King's Landing 299 AC.
Tyrion Lannister.
Guards followed him wherever he went. Tyrion was not a prisoner, which was more than could be said for most of his family. He split his time between his rooms, the rooms shared by Illyrio and Varys, and just walking around the Red Keep. Something he was doing now as he waited for permission to see Jaime, Myrcella, and Tommen again. He'd heard what fate had befallen them and the Lords of the West. Though not yet his family who remained there.
Finding out his father was dead had stirred no emotion in him. While hearing that Cersei had taken her own life, surprisingly had. His sister had always hated him. She'd wished him dead for most if not all of his life. It was Cersei who was the main instigator behind his imprisonment for a crime he didn't commit. She, who turned Bronn to her side and would have seen him dead. Though his father had the power to stop her and did not. Yet he mourned her a little. Not for himself and not even truly for the children either. Tyrion mourned her for the love he knew his brother had for her.
As he strolled through the Red Keep, he heard a roar from outside in the courtyard and moved to the window to see the source of that roar, dragons. He'd not seen them since arriving. Though it was not for a lack of trying on his part. Climbing up onto the window seat so that he was almost leaning out of the window itself, Tyrion looked to the sky and for the first time in his life, he saw actual living and breathing dragons. They were as majestic as he'd dreamed they'd be and so very much bigger than Illyrio or Varys had believed. The largest was as black as the night's sky and there was a gold and cream colored one, along with one that was a shade of green that reminded Tyrion of a summer's day.
"Magnificent are they not." he heard a voice from behind him, Tyrion unable to turn to see whose voice it was until the dragons had left his sight.
"Truly," he said awestruck as he finally turned to see Oberyn Martell standing there.
The Red Viper was one of the few men who was mayhap as dangerous as the dragons themselves. If what he'd heard was right, then it had been Oberyn who'd taken his father from this world. A gift from the new king and queen or so Varys' little birds had informed him. Tyrion should hate the man. Yet, his own issues with his father made that almost impossible. He didn't have to like the man though and so he readied to bid him farewell only to find he was not to be given the choice to do so.
"I've come to take you to your family," Oberyn said and Tyrion looked at him eagerly, if somewhat confused too.
"You?" he asked.
"You wish for different company?" Oberyn asked amusedly.
"No, I would most enjoy the company of the man who killed my father," Tyrion replied, only half sarcastically.
"Your father lived far too long in this world. My only regret is that he's dead and I can't kill him again."
"Yet you would seek my company."
"I would. As you would you brother's would you not?"
Tyrion nodded and they began to walk towards the door that led out to the courtyard. They crossed it rather than going through the Red Keep itself to make their way to the dungeons. Each step he took was one where he feared he'd find his brother, niece, and nephew being mistreated and held in the Black Cells. He knew full well that had it been his father who'd captured Targaryens and held them as prisoners, that's where they'd be held. Though the thought soon came to him that had it been his father, then they'd likely have been killed by now. He was surprised by the silence that Oberyn and he walked in. Tyrion had expected questions about the young man claiming to be Aegon Targaryen. Yet not one word was spoken by the prince and it turned out to be Tyrion himself who brought it up first of all.
"Have you spoken to your nephew yet, Prince Oberyn?" Tyrion asked and hated his height for denying him the chance to truly see the Red Viper's expression.
"Not for true as of yet, no."
"A remarkable story is it not? Aegon somehow survives the sack of King's Landing against all the odds and is spirited away from the men who sought his death."
"Men sent by your father." Oberyn sneered, his first true reaction to Tyrion's words.
"Allegedly," Tyrion said, defending his father for some unknown reason and almost snapping his neck when he turned to look at Oberyn who now laughed fully.
"In his final moments, before I took him from this world. As he stood there covered in the filth and shit that had come from his bowels, there were no more lies upon your father's lips. He sent the Mountain and Amory Lorch with orders to see my sister, niece, and nephew dead. His screams when his own came for him were a joy to behold."
"Yet it seems that my father's men failed him."
"It seems so."
He didn't know which way to take Oberyn's words. Tyrion had expected far more questioning and some gentle, mayhap even not so gentle, prodding. Yet Oberyn seemed almost disinterested in learning more about Aegon, Illyrio, Varys, and even Jon Connington.
"He's a decent lad," Tyrion said, trying a new approach.
"His mother would have been pleased to know so," Oberyn said, the first inkling of a smile appearing on his face as he did so.
They'd reached the door that led not to the dungeons but to secure rooms in the Maidenvault. Tyrion's hopeful expression gave away his feelings completely and unlike Oberyn's, his was easy to see from the Red Vipers' vantage point. They entered, walked up some stairs, and though it was not cells, he doubted other than the royal chambers there was anywhere more guarded than these rooms. With some words to guards who were far beyond corrupting, Oberyn bid him farewell and he was allowed to enter the room where his family was being held as prisoners.
