AN: So here is the next installment. Please take note that I did tweak a few scenes here and there. As always the editing isn't the best in existence, but I like to think that I make a good showing of myself. Regardless, I hope you all enjoy this next bit.

AN: Also, you'll notice that there are some parts that I could have gone into GREAT detail with, but I tried not to go too far for the sake of me not wanting to bring a continuity based headache down on myself.

Sweat was rolling down his double chin as the fat man in armor stood over her, his dagger hovering above as she struggled to get away from him. In the background the young girl could hear her mother scream as a giant struck her hard enough in the face to send her to the floor. Rhaenys knew what the fat man was going to do. She was too young to comprehend why, but she still knew what was coming for her. She knew where his blade was headed and she couldn't stop it. Her little brother was already dead and she knew she was next. Then the dagger in his hand lunged towards her. She screamed!

"AAAHH!" Rhaenys yelled out in high voice as she shot up in her bed, a large amount of sweat making her night gown stick to her almost like a second skin. It had been that same dream again, that same nightmare. She'd been having it on and off for months since the night Xander had gotten her and her mother out of King's Landing. Her breath was just starting to calm when her door crashed open via a booted foot nearly knocking it out of its frame, the noise making her jump. Looking over from her bed she saw the man himself rush into her room, his axe in his hand and his eyes constantly on the lookout for whatever or whoever might have been responsible for her fear.

"Rhaenys, what's wrong!? We heard a scream!" she heard her mother ask with a worried tone as she followed Xander into her daughter's room. Embarrassed, Rhaenys attempted to burrow into the sheets on her bed before replying,

"It's nothing mama, just the dream again," at these words her mother's visage instantly softened and Xander loosened the grip he held on his weapon as he glanced over to her with a sympathetic look. His looking at her just made her want to sink into her bed even more as a blush stained her cheeks before quickly making her look like a tiny human shaped tomato. He wasn't judging her though, merely trying to help her. That was one of the things she liked most about him, he never judged her. He still treated her like a princess, sort of, but also like a normal little girl. The reasons why she appreciated this so much were still difficult for her to wrap her mind around, but she still liked how he didn't try to pamper her just because she was royalty.

Even though she was still young, now only five, she understood that she had almost died, and she understood that it was Xander and his people that had saved her. Even before the sack of King's Landing she had tried to spend as much time as she could with the man, let alone after they had left, but her mother would almost always say that he was busy and that she would have to wait till later. But he was here now so such thoughts were considered unnecessary to her childish mind.

"Sweetheart, it's alright," Elia told her child as she sat down next to her before attempting to coax the girl out of her bedding and into her arms, "I know what happened was terrible, but it's over now."

"But it's not over, they'll come back!" Rhaenys said as she moved so her mother could hug her close, a hug that she eagerly returned.

"What's going on?" her grandmother Rhaella asked as she entered the room behind everyone else. All of the remaining members of the now deposed royal family were housed on the same level within Sunspear, with the entrances to each room, or set of rooms as the case may be, placed practically right next to one another, so it was easy to move from one's own room to another. As a result, those residing in the area were normally in each other's company. In fact there was a high chance that all three adults currently in her room had been discussing something or another before she had made a ruckus.

"Just that damn dream again," Xander told the older woman softly so that Rhaenys wouldn't hear as he moved over to Rhaella and put his hand on her shoulder, "she's fine."

"Oh," was all Rhaella said before Xander moved off to sit on the other side of the girl.

"Don't worry kid," Xander said easily with a smile as he looked down on the small child, "those men are long gone. They can't come back. And if anyone else tries anything, just remember, they have to get through me and mine before they can get to you."

"So you'll keep them away?" Rhaenys asked hopefully as her eyes met his, "Promise?"

"Yeah kid, I promise." With these words Xander's eyes shadowed a bit with thoughts of what he might very well have to do in order to keep his word. Little Rhaenys didn't notice this though, because after his reassurance she exhaled a breath she'd been instinctively holding as she relaxed in her mother's arms before swiftly falling back to sleep. The one who had saved her was there and he had told her that everything was going to be fine.

