After The Dragons Danced (A Rhaena Targaryen SI)

[neyra]

"When the time is right, you will be queen of the Seven Kingdoms just as Father, Rhaenyra and Grandmother always wished you to be. But not yet."

What? Is this to suggest that Jaehaera is to be killed or set aside? Why? Marrying competing claims to unite the bloodlines makes sense politically. Secures peace within Westeros and a great symbolic presentation of the Dance being over. Can't just be irrational pettiness to undo this. Is it because Baela rides Silverwing ?

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Rhaena, Baela and Aegon hate the Greens. You have to remember that Aegon II, was torturing Baela & Aegon III and messing with their heads using death threats.

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Why not? Why should you resolve competing bloodlines when you have absolute power? Why let the daughter of your enemy be Queen and let her children rule when you are the dragonlords?

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The lords can take up their symbols and political sense with Silverwing.

There's no way you put in all this legwork to restore your house and allow someone else to run it. Tis personal for Baela and Rhaena.

 

[neyra]

Also, just to point this out, the main reason Rhaenyra needed Baela to marry Jace was to secure Velaryon support because her son was a bastard. Not out of some personal wish or genuine care for Baela's station in life. Same with Rhaena being betrothed to Luke. Rhaena was meant to provide another cloak of legitimacy and protection to Lucerys 'Velaryon '.

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I'd argue that Rhaenyra married the twins to Jace and Luke to secure Daemon's support. Him, his dragon, and his wife's dragon were the most important thing in that calculus.
But, that 's besides the point.
Why does it have to be one thing or the other? The Black kids were close to each other, that suggests that their relation as a family unit was strong. Rhaenyra could have betrothed the twins to his sons to both secure support and due to the care she has for them, due to them being her best friend's daughters.

 

[Wolffils]

The lords can take up their symbols and political sense with Silverwing.

There's no way you put in all this legwork to restore your house and allow someone else to run it. Tis personal for Baela and Rhaena.

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Valid enough reason I suppose. When you have fire-breathing dragons as your personal mounts, autocracy and absolutism are inevitable.

 

[neyra]

Valid enough reason I suppose. When you have fire-breathing dragons as your personal mounts, autocracy and absolutism are inevitable.

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The goal is to institutionalise that absolutism. To make it not depedant upon the dragons.

 

[neyra]

9th Day, Ninth Moon, 131 AC | The Red Keep - King's Landing

CORLYS VELARYON

As was the custom engrained by his grandfather since he was but a boy, Corlys arrived at the small council chambers earlier than the meeting was set to begin. His granddaughters were with him. Both were dressed in black garb with accents of red, Rhaena in a gown, and Baela with an overcoat with breeches and a shirt underneath. Every day, they reminded Corlys more and more of their formidable grandmother and their lovely mother. He struggled not to think about them.

The council room was empty, as expected. The table in the council chambers had been changed from the traditional square one that had been there since the time of the Conciliator, to a circular one. Huh! That was strange. Still, the seats designated for the different councillors remained as they had always been. He took the seat assigned the Hand of the King, a position his granddaughters had secured him. Schemers were lying in the dark, Rhaena had said, and they required someone loyal to head the council until they came of age. That they still trusted him enough with such a responsibility warmed his heart. He would not disappoint them. All he did now, he did for his grandchildren. His days trying to build his own legacy were dead and gone. The time for his grandchildren, on the other hand, had just begun.

Rhaena sat quietly in the seat to his right, resuming her writing. She had been doing that a lot since the war had come to an end and she had returned from the Vale. He had asked what she spent so many hours putting down, and her response was always incredibly cryptic, boiling down to 'plans and ideas'. The twins seemed to have much of those of late.

Few in the realm might have caught on, but Baela and Rhaena were an ascending power. They were the most senior members of the royal house, not counting Saera, Vaegon and Rhaella, whom the realm hard largely forgotten. They held great influence over their kingly brother, more than Jaehaera could ever hope to have from what he had seen. Save for the occasion of royal wedding two days past, the twins were the only Targaryens the commonfolk ever saw. Baela apparently spent time with the reformed City Watch in taverns, winesinks and sometimes during their patrols, while Rhaena visited many orphanages, which had swollen in size and number due to her patronage, and gave alms to the poor wherever she encountered them while in the city. But above all, the two of them were the only remaining dragonlords in the world.

Baela had claimed Silverwing from a far flung corner of the realm, where she had nested for a year as a wild dragon. That action alone had massively tilted the balance of power to their side. If there were any remaining lords who still called themselves greens, they would definitely rethink the foolishness of rebelling. Rhaena had a dragon too; Morning, a remarkably fast-growing hatchling that seemed to double in size every moon. When she had first returned to King's Landing, the little dragon was the size of a newborn pup, coiled about Rhaena like a stole, but now she was the size of an adult wolf. It would not be long until Rhaena flew her, Corlys knew from his knowledge on dragons, and when she did, their power would be solidified further.

A lesson that had served him well since he had been a boy, aspiring for adventure and riches for House Velaryon, was that one would only benefit by making themselves indispensable to those in power. Through his rise as the intrepid adventurer he was known as now, he always courted the favour of rulers in order to get what he desired. Be it emperor of Yiti to get exclusive trading rights for their goods, or the magisters of the Free Cities to get favourable terms for the Velaryon fleet, and even the dragon kings of Westeros, the principle worked the same.

He had wished to gain tax reductions, favourable tolls and charters for Spicetown and Hull, so he had made his fleet indispensable to the Conciliator. He had desired for his descendants to have dragonblood and become kings, so he had used his charm on Rhaenys and she had fallen hard. Now, he had one more desire, before the Stranger sentenced his soul to eternal damnation in the seven hells.

Corlys desired for his grandchild, his Velaryon grandchild, Alyn, to inherit Driftmark. It was only recently that the realisation came to him of how dangerously close to the brink House Velaryon was. Many of the minor branches, the descendants of his grandfather's and great-grandfather's brothers, had turned against him during the war, many of them dying by dragonflame and the rest leaving Westeros altogether, becoming outlaws and pirates of the high seas. Such a drastic culling of their family branches had not happened since the Winter Shivers of 59 AC. In truth, only him, his grandson Alyn, his distant cousin Monford, and his grand-nephews Daeron and Daemion, remained as true Velaryons.

There was a very real possibility that Corlys would be the last Velaryon Lord of Driftmark. Alyn might be the only remaining true son of his heir, but he had been born outside the bonds of marriage, and therefore had to be legitimised by the bitch queen in order to be recognised as such. Baela however, faced no such impediment. If Alyn had remained Alyn of Hull, Baela would be the rightful ruling Lady of Driftmark. Even now, Alyn's legitimacy was paper-thin compared to Baela's. Some even alleged that Alyn was his bastard son. He laughed every time he heard that baseless rumour. Meleys would have surely enjoyed him as a snack had he dared stray from his wife's bed.

Daeron and Daemion did not think Alyn legitimate in any sense of the word, after the unjust death of their father Vaemond under the tyranny of the bitch. But, their frustrations were utterly inconsequential compared to a dragonlord. There was truly nothing stopping Baela from claiming Driftmark now that she rode the largest dragon in the world. He would have to settle the matter, and soon. The Velaryon name had to live on. He could not let his island, his home, be taken away from his house.

The sound of the door opening once more and people walking in snapped him out of his musings. In walked the Grand Maester Munkun, a man of less than forty, who held himself with a gait that was common in one who was highborn. That he had been raised to Archmaester already spoke either to being favoured or his brilliance, Corlys did not know which. Following him was the same man that he had seen Rhaena speak with during the feast, Maegoro Paenymion if he recalled correctly. The lad held a marked resemblance to the Old King when he had been young. After him entered a tall man, with bright blue hair, pale skin and blue eyes with a clean-shaven face. Prince Reggio Narratys of Pentos.

The three of them took their seats. Rhaena shut the book she had been writing on and Baela shut the volume she had been reading. Corlys then pronounced the meeting to have begun, after observing the customary courtesies and greetings.

Rhaena spoke first, "Maegoro, Prince Reggio. You've two have been our family's allies for longer than the two of us have been alive. I wish to assure you that the friendship our father established with your two families shall not be forgotten."

"Thank you. You honour us princess." they chorused.

"Our father united your two cities against the tyranny of the Triarchy," Baela joined. "That is the purpose of our meeting between the three of us today. You both want to conquer the Disputed Lands and annex the cities of the fallen Triarchy into your own territories."

Corlys could see a sudden stiffening of the two Essosi noblemen's posture.

"The Iron Throne has interests of its own with those same cities," Rhaena continued, "we desire retribution for their brazen attack of the Gullet during the war. Of course, we'll give them a chance to pay reparations to the Iron Throne for this. Should they refuse, then Lys, Myr and Tyrosh will be sacked, their riches taken. We also plan to finish what our father began all those years ago by formally annexing the Stepstones into our realm."

The two men opposite him of them stiffened some more.

"But, I wish to assure the both of you that mainland Essos shall be left alone. We only wish for the chain of islands in the Narrow Sea, and for the Three Whores to face vengeance for their attack and the death of one of our own. Is that something both of your cities can agree to?"

Both men nodded.

The next hour was spent defining the new borders of Volantis and Pentos once their conquests were done. Both of them agreed that their conquests would only begin once Baela and Rhaena had sacked Lys, Myr and Tyrosh. New tolls for passage of their ships through the Stepstones were agreed on too, tolls that would see neither party feel too disadvantaged. He helped in this regard where the twins' knowledge fell short. Satisfied, the meeting came to an end once both of them appended their signatures onto the document Maester Munkun had drafted, which described all these terms. Rhaena sent the serving girl who had been acting as cupbearer for the meeting to call for Braavos' representative.

"You should have told them that you intended to conquer the Island of Tyrosh too," Corlys told his granddaughters, once the two men had left and the Maester had excused himself for a short while, "they may take such a conquest as an infringement upon their sovereignty and retaliate. Even though you have dragons, war against the Free Cities can be… inconvenient."

"We said it though, didn't we?" Baela replied, "the writ they signed specifies that we're interested in the islands of the Narrow Sea. That includes Tyrosh."

Corlys shook his head. Aye, it might be clever wording, but the Free Cities might take it as a slight too.

"Perhaps you should meet with the representatives of the other cities too and assuage their concerns that the sacking of Lys, Myr and Tyrosh might bring up. It's always better to make your work as easy as possible. You might even find more allies among them."

Rhaena looked thoughtful, "You make a good point Grandfather. We shall meet with the other Free Cities too. But we are hoping for them to go to war against each other as they always have. Volantis' Tigers desire to subjugate the territory Old Valyria once ruled, as they always have. They will obviously go beyond the borders of the agreement we've reached today, and the other cities will push back. There could be an all-out war in Essos for years, years that we shall use to consolidate our hold on Tyrosh and the Stepstones.

"We might even use their wars to enrich our own coffers. Aegon the First joined an Essosi war on the side of the coalition of the other Free Cities against Volantis before he conquered Westeros. We do not plan on making the same mistake."

Corlys replied, "You would be content with having another slaver empire rise in the East?"

Baela spoke this time, "A conquest of that magnitude is unlikely to be successful with armies alone. However, an attempt at such gives us a unique opportunity. Volantis surely remembers that the intervention of the Black Dread effectively ended their ambitions the last time. This time, we will threaten to join one side or the other, unless we are convinced not to."