"Jaime," he said almost breathlessly when he finally saw his brother.
"Are you…"
"No, for some reason I've not been taken or held against my will. The children?" he asked looking around and seeing no sign of Myrcella or Tommen.
"Resting."
"What happened?" he asked, he knew most of it but wished to hear the full truth of it from his brother's lips.
For the next hour or more he sat and listened as Jaime told him just how completely outmatched they'd been. Finding out there was yet another dragon and this one even larger than the other three was almost unbelievable to him. Hearing just who Rhaegar, as Jon Snow was now truly was, and Daenerys had brought to their side and how truly they'd defeated his father's forces was almost too incredible for him to accept.
His father had been outplayed, outmaneuvered, and outthought by what Tyrion knew he'd have named a green boy and girl. Lannisport had fallen, Casterly Rock had been threatened and yet both were simply ruses to make his father march. Tarly and Rowan had joined with the dragons once more. The North had knelt to one king before then doing so to another. Dorne had turned cloaks that never truly were Lannister crimson in the first place. All of it was just too fantastical and yet all of it had happened.
"Cersei?" he asked once Jaime was finished telling him about the war which was barely that.
"She killed herself. I held her in my arms and…."
Tyrion reached out his hand and placed it on his brother's. He may have hated his sister, though not as much as she hated him, yet he had no wish to see Jaime pained so.
"I'm sorry," he said softly, his words barely heard.
He listened as Jaime confirmed the sentences that had been pronounced. Winced when he was told that they'd more than likely lose Casterly Rock and most if not all of their family's wealth and power.
Despite fearing for his brother and the rest of his family, it was soon his own fate that he began to contemplate. Long after he'd left Jaime behind and promised he'd come and visit him and the children later should he be allowed to, Tyrion walked with one single thought in his mind.
'Where does this leave me?'
There was some worry that he too would be sent to the Wall. Though mayhap like Tommen it would be the Citadel instead. While the idea of reading books for the rest of his life was one he quite enjoyed, he wished not to give up being a Lannister just yet. Fate, good fortune, or more likely because he was seeking him out, led Tyrion to where Varys seemed to be waiting for him. As he had been doing a little earlier, Varys too looked to the sky in search of dragons and soon enough they were graced with the sight of them.
The look on the Eunuch's face was not a hard one to judge. He'd made a serious miscalculation about the size of the dragons and Tyrion wondered if he was now concerned that he'd made other miscalculations too. Soon enough, Varys schooled his features once more. After bidding him follow, he led Tyrion away from prying eyes and ears and to a place that he doubted even the Targaryens knew about. Tyrion listened to him and the offer he made. Support Aegon in the Grand Council they'd call for and Varys would see Jaime's sentence commuted. Myrcella would be legitimized as a Lannister and matched to someone more suitable than the queen would see her wed. Tommen would need to remain in the Citadel though. However, his House would keep its holdings and there may even be a place on the Small Council for him personally.
It was a tempting offer and one he may have accepted if not for two things.
Aegon was not the son of Rhaegar and Elia and dragons are not very forgiving.
Cider Hall 299 AC.
Willas Tyrell.
Five ships. That was how many it took to carry everything of true value that Willas could lay his hands upon. They had more wealth than this and in furniture and trappings alone Highgarden still contained close to one hundred thousand gold dragons or more. There were the accounts they held in the Iron Bank and not all the taxes had been paid this year as well. Still, it was over a million gold dragons that Willas had taken from Highgarden's coffers and he once again thanked the Seven that he'd been able to.
The wealth would be needed in the days and weeks to come. King's Landing had fallen to the dragons and his father's army had been soundly beaten. Willas had since received conflicting reports on his family's fate. His father lived or died. Garlan had fallen in battle or had been taken as a prisoner. His grandmother and sister had been put to the sword or had surrendered peacefully. There was what he knew, the truth, and everything in between. One thing was certain, however, coin would buy their lives should they live still and coin he had.
It was not to him to deal with Stannis Baratheon and his army of golden men. Willas was still unsure how the Dour Stag could afford to pay the vast sums that the Golden Company would surely demand. The only thing that made sense was that he'd rob them all blind to do so and his House would be among the first on Stannis' list. It would be followed or mayhap only surpassed by the Lannisters. No, it would be dragons and dragons alone that dealt with the Stag King's army. He didn't have the men to stand against them and to defend Highgarden and so all that had availed was flight.
"Cider Hall, my lord." Igon Vyrwell said as he popped his head in through the door of Willas' cabin.
"Signal Ser Vortimer and have him ready the men."