He'd promised after all.

Rhaella and Elia just looked at their friend for a moment before he gave them a small sad smile and left the room. He had to continue making preparations, it had been nearly four months since he had gotten the last of the Targaryens to Dorne and his sources in and around King's Landing had informed him that the new king had not been just sitting around twiddling his thumbs. He had received confirmation of where the last Targaryens were hiding and had been preparing those of his banners that could still fight for the long march to Dorne…

Xander would be ready for the man, there was no way in hell he would let Robert Baratheon and his people within a hundred miles of the last Targaryens, especially not after having learned of Rhaella's pregnancy. The former queen was roughly half way through it now and many were saying that Xander had actually been treating her more like a wife than a friend such was his concern for her. In fact, he could become a more than bit over bearing from time to time. So much so that Rhaella had to flat out tell him to calm down and go find something else to do away from her more than a few times. A bit embarrassing sure, but worth it when he saw her and those around her smile because of just how easily she could reign him in when she wanted to. They were still just friends, and he didn't see that actually changing, but he had always had the tendency of smothering those close to him a bit from time to time and it still drove those affected a little crazy.

Regardless, he had to continue readying his forces for a seemingly inevitable confrontation with the rest of the Seven Kingdoms. If Lyanna Stark had survived the Tower of Joy then Robert Baratheon might have been somewhat placated and not sought out another blood bath just months after the end of his own rebellion and victory over the Mad King. But she hadn't survived giving birth to her son, the boy that Eddard Stark had by this point taken with him back North.

(Flashback)

"So what are you going to do with the kid?" Alexander asked the Stark lord as he held the small squirming bundle to his chest. He had heard Eddard's promise to his sister right before she'd passed, having followed the man up not long after he had entered the tower. If Eddard was surprised by Alexander suddenly being there when he hadn't noticed the other man before then he didn't show it.

"I am taking him North, I am taking him home." Eddard responded. For a second it looked as if the new high lord would tense up before he noticed that the Lord of Soldiers wasn't holding a weapon or even a threatening posture. Lord Stark knew that Alexander most likely knew who the father of the infant in his arms was; so nothing really needed to be said. The fact that the other man wasn't being hostile in the slightest was telling enough.

"If I might make a suggestion," Alexander started cautiously, "don't call him yours if that's your idea. I've met that new wife of yours and she doesn't seem to be one who'd be overly kind to the product of you being 'unfaithful'." It was true, he had once briefly met the newly minted Catelyn Stark and she had struck him as a very uptight woman in some ways. And this was only with the smallest of first impressions! He just knew that she would not take kindly to her new husband bringing home a son that wasn't also hers.

"Then what can I do with him?" Eddard asked. He hadn't thought of that considering that he was very much grieving for his sister, who had just died minutes before. If nothing else his lack of foresight was understandable. "I will not have him away from Winterfell."

"I don't know; just say that he's Brandon's boy or something. Your older brother did like to sleep around after all," Alexander said with a shrug as he looked down at the now sleeping boy, "He may not have been an outright whoremonger or anything from what I know, but he did have a tendency towards liking the ladies probably more than he should have. Plus you Starks have strong features, and I can already tell that the kid is going to inherit most of them. And anyway, it's not like Brandon or anyone else can refute such a claim. Well, aside from those here, and we'll keep quiet." Again, he had only met the late Brandon Stark the once at Harenhall, at the same time as Catelyn actually, but it had been enough to get a decent first impression.

Eddard looked like he wanted to refute Alexander's claim about his older brother, but he knew that what he was saying was true. The man's suggestion was sound, and he knew that his new wife would not take kindly to him claiming a bastard, so if nothing else he would give the idea some serious thought.