He was quick to understand Baela's meaning. That was actually not a bad idea. They would profit from the chaos across the Narrow Sea, and use that profit to restore their house's rule in their own realm.

The door opened once more, and the Kingsguard outside announced, "Lord Tormo Antaryon, son of Sealord Syrio Antaryon of Braavos."

The man was fairly short, dressed in a black doublet and breeches. His hair was the same colour as his eyes, a shining black that flowed down past his shoulders. This was certainly an improvement to the wastrel that his daughter had been bound to. A boy so pathetic that his own father exiled him immediately he had sired a younger son. That the Sealord of that time had foisted that fool onto to him, essentially breaking the teeth of their alliance to a house of dragonriders (at least at that time), testified to Braavos' apathy to anything relating to Valyria.

He hoped that the Antaryon family, who had only recently taken up rule of Braavos after deposing and exterminating the family that Laena was once bound to, was more tractable than his predecessors. The issue Baela and Rhaena meant to raise with them was a much more contentious one, one that even the Conciliator could not solve.

"It is a pleasure to have the audience of the princesses of Westeros," the man said, "my father hopes that the friendship between Braavos and Westeros will reach new heights. On behalf of our exalted city, I'd like to apologise for our predecessors' horrid behaviour. Sending Faceless Men after you and your family once Lady Laena had her betrothed killed and ran away with your father was quite a short sighted thing to do."

Subtlety seemed to be what he was going for. Extending the offer of friendship with one hand while reminding them that their city had a guild of assassins that could disguise themselves as anyone in the world with the other.

"Ah, we do not hold the sins of the past over the possibilities of the future. And our father thwarted that attack quite effectively if I recall correctly," Rhaena replied, a practised smile on her face. Two could play that game.

Tormo Antaryon smiled a nervous smile too, "As a token of our friendship, I would like you to know that the part of the treasury that was entrusted to us by the usurper is on its way to King's Landing. It should arrive before the end of today or the beginning of tomorrow."

"Of course. Thank you Lord Tormo." Baela replied, before getting straight to the point of why they had asked for the meeting in the first place, "House Targaryen desires the return of the three dragon's eggs that Elissa Farman stole from Princess Rhaena more than half a century ago."

"Oh," the man replied, seemingly gobsmacked. He certainly had not planned on that issue being revisited.

Corlys himself had made the proposition of buying those eggs back from Braavos soon after he had married Rhaenys, to keep them for his children. Rhaenys had shut down that idea immediately, fearful of antagonising the Old King so soon after her inheritance had been stripped from her. The issue died soon after, for Meleys had gone on to lay three clutches of eggs, two of which hatched, one into Seasmoke, and the other into the deformed creature that Rhaena had been bound to before she hatched Morning. That egg had been Laena's before she had claimed Vhagar. Rhaena had been so dejected after it had died only hours after it was born. The rest of those eggs had been destroyed during the sacking of High Tide.

"We'll make it worth your while to be sure," Rhaena continued. "Those eggs have not been useful to Braavos in any way thus far, only a monument to the arrogance of the Sealord of King Jaehaerys' time. Gold would be more useful to you. Say, half a million dragons perhaps?"

Subtlety had all but vanished from Tormo's face. Surprise was plain on Corlys' too, although he struggled to hide it too. Half a million was an outrageous amount. Elissa Farman had certainly not gotten that when she sold the eggs to Braavos. Her payment had only been her ship, Sunchaser. A fine ship yes, but certainly not worth half a million golden dragons.

Tormo smiled, "I believe that would be fair amount."

"Good," Baela replied.

Maester Munkun finally returned and drafted the concordat detailing the agreement the twins would make with Braavos. It was agreed that the three eggs would be brought over with all haste from Braavos. The arrival to King's Landing was estimated to be a fortnight at most. Once the eggs were brought over, the agreed amount for payment would be delivered to the Iron Bank of Braavos before the moon turned.

Another hour was spent negotiating and renegotiating trade agreements between King's Landing and Braavos. Two hundred thousand more golden dragons would be entrusted into the care of the Iron Bank for two decades, the rates of interest on that investment were set quite favourably for Westeros; it would take only a decade for that amount to double. The twins' intention of annexing the Stepstones and sacking the Triarchy was made clear to the Braavosi, who seemed even excited at that prospect. His only condition was for the Iron Throne to ensure that no slave ships would pass through those isles. That was easy enough for the princesses to agree to. The tolls that Braavos would pay for their ship to pass through the isles were also discussed and agreed upon.

The meeting came to an end and once Lord Tormo left with his copy of the document containing the agreements they had reached. The Grand Maester departed once more. Once the three of them were alone, Corlys had to say it, "Half a million golden dragons is way too much for three dragon eggs."

"Don't worry Grandfather. We will get millions more once we sack Lys, Myr and Tyrosh. And who says that Braavos will keep that gold?" Baela said menacingly. Gods she had so much of her father in her.

"But those are plans for much later on," Rhaena added her voice to her sister's, "For now they have no reason to target us, so we'll let them be. But, we cannot let such a formidable order as the Faceless Men continue to exist. We'll strike them down soon enough."

By the evening, he and the twins had met with the rest of the representatives of the Free Cities. All of them were glad to be rid of the threat of the Triarchy for good and all. The Free Cities did not yet know of Volantis' and Pentos' ambition of annexing the Disputed Lands. He hoped things would go as well on that front; that the Volantenes would get greedy and ignite a war with the rest of Essos. That would only be good for Westeros.

Supper that night was a lively affair. His granddaughters were conscripting their brother and his friend, the usurper's bastard boy Gaemon Palehair, into a game apparently invented by Rhaena. The food was delicious too. There were fillets of spiced salmon, dripping with a glaze made of olive oil, parsley and lemon juice; baked in clay. Accompanying it was freshly baked oat bread, with wine to wash it down, although the twins, their brother and their cousin drank grape juice instead.

"Checkmate, Baela. I win!" the boy king shouted softly, as excited as Corlys had ever seen him since the war ended.

Rhaena, who had been playing with Gaemon, turned to inspect Baela and Aegon's game, and he had indeed won. Rhaena and Gaemon proceeded to laugh uproariously at Baela, while Aegon joined with his own soft chuckles. Baela rolled her eyes at his sibling's and cousin's antics as she then proceeded to rearrange the board once more.

"Best of three. You shall not win again," Baela promised.

"After we've had our supper," Rhaena said, before turning to her brother, "some of us have not eaten for the entire day."

The boy king shied away from her sister's gaze.

Soon enough, animated chatter was heard around the circular dining table as the five of them ate. Even Corlys joined from time to time, listening keenly as Rhaena explained to him how this new game she had invented worked. It was actually not as complex as he had thought it would be. He would try it.

Dinner ended, the plates were cleared, and Baela challenged her brother to another round of chess. Gaemon set up his own board to play with Rhaena once more, but she announced her intention to leave.

"I have to meet with the High Septon," Rhaena said.

"Now?" Aegon asked.

"Aye. His days are as busy as are hours. It'll be better for the meeting to get done as soon as possible, before he returns to Oldtown," Rhaena replied.

"Take a complement of guards with you," Baela said. Rhaena nodded then shut the door behind her.

"Baela," Corlys offered, "a game?"

"Sure, Grandfather," Baela said as she changed seats to situate herself on the other side of the table, "you have first move. White always starts." Gaemon moved to be seated opposite Aegon and they began a game of their own. Corlys moved the center pawn forward two steps.

"I wished to speak to you of an issue I think deserves your consideration," he began.

Baela gave him a searching look before she replied, "Is this concerning the inheritance of Driftmark?" She moved her knight to the centre of the board.

"Aye." He copied Baela's action, moving his own knight to the centre of the board as well.

"Let me guess. You are afraid that I'll easily take it from cousin Alyn since I ride a dragon and he does not. And you want to solve this by having me marry him." Baela moved her right-most pawn forward two steps.

Huh. He hadn't even considered such a match. All the same, it was unlikely to happen. He knew that both Baela and Rhaena would marry Aegon and make themselves Queens of the Seven Kingdoms once they did away with Jaehaera. Mayhaps it was why Rhaena was courting the favour of the High Septon. Corlys brought out his septon to attack her queen.

"You're right concerning the first part. Both you and Rhaena are dragonlords, the only dragonlords left in the world. You are going to sack Lys, Myr and Tyrosh. If it's ships you want, you can seize as many of theirs as you wish to. If it's more lands you wish for, there is much of that in the realm that you can take.

"All I ask is that you let Driftmark pass to your cousin after my death. He is a Velaryon, and one of the last Velaryons at that. That island has been our home for generations. I ask, nay, plead with you, that you let it remain that way." Her queen ate his septon. Argh! He had forgotten that queen had the most power in the game. She could move in all directions.

Aegon suddenly interjected in his soft voice, looking up from his game with Gaemon, "Alyn is your heir Lord Corlys, just as my mother decreed. Baela would not usurp him."

"Tis not usurpation Aegon. It is a legitimate question of succession. Alyn was born a bastard, Rhaena and I were not."

Aegon took a sip of his cup of grape juice before he replied in a voice that was soft but casual, "People said Jace was a bastard too. That did not mean that he was not Mother's heir."

Baela's eyes were full of steel when Corlys turned to her once more. Her face was an impassive mask, but he knew that there was danger behind her eyes. He'd witnessed this same look on Daemon Targaryen's face. Aegon shrivelled under her piercing gaze. Corlys sighed, frustration rising in his belly. The discussion concerning this matter was over for now, he knew. Aegon and his seemingly casual comment had made sure of it.

If there was one thing Corlys knew concerning his granddaughters, is that they would not suffer accusations of their late betrotheds being called bastards without the risk of retaliation. Even more so after they had died in the war. Whether it was because they genuinely thought that they were trueborn and were protecting them, or because they knew the truth and were irrational in the affection they held for them, he had never been sure.

"As you say, Your Grace," Baela grit out the reply as she rose and left the room, her walk poised and deliberate, the game forgotten.

"That was ill done, Your Grace," he told the king solemnly.

"I know, I know," the boy king told him, "I'll speak to her later, when her ire has cooled,"

Corlys only nodded. Why the boy king had sided with him instead of his own sister, he did not know. Perhaps he wished for his mother's decree to be obeyed even after her death. Or he knew that Jacaerys was truly a bastard and felt some kind of sympathy for Alyn because of it. Either way, he would count himself fortunate and hope the king remained on his side.

---

The Castle Sept in the Red Keep - King's Landing

HIS HIGH HOLINESS

The final hymn was being sung, signalling the end to the day's prayers. The castle sept of the Red Keep was full to bursting. It made sense. The court was crowded with nobles from every corner of the realm, who had come to the capital to celebrate the wedding of the boy king and his new queen.

Looking over the congregation, he noticed that the king's sister, Princess Rhaena Targaryen sitting in the front row. He was glad of it. The king and his two sisters had been attending the weekly services in the castle sept and the daily prayers most evenings, according to the faithful who served in the king's court. Sometimes all three of them would come, other times two, and on rare occasions such as today, one of them would attend. The gods had shown them the way it seemed.

Oh, how times had changed. House Targaryen, the house that had warred against the Faith during Maegor's day, now seemed to have become a house of devout worshippers. On the other hand, House Hightower, the house that had been their patrons for thousands of years, the house that had built the Starry Sept to honour the Gods, was now led by a godless heathen who lay with his own mother.