"At once, my lord."
Willas rose to his feet, the pain shooting down his injured leg as he did so. It was always worst of all when he'd rested it for too long. A curse of not only the injury itself but of his penchant for getting lost in his thoughts. Grabbing his cane, he moved to the plate of meat and took two slices of it to feed to his two prize hawks. He'd left most of his menagerie behind at Highgarden and it had pained him greatly to do so. The horses he knew would be well looked after. He still worried about his hounds and his birds though and couldn't bear to be parted from Rose and Thorn.
"Eat, you'll fly soon enough," he said as he fed them both.
It took them most of the day to remove their cargo from the ships. Willas had five hundred men at arms with him. Enough to stop bandits trying their luck, but not enough to stop Stannis or even the Dragons from trying theirs. He'd carefully considered where to go and who he could trust. Had then discounted the idea of sailing the Mander to the open sea and making their way to Oldtown for a couple of reasons. To sail that way brought them too close to Brightwater Keep and House Florent was certain to be allied with the Stag King. Then even should they manage to make it past the keep and out into the open sea, they would soon run the risk of Reavers. Falling to the Iron Born was no fate that he wished to befall him. Especially not when he held the fate of his family in his hands.
Seeing his aunt Janna's face as she welcomed him and his mento Cider Hall was a most welcome surprise and it helped smooth things over with Ser Tanton Fossoway who was not best pleased to see him. Willas then truly enjoyed the warm bath and even warmer food he was granted later that night. The coin had been placed in the vaults and was watched over by his men. Their numbers being more than thrice the numbers that Ser Tanton could call upon. As he was heading to his bed, he was joined by his aunt and it was clear there was something on her mind. Thinking it was most likely worry about the fate of his Gooduncle, Willas bid her join him in his rooms. Less than a moment later he stood mouth agape at what she told him.
"I cannot believe such a thing," he said, though not because he doubted his aunt's words.
"It's true, Willas. I know most of the servants here and the Maester grew up with Jon before leaving for the Citadel."
"To ally with the Golden Company though, it makes no sense."
"Apparently there is someone in the Golden Company who's related and who reached out and who promised to spare lives in return for their support. Set Tanton is a craven, Willas. Though on this I'd not hold it much against him."
"Aunt?"
"There are less than a hundred men here, Willas. A hundred who could wield a blade or bow. What chance they against 10,000 or more?"
"You have the right of it. We'll leave on the morrow. Let Ser Tanton surrender all he wishes, we'll not be here when he does so. You'll come?" he asked and his aunt nodded eagerly.
"Jon, have you heard any…."
"We'll learn more at Bitterbridge, aunt."
"And you'll pay ransom for him too?" his aunt asked worriedly.
"I'll see all our kin released, aunt. On that, you have my vow."
She kissed his cheek and left him alone to his thoughts. Opening the window, he was caught by surprise when Roee and Thorn flew in and landed beside him. Willas slept not that night. Upon waking the next morning he immediately ordered his men to remove the coin from the vaults and to make ready the ships. Ser Tanton was not subtle in trying to get him to stay a little longer and other than to see a raven sent to King's Landing, Willas rejected every attempt the knight made to see that so. Even after the raven was called for, he only waited long enough to see it in the sky before he and his aunt climbed up onto one of the carts and made their way to the ships.
"A raven was sent to Highgarden last night, nephew." his aunt said as they rode away from the keep.
"Then we shall be far from here before it arrives."
"I made mention that it was Ashford we were heading to." his aunt said with a smirk so reminiscent of Margaery's lopsided smile that Willas felt his worries for his sister begin to rise.
"Grandmother will be so pleased with your duplicity, aunt," he said after composing himself, the sound of his aunt's laughter a pleasant one and one that stayed with him long into the day.
By the time night fell they were far from Cider Hall and the raven he'd sent to King's Landing would arrive there before he himself arrived at their own destination. It bore his offer of ransom and told of Stannis Baratheon and the Golden Company. Willas hoped that both would bear him in good stead with the new king and queen and see his family safe and well.
King's Landing 299 AC.
Varys.
From the moment he'd arrived he'd looked around and judged possible allies and those who'd go against them. He'd been surprised by some of those that had joined Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen and was stunned when he'd seen the dragons for the very first time. Varys had thought them to be small insignificant things which they were very much not. Illyrio had been even more shocked than Varys had been and his Goodbrother had cursed himself for gifting the eggs to Daenerys in the first place. Rightly so, Varys thought.
While compared to Jon Snow, Aegon may bear the appearance of a true dragon, the same could not be said about a comparison between his nephew and Daenerys Targaryen. Her hair was even more silver than Aegon's own and her violet eyes were a marked contrast to Aegon's blue ones. Having dragons that followed her command and having been seen atop one of them while Aegon came with merely his name and a story, did not help either. Not when that story was usurped in its telling by another, far better one.
