"Lady Melisandre, I told you that if you ever came back to the North I would execute you myself." Jon was the first to speak as Melisandre came to stand at Kinvara's side. The two women looked so similar, the red clothing, the chokers, and the fire in their eyes. Did all red priestesses look like this? Jon realized his knowledge of the religion and those who practice it was quite poor. He wanted to learn more about Essos, and even learn how to speak a few words in Valyrian. There is still so much he wanted to do.
Dany looked at Jon, baffled by his response. This priestess travelled all the way from Essos to provide them with an army. A thousand men, and weapons made of dragonglass. It was the first glimpse of hope she had seen in a long time. How could he respond to her like this? What had she done?
"Jon Snow, I am ready to die. If you or the Onion Knight wish to execute me so be it, for I have already completed what the Lord of Light has asked of me. I brought ice and fire together, and I have provided you with help for the war with the Others, just as I told you I would. You can kill me if you wish, you can burn me alive or have me hanged, but before that, I ask that you listen to what we have to say."
Dany looked at the two women. I brought ice and fire together… his is a song of ice and fire. "We thank you for your help, and we accept it with immense gratitude. You should all rest tonight, we can talk in the morning."
"Thank you, your Grace," Kinvara said with a smile.
"What was that all about?" Dany asked Jon once they were finally alone.
"Why is he always in your chambers and not mine?" Jon replied, looking at Ghost who rested on Dany's bed.
"Don't change the subject Jon," she said, moving to sit beside the large wolf.
"Dany…" he threw himself onto the bed beside them, taking a moment to stare at the ceiling for a while before speaking again. "Can we take a break from all this. It seems as though every hour of the day something new pops up; the cycle never ending. Let's run away to a little town in Essos where no one could find us."
"Jon!" she stared at him, about to laugh from pure disbelief. She placed the back of her palm to his forehead, "Are you all right my love? Have you gone mad?"
"Sometimes I wish I were. If I was mad, if you were mad… maybe we wouldn't care so much."
She sighed as she moved to rest her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. The heart that was only beating because Melisandre brought him back… because the Lord of Light was not done with him.
"Melisandre," he finally spoke. "She killed Stannis Baratheon's daughter, Shireen. She was young and innocent, and Ser Davos loved her like she was his own. He said the girl even taught him how to read. But Melisandre convinced herself and everyone around her that the girl had to be sacrificed. Her mother and father watched as she was burned alive."
"That's horrible," Dany said, unable to imagine how a parent could do that to their child. If there was anything she learned in the last few days it was that prophecy truly drove people to act without their senses. Tyrion once old her that prophecy is like a half-trained mule. It looks as though it might be useful, but the moment one trust in it, it kicks them in the head.
"It is," Jon said, trying to shake off the image he had of the young girl in his head. "When Davos found out he demanded I execute her right at that very moment but she persuaded me that it would be unwise. She said she would help me in the future, and here she is."
"She did bring you back after all," Dany traced her finger around his scars. "Plus she was the one who told me to summon you, and here we are."
"Still, we cannot trust in everything she says. She has made many mistakes and she admits it. We cannot afford to have her make another one."
"I know," she whispered, her breath warm against his chest. "I would never trust in anyone who could murder a child."
"We shall see what tomorrow brings," he kissed her forehead. "Come on, you need to rest."
The two dragons were woken up by a series of violent knocks on the door to Dany's chambers. They could hear muffled voices outside the room, but it was too early for either of them to decipher what was going on.
The door opened slightly and Missandei poked her head out, she had a frantic look in her eyes. "I am so sorry to disturb you your Grace, but Ser Davos has been looking for Lord Snow everywhere, he has woken the entire castle and I can't seem to stop him."
"Is he in there? Let me in!" they could hear Davos from behind the door, his voice too loud for the early hours of the morning.
"And so it begins," Dany said, getting up from the bed to put her garments on.
Jon sighed and got up to open the door.
"How could you?" Davos was screaming as he walked into the room, his face red and eyes bloodshot with anger.
"Davos, calm down." Jon spoke quietly.
"I told you Jon," he spoke through his teeth. "I told you what that girl meant to me."
"I know. And Melisandre will get the punishment she deserves. However, she brought us an army. She is only here to help, and she asks for one thing in return; that we listen to her and Kinvara in today's meeting. We cannot refuse the offer, you know we need the men."
"Call for me when the meeting is done." Davos said, looking at Jon and Dany. "I will execute her myself, and neither of you will stop me."
"Daenerys Stormborn," Kinvara spoke, her voice loud and clear as she stood in the middle of the hall with Melisandre at her side. "Man once again faces the War for the Dawn which has been waged since time began. On one side is the Lord of Light, the Heart of Fire, the God of Flame and Shadow. Against him stands the Great Other, whose name may not be spoken, the Lord of Darkness, the Soul of Ice, the God of Night and Terror."
"Does everyone from Essos speak like this?" Sansa muttered to Arya, loud enough so so only the two of them could hear. Arya rolled her eyes.
Kinvara continued. "For the last decade, red priests and priestesses, myself included, have spread the word that you have been sent to lead the people against the darkness, and the time has come to do just that. People even talked of you before you were born, but you can let Lord Varys tell you all about that. Isn't that right, Spider?"