Disgust filled his throat at the thought. Even the Targaryens, the only ones allowed by the Seven to lay with close kin, did not go as far as having fathers bed their own daughters or mothers bed their own sons. It was abominable; the worst sin a man could commit, and any who did would surely be cursed for it. Fear filled him all a sudden. Mayhaps he may be cursed too due to living in the same city as such abominations. He sent a silent prayer to the Father to judge him justly. He was a righteous man, he reminded himself. As one with the rest of the faithful, he had denounced House Hightower and its scions for their grave sin.

The song came to an end, the last prayer was said by one of his sisters and the congregation left the modest castle sept. Princess Rhaena remained behind however, her head bowed in prayer for a few moments longer. He felt proud at the sight. If the rulers of these Seven Kingdoms were devout, then the realm would indeed be restored.

"Your Holiness," the princess called out to him once he was finished with her prayer.

"Princess," he replied, "Seven blessings."

"Seven blessings to you too," she replied as she walked to the pulpit where he was standing. Two knights of the Kingsguard were flanking her. "I hoped we might meet in a more private setting."

"Of course. We can meet in the sept's solar if that is suitable for you."

"It is. Lead the way." The princess said, motioning for him to do so.

"What matters did you wish to speak of, Princess?"

"Your Holiness. I couldn't help but notice the coolness between you and your most valued patrons, the Hightowers. You arrived for the royal wedding celebrations three days after they did, having travelled with Lords Redwyne and Costayne and not them."

His hands clenched instinctually, "Yes. The current Lord Hightower has proven himself to be a degenerate and a sinner. He will be struck down by the Gods for his sins."

"May the Father justly judge him." the princess said, "It is clear they have failed in their duty patrons of the Faith. And it perhaps explains my dreams these days."

At his confused look, the princess continued, "These past few nights, since the day you arrived for the royal wedding, I have had the same constant dream, which has rendered my nights sleepless."

She then reached into a pocket of her coat, pulled out a piece of parchment and handed it to him. On it, there was a drawing, depicting a magnificent building at the top of Visenya's Hill. It was a structure with a great dome and seven slender towers around it. Before the doors leading into the building, there was a raised pulpit where a member of the clergy would give a sermon to the entire city. Around the grand building there was a plaza, which he could tell was capable of holding thousands of people.

"I see it every day, clear as crystal. I see the faithful walking up the grand marble steps into the House of the Seven. I see hundreds of them standing on the polished floors, the depictions of the seven faces of God gleaming as heaven's light streams through the bright dome made of leaded glass. I see the faithful worshipping at the feet of the Father and the Mother, their voices sweet as they sing the their songs."

"You see this in your dreams?" he asked incredulously.

"Yes. I've never had a vision persist this much and be this vivid. I believe the Crone has imparted me with this dream. I believe he wishes us to make it into reality. I do not think my spirit will rest until this Great Sept is built*,* for us the faithful to find solace and be closer to the Seven Who Are One."

Never before had he seen someone speak with this much conviction. The Gods had answered the prayers of the faithful through her, he concluded. If this Great Sept was to be built atop Visenya's Hill, it would only be prudent for the Most Devout to move into it and escape the sinners and degenerates of Oldtown. The faithful would have a refuge here. His decision was made then. He would aid the princess in bringing this vision to life.

"I vow upon the Seven Who Are One, that this vision will come to life, Princess. The faithful will have a refuge once more, one that has not been tainted and corrupted by the lust of monsters and abominations. The Most Devout will stay in a city that knows and practices the tenets of the Faith, not one that is led by a man who has taken his own mother as his lover."

The princess smiled, and he swore it was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen, "It shall be a hard road Your Holiness. It will take years, mayhaps decades to complete, but I know that with the Iron Throne and the Faith working together, we shall see this dream become a reality."

"We shall. Tis the will of the Gods."

---

17th Day, Seventh Moon, 131 AC | The Red Keep - King's Landing

AEGON

The roars of a dragon resounded in his ears. They were loud, screeching, deafening. And with the roars, came the fire. Foul-smelling flames, that were golden like the sun. Suddenly there was screaming, so loud, so harsh, and the blue daylight sky was suddenly torn apart, revealing the darkness underneath.

Aegon shot out of his bed, immediately heading to the privy chambers and emptying the contents of his stomach into the chamberpot. There were tears in his eyes. He let them fall. When it got too much he rushed out of his chambers towards his sisters', the Kingsguard guarding his door falling behind him.

The White Sword guarding Baela's and Rhaena's chambers immediately let him in. Instinctively, he rushed into Rhaena's waiting arms, who was seated at her writing desk, dozens of candles lit in front of her.

"Bad dreams again?" Rhaena said as she embraced him. Aegon only nodded into her shoulder.

"What did you see?" Rhaena asked.

"The dragon burning mother," Aegon answered weakly, as a fresh bout of tears overwhelmed him. His shoulders shook as he sobbed once more.

Rhaena said nothing more as he ran her hands up and down his back and in a languid pace that comforted him. Finally, the tears and the sniffling stopped. He looked up to face her, his eyes red and raw, and his face stained with tear tracks.

"It's okay," Rhaena said as she handed him a cloth to wipe his face, "you're safe now."

He left her embrace after a long moment, "You couldn't sleep too?"

"I slept just after sunset, which is quite early these days because of winter. I woke up two hours ago and I've been here since."

"What are you always writing?" Aegon asked curiously. Almost every free moment she had since she returned from the Vale was spent writing in the massive tomes that Father had gifted her. So far, she had already filled up one of them and was already mid-way through the second.

She gave him a contemplative look, before she spoke once more, "Tis just plans, ideas, and thoughts I have."

"Concerning what?" Aegon asked.

"See for yourself," replied Rhaena.

The filled-up tome was taken out of a shelf next to the desk and given to him. Aegon opened it and curiously went through the pages. On one of the pages, there were designs for what Aegon could tell was a Dragonpit. The structure of this design was quite different to the original one however.

"Is this the Dragonpit?" Aegon asked.

"Yes, a newer, better version of it. For one, there'll be a fort surrounding it, with men stationed atop its battlements to prevent another scenario like the Storming. There'll also be a massive vault, dug deep into the hill, that shall be used to store dragon eggs. That way, if another Storming somehow does happen, the eggs would remain safe. The vault will also help in controlling the number of dragons. This new pit will have more lairs too; sixty, by my estimation, instead of the forty it had before, since the large arena that the first Dragonpit had will not be in this one. It was pointless."

"And where will major occasions of the realm be held?"

Rhaena turned a page and upon it was a design of another structure. It looked to be larger, grander and much more ostentatious than any building he'd ever seen.

"This is a grand sept that shall be built on Visenya's hill. It'll be able to seat thirty thousand people. The High Septon has agreed to provide some funding for it and move the entirety of the Faith's clergy there once it's complete. If there are any large events, they'll be held there."

Aegon was astounded. He knew his histories. Maegor had fought a war with the Faith for the entirety of his reign. Jaehaerys had further curtailed their rights and privileges. They should hold no love for his family, "How did you accomplish that?"

"Lord Hightower married his father's widow. The High Septon thinks that to be incest. Thus the ties between the Faith and the Hightowers have frayed. All I did was show the High Septon that there was a better option. It's why I've been forcing all of you to attend the weekly services and the evening prayers in the sept. The man took the bait after I promised to build a Grand Sept in King's Landing. The Faith will soon be under the crown's control."

"Brilliant!" Aegon couldn't help but exclaim.

"Why, thank you Your Grace," she said in a teasing tone.

Aegon shook his head and continued to flip through the pages. He came across a map of the lands around Harrenhal. This was where Father had died, killing the kinslayer and avenging Lucerys' death. Vhagar and Caraxes had drowned in the God's Eye Lake.

"What do you intend to do with Harrenhal?" Aegon asked his sister.

"Add it to our demesne," Rhaena said, "House Strong is extinct. I know our ancestors chose to give Harrenhal to a new house whenever its former lords died out but we shall not do the same. Those lands are fertile and quite large, there's no reason not to add them to the Crownlands." She then turned the page, "These are the basic drawings of the new castle that will be built there once Silverwing burns Castle Harrenhal."

He nodded his head. He flipped some pages volume once more, before he came upon the drawing of what looked like a ship, but of a kind that he had never seen. They were expert drawings too, one a shipwright could have made.

"You intend to have ships built too?"

"Aye, for the crown's navy. Curious that our house has never had one. We've depended on the Velaryon fleet since the conquest, and it's high time that changed. These are designs for a new kind of ship I've been thinking of, one that's faster than the types of ships we have at present. It'll give us a large advantage over the rest of the world for a time at least, before they catch up."

"Oh," Aegon replied. What else was there to say. His sister was a visionary it seemed.

They spent the rest of the night discussed most of what Rhaena had detailed in those volumes. There were designs for strange devices he had never seen, such as one that could tell time using numbers, or another that could be used for navigation during sailing. The preparations for a conquest and annexation of the island of Tyrosh had been detailed, which he was surprised to find out was going to take place once Viserys was found and brought home next moon. In the far future, they would conquer Dorne as well.

Another account spoke of some organisation cleverly named the 'League of Shadows'. Rhaena's explanation of its inner workings made no sense to him at all, but from the basic understanding he had gained, it was a spy organisation, used to learn what all their potential enemies were upto, and to prevent their house from being targeted from the shadows. Sort of what Larys 'the Clubfoot' had built, Rhaena told him, but on a much larger scale and running much more efficiently.

There was much, much more. And it was all very wondrous and astounding.

"Why do all this, Rhaena? Why dedicate your life to this?"

"Because we need to. The conquerors, for all we revere and venerate them, actually did a very shoddy job in their subjugation of Westeros. The kings after them did even less. Even now, a century and a half later, this continent has no true hegemon. We might call ourselves kings and queens, but our rule depends entirely on the oaths the seven great lords swear to us. Oaths that we've seen can easily be broken.

"All the kingdoms that held power before the conquest still do. Lannister, Stark, Arryn, and Martell were rulers before the dragons came here. They are kings in all but name still; the only difference being that they pay taxes to the Iron Throne. The same case applies to Tully, Baratheon, Tyrell and Greyjoy, whom the first Aegon lifted into power.

"It's because of this power that the war we've endured these past two years even happened in the first place. Otto and his daughter were able to seize the throne out from under us because they had the support of three great lords.

"Now imagine if the dragons all died. Imagine if someone managed to unite these great lords against us. We'd not be able to stop them. We have the smallest demesne and the least number of men to call upon. Even two or three of these kingdoms could easily finish us off."

Aegon pondered what his sister was saying. The memories flashed in his mind. The blade that had penetrated his mother's breast. The maimed and foul-smelling dragon stalking forward. Golden flames bellowing out of the dragon's maw and consuming her. Oh, no, no, no, no, no! No! This could not be happening.

"Aegon! Aegon! Aegon, are you well?" Rhaena called out frantically as she held his shoulders in place. He was shaking, he realised. He was shaking, and he could not stop it.

"Breathe… Aegon… Breathe… Breathe…" his sister tried to calm him, "In through your nose, out through your mouth."

He did as she asked. It took a long while before he was calm again.

"You're safe, you're safe. Nothing will harm you," Rhaena told him as her hands combed his hair while they were locked in an embrace.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me." Aegon apologised, embarrassed.