According to his little birds, some of whom he'd managed to find and set to task, Jon Snow had the Sword of the Morning by his side. Something which to many would trump Aegon having Jon Connington by his own. The Griffin may have loved his silver prince, Arthur Dayne was his truest friend, and everyone who knew Rhaegar Targaryen knew that. Varys was annoyed to see Selmy by Daenerys' side too. As he'd been another that he'd wished to have stand with Aegon. Though not as close to Rhaegar as Arthur or even Connington were, to many he was as well known as the former and far more so than the latter. When you then added in Ser Richard Lonmouth too, Aegon and their contingent seemed far poorer than Jon Snow's by every measure.
War was a forgone conclusion. Though he'd known that from the moment that Jon Snow had made his claim and wed his aunt. The only path to the throne for Aegon was through words, bribes, and guilt. Varys had yet to see much of the last of those and so it was to the first of them that he now sought to bring to bear. To his annoyance, he was barred from speaking to Olenna Tyrell. While he could find some way to sneak into the rooms they were being held prisoner in, he'd not give up that particular secret unless he was left with no other choice. The Lannisters were far easier to reach out to and so Varys had made Tyrion an offer that he was in no other position but to accept. Daenerys' rash judgment had helped him out greatly in that regard.
"Your House is to be stripped of all it had, Tyrion. Reduced to a minor one at best or mayhap little more than landed knights. Your brother will die at the Wall and your niece will be wed to some man of low standing. As for your uncle, aunt, and cousins. There are many mouths to feed that bear the sigil of the Lion, how are you to do so when all you have has been taken from you?"
"And what other option do I have, Varys? Not even my brother's prowess with a sword in hand can get us out of this. I may consider myself a smart man but even I need tools with which to wield and put my thoughts into practice."
"Support Aegon in the Grand Council, Tyrion. You are your father's heir, the Lord of Casterly Rock by all rights of law. You stand for the West and declare yourself and it for Aegon and your family will find a truer friend in him than they have in a bastard wolf and a girl who should have died in a desert." Varys said.
"I'll not be allowed to vote in any grand council, Varys. They'll not grant you one regardless."
"Leave the organizing to me, but I have your vote?"
"All my family?" Tyrion asked.
"Your nephew will still need to swear his vows at the Citadel, Tyrion. Other than that, Aegon will have no issue with anyone else in your House. Those he may have, now breathe no more after all."
In the end, Tyrion had been relatively easy to convince. Varys didn't even attempt to speak to any of the Northern Lords. That Robb Stark had been stripped of a crown he never should have placed upon his head and of a birthright that had at first given Varys some hope that he may be able to swing him to his side, but it seemed the Young Wolf blamed himself and not his cousin for both. He'd since been named the new Lord of Riverrun which was a boon that Varys quickly took advantage of. The message had been sent, the offer made and Edmure Tully would accept t gratefully. For he had no other choice but to do so if he wished to remain free and still a lord.
Word had been sent to the Eyrie too. Littlefinger had shown his true colors to the wrong people. Catelyn Tully wished the man dead and Varys would wager that Jon Snow would be only too happy to accommodate those wishes. Apparently she and the boy she'd thought her husband's bastard had put aside their ill feelings towards each other and were on much friendlier terms now. It was yet another fly in his ointment. For if the ill feelings still remained, then Varys would have been able to take true advantage of them.
The Lords of the West would follow Tyrion's lead. Yet the Lords of the Reach worried him some. They'd risen and rode forth into battle with one dragon. Varys couldn't be certain that upon learning of Aegon, they'd accept another. It was the same with some of the Riverlords and Lords of the Vale. Both of whom had for some reason come to Jon Snow's and Daenerys' sides. He could bring the Tyrells to his side and Olenna could turn some if not all around. Yet he held no such certainty that Lysa or Edmure Tully could do the same with their own lords and ladies.
"Littlefinger could."
The voice was one he listened to and yet ignored at the same time. Littlefinger would be useful mayhap, but he was not and never could be someone that Varys relied upon. Close to power and with the offer of more. He'd offered him what seemed to be much and would use him before he then discarded him. To allow him to live too long would be to court disaster and he already risked doing so with the moves he made.
He was now about to make the biggest of them all and as he made his way to Oberyn's rooms, he did so alone much to his annoyance. Varys had wanted his nephew with him, but Aegon had chosen to spend the day with the Griffin instead. Jon Connington had put thoughts into Aegon's head of his father's adventures in King's Landing and those thoughts, along with an eagerness to see more of the dragons, had robbed him of his best-selling point for the offer he was about to make. Sighing, he turned the corner and passed the Dornish guards. After a few moments, where he waited as he was announced, he was then led into the Red Viper's rooms.