(End Flashback)

He had the support of the Martells and many of the other houses of Dorne, most obviously including that of house Dayne, but it would be his forces that lead the charge. All together he was able to gather around 15,000 men, including the 5,000 infantry that he commanded and the roughly 300 specially trained troops that his elite faction was comprised of. The rest were all from the assorted houses of Dorne. The supply lines were set and the army he was to lead was properly equipped. Now he had to whittle out the right plans and contingencies in order to at least stalemate the forces Robert Baratheon had mustered and would soon be heading their way. Not so easy considering that said forces were an estimated two times larger than his own. He had maybe a month or two left before shit would potentially, and most likely, start hitting the fan. Hopefully, he would be ready by then.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Rhaella asked once more, the skirts of the red with silver trim dress that she was currently wearing swishing about her feet as she headed towards the carriage that waited to transport her alongside about half of the force that would be most likely clashing with the new King. The other half was going to do their best to either flank or bombard the main host of men commanded by Robert Baratheon and his vassals before the frontal force ever truly entered the fray should the worst happen.

Xander had been adamant that diplomacy should be tried first, and only if it fell apart would he initiate his plan to severely weaken Robert's forces before sending in his own troops. He had sent the more covert half of his army ahead of the other half, which would be making the frontal assault, ahead nearly a month in advance so that they could be repositioned as needed while following the movements of the opposing force. Robert Baratheon may have had command of nearly 30,000 men at arms and conscripts, but they were tired, did not know the terrain, and (to the best of Xander's knowledge) did not know about the vanguard of his army that were poised to surround and do their best to level their enemy at any point.

But the real kickers, to borrow a phrase from her friend, were that, firstly, Xander wanted her there beside him during negotiations. He said that the new King needed to see that he had won over the Targaryens and that their deaths were unnecessary. That hunting them down to the last would, in the end, be nothing more than a futile waste of resources and time. And she knew he was right. Despite how a part of her pride recoiled at the thought she knew that she needed to be there to bend neck to the man if there was any real chance at a lasting peace that didn't require either the deaths of her remaining family or the Lord of Soldiers waging, at worst, a possibly years long war or set of conflicts on the rest of Westeros. She didn't think for a moment that he would truly hesitate either. Her friend was a good man who didn't like the idea of unneeded bloodshed, but she knew that he would do what he thought was needed to keep those he cared for safe, even if he had to undo all that her ancestors Aegon and his sisters had done with their dragons centuries ago.

The second rather large advantage was that, even with many saying it was impossible, Xander had managed to smuggle out a couple of Alchemists from King's Landing. And what was even better was the fact that he had commission them to, in secret, begin creating a crystalized form of Wild Fire after making a few suggestions. When asked if such knowledge was common place where he came from all he did was mention something he called 'AP Chemistry' classes with someone named Willow, but past that he kept such information to himself. Regardless, the end result was a safer to transport and far more stable version of the normally volatile substance that still only needed a single spark to be set off after being flung at the enemy... Granted, it wasn't nearly as outright potent as normal Wild Fire, but its advantages far outweighed any loss of destructive force experienced with this new version. Astounding really, and a definite military edge over the rest of Westeros as a whole. And while she thought it to be unnecessary, he had only told her that one could not have enough advantages in war. He hoped to not need it, but it was there if negotiations failed, to help end the conflict quickly with minimal loss of life on their side. As it was he was trying to keep such a weapon secret as long as possible. Not even his own rank and file was aware of the true specifics behind what they were hauling, just that the jugs were highly dangerous and to be treated with the utmost care. Only his upper level field officers and higher knew everything.

"Yes, you have to be there. I know that you don't want to be around the man, neither do I really, but this is the best chance we have that doesn't result in more needless death and possibly even leaving a good deal of Westeros in a weakened state that could last for years. Who knows how many people would try to take advantage of that kind of situation," Xander said as they kept walking. As he spoke she was reminded of one of the bigger reasons, if not the biggest reason, he was so adamant that peace talks needed to at least be attempted. Even if Xander succeeded in eliminating Robert Baratheon as a threat by destroying his army, the resulting loss of life would only end up with many of the regions of Westeros, especially those of the Reach and the Stormlands who would have to recruit those barely more than children to help replenish their ranks. Though it should be noted that Tywin Lannister and his vassals would not be overly affected because of how they had remained neutral as long as they could up until near the end of the rebellion.