"No need to apologise brother. I'm here. I'm here and you're here too. And I shall do everything in my power to make sure it stays that way."

"What can I do?" Aegon asked, "what can I do to help you make these plans come true? I don't… I don't want what happened to our family to happen again. I don't know if I can bear it."

"For now, study and learn. History, swordplay, warfare, sums; everything and anything that a king requires to have learned. I'll involve you in all the plans we shall make, I promise you that; but if you in turn promise to make sure they stay secret between us."

"I promise."

"Very well. Also, make sure to attend all the council meetings held. You are the king, you should make sure that you have an understanding of the matters that go on in your realm. Let your presence be known. Let your voice be heard. If there's anything that you don't understand, ask me, Baela or our grandfather. For now, they're the only people we can trust."

A vigorous nod of his head was all the reply needed.

"Now go. Dawn is breaking and the time for your training nears. I'm sure Ser Corwyn is already waiting for you. I need to bathe and dress as well before I meet with the Dragonkeepers in the stables to train Morning. If I get time before the council meeting begins, I might join you in the yard."

There was a smile on her face when she spoke next, "Don't worry, I won't beat you too badly." She then went into her bedchamber.

The council meeting began later into the morning after he had done his training, bathed, dressed and broken his fast with his sisters. Rhaena had managed to come to the yard, and she had indeed beaten him. Aegon had stifled a laugh when Baela had in turn battered Rhaena into the ground. Even he had gotten a win over Gaemon, who had followed him into the yard even though he was yet to officially start his training on account of his age. Ser Corwyn, the wielder of Lady Forlorn, was a patient teacher. Aegon's skill would grow under his tutelage.

The council table was full when he entered, his sisters flanking him. All those inside stood up in respect, and Aegon had to fight the urge of wilting under their expectant gazes. He was the king now, he had to remind himself. All these lords were here at his behest. This was his council. Baela had told him so. The supporting hand of his sister on his shoulder filled him with a determination uncommon in him.

He took his seat at the head of the table, with Baela sat on his right, and Rhaena his left. Gaemon, acting as the cupbearer, poured drinks for all the lords. Wine for the councillors and juice for him, Baela and Rhaena.

On Baela's right, sat Lord Corlys, the Hand of the King. Next to him was Ser Torrhen Manderly, the Master of Laws. He was followed by Lord Manfryd Mooton, the Master of Coin; Ser Tyland Lannister, the Master of Ships; Grand Maester Munkun of the Citadel, Lord Roland Westerling of the Crag, Ser Corwyn Corbray, the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard; Lord Olyver Caron of Nightsong and Lady Jeyne Arryn of the Vale, who was on Rhaena's left.

For now until Baela and Rhaena came of age, all nine of them had the power of a regent. That meant that no decision of his held any weight unless it was ratified by a majority of them. Normally, it was a notion that would have made him uneasy, but he had two dragonriders for sisters and he was therefore not too torn up about it. To add to that, it was an arrangement that would last less than a year.

Many matters were brought forward to be discussed by the council. Lord Manfryd confirmed the return of the crown's gold by the Lannisters, Hightowers and the Braavosi, although he complained that half a million golden dragons were missing from the sum that Braavos had returned. Baela informed him that she had used that sum to purchase the three dragon's eggs that Elissa Farman had stolen from King Jaehaerys, and that those eggs were currently in incubation on Dragonstone.

If he recalled correctly, Baela had flown to the island with six dragon's eggs, two days ago. One egg was apparently collected from Bitterbridge, two others were ones that Mother had given Rhaena when Jacaerys had sent her to the Vale, meaning the other three had to be the ones returned from Braavos. Ser Torrhen complained quite loudly at Baela, berating her for being irresponsible with the crown's gold. Rhaena unsuccessfully tried to cool the flaring tempers, but the council chamber was rendered completely silent when they heard the angry roar of a dragon. Rhaena's hand was immediately on Aegon's shoulder to calm him. The councillors turned to the open windows to see Silverwing's massive head peering into the room, growling angrily.

Rhaena's calming voice resounded in his ear, "Breathe Aegon… Breathe. You're safe. You're here, and I am too." He managed to calm himself.

Ser Torrhen said nothing for the rest of the meeting even after the dragon departed. Aegon could swear he could smell urine in the room, although he dismissed that notion. There were no babes here.

It took around four hours for the meeting to come to an end. Aegon and his sisters went to have luncheon, with Rhaena forcing him to eat more than he had planned to. Lord Corlys joined them.

"Grandfather," Baela said to Corlys, "I've given more thought to the matter you raised, concerning inheritance of Driftmark and I've come to a decision. You've always given good counsel, you've been loyal to us since the war began, and you are our beloved grandfather. I'll therefore honour your proposal. Alyn will inherit Driftmark after your death but, on several conditions."

Lord Corlys smiled blindingly.

Baela laid out her terms. First, all ships seized from the Triarchy would belong to the Royal Fleet exclusively, abandoning the previous arrangement of indemnifying House Velaryon's fleet and returning it to its strength before the war. Second, all possessions that had belonged to her grandmother were to be returned to her and where those possessions had been lost, a monetary payment of an equivalent amount was to be made. Third, the charters granted to Hull and Spicetown would be renegotiated should those two towns be rebuilt.

Lord Corlys' smile remained blinding, "Thank you Baela. I'll have the agreement written and signed. I'm sure you'll give a copy of it to Alyn once you leave for your campaign."

His sister only nodded in response. Alyn had left for Driftmark as soon as the wedding ended.

"Grandfather," Rhaena asked, "Why not admit that Alyn is your son?"

The Sea Snake laughed uproariously. "You have fallen for these lies too!" he said once his mirth subsided.

"Alyn is truly Laenor's son. I would have been fed to Meleys had I strayed from your grandmother's bed. You can be sure that."

Surprise was plain on all their faces, "But I thought… I thought uncle Laenor could not… endure bedding a woman."

The Master of Driftmark's eyes turned sad, "It was difficult to be sure, but not impossible."

"How?" Baela asked.

Lord Corlys sighed, and began his confession.

---

Author's Note:
Posting this a bit earlier than my normal schedule since we've got gazetted random power outages for the next week.
I hope you enjoy this outlook into some of the future plans Rhaena has, the issue of Driftmark's succession, negotiations with the Free Cities, getting back Drogon, Rhaegal and Viserion's eggs, and the Targaryens co-opting the faith. Please tell me your thoughts on all this down below. If you're impatient and would like to read the next chapter, '09. Under the Regents', and several more after that, you can do so here.

 

[Wolffils]

Thanks for the chapter.

Also this story is one of the handful I've ever read where it has Laenor as being the father of Alyn and Addam of Hull.

 

[neyra]

Thanks for the chapter.

Also this story is one of the handful I've ever read where it has Laenor as being the father of Alyn and Addam of Hull.

Click to shrink...

You're welcome

What do you think of it? I believe it was the case in actual canon

 

[Wolffils]

You're welcome

What do you think of it? I believe it was the case in actual canon

Click to shrink...

It's actually a personal headcanon of mine that Addam and Alyn were actually Laenors boys. Perhaps in his youth, he laid with Marilda a few times just to see if he had the temerity and ability to have sex with a woman. It's also another way that demonizes Rhaenyra which I support- Laenor was capable of fathering children. Its just that Rhaenyra never really tried with him and Laenor wasn't firm enough to push it and was happy with his male lovers.

Canonically though, its 100% certain that the Sea Snake was their father.

 

[neyra]

It's actually a personal headcanon of mine that Addam and Alyn were actually Laenors boys. Perhaps in his youth, he laid with Marilda a few times just to see if he had the temerity and ability to have sex with a woman. It's also another way that demonized Rhaenyra which I support- Laenor was capable of fathering children. Its just that Rhaenyra never really tried with him and Laenor wasn't firm enough to push it and was happy with his male lovers.

Canonically though, its 100% certain that the Sea Snake was their father.

Click to shrink...

I made a post in the past on AH forum discussing this; let me say what I said there here:

Yeah, they are Laenor's kids.
Below are my reasons.

1. How Addam and Alyn could have been sired.
Option A: We don't actually know whether Laenor is gay or not. Aye, some characters suspect that he was, and he spent time with Joffrey Lonmouth, but this isn't actually confirmed. Rhaegar spent time with Jon Connington and we know that Rhaegar was not gay at all. It is also stated in the book that Laenor was never at court save for official occasions after he married Rhaenyra in 114 AC. Even when Daemon and Laena came back from Pentos and were visiting with Rhaenyra on Dragonstone often, Laenor was apparently not among those visiting. Note; Addam was born in 114 AC, and Alyn 115 AC. It's very possible that Laenor could have just been hanging out with Marilda during that time.
As part of this option, although you can choose to omit it or not. All five of the kids are Laenor's. Addam, Alyn, Jacaerys, Lucerys and Joffrey are all Laenor's kids. in this case, Laenor would essentially go to KL only when Rhaenyra was in her fertile window, fuck her a bunch of times, then go back to Driftmark to chill with the love of his life, Marilda. It just so happened that Addam and Alyn are the ones who took his Valyrian features, in the same way that Jon has Ned's features while Robb, Bran and Rickon don't. I believe in this option the least since it would be incredibly unlucky for Arryn genes to be this strong one generation removed. But, it creates the most irony.
Option B: Laenor is gay, and what is widely accepted as true in the books is the actual truth. Corlys would have absolutely made sure that Laenor and his tastes would not be an impediment to him achieving his ambitions, i.e having his line rule the Seven Kingdoms. According to me, I see him commanding Laenor to bed Marilda right before he got married to Rhaenyra to make sure that he could sire children, hence getting Alyn born the same year as Jacaerys. Then after Jace is born with different colouring to Alyn, he might have assumed that it's the latent Baratheon or Arryn genes that showed itself in him. As a measure to confirm that, he could have had Laenor bed Marilda again to confirm whether Jacaerys was trueborn or not. Alyn was most likely born after Luke, because Corlys gave him his name. After Alyn was born looking Valyrian while Luke was not, he confirms that Rhaenyra is siring bastards, gets pissed at Laenor and doesn't even bother giving Joffrey a Velaryon name unlike he did with both Jacaerys and Lucerys. Laenor would also be pissed at his dad for making him bed Marilda while being gay. Immediately after this, the Jace/Baela and Luke/Rhaena betrothals happen. (this second option is what I went with in this story)

2. Why Corlys hid both Addam and Alyn until 129 AC.
Option A: There's a very simple explanation for this; Rhaenyra and Daemon. Both of them have dragons, both are dangerous, Rhaenyra is entitled and would not take any slander to her name. Rhaenyra had Vaemond fed to a dragon because of his slander. If they had found out about Addam and Alyn early on, they would have taken action concerning them; even outright killing them to remove the challenge to Jace and Luke's 'legitimacy'. This 'legitimacy' could be the reason for Daemon and Rhaenyra's swift marriage after Laenor's death and the Jace/Baela Luke/Rhaena betrothals. Doing those three matches would maintain the Velaryon/Rhaenyra alliance and made sure that Jacaerys and Lucerys would get their inheritances as Rhaenyra desires.
Another thing, Corlys would have seen that the king was fully behind Rhaenyra, despite her siring bastards and passing them as trueborn. If she moved against Addam and Alyn, Corlys can't complain to anybody in order to get justice since Viserys fully supported Rhaenyra in his entitlement. Rhaenyra, who has a dragon of her own, has the king and the most feared dragonrider in the world at her side (said dragonrider being married to their daughter). It'd be suicide to go against him, since at this time, the green kids were too young to count as any potential allies. Therefore Corlys swallows his pride and accepts Jace and Luke as his heirs.