"Lord Varys," Oberyn said almost mockingly.
"No lord as well you know, Prince Oberyn," Varys replied, looking around the room and annoyed to find they were alone.
"Ellaria and the girls wish to sample the so-called delights of this great city," Oberyn said, his mocking tone still present in his voice.
"I had hoped to speak to you and to them, my prince. Though I'd hoped to have your nephew with me when I did so. Aegon too wishes to see the delights that King's Landing has to offer. To walk the paths where his father and mother may have trod."
He was happy to see the smile appear on Oberyn's face and took his seat when it was offered. Varys even accepted the wine though he was not usually a man who drank.
"My girls long to meet their cousin for true and I too wish to speak more freely to my sister's son," Oberyn said wistfully.
"As I know Aegon does as well, my prince."
Taking a small swallow of the wine, Varys readied the story he was about to tell. A tale of rescue, a hidden prince, and the mistakes made along the way. He'd told some of it already, but now he embellished it greatly. Soon he was speaking of the lengths that Robert Baratheon had gone to see Viserys and Daenerys dead and how it had only strengthened his resolve to make sure Aegon was protected. He spoke of how if anyone was to blame for keeping Dorne in the dark then it should be him and Illyrio that faced Oberyn and Doran's ire. Something that the expression on Oberyn's face already named as true.
When he started to speak of the plans he'd made to see Aegon crowned and how just as they were ready to put those plans in motion, events caused them to change, he saw Oberyn move forward and listen even more eagerly.
"The Golden Company, other sellswords. A wedding alliance with the Golden Rose of Highgarden and a reaching out to the loyalist Houses. And of course to your own."
"Dorne, the Reach, the Golden Company…"Oberyn pondered "If the old alliances didn't hold true it would have mayhap been enough."
"The old alliances were broken once Jon Arryn and Robert Baratheon breathed their last. Though even I did not expect things to go how they did afterward. Eddard Stark would never have sided with Tywin Lannister though, that I knew. As I did the truth about the children."
"Yet it was another secret you kept to yourself." Oberyn sneered. Varys happy to see his anger and he knew full well that it was a different secret that angered him truly.
"I did, as I would again, my prince. My only thought was to see Aegon crowned. Yet war is a dangerous thing and while I could not remove all the risks from our campaign, I wished to remove as many as I was able."
"And Daenerys Targaryen, was she too a risk?" Oberyn asked.
"In a way, yes. Would that I could do things over and not make the same mistakes I did." he sighed loudly "Yet having her too close to Aegon would have put his life even more at risk than the truth of who he was already did." he lied.
"And you now wish for what? Westeros has its King and Queen. Rhaegar and Daenerys have won the Iron Throne by right of Conquest."
"But not by blood, my prince."
For the next hour or more, Varys laid out as much of his plan as he wished to reveal or felt comfortable enough doing so. Once he was done, he looked to Oberyn who seemed to be in deep thought and Varys felt his breath still when Oberyn rose to his feet.
"Rhaegar gave me a vengeance I'd sought for most of my life. Justice for a sister, niece, and what I believed was a nephew too. I've knelt to them both and named them my king and queen with as light a heart as I'm ever like to have. Doran has accepted the offer they made. One day a son of theirs and a daughter of Arianne's are to be wed and will sit on the Iron Throne as king and queen consort."
"A good and fair offer, my prince."
"Yet they are not my blood. We'll not fight against them, Varys. Only a fool would do so and my foolish days are long behind me." Oberyn chuckled "But they are not my blood. Should you be granted your Grand Council, then Dorne stands where it always has…"
Varys felt the anticipation rise up in him, his heart racing as he awaited Oberyn to speak the words aloud.
"With Kin," Oberyn said finally.
He stayed for less than a few moments after that. Soon enough he was hurrying back to the rooms he shared with Illyrio and when he arrived at them, he was happy to see Aegon and Jon Connington had returned. Gathering them all together in the largest part of his and Ilyrio's rooms, he quickly told them of his meeting with Oberyn.
"My uncle supports me," Aegon said happily.
"Of course he does, Aegon. You are the rightful heir to the throne and even more importantly to Oberyn than that, you are his kin." Varys said.
"So we call for the Grand Council?" the Griffin asked.
"We do."
"And we have the numbers to win it?" Illyrio asked worriedly.
"We do."
Less than an hour later they were walking towards the Throne Room and Varys felt just how very close to achieving all he and Serra had wished for, he now was.
The Reach 299 AC.
Melisandre.
