Eragon opens the door to a cell and finds Sloan, Katrina’s father, who had betrayed Eragon; he cannot bring himself to kill Sloan, so he puts him to sleep. Fighting the Ra’zac together, Eragon and Roran are able to free Katrina; Eragon scans Katrina for Galbatorix’s spells, but she is untouched, and they are able to return to the cave entrance. Eragon uses the full strength of Beloth the Wise’s belt, which he acquired in previous books in the series, to heal Saphira’s wounds; then Katrina and Roran climb onto Saphira, expecting Eragon to join them. He is staying behind on the pretense of killing the final Ra’zac and searching for useful scrolls. Saphira tries to chase and catch him, but he makes it to a tunnel where she cannot fit. She does not want to leave her “little one.” 

Eragon is able to coax out the final Ra’zac and speak to him before any fighting occurs; knowing death is upon him, the Ra’zac asks that Eragon refer to his race as “fear” when responding to questions about their extinction—a request that Eragon denies. The Ra’zac reveals a secret: Galbatorix is close to finding the true name for something (but he will not reveal what that is).