3. Corlys could have claimed them as his own children in 129 AC after Addam claims Seasmoke.
After the death of Rhaenys and Lucerys in the early stages of the war, the situation had massively shifted against the Blacks, and they were desperate for more dragonriders. If Addam and Alyn were Corlys' children, him bringing the two of them forward to claim dragons suggests that he believes that his bloodline by his lonesome (without any Targaryen infusion), is as exalted and as genetically able as the Targaryens'. Corlys is ambitious, methodical and grasping. He is seemingly never satisfied. A Velaryon supremacist. Therefore, if he had one of his own children without Targaryen blood become dragonriders, wouldn't he be shouting it from the rooftops? Wouldn't he want the entire world to know that Velaryons can be dragonriders too, that Corlys' blood is as genetically capable as Targaryen blood?
At this point, if he did that, no one could say anything against it. The world believes Laenor to have been gay, therefore no one would have disputed him in that fact. Rhaenys is dead, so Corlys has nothing to be afraid of in saying that Addam and Alyn were his children. It begs the question, why didn't he? The only plausible explanation: they're Laenor's children.

4. Marilda of Hull had no reason to lie.
Marilda is the one who said that the children were Laenor's children. She's the one who brought them to the attention of Jacaerys actually. What reason does she have to lie if they were Corlys' children? She seemed to have been taking the opportunity to get rich and move up in the world, which she did by quite a bit after Oakenfist became Lord of Driftmark. Claiming that they were Corlys bastards favours her case more than claiming that they are Laenor's. It's more easily believable and plausible since Laenor is believed to be gay. She's most likely telling the truth about them being Laenor's children.

This is how I see the whole scenario having happened.
Addam and Alyn are either sired as children born of love from Laenor/Marilda, or children born of his father's command. Either way, Corlys finds out about them and hides them away to make sure that they don't fall into the radar of Daemon and Rhaenyra who would most certainly kill them. During the war, they become dragonriders since they are of Laenor's blood and Corlys has Rhaenyra legitimise them and make them heirs to Driftmark. Rhaenyra, due to her being desperate for more dragonriders, is backed into the wall and accepts. She places them before her own son Joffrey in the line of succession to Driftmark.

 

[Wolffils]

This is how I see the whole scenario having happened.
Addam and Alyn are either sired as children born of love from Laenor/Marilda, or children born of his father's command. Either way, Corlys finds out about them and hides them away to make sure that they don't fall into the radar of Daemon and Rhaenyra who would most certainly kill them. During the war, they become dragonriders since they are of Laenor's blood and Corlys has Rhaenyra legitimise them and make them heirs to Driftmark. Rhaenyra, due to her being desperate for more dragonriders, is backed into the wall and accepts. She places them before her own son Joffrey in the line of succession to Driftmark.

Click to shrink...

These are literally my personal thoughts on the matter as well. The book may posit that Corlys are those boys fathers but for me this scenario makes far more sense.

 

[neyra]

These are literally my personal thoughts on the matter as well. The book may posit that Corlys are those boys fathers but for me this scenario makes far more sense.

Click to shrink...

Yeah.

But honestly, FnB and it's ambiguity is egregious.

 

[neyra]

Excerpt from 'Fire and Blood: Aegon II Targaryen - The Regency and Reign of the Broken King' by Archmaester Rhaegar Targaryen

.…The Hour of The Wolf ended only six days after it had begun, on the tenth day of the fourth moon of the 131st year after Aegon's Conquest. Once the last of the traitors had been executed or put in the dungeons awaiting their journey to Castle Black, Lord Cregan Stark, newly betrothed to Lady Alysanne Blackwood, returned his chain of office to Prince Aegon, declaring his intention to return to Winterfell immediately after the wedding between Aegon and Jaehaera was done. There are some who thought he might have easily remained the King's Hand for years, or even seized the regency until young Aegon came of age, but the south held no interest for him. 'The Snows are falling in the North,' he announced, 'and my place is at Winterfell.' However, his return faced a thorny issue.

Lord Stark had marched south with a great host, made up in large part of men unwanted and unneeded in the North, whose return would bring great hardship and mayhaps even death for the loved ones they had left behind. Lady Alysanne Blackwood and Lady Rhaena Targaryen suggested suitable solutions for this problem. In the wake of the war, and the devastation that Vhagar had wrought, the lands along the Trident were full of widows, Lady Alysanne told Lord Stark. With winter at hand, strong backs and willing hands would be welcome in many homes. In King's Landing as well, Lady Rhaena suggested to the Northman, there was a need for strong men to aid in the rebuilding and protection of the city, since ruin and lawlessness had become the norm in the streets by then. Lord Stark agreed to both suggestions; although later actions would prove that Lady Rhaena had secured these men for her own ends.

In the end, less than a thousand men accompanied Lady Alysanne and her nephew, Lord Benjicot Blackwood when they returned to the Riverlands after the royal wedding. Hundreds of marriages were made at 'Widow Fairs' held at Raventree, Riverrun, Stoney Sept, the Twins, and Fairmarket. 'A wolf for every widow,' was what these Widow's Fairs were touted as. The rest of the Northmen, numbering nine thousand, swore themselves in service to the Crown; where they were made the first legionnaires of what would come to be known to history in later years as The Dragon's Teeth, the fearsome army in service to only House Targaryen and the Crown.

Five hundred of these men would set off from King's Landing days after; commanded by Eldric Umber and with Lady Baela riding among them. The reason for their departure and their intended destination would not be known at first, but it would become clear soon enough.

It must be remembered that Lord Corlys Velaryon, renown in song and story as the Sea Snake, was the man that engineered the fall of the usurper, although some, Lord Cregan Stark chief amongst them, would deride him as a Kingslayer who used a woman's weapon to dispatch a king he did not like. No matter how one views the actions of the Lord of the Tides at this juncture, it cannot be denied that it was by his efforts that the Dance of the Dragons came to an end, and peace in the realm was restored.

When Lord Kermit Tully's host appeared before the walls of King's Landing two days after the Battle on the Kingsroad, the last battle of the war where-in a fresh host of the Riverlands obliterated Lord Borros Baratheon's host, Corlys Velaryon rode out to greet them with Prince Aegon the Younger somber at his side. "The king is dead," the Sea Snake proclaimed, "long live the king."

In the following days, when the rivermen had the city in their hands and before the Lord Cregan and his Northmen arrived, a strange euphoria hung over King's Landing. The rivermen were welcomed eagerly by the denizens of the city and hailed as liberators who had come to keep them safe from further devastation caused by the war. Aegon the Usurper's corpse was consigned to the flames, in hopes that all the ills and hatreds during his tyranny would be burned away with his remains. Thousands climbed Aegon's High Hill to hear Prince Aegon proclaim that peace was at hand. This time is known in history as the False Dawn. False, for the Hour of the Wolf had not yet come and gone.

During this False Dawn, Lord Corlys Velaryon would sue for peace with all the great lords of the realm that were still considered to be in rebellion, with the intention of officially putting an end to the Dance of The Dragons. A cloud of ravens had risen from the Red Keep, summoning the usurper's remaining loyalists in Oldtown, the Reach, Casterly Rock, and Storm's End to King's Landing to do homage to their new monarch. Safe conducts had been granted, and full pardons promised. One by the one those ravens returned, bearing answers to the old man's peace offers.

Casterly Rock was the first to respond. Lord Jason Lannister had left six children when he died in battle: five daughters and one son, Loreon, a boy of four. Rule of the Westerlands had therefore passed to his widow, Lady Johanna, and her father, Roland Westerling, Lord of The Crag. With the Red Kraken's longships still menacing their coasts, the Lannisters were more concerned with defending Kayce and retaking Fair Isle than renewing the struggle for the Iron Throne. Lady Johanna agreed to all the Sea Snake's terms, promising to come herself to King' Landing to do obeisance to the new king on his coronation, and deliver two daughters to the Red Keep to serve as companions to the new queen (and as hostages to ensure her future loyalty). She agreed to restore the portion of the royal treasury that Ser Tyland Lannister had sent west for safekeeping as well, provided that the Iron Throne 'command Lord Greyjoy to crawl back to his islands, restore Fair Isle to its rightful lords, and free all the women he carried off.'

In the Stormlands, many of the men who had survived the Battle on the Kingsroad had made their way back to Storm's End afterward. Hungry, weary and wounded, they drifted home alone or in small groups, and Lord Borros Baratheon's widow, the Lady Elenda Caron, had only to look at them to realise they had lost their taste for battle. Nor did she wish to put her newborn son, Olyver Baratheon, at risk, for that little lord at her breast was the future of House Baratheon. Though her eldest daughter, Lady Cassandra, wept bitter tears when she learned she was not to be Aegon the Usurper's second wife, Lady Elenda soon agreed to terms. Still weak from her labour, she could not come to the city herself for the coronation, she wrote, but she would send her own lord father to do homage in her stead, and three of her four daughters to serve as hostages.

Last to respond was Oldtown. The wealthiest of the great houses that had rallied to the Usurper, the Hightowers remained the most dangerous, for they were capable of raising large new armies quickly from the streets of Oldtown, and with their own warships and those of their close kin, the Redwynes of the Arbor, they could float a significant fleet as well. Moreover, one-quarter of the Crown's gold still rested in deep vaults beneath the Hightower, gold that could easily have been used to buy new alliances and hire sellsword companies. Oldtown had the power to renew the war.

Two accounts have come down to us explaining why they did not.

The first involves the intervention of the infamous Lady Samantha Tarly, the daughter of Lord Donald Tarly of Horn Hill and Lady Jeyne Rowan of Goldengrove; both houses that had taken up arms for the queen during the Dance. Lord Ormund had only recently taken her as his wife when the Dance began, his first having died some years before in childbirth. Upon his death at Tumbleton, his lands and titles passed to his eldest son, Lyonel, a youth of fifteen on the cusp of manhood. The second son, Martyn, was a squire to Lord Redwyne on the Arbor; the third, Garmund, was fostering at Highgarden as a companion to Lord Tyrell and cupbearer to his lady mother. All three were children of Lord Ormund's first marriage. When Lord Velaryon's terms were put to Lyonel Hightower, it is said, the young lord ripped the parchment from his maester's hand and tore it into shreds, swearing to write his reply in the Sea Snake's blood.

His lord father's young widow had other notions, however. Lady Samantha was fierce, fiery and beautiful, and had no intention of giving up her place as the Lady of Oldtown and mistress of the Hightower. Lyonel was only two years her junior, and he had been infatuated with her since she first came to Oldtown to wed his father. Whereas previously, the lady had fended off the boy's advances, now Lady Sam (as she would be known for many years) yielded to them, allowing him to seduce her, and afterward promising to marry him…but only if he would make peace, "for I would surely die of grief should I lose another husband."