They'd taken the keep as easily as she'd seen in the flames and yet once again her vision was not as true as it should be. It annoyed her and her king even more so. So Melisandre had spent far too many hours sitting in front of the fires since then. She'd asked for and had received many more visions from her god and some of them had corresponded with the ones she'd had more than a year or more ago. Others had very much not and so she'd done her utmost to discern R'hllor's meaning in them all.
The dragons they now knew about. Three of them belonged to the woman who now named herself queen and yet not one of them was the one she'd seen for most of her life. It was that one that she asked R'hllor to show her again. That one that she had always believed was to be the Prince that was Promised's mount. Her god once had gifted her the sight of the huge black dragon and showed her it as it flew over the giant wall of ice.
To Melisandre's dismay, there seemed to be another atop it. For the man who rode it was certainly not Stannis and yet this could not be so. She never contemplated that she may be in the wrong of things. Never even considered that she'd read the signs wrong and had made leaps of judgment that, could or would have in hindsight, put her on a different path. Instead, she sought a way to remove this usurper from Stannis' rightful place, and very soon she knew that it would take king's blood to do so. Something which created a problem all of its own.
Where was she to find some?
Who could she bleed to give her what she needed?
Would bleeding them be enough?
What could she do if there was none available to her?
While Stannis made plans to bring more of the Reach under his control and eventually march on King's Landing itself, Melisandre sought answers in the fires before making her own plans. The answers came not from the flames however but from the spymaster of the Golden Company. Melisandre was loathed to follow the path her mind laid out in front of her and yet powerless not to. For she'd seen death on that path, her own, she just wasn't certain when that death was to come to her.
Still, if she wished for king's blood then it was to where kings made their home that she must travel. After she'd resolved herself to do what she must, she then arranged a meeting with Stannis to tell him they would need to part. Her king was not happy in the least and yet it was her words and not his that carried the argument. Now all she had to do was wait until the Onion Knight returned from the task Stannis had set him to. Then together they would take a ship and sail to King's Landing.
The wait was a long and annoying one. Her king was wroth with her. Not even letting him take his pleasure with her more than once was enough to remove that annoyance. Her time spent in front of the flames led to little that was new. Melisandre saw the same visions over and over. A black dragon with an unknown rider upon it, a battle in the shadow of a wall of ice, and the Prince that was Promised wielding Lightbringer and striking down the Great Other once and for all. Yet where once there was certainty, now there was doubt.
Was it Stannis or the black dragon's rider who had woken dragons from stone?
Was she following the right prince?
Was there another?
Was this all some game the Great Other was playing with her and were her doubts not truly her own?
Melisandre had always known that her faith would be tested before her time was done. Given the power of R'hllor and the fact that the Great Other was her god's truest foe, Melisandre had never doubted that he too wielded great power. It had been why it fell to another to see to his end. Why they'd needed a promised prince and it could not fall to one of their order to act as R'hllor's champion in the war soon to come.
By the time Ser Davos arrived back at Highgarden, Melisandre had put her doubts away. She'd found a box for them, locked them up in it, and buried that box deep inside of herself. She could not afford to have unresolved questions on the path she was now to walk. Her resolve must be as firm as her faith, or else she and the war to come were already lost. So with a last look in the fire, where she saw only King's Landing and nothing more, Melisandre left her room behind and went to bid her farewell, for now, to the king.
Had she not been aware of how annoyed Stannis was at her, then it would have been made clear to her within moments of arriving at his rooms. Stoic and unyielding though he was at most times, when his ire and anger were raised and he tried to keep hold of his emotions, Stannis Baratheon proved himself to be a terrible mummer. Teeth grinding, hands held behind his back, words spoken singularly, and a fire behind his eyes that truly showed he had R'hllor's favor, Stannis simply bid her and Davos farewell and good fortune.
"I shall return with haste, my king," Melisandre said and Stannis barely nodded in response.
There were no words spoken to her in return. Few were spoken to Ser Davos too which at least showed her that her king's bad mood wasn't confined to her alone. All too soon she was being helped onto the ship that would sail them to where the rest of their fleet awaited near Brightwater Keep. Or the ships that belonged to them anyway. For the Sellsails had done their jobs and now sailed to spend their coin far from these shores. Melisandre tried in vain not to envy them. They would know the delights of Essos before they met their ends. While she would never see those lands ever again.
The journey was one spent in solitude. Ser Davos liked her not and kept far from her company and she in turn both welcomed and equally hated being left alone with her thoughts. There were no fires to look into and staring into the candles brought her no vision at all from her god. It was not until they reached Brightwater Keep itself that she even had the chance to seek our R'hllor's warm embrace and to ask him once again to show her the way.
