Brisingr while my dad fights a deadly cancer that has a low survival rate. Between reading that book and watching how bravely my dad is fighting has inspired me in numerous ways. This story is a tribute to him and his battle. (So have a heart, don't flame it.) The prologue may be a bit confusing at first, but hold on for it makes sense towards the end!

Prologue: Past Lives

In Alagaesia, before the Fall, many races lived in a fragile harmony, and more so then you would think. There were the humans, elves, dragons, dwarves, Urgals and the Kulls but they were the most well known. Others existed in secret. The Fae were one of them, for they chose to dwell in the wild parts of the world away from the others. They were hard to see, as they were a part of nature and forces of magic contained into a form but if one looked hard enough they could see the strange eyes peering back at them. The magic Fae held were similar to that of the dragons and a few became bonded, thus joining the Riders.

Aine, kin to the Seelie King himself, had come to live with the Riders with her brother, Lune, when he had bonded with Bion, a green dragon. There, she had met her fate and unknowingly sent Alagaesia into a downward spiral. Like many of the younger Riders, Galbatorix had a love of adventure and discovery that rivaled many of her kind, Aine had been drawn in. He charmed her like no other had while she calmed his wild dreams if only for a moment. Aylin was a testament to their relationship and the joy of their world.

Happiness could not last though, for soon Aine was called back to her court and king. Forced to go, she left her young daughter in the care of her father and uncle. Few saw the warning signs, the slow madness that was beginning to overtake Galbatorix as he began to obsess over his dragon and daughter. Thus came the fateful day, while he was seeking adventure that his dragon was killed. Upon return, the council denied him the request for a new dragon.

Promising little Aylin he would return for her as this was the best place for her at the moment, he stole a hatchling and fled with an apprentice, Morzan. Time passed slowly for the girl but her loneliness ended when Lorin, a silver dragoness, hatched for her. Immediately, her uncle Lune took over her schooling.

"Our bonds with our dragons are slightly different, as we are different from humans and elves." Aylin raised an eyebrow as she gazed at her uncle, who stood at the window watching the sunset.

"How so?" She asked.

"Our souls are eternal and a part of nature. We are constantly reborn, all depending on when the earth decides she needs more caretakers. Our magic is also closer to a dragon's, thus making spells much easier to handle." Lune looked over to where Bion was teaching Lorin. "So a Fae never truly dies and will never drag their dragon with them into the Void." Aylin rubbed at her temple, confused.

"So even if we are run through we won't die?"

Lune laughed. "No, a Fae will still die and so would you, being only half. What I am saying is we can be reincarnated, the same soul in a new body. The same would happen to the dragon the Fae bonded with. Understood?" Aylin nodded. "Though there is a way to lock the dragon into a sleep, to await the return of their Rider. It requires Fae magic though and the dragon must have either a desire to wait or be very young."

Lessons like that continued, along with sword training. Lune soon discovered his niece was horrible with large blades as they threw her off balance, so he had no choice but to find her lighter weapons. A pair of sais were made for her, and he found her a few throwing knives to add to that. Before he could move on to teach her archery as an added defense, it happened.

The Fall.

Galbatorix had struck quickly, the Riders were in chaos and Lune had searched madly for his niece. He found her, held hostage by a group of desperate young Riders in one of the keeps. They had thought that Galbatorix and his Forsworn would spare them if they didn't harm his precious daughter.

Wrong.

Enraged that they would threaten Aylin, the traitors had attacked. In the confusion, Aylin had been thrown off the tower and since her dragon was too small to catch her, she plummeted to her death. And Lune had seen it all and done the only thing he could do, which was to place Lorin into the sleep to hopefully await Aylin's rebirth.

The half-Fae's death had been the final breaking point for Galbatorix and while her family mourned, Lune watched (while holding back tears) the madness take firm hold of his sister's love.

Lune watched with passive eyes as Galbatorix clutched the broken form of his child, sobbing into her pale locks and disregarding the blank eyes that stared into space. A few feet away Lorin rested, curled into a ball inside a crystal sphere where Lune had placed her. Only Aylin's reincarnation could break it.

Morzan stood beside his lord, unsure of what to do as he watched with a neutral expression. He and the others awaited orders, which they soon got.

"Kill them."

Lune hid his horror at the whispered order, hoping he had heard wrong. He had not.

"Kill them all! Make them pay! Show them the true meaning of hell!" Galbatorix shouted, still cradling the corpse to his body. "Let them see what they have done! Lune!"

That was all that was needed, Morzan and the Forsworn turned and went to their dragons. Only when they were gone did Lune approach, caution in his every step as he was not a Forsworn and not certain of what Galbatorix would do. The pure insanity in the man's eye nearly made him shudder.

"Take care of Aylin." Lune resisted the urge to question if he had heard right. Galbatorix handed the girl over, acting like she was merely asleep instead of deceased. Then he was gone to wreak havoc across Alagaesia.

Lune didn't waste time to question why he was being spared other then he now held Aylin. He moved fast, gathering the sphere that contained Lorin and climbing into the saddle Bion wore. "To the Spine." He ordered.

Hidden in the Spine was a network of caves that only the Fae knew of, as they had been made by them for dwelling. They were abandoned now, as many Fae had retreated across the Hadarac Desert and into the wild beyond. No one came here, the left over Fae magic that clung to the land was too much for most people and caused many a strange thing to happen. It was a perfect place to bury his niece and hide Lorin for now.

Aylin's body had been encased in magic crystal to preserve her for the rest of time, for Lune knew that her reincarnation would need to see what the incarnation before had looked like. He placed Lorin, safe inside her sleep and sphere, across from Aylin and rested the two sais she had carried with her on either side. He sealed the tomb and prayed that Aylin would find peace in her next form.

Now he had to join his fellow Fae across the Hadarac. The bloodshed continued but Lune pressed on and managed to escape Galbatorix and his Forsworn. So many people had died and more would continue still. It broke the Rider's heart that more innocent children like Aylin would die until someone took a stand.

For now though, he had to tell his sister that her child was dead and her love a cruel tyrant.

Another Author's Note: I know Fae and elves are usually considered to be one and the same, but let's face that it had been left open for anyone to take it either way. Besides, elves are too perfect in this series, gotta throw something in there to even the odds a bit. This is just what my mind came up with while reading Brisingr and the Faerie Bible at the same time while my dad fights cancer. Odd, I know. PLEASE BE GENTLE WITH YOUR REVIEWS, I AM WRITING THIS TO HELP ME COPE WITH THE LOSS OF MY BABY NIECE (there was a note explaining this in my other story) AND MY DAD'S CANCER!!!! Wouldn't you want people to be nice to you too? I don't mind being informed that I may have misspelled something, since I do type pretty fast and do miss a few typos here and there. My spell check sucks! Give this story a chance (and a few chapters…) before anybody goes flamer on me.