Faced with a choice between 'a dead father, cold in the ground, and a living woman, warm and willing in his arms, the boy chose love over war'. Lyonel Hightower capitulated, agreeing to all the terms put forth by Lord Corlys, including the return of the Crown's gold. A great scandal ensued when the young lord then announced his intention to marry his father's widow however, and the reigning High Septon immediately forbade the marriage as 'a son marrying their mother was a form of incest, not accepted even in Valyria of Old', but even that could not keep these young lovers apart. Thereafter, the Defender of Oldtown kept Lady Sam by his side as his paramour for the next thirteen years, fathering six abominations upon her.

This is the tale as the first account tells it, in any case. The second, ascribes a different cause to Lord Lyonel's change of heart; and a more likely one.

Lady Baela's suspicious sojourn from the capital had been a topic of much rumour in King's Landing. Some said she had grown weary of the capital and in her wild and impulsive nature, decided to search out adventure in the Seven Kingdoms accompanied by her 'Wolf Pack', while others said that she had gone mad and had forgotten who she was. The truth however, was much more sensible.

Lady Baela journeyed for the best part of a moon's turn to Red Lake, to search out the dragon Silverwing. She found the cave that the dragon had made for herself, and wasted no time in claiming the mount. News of this spread quickly throughout the realm and not a fortnight later, as Lady Baela and her Dragon's Teeth were being guested by Lord Wilbert Crane, envoys were sent by Lady Joanna Lannister to seek the dragon's aid against Lord Greyjoy. Baela's help, at this time anyway, only came in the form of a warning, a fly-by above the ironborn fleets while Silverwing lit the dusk sky in white flames. Lady Baela wished to contribute more to the campaign and drive the ironborn back to their islands, but she was to return to King's Landing as soon as possible. Lady Joanna hoped that the sight of the mighty Silverwing would cow the ironborn; it did not, though the woes of the Westerlands shall be recounted in full later on in this volume.

Once the news of Lady Baela claiming of Silverwing reached Oldtown, Lord Lyonel Hightower immediately capitulated to the Sea Snake's demands, sent the part of the treasury that had been entrusted to them by Tyland Lannister for safekeeping at the beginning of the Dance back to King's Landing, and pledged to travel with some of his maiden cousins to serve in the retinue of the new queen.

"Jaehaera has Hightower blood," he is reported to have said, "her grandmother's ambition has been realised."

As the date of Prince Aegon's coronation and the royal wedding drew closer, many were arriving from every point of the compass. From the west came Lady Johanna Lannister and her father, Roland Westerling, Lord of the Crag. From the south came twoscore Hightowers from Oldtown, led by Lord Lyonel and Lady Samantha. Though forbidden to wed, their passion for one another had become common knowledge by this time, and so great a scandal that the High Septon refused to travel with them, arriving three days later in the company of the Lords Redwyne, Costayne, and Beesbury.

Lady Elenda, the widow of late Lord Borros Baratheon, remained at Storm's End with her infant son, but sent her daughters Cassandra, Ellyn and Floris to represent House Baratheon. (Maris, the fourth daughter, had joined the silent sisters for the part she had played in the death of Prince Lucerys Velaryon). Lady Baratheon's father, Olyver Caron, Lord of Nightsong and Marshal of the Marches, escorted the girls to the city, and would remain with them as their guardian while they served in Queen Jaehaera's retinue, and he in the Regency Council.

Alyn Velaryon and his cousin Monford came ashore as well, and the Manderly brothers, Torrhen and Medrick Manderly, returned once more from White Harbor with a hundred knights in blue-green cloaks. Even from across the narrow sea they came, from Braavos and Pentos, from all three cities of the fallen Triarchy, from Old Volantis and the rest. From the Summer Isles appeared three tall black princes in feathered cloaks, whose splendour was a wonder to behold. Every inn and stable in King's Landing was soon full, whilst outside the city walls; a city of tents and pavilions arose for those unable to find accommodations. The tavern keepers of the city waxed fat and happy for a time, as did the whores of the fine houses along the Street of Silk, though the common people complained about the noise and stink.

With the Dragonpit still in ruins, the wedding of Prince Aegon and Princess Jaehaera was celebrated outdoors, at the top of Visenya's Hill, where towering grandstands were erected so the men and women of the nobility might sit in comfort and enjoy an unobstructed view. The day was cold but sunny, the records of this time tell us. It was the seventh day of the seventh moon of the 131st year after Aegon's Conquest, judged to be a most auspicious date.

The Dowager Queen presented her granddaughter to her groom, while dressed in a dramatic black and red gown, which signalled to all that she had eagerly accepted the new king and put aside her grudges with Rhaenyra and her faction. The High Septon performed the rites himself, and a deafening roar went up from the commonfolk when His High Holiness declared the prince and princess one. Tens of thousands packed the streets cheering King Aegon the Second and Queen Jaehaera as they were carried in an open litter up to the Red Keep, where the prince was crowned with a circlet of yellow gold, simple and unadorned, and proclaimed Aegon of House Targaryen, the Second of His Name, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men, and Lord of the Seven Kingdoms. Aegon himself placed a similar crown upon the head of his child bride.

Though a solemn boy, the new king was undeniably handsome, lean of face and form, with silver-white hair and purple eyes, whilst the queen was a beautiful child. Their wedding was as lavish a spectacle as the Seven Kingdoms had seen since the coronation of Aegon the Usurper in the Dragonpit. Even the triumphant flight around the city walls did not lack, for Lady Baela, now Princess Baela, was a dragonrider once more. The roars of Silverwing joined the raucous cheers of the commonfolk as the dragon made three laps around the city before landing in the courtyard to join her brother, the king. All those who had thought that House Targaryen had been snuffed out were soundly dissuaded of that notion at this display.

The king's first act was to establish male-preference primogeniture as the official law of succession for the Iron Throne, from that day until the end of time, to avoid the conflicts over succession that had plagued the realm since Aegon the Conqueror established Targaryen rule over Westeros. This principle specified that the sons of the monarchs and their lines would come before daughters and their lines, who would come before brothers of the monarch and their lines, who would come before sisters of the monarchs and their lines in the precedence to the Iron Throne of Westeros.

The king would then reverse the decree made by the usurper during his short, sad, false reign, and declare that his mother, Rhaenyra Targaryen, was to be recognised as the true queen, not Princess Helaena. The Usurper and his brothers were then stripped of all royal titles they ever held in their life and branded as traitors who committed treason by disobeying the king's wishes. Only Helaena Targaryen would retain her title as princess of the blood, by the virtue of being a king's daughter, but nothing more.

There were some who grumbled at the seemingly contradictory nature of the above two decrees, but there was an easy answer prepared for them. The official law of succession would take effect beginning from Aegon the Second's reign onwards, and would thus not affect the precedents by which the kings of the past were crowned. After all, Maegor usurped his nephew and claimed the throne for himself, Jaehaerys was king above Aerea and Rhaella, the children of his older brother Aegon the Uncrowned; and Viserys ascended the throne above his cousin Rhaenys, the daughter of the Old King's eldest son, Aemon. If one was to question whether Rhaenyra posthumously being declared queen was lawful, they would also be questioning the reigns of all Targaryen kings after Aenys.

Since he was only ten years of age and firmly in his minority, the king's next act was to name the men who would protect him and rule for him. These men were selected and agreed upon by the Great Lords of the realm, although according to the accounts that have come down to us of this deliberation, the Dragon Twins had influence on the choices made.

Until Princess Baela and Rhaena came of age in 132 AC, it was agreed that the realm would be governed by a Regency Council. What this meant was that each member of a traditional small council would be granted the powers of a regent in order to ensure that power was shared equally between those lords who were once Blacks and those who were Greens. This was seen as the fairest approach to maintain the realms fragile peace, and ensure the wounds that had torn the realm asunder two years past did not bleed anew.

In this regard, the following were selected to serve on what was named the Regency Council:

• Lord Corlys Velaryon of Driftmark - Hand of the King and Regent
• Ser Torrhen Manderly of White Harbour - Master of Laws and Regent
• Lord Manfryd Mooton of Maidenpool - Master of Coin and Regent
• Ser Tyland Lannister of Casterly Rock - Master of Ships and Regent
• Lord Roland Westerling of The Crag and Casterly Rock - Advisor and Regent
• Lady Jeyne Arryn of The Vale - Advisor and Regent
• Lord Olyver Caron of Nightsong - Advisor and Regent
• Archmaester Munkun of the Citadel - Grand Maester and Regent
• Ser Corwyn Corbray - Lord Commander of the Kingsguard and Regent

Conspicuous omissions from the council included Kermit Tully, Unwin Peake, Sabitha Frey, Thaddeus Rowan, Lyonel Hightower, Johanna Lannister and Benjicot Blackwood, but as later actions would prove, only Lord Peake was truly angered by this exclusion.

This same principle was applied in selecting the men who would be inducted into the sacred order of the Kingsguard. Ser Corwyn Corbray, the younger brother of Lord Leowyn Corbray and wielder of Lady Folorn, was made the Lord Commander, an appointment that would displease Ser Willis Fell, the sole survivor of the Kingsguard of King Viserys the First's time. Ser Oscar Tully, the younger brother of Lord Kermit Tully, who had gained renown during the False Dawn as one of the Lads, was made Ser Corwyn's second.

The rest of the places White Swords were filled by: Ser Regis Groves, a fierce sword from the knightly House Groves; Ser Robin Massey, the elder brother of Lady Elinda Massey who served as the head of the king's household at this time; Ser Robert Darkyn, the nephew of the famous but deceased Ser Steffon Darklyn; and Ser Adrian Thorne, a hard man that had served as the Captain of the Lion Gate in the Gold Cloaks since Prince Daemon's time as Lord Commander. (his relation to Ser Rickard Thorne is unknown)

The wedding celebrations were the grounds by which the Dragon Twins entertained most of the nobles of the realm and the envoys sent from the Free Cities. Grand Maester Munkun, who was present for these meetings, reports that Princess Rhaena met with Maegoro Paenymion of Volantis, her childhood acquaintance from the time of her father's exile from The Seven Kingdoms (and kin through Princess Saera Targaryen, the disgraced daughter of the Old King); the son of the Sealord of Braavos; Prince Reggio of Pentos and other envoys sent from the other Free Cities: Qohor, Norvos and Lorath. Notable for their absentia in these meetings were the Three Daughters, as both princesses had grievances with them due to their attack on the Gullet during the Dance, which led to the death of Prince Jacaerys Velaryon, Princess Baela's betrothed.

Much was gained from these meetings. The Princesses sought redress for the Triarchy's attack upon Dragonstone and Driftmark, and desired for the rest of the Free Cities to not take it as an offence against their sovereignty, nor to interfere with what they would do soon after the wedding celebrations were over. Volantis and Pentos on the other hand, wished to conquer the Disputed Lands that had once been occupied by the recently fallen Triarchy.

The Triarchy had been a thorn in the side of both Volantis and Pentos since the later years of King Jaehaerys' reign, at the turn of the century. During the Battle of the Borderlands, the three cities put aside their differences and drove Volantis out of the Disputed Lands. Two years after winning that battle, they would try to expand their domains into the Flatlands, but they were driven back by Pentos. After this, they decided to expand seaward instead, sweeping across the Stepstones in a trice and demanding tolls for passing ships, tolls which would become especially ruinous for Volantis and Pentoshi ships as the years went on.