They stayed but a day at the keep of the queen's family. Melisandre was treated as an honored guest while Davos was more tolerated than welcomed. Soon enough they were upon Davos' ship the Black Betha and it was memories of another journey with the Onion Knight that her mind turned to. That had brought her king an army but not a crown. By R'hllor's will, this would bring a dragon to his side. Once he had R'hllor's greatest weapon to call upon, a crown would not be long in following. Yet not long after they'd left the Reach behind, Melisandre felt her doubts return.
Beyond the Wall 299 AC.
Rhaegar Targaryen.
He laughed as he heard her mumble. His wife had dozed off in his arms and he'd not had the heart to wake her. Dany spoke in her sleep and Rhaegar ate up each of the words as if they were the tastiest meal he'd ever had. Their babes. Games they'd play with them. Flights they'd take with them both when they were small enough to be held in Dany's and his own arms and when they were older and big enough to fly on Rhaegal and Viserion by themselves.
Rhaegar listened to her as she mumbled about how the dragons wished so very much to meet their riders. How one-half of her children wished so very much to grow with the other half. At one point he needed to remove his handkerchief to wipe some drool that came from Dany's mouth and he'd done all he could not to wake her as he did so. He knew it would embarrass her somewhat and that she'd be annoyed with herself for falling asleep. Yet he cared not whether she was with him and wide awake or laying in his arms as she mumbled and dreamt of their children. All that mattered was that she was there with him.
"Rhaegar." Dany said as she awoke and glared at him "How could you let me…."
His kiss silenced her and within moments they were kissing each other as passionately as they ever had.
"I relished holding you in my arms, my love. Awake, asleep, it matters to me not," he said as he offered her his warmest smile, happy to see her return it.
"You have further to go?" she asked.
"We should reach it on the morrow. Things are truly well with you?"
"They are. I'll see you soon for true?"
"A week, two at most," he said and this time it was Dany who kissed him.
Rhaegar was the first to wake. Though Arthur had not slept which mayhap made him the first. Moving to take a seat by the fire beside his knight, Rhaegar looked to see that both Arya and Shiera were wrapped up well and slept still. His little sister had been as excited as on any Nameday she'd ever celebrated. Traveling to the Wall had been something they'd done together already while traveling beyond it was an adventure all of its own. To see more Children of the Forest, that alone was more than enough to raise Arya's eagerness to a whole different level. Knowing that she'd get to meet Bloodraven too. Well, Rhaegar wouldn't lie and say that didn't excite him as much as it did his little sister.
"Where's Leaf?" he asked Arthur when he finally noticed that the Child was nowhere to be seen.
"She wished to look from atop somewhere higher."
"A hill?" he asked, not having remembered seeing one close by.
"A tree," Arthur replied before pointing in the distance and Rhaegar soon spotted what he believed to be Leaf.
She looked as if she was standing on the very edge of a branch. Something that should be impossible but Rhaegar had long come to realize that this world they lived in was full of so many things that could be named as such. His aunt, dragons, Children of the Forest, and as much if not more than any of those things, the man he was traveling now to see. A man who if Shiera was right, and Rhaegar had no doubt she was, had been guiding his path for more than a year and had planned it for even longer than that.
"I'm awake." Arya jumped up with a start and then glowered at him when he chuckled.
"Come eat, we'll be flying soon," he said as he filled her plate with the rabbit stew.
Arya wolfed down the first plate in the blink of an eye and held it out to him for it to be filled once more. She was working her way through the second when Shiera awoke and his aunt even ate a little this morning. He'd been worried about her as it seemed her appetite had deserted her these past few days. Even now he felt she ate more for his comfort than out of any sense of hunger. Still, she finished her meal as did Arya and by the time they were ready to depart, Leaf had returned.
Soon enough they were sitting atop Ōñosmaghare and the black dragon was flying on the final stretch of their long flight. They'd left the Wall more than two days ago and had covered far more of these lands than Rhaegar had expected them to. Not once did they fly over anywhere that was still inhabited though and he took some comfort from that. As he did from the lack of urgency that either Leaf or Shiera had shown. It had allowed them to rest more and while Ōñosmaghare may not need it, Rhaegar wished him to be ready to fly for far longer and far more quickly should the need arise.
When he saw the giant Weirwood it took his breath away. Never had he imagined that there could be one larger than the one in Winterfell's Godswood and yet compared to this, that one was but a sapling. At Leaf's bidding, Rhaegar had Ōñosmaghare do a complete circle of the lands closest to the Weirwood. Only when she, he, and the black dragon himself were satisfied they were alone for miles around, did he bid Ōñosmaghare land. Arya, Arthur, and Leaf climbed hurriedly from Ōñosmaghare's back while he helped Shiera down. His aunt was now even more nervous than she had been up to that point.