On a brighter note it had been confirmed that Eddard Stark had disagreed rather vehemently with his old friend on his current course of action and was abstaining from further warfare, despite the strain that it put on their friendship. Other lords soon followed the same course of action and headed home, their resources sapped to the point of being near completely depleted and their men too tired to effectively continue.

Robert Baratheon knew that he could not force them to stay unless he really wanted to sow an untold amount of discord into his already fragile reign. He had not yet been able to truly consolidate his powerbase with the realm being already as bloodied and exhausted as it was, therefore trying to press the issue with those that wanted to leave had the potential to destroy him before he had even begun his reign. As a result of this though the new king had quite literally snatched up anyone and everyone he could from those who wished to gain his favor by helping him continue his crusade in order to field an army he hoped would intimidate the Lord of Soldiers into submission. Never the less, almost entire generations from multiple areas would be lost if the majority of the King's army didn't make it out alive, and in the long run the realm would suffer even more.

Now this was just odd. As his army approached the place his scouts had told him Alexander would be waiting for him with his own host of men something out of the ordinary caught his attention. Not only was the other man's host smaller than expected, it was just sitting there waiting for him with a lone large tent sitting out in the open a good distance away from either army bearing the new sigil of Alexander, a silver sword placed lengthwise beneath a light grey kite shield on a field of black with a grey border. There was also a large white flag connected to the same pole out front, floating lazily in the hot breeze. Surrounding the tent on the farther side from where Robert was approaching and standing in a neat semi-circle were uniformed and armored men that Robert could only assume were from Alexander's elite troops. Basically, the man's version of Robert's own King's Guard…

The man was calling a truce for a chance to meet; he wanted to talk peace. If nothing else Robert knew that the lords following him would wish to at least hear the Soldier Lord out before going any further, and the men, who'd been marching under the hot desert sun for weeks while doing their best to go from water to water could certainly use a rest. It only took a moment for the King to make his decision. After signaling for his forces to halt a lightly mounted rider approached and offered his lord's greetings while delivering a message that essentially stated what Robert had already surmised. After his acceptance, and the rider's departure, he took several minutes to put together his own personal guard so as to match the number that Alexander had allowed himself along with two more to accompany him inside the tent with those nobles that were joining him.

Hearing the approach of horses and then of boots in the sand Xander quickly took his position at the end of the table facing the tent's entrance and took a deep breath as Rhaella stood beside and slightly behind him. Donning the face of Alexander in preparation his gaze instantly became hard as his features turned inscrutable. It was time; the moment he had spent the last several months preparing for was here. Today he either shined and his plan worked, or there would be just another battlefield filled with corpses left when he headed back to Sunspear. Xander now knew he would probably win this battle, because his ploy had worked and Robert Baratheon's forces were completely surrounded.

The area that he had met the new king in was perfect for an on mass bombardment. With near sheer cliff faces on either side of him that were too far away for standard archers to be overly effective Robert probably thought them to be nothing to be worried about. But while the distance may have been too great for all but the strongest of bowmen it was perfect for long range ballista. Ballista that had been placed for the sole purpose of raining down fiery death upon those coming for the last Targaryens… Combine this with the fact that Robert's knights had been boiling inside of their plate under the hot sun for the last two weeks and Xander knew that he was several steps ahead. Any scouts that had been found snooping around had been silenced, so Robert Baratheon and those following him had no idea about what type of shit storm they had literally just walked into. The day would be his no matter what! This would be King would not be laying a finger on the woman beside him or her family.

It just wasn't going to happen.

As if sensing his thoughts Rhaella slipped her hand into his and gave it a quick, but comforting, squeeze. Her eyes never left the tent's entrance as she did this, but her message was loud and clear. She believed in him as did her family and his men.

She believed in him.

AN: So what did you all think? Obviously, Rhaella won the poll by my count, but with some addendums that will be explored later on in the story. No, this will not be a harem story, sorry if this disappoints anyone. Anyway, thank you all for taking the time to help me with this latest conundrum, you were all great! Any questions, comments, or thoughts? Lay 'em on me! I would love to hear from all you wonderful individuals out there. Until next time and wishing you all only the best, ~Relim