Through the efforts of Prince Daemon Targaryen, both cities formed a grand coalition against the Triarchy, where the prince offered the aid of his dragon in obliterating them should they try expanding their claims on lands in any direction beyond their current borders. In exchange, these two cities would offer peace keeping ships to patrol the Stepstones and deter any fresh invasion from the Three Whores that Daemon had spent years painstakingly removing from that chain of isles.

Princess Rhaena drew out the prospective boundaries that Pentos and Volantis would occupy after their conquests, and she set the condition that none of them were to press any claim, real or imagined, on the Stepstones. No, those isles were for the Iron Throne to annex.

With Braavos, Princess Rhaena, with the help of her grandfather, The Sea Snake, came to a different agreement; albeit at the time, this agreement seemed to have favoured the Free City instead of the Seven Kingdoms. Braavos would keep half a million golden dragons from the part of the treasury that had been entrusted to them during the Dance, and in return, they would deliver the three dragon's eggs that Elissa Farman had stolen from House Targaryen and sold to them those many decades ago.

The Sealord's son was exceedingly pleased with that offer, as those dragon's eggs had never hatched and only served as a monument of pride to the Sealord of Jaehaerys' time, who had defied the Iron Throne with impunity. This Sealord it seemed, was of a more practical bend and would rather have more coin than the "three pretty stones" his predecessor had acquired.

When the regents heard of this proposal, however, they were outraged.

"Those eggs are worthless," Ser Tyland retorted, "What use do we have for them?"

To which Rhaena replied, "Should those eggs hatch now, we only have one dragon of fighting size to counter the threat they would pose. We have just come from a war my lords, the realm has yet to be set to rights, and we do not have the strength to fight another."

Ser Torrhen Manderly was outraged however, "What right does an insipid girl have to barter the crown's funds?"

"The right of being of House Targaryen," Baela replied, "and my brother's heir." At that moment, records assert, Silverwing let out a mighty roar in the skies above them, sending the blustering knight into a stony silence.

Thus it was at the beginning of the eighth moon of the 131st year since Aegon' s Crowning, with the three dragon eggs returned and secured, that the Dragon Twins and their cousin, Alyn Velaryon, the heir to House Velaryon, set sail from Driftmark, on their way to seek reparations from the Triarchy. What they would find however, would be worth much, much more...

---

Author's Note:
A bit of a different sort of chapter, one written in the historical style of Fire and Blood. It's purpose is threefold: 1) to give an update on the rest of Westeros and its political landscape, 2) to add more context on the events that have been recounted in the narrative chapter and 3) to serve as a light recap on what has happened thus far for the reader and prime them as we get into the next phase of the story.

Another thing; I debated quite a bit on whether to keep the duelling historians that Fire and Blood is so famous for, but I decided against it since this timeline's Fire and Blood will have many, many records to pull from including definitive versions written by Rhaena in her journals. Where the events happening don't involve the royals, there's numerous maesters always about chronicling the events. Also, as you judge by the title, this version of Fire and Blood was written by one Rhaegar Targaryen, a future member of the house who will be seeking to be as thorough as possible. So, I'm very sorry Mushroom, no dice for you. Please let me know what you think on this chapter and its style of writing, and whether you find it useful or too repetitive.

In the next chapter we check in with a certain lost prince. If you're impatient to read that chapter now and several more after it, you can do so here.

 

[Wolffils]

Enjoy it a lot when an ASOIAF fic is written in the historical style like this.

 

[neyra]

Enjoy it a lot when an ASOIAF fic is written in the historical style like this.

Click to shrink...

I'm glad you like it.
It might not be plot heavy, it does serve to give further information that did not fit into a particular chapter.
Although next chapter we dive right back in.

 

[neyra]

20th Day, Eighth Moon, 131AC | Lys

THE NORTHMAN, THE DRAGON'S MAN | ELDRIC UMBER

"Faster!" Edric beckoned the squire who was pulling the latch to tie the breast-plate to his body, anger clear in his voice. The boy was a lazy one, and Eldric would ensure left his service as soon as they had returned from this mission. Edric Umber was not one to tolerate such blatant sloth.

It was the darkest hour of night; with no moonlight due to the cloud cover, only the scant light of the never-sleeping city would illuminate their mission. The inn they were staying at was especially busy; it was full of pillow-house slaves moaning in false pleasure as their masters rutted into them with abandon. The city was bracing itself for war, it seemed, and many of its inhabitants intended to spend the last moons of their lives in debauchery. Eldric sneered at the thought.

Soon after his incompetent squire was done, he looked over at the bed to inspect his quiver. There were supposed to be twenty four arrows in each quiver; only that number to ensure that the weight on their bodies was as light as possible. Silently and quickly, he counted those arrows. Then he grabbed the bow with his right arm, before squeezing the bowstring taut to test its viability. He would not tolerate his bowstring snapping in half tonight, not for this mission at least. He looked over at his comrades. There were only ten of them in the moderately luxurious inn they were staying in. Both prepared their weapons as well. Bows were tested, quivers were checked, swords were put into their scabbards before the belts they were strapped to were tied around their waists. Once all was done, Eldric dismissed the squire attending him. He did not need to instruct him to get himself to the harbour, where a Velaryon ship would be waiting for them for departure, once their mission was done.

Turning to his nine comrades who had formed up in a straight line, he paced the room with all the air of authority he could muster. "Men!" he commanded, his voice causing all nine of them to form up and stand at attention, "Tonight we right an injustice done to House Targaryen. We shall be the sword arm the Old Gods use to avenge our princesses, to avenge our dragon queen." He paused for effect before continuing, his brusque Northern accent echoing the small room they had been staying at for the past fortnight, "remember, Strike Hard and Strike True!"

"With Fire and Blood!" the nine of them chorused in unison. Eldric smirked, despite himself, before pulling the mask over his face, leaving his eyes being the only part visible through the narrow slits of the mask. They were dressed in all black tonight, black armour with no cloaks, to make them discrete, at least as discreet as they could be. The armour they chose was common in the streets of Lys, they had killed ten sellswords to seize them after all. Eldric took three deep breaths, willing his heart to calm itself.

Without much flourish, they made their way from the back door of the pleasure den they were staying in. They walked quickly, through the wide streets. No alarum would be raised because of them, there were many men patrolling the streets these days, preparing for war. Tyrosh and Myr were preparing to invade them, and Lys was taking precaution in its defences.

In less than an hour, they had reached the destination, the Bazzane Manse. It was resplendent, made of pale stone that stood out in the night, the same pale stone he had heard that could be found in the Eyrie. It was secluded somehow, from the rest of the city, with a perimeter wall surrounding it, men patrolling atop them. He counted ten men patrolling the side of the wall directly ahead of him, just as they had for the past fourteen days. They were pacing from left to right to left again, crossbows clutched in their hands, ready to retaliate against any threat that reached them.

They would not see them. As one, the ten members of his squad for the mission, knocked their arrows, and without the need for him telling them to lose, ten arrows flew and found purchase at either the throats, heads or any other point on their foes that their armour left vulnerable. Without much flourish, the ten bodies fell to their side of the wall. The manse's compound was large, therefore they had time before the guards patrolling the rest of the manse would spot their missing comrades. That time would ensure their demise.

Quickly, they scaled the wall. They were Northmen, climbing was second nature to them. Their ascent did not take long, before they descended the other side. Crouching, they moved as quickly and as silently as they could. There was no moon in the sky, and only the torches surrounding the compound lit the scene for them.

They split up their forces as they had planned and rehearsed over and over again. Five of them would go towards the back entrance of the castle, while the other five would go to the front. Best to take out the entire garrison before they were alerted to the danger that was coming for them. Eldric crouched as he creeped towards the front gate.

He knocked two arrows and loosed them at the men standing guard at the front gate of the castle. Without needing to look, he knew that the two of them fell. The rest of his squadron followed him, losing the arrows at the other eight. Eight bodies tumbled to the grass silently. Eldric knew the man who watched over the gatehouse was probably asleep or with a whore on his lap, as he was wont to do. He would not be a problem. Should he wake up, he would only find the rest of his garrison dead.

Looking up, they saw the eight that were patrolling the front side of the wall, all looking outwards, not thinking that the threat could come from the inside. Quickly and silently, eight more arrows flew, and eight more sentinels silently fell. Eldric spotted the other five of his men coming from the other side. He knew that the entire outer compound garrison had fallen, there was no need to crouch now, the only threat left was the men inside.

They had watched the movements of the men inside using far-eyes, gifted to them by their princess. He knew that every corridor had three men. Those would be the hardest to dispatch. He hoped that there was none who had seen them from the windows. If they had, there was no other way but to fight. The ten of them ran towards the great door made of oak. Five of them knocked the arrows on their bowstrings, while the five worked to loosen the bolts of the hinges of the door. After long arduous moments, the door fell, revealing five men looking straight at them, their faces contorted in shock. Those would be the expressions they wore when they went to the old gods. Twenty arrows were left in Edric's quiver, More than enough.

Those men who fell at the entrance were not as silent when they hit the ground as those in the courtyard when they had dispatched them. The marble floor met their armour with loud clangs. Good. They had anticipated this. They arranged themselves in a circle, no blind spots would be entertained by their squad. There must have been almost twenty men who emerged, Eldric could not remember. Their fates were all the same. Arrows in their skulls.

As they had planned, they split up into groups of two. They knew that the one they came for lived in the western side of the castle from what they had seen in their weeks of watching the manse. Nonetheless, that was not their only objective. They were to also obliterate all the inhabitants of this castle. The entirety of the Bazanne family was to go extinct. Eldric himself decided that their heads would be mounted on the spikes that lined the gate of their manse. A warning to all who come looking for this wretched family. He would not fail his princesses, he swore the oath of service he had made all over again under his breath. By earth and water, by bronze and iron, by ice and fire.

---

THE LOST PRINCE

The sound of a body falling lifted him from his slumber. His years in captivity, no matter how gentle said captivity was, had made him an extremely light sleeper. There was a certain ever present buzz and noise that was woven through the very fabric of Lyseni nights. Unlike the storms and brimstone air he had grown up with on Dragonstone, he fell asleep to the noise of revelry and debauchery of his host captor and the rest of the city. It was not strange for Bambarro Bazanne to entertain the numerous pleasure slaves he owned in a night. The sounds of pleasure ringing out from the other side of his manse eventually became a lullaby for him as time went on. It was what had lulled him to sleep tonight, until he heard the sound of bodies falling.

He shot out of his bed, grabbing the dagger that he had hidden for the past year and a half. It was Jacaerys' dagger, first given to his older brother, Aegon, just before they travelled to Pentos. He had recently learnt that said brother had been crowned king. Aegon had given it to him as he climbed on Stormcloud to seek Jacaerys' help against the assailants that had fallen upon their ship. He had never returned. The dagger was the one of the two things that had given him comfort this past year. That, and the dragon's egg in his possession. It had never hatched, but still radiated the heat of life. He was not sure whether Bambarro knew of him possessing both or not, he had never bothered to ask about it.

He braced himself as he grabbed the lit candle that rested at the periphery of his feather-bed, using its scant light to illuminate the darkness in front of him. Someone was invading the manse. He immediately squashed the fear that was rising from the pit of his stomach to his throat. Slowly, he walked towards the door, blade in hand, ready for any foe that might burst through.

A foe did, dressed in the black armour that was customary of the garrison of those who served on the manse and had his face covered by a black mask. His captor had finally decided to do away with him, he thought. He would not be that easy to kill, he promised as he immediately flung himself at his foe with all the force and speed that his nine year old self could manage. It was all for nought, however, as his assailant quickly shrugged off the dagger, holding him where he stood.