"He's waiting for you, Aunt," Rhaegar whispered softly.
"I…"
"Will be most happy to see him, will you not?"
A nod of her head, and then it was Shiera and Leaf who led the way. Rhaegar barely noticed the cave entrance and it was Arya who first spotted the other Children of the Forest who looked at them eagerly as they neared it. Arthur moved his hand to his sword, but Rhaegar shook his head. If they were in danger from the Children or the man they'd come to see, then they were mayhap lost already.
As they entered the cave it became clear that there wasn't enough room for Dawn to be swung in these narrow passages. Even Blackfyre would find its use here limited and so Rhaegar was not surprised when he caught Arthur checking out his dagger instead. There had to be close to a dozen or more Children of the Forest and though he understood their words not, he could sense the excitement in those words. Why that was, he knew not. Though he wagered he'd soon find out. How long they walked for was hard to tell in the dim light of the passages and the torches that illuminated the way. When they had reached their destination was much easier to tell. Shiera's loud gasp was more than enough for that.
"By the Gods! What have they done to you?" Shiera said loudly and painfully to Rhaegar's ear, the reason for that pain was quickly revealed to him and he felt some of it too.
His kinsman deserved a better fate than this.
At first glance, you'd think Bloodraven was sitting in a tree. The more you looked however, the clearer it became that he was instead part of the tree itself. Its branches cut into him. His arms, legs, and even his face seemed to have been invaded by the white wood of the Weirwood. It took all he had in him to not just unsheathe his sword and cut his granduncle down.
"Your sword would harm me more, my king." Bloodraven said and Rhaegar found no reason to ask how he knew what he'd been thinking "However another is more suited to the task. Leaf."
He'd not even seen the Child leave and now she returned with what looked to be a sword covered by a cloth. A sword that soon had him and Arthur gasping aloud and Arya naming it.
"Dark Sister," Arya said reverently.
"I'll need some of your blood, my king." Bloodraven asked and Rhaegar moved forward without hesitation "Shiera, use the blade and once it's absorbed some of Rhaegar's blood, cut me free."
Shakily, his aunt took the thin blade from Leaf and moved it toward him. Rhaegar held his left palm up and felt the slice as Shiera made the cut. Holding his hand around the blade he felt a tingle as the blood that spilled from his wound was absorbed. When he let go, other than a few stray drops which seemed to disappear before his eyes, the Valyrian steel was unblemished. Leaf then helped Shiera move to the tree that held Bloodraven captive and Rhaegar moved to Arya.
"Is she really going to cut him down?" his little sister asked as Shiera began to do just that.
"Aye. You know who that is?"
"Lord Bloodraven. The White Worm." Arya said and Rhaegar would have mussed her hair only that his hand still bled.
"My granduncle."
He moved when the last cut was made, expecting to have to catch Bloodraven before he fell, only to find that he very much did not. Whether or not the branches sapped him of his strength and it had now returned or there was some magic at work here that Rhaegar understood not, the Bloodraven that now stood in front of them was a far different man than he had been but a moment earlier. No longer old, he stood as fierce and as imposing as he had no doubt been on Redgrass Field all those years ago. As young as his aunt was and just as full of vitality, Rhaegar watched as he took Dark Sister from Shiera's hands and then sheathed it at his hip.
"We have little time, my king," Bloodraven said.
One day later.
Some sights would live with him forever. The flight that he and Ōñosmaghare had taken, the devastation they'd wrought and the danger they had faced, would be one of them. At Bloodraven's behest, he'd flown north from the Weirwood and had found the army that marched towards them. Ōñosmaghare had laid down his flames and dead men had burned to ash while others had simply burned. Yet still, they walked at the same pace. Even covered in flames they walked forward and only stopped when they fell.
Rhaegar had seen them move from each other so the flames would not spread and seen smaller flames be put out by some unseen force. When the spears had come towards them, he'd expected Ōñosmaghare to be angered by them, not frightened. Feeling that his dragon knew far better than he, they'd left the army behind and hurried back to Bloodraven and the others. What they'd found when they got there had forced them into an even truer fight and their escape had cost two Children of the Forest their lives.
As they flew south, Rhaegar knew now who the true enemy was. Conflict in the south mattered little considering what came from the north. It would take almost all of Westeros to beat that army back. The entire realm would need to be united and he understood now what it had to be him and Dany to do so. Through his bond with Ōñosmaghare, he bid the black dragon fly until he could fly no more. Given the cargo they carried and what lengths the army behind them had gone to so as to ensure they either left alone or didn't leave at all, those with him would be much needed in the days to come.
Bloodraven and the Children of the Forest would be much safer on the other side of the Wall. They all would be. Rhaegar knew though that the respite and time he'd bought them were but a temporary thing