Dany turned to look at Varys, who appeared to be petrified by the words of the high priestess.
"I thank you for spreading good word about me and for helping bring peace to Mereen," Dany spoke. "I keep hearing about this prophecy, about the one who was promised, but I am afraid I still don't know what it means, and it doesn't seem like all of the followers of the Lord of Light can agree on it either."
"It is true," Kinvara said. "We have been debating over the topic, especially after learning about the gift R'hollor has given you, Lord Snow."
"What about him?" Jon spoke, looking to Berric who sat on the opposite side of the room.
"He too has a role to play, and he knows what it is," Melisandre spoke. "But it is not the same as yours."
"I'm sorry, but am I the only one who has no idea what any of you are talking about?" Tyrion was now the one to speak.
"You're right my friend," Kinvara spoke. "We must go back to the when it all started…
Many years ago, darkness lay over the world and a hero, Azor Ahai, was chosen to fight against it. To fight the darkness, Azor Ahai needed to forge a hero's sword. He labored for thirty days and thirty nights until it was done. However, when he went to temper it in water, the sword broke. He was not one to give up easily, so he started over.
The second time he took fifty days and fifty nights to make the sword, even better than the first. To temper it this time, he captured a lion and drove the sword into its heart, but once more the steel shattered.
The third time, with a heavy heart, for he knew beforehand what he must do to finish the blade, he worked for a hundred days and nights until it was finished. This time, he called for his wife, Nissa Nissa, and asked her to bare her breast. He drove his sword into her living heart, her soul combining with the steel of the sword, creating Lightbringer, the Red Sword of Heroes."
Melisandre spoke next. "Both of you fit the prophecy. When the red star bleeds and the darkness gathers, the one who is promised shall be born again amidst smoke and salt, he or she shall wake dragons out of stone, and he or she shall draw from the fire a burning sword.
We cannot tell you who Azor Ahai is, but when the time comes, you will know. The Lord of Light will make it clear to all of you, and now you know what you need to do."
"The dagger that the young wolf holds is key," Kinvara said, her gaze shifting towards Arya. "The promised one must wield the dagger and pierce the heart of their beloved to forge Lightbringer and defeat the Others."
"This is insane," Sansa said.
"I agree," Jon was now angry. "Do you really expect this Azor Ahai reborn person to murder the one they love because of a prophecy? How many times have people died because of false prophecies? Think of Shireen Baratheon, or have we forgotten where she is now?"
"I have not forgotten and I never will," Melisandre spoke in a serious tone. "But I wouldn't have come here knowing I will face death if this wasn't the truth."
"Actually… there is some truth to what she says," Sam said standing up from his seat. "The dagger is more valuable than we think. I saw an image of it in a book I picked up from the restricted section at the Citadel. The weapon is one of a kind, made from both Valyrian steel and Dragonglass."
"Well then how did Littlefinger get a hold of it?" Sansa asked, now intrigued. "Valyrian steel weapons are passed on in great houses from one generation to the next. Baelish owns no castle and made up his own house all for himself, the dagger wasn't handed down to him by any legitimate means."
"Bran?" Arya asked, looking to her brother. Now all eyes on the room were on the last greenseer.
Bran sighed. "The dagger is a Targaryen relic from the times of Aegon the Conqueror. The last dragon to own it was Rhaegar Targaryen."
It was at that very moment when Dany felt her heart sink to her knees. "Lady Sansa, I kindly ask that you allow Lord Snow and I to speak to the Red Women… alone."
Sansa stared at Dany for a moment, shocked that the Queen would ask her permission for such a thing. Then again, this was her castle, and she was the Lady of Winterfell. She had not yet bent the knee to Daenerys, and she didn't know if she ever would, but she couldn't ignore the growing respect she had developed for the woman as the days went by. "All right," she agreed.
"Dany, you can't possibly believe all this," Jon whispered to her as the people were leaving.
She didn't know what to believe anymore.
Dany spoke once everyone was gone. "I once had a vision where my brother told me that his son, Aegon, would be the prince that was promised. "She turned to face Jon. "If the dagger belonged to Rhaegar, then it rightfully belongs to you."
"Daenerys, no..." he looked her in the eyes, unable to comprehend the whole situation. Did she really say what he thought she said?
"You are Rhaegar's son… of course you are," Melisandre spoke, her eyes wide with amazement. "Still, that doesn't change anything. Rhaegar himself thought he was the one who was promised at one point."
"Wait," Kinvara looked back at Dany. "What else did Rhaegar say in the vision?"
Dany looked at her curiously. "He said that the dragon has three heads. That there must be one more."
"And there will be one more, am I right?" Kinvara said with a smile.
Both Jon and Dany stared at the red priestess in horror, her words sending shivers down their spines.
It took a while for anyone to speak again."We thank you for the army you have brought but I think it's time for you to leave," Jon said as he stood up, taking Dany's hand in his.
"You will know what to do when the time comes," Kinvara said. The two women then turned around and began walking towards the door.
"Wait," Jon said. "I didn't say you could leave, Melisandre."
And the plot thickens... :D
I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, I certainly enjoyed writing it.
Thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited and reviewed this story. I am truly overwhelmed by all the support I have received so far.
Stay tuned for more!