"My Prince," his enemy called out, in an accent that was certainly Westerosi, Northern if he could place it rightly. Looking at him closely, he noticed that his armour and the sword in his hand was bloody, "I am Eldric Umber, I have been sent by your sister, Princess Rhaena. I am here to take you home."

Viserys wanted to believe him, but suspicion and hope warred in his mind, "How do I know you speak the truth Ser?"

"The Princess told me to give you this," he said, handing him a small box while taking off the masks that covered his face. Outside his suite, he heard more chaos. The clanging of swords and the screams of the dying. Whatever was inside the box immediately quelled the suspicion he had.

His father's ring. He could recognise it anywhere. A remarkable piece, made entirely of Valyrian Steel, with the three-headed dragon of his house welded onto it. Each of the dragon's heads had a different-coloured gem in its eye; one was an amethyst sapphire, another was a red ruby, and the other was a shiny black onyx. There was none else like it in the world. His father had used it to knock his head whenever he got into trouble or mischief, which was a lot.

He always had it with him until the day he left for Harrenhal, to fight for their mother's cause. He had taken it off his finger and handed it to Rhaena with Viserys listening in from a hidden spot in the corner of her chambers. 'This was your grandmother's,' he had told her, 'you may not have a dragon, but I need you to know that you are as Targaryen as any of us. Let this remind you of that.' Then their father had hugged her, tears shining in both their eyes before he left to do his mother's bidding. Rhaena had let him play with it soon after words. It had always mesmerised him how the light gleamed off each eye.

"Alright Ser, I believe you, lead the way," he responded, before grabbing his dragon's egg and the dagger, putting them in a leather pouch, wearing his boots, and following Eldric Umber out of his suite.

Blood bathed the Bazanne manse, blood of his captors. He arrived at the main hall to find Bambarro and his entire family chained to the walls; his wife, his four wastrel sons and his three daughters, one of whom was a bastard. They were afraid. It was the first time he had seen them afraid. They were always so arrogant, so full of pride, especially at the notion of having captured a Targaryen Prince.

"Your family will never know where you are," Lysarra Bazanne had told her once, a scowl painted on her face, her fat greasy hands stroking his chin roughly, "we can do anything we want to you and there is nothing you can do, Targaryen brat or not. Perhaps we shall sell you to the fighting pits in Mereen or one of the pillow houses my husband owns. Or perhaps I shall take you for myself, teach you how to please a woman, and have you serve me for the rest of your life." She did not look so imperious now, Viserys thought, as he watched her naked form writhe against the cold marble wall.

"My Prince," Eldric said, as nine other men, bloodied and bruised, joined their side, "The heads of all your captors are to be staked on the spikes of their castle gate. I would have you identify them."

Viserys wasted no time, quickly pointing out the fat form of Bambarro and the rest of his family. Eldric dragged them forward, one by one. He then unsheathed his sword, going first to Bambarro. He did not look away as his head rolled to his feet. He did not look away at all of them finally losing their lives, their screams and shouts echoing throughout the grand main hall.

Viserys, adopting his most princely tone, then spoke to the thirty or so slaves that served the Bambarro family, "You shall not be harmed. Some of you might not know me, but I am Prince Viserys of House Targaryen, brother to Aegon Targaryen, Second of His Name, King of Westeros. You have been kind to me during my imprisonment here. Some of you have instructed me on the way of the sword, in governance, in etiquette and other pursuits. If you wish it, I would have you come with me. I promise you shall be given a place of honour in my household, a prince's household. If you do not, you may stay, and seize for yourselves the wealth of House Bazanne and make new lives for yourselves."

Most of them ended up choosing the first option, particularly those Viserys knew were bed-slaves to Bambarro. He was glad of it, it would be good to have those loyal to him when he returned to his brother's court that he knew was always a cesspit of intrigue. Once the head of the last members of House Bazanne had been staked to the spikes that lined the gate of their manse, Eldric, his men, the newly freed slaves, and himself stole their stabled horses and rode at once to what Viserys guessed was the harbour.

It was about an hour's ride to the harbour with their horses at full gallop. The sun had begun to rise in the East. As they boarded the cog that certainly belonged to Westeros, judging by the mast with the Seahorse of House Velaryon painted on it, Viserys took his time to admire the pink morning hue that the sun painted the clouds that were in the sky. Sunrises were always beautiful, even when he was held captive; Even more so now that he was free

"Are we travelling to King's Landing?" he asked, as he settled in his cabin.

"Not yet My Prince," Eldric answers, "the Princesses seek retribution from the Free Cities for the part they played in the war. They have set up camp at the Stepstones currently, and that is where we shall sail first."

---

24th Day, Eighth Moon, 131AC | Bloodstone - The Stepstones

BAELA

"Checkmate!" her sister shouted with an imperious tone. Sure enough, Baela looked at her face to see a smirk, so much their father's, plastered on her face. Baela punched her sister's arm in equal parts humour and exasperation.

"Come on Baela," she told her, in a playful tone, "you beat me senselessly everyday in the training yard, it is only right that I beat you in at least one thing."

"Yeah," Baela countered, "only you would consider beating me at a game you invented with pride." Baela sported a smirk of her own as she watched the one her sister wore with such haughtiness fade.

"Whatever," Rhaena reconsidered, rolling her eyes, "I won the game nonetheless. You have been sword training with our father since we were toddlers, and you have no compunctions about battering me to the dirt while I am a novice with the sword. I will have the pleasure of beating you Baela." Baela could not argue with that. She found this strange game interesting. So many strategies, an infinite number of ways to win. She would master this strange game soon enough, and she would beat her twin sister at it, just as she did in so much else.

"Very well," Baela conceded, "victory is yours Rhae. "

"Princess," the guard who stood sentinel outside the tent in vigilance said to them, "Commander Eldric has just made land, and he is on his way here."

"Thank you," she replied, "we shall be out in a moment."

Finally, Baela thought. They had arrived on Bloodstone two days ago, after getting the raven from their cousin that the Velaryon and Royal Fleet, (at least the remainder of it after the war) had docked and their armies had made camp. A moon's turn earlier, during the wedding celebrations of his brother, Rhaena had sent Eldric Umber with a squadron of men to Lys to find and rescue their lost brother. They had been instructed to return with him to Bloodstone once the task was done.

Baela's patience was running out. Rhaena had urged patience, giving them at least ten days after their arrival for Viserys' rescue. If those days elapsed without their return, they would attack the city with Silverwing and demand his return. Baela almost preferred that, she wished to turn these cities to ash. She wished to mount Silverwing and make sure only ruins were left in their wake. However, they were to first have their brother in hand safe and sound, before she could finally exact retribution for what these slaver scum did to Jacaerys.

They exited the tent after a few moments to be greeted by the sight of Silverwing, with Morning on top of her head, both dozing in lazy satisfaction after hunting three rather large whales in the sea, off the coast of the Bloodstone.

The winds of winter howled across the island as the morning tide rose, winds that would chill her if not for the warmth of their garbs. Alyn joined them as they walked towards the beach, his silver hair framing his face handsomely. "Good morrow princess," he greeted both of them, "finally this prize that you have made us wait for has arrived."

"Yes," Rhaena replied, "once that is done, we shall proceed with what we came here to do."

They arrived at the coast to see one of the Velaryon cogs docking at the primitive harbour that had been set up by various pirate bands on the island through the centuries. There were houses and stone shelters all over the islands that they could reside in, but they had chosen to set up camp near the shore, as they were not sure of the safety of those structures yet; they had only just begun clearing the islands of the bothersome pirates. Eldric, the commander of the army, was already disembarking, followed swiftly by his knights. All ten of them stood at attention as was their wont, respectfully saluting them. Their loyalty to them in these scant few months was surprising to Baela. Some at court had coined a name for them, the Dragon's Teeth, a name she found particularly amusing. She would make sure the name stuck.

Following them, there came a boy, dressed in a black cloak holding a leather pouch over his shoulder. Immediately the boy saw them, he unveiled the hood and ran to them, all rules of propriety be damned. Viserys.

"Baela, Rhaena!" he shouted, while barreling towards them, his load long forgotten. He had gotten taller, Baela noticed. The second thing he noticed was the dark gaze in his eyes, the innocence of childhood already stripped away from him.

"Brother," they chorused in reply, tears already glistening in their eyes.

"I thought I would never see you again," Viserys said, tears flowing down his ruddy cheeks.

"We are here Viserys," Rhaena replied, "we are here."

---

Author's Note:
An early release of this chapter due to the fact that my exams are beginning next Monday, and from then, I will have no time at all to be able to post and respond to your comments/discussions. So, enjoy this gift from me, lol, since there'll be a dought on here for the next three weeks to a month. My exams end on 23rd December, and from there, I really don't know how things might look like during Christmas. But, you can be sure, I'll get back to writing as soon as I can.
Onto the chapter; Viserys is back. According to the canon timeline, Viserys was seized by House Rogare mid 132 AC, after Bambarro and his family were taken and sold into slavery because of an outstanding debt they had that they could not pay. It's still 131 AC, and therefore he should still be a captive of the Bazzane family. Fret not however, we shall meet House Rogare soon enough.


Next chapter, '11. The Sack of Myr', we get the fall of the first Free City of the former Triarchy, meaning, a tonne of dragon action from Baela and Silverwing. If you'd like to see that, and several chapters more, you can do so here.

 

[Aravis]

Thanks for the chappy!!!

 

[neyra]

Thanks for the chappy!!!

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You're welcome, any thoughts on it?

 

[Aravis]

You're welcome, any thoughts on it?

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Not particularly for this chapter, but I am enjoying the story over all! This chapter was more of a transitional chapter with the main excitement being the retrieval of the ling lost brother, which went about as well as it could have! (Good thing, cause there could be a lot of issues with adding more drama when you already have major plot points upcoming.)

The only thing I had any issues with was the two arrows at once thing, which might have just been how I read it? Anyway, for someone who is the equivalent of a knight, being able to pull that off would have required either an extreme amount of talent or an investiture of time to the detriment of the more "knightly" skills.
He's a northman, so there is arguments to be made on what he spent time on as they don't have knights other than one family, I think? But either way, it's an odd level of skill for him to have. Maybe some follow up or beforehand knowledge on him might cover it or already did and I missed it. Either way, cool idea, out of nowhere and slightly odd, but certainly explainable, but cool none the less

 

[neyra]

the main excitement being the retrieval of the ling lost brother, which went about as well as it could have! (Good thing, cause there could be a lot of issues with adding more drama when you already have major plot points upcoming.)

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I think this occasion was the one that benefited the most from having Rhaena be an SI with advanced knowledge. She knew where he was, and she put a plan of action to get him as soon as they could before the butterflies flapped too hard and made that knowledge obsolete. Using that, they basically formed a strike team to go retrieve him, which is the seque for the next thing.

The only thing I had any issues with was the two arrows at once thing, which might have just been how I read it?

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Eldric was tasked to form a squad to retrieve Viserys, and chose nine of the best archers from the nascent army to do so. Picking the best ten out of ten thousand, those are going to be really skilled. That's why they're so precise and the hit is so clean.

And, the two arrows thing is one after the other. Two arrows at a go is implausible, I agree, unless Oliver Queen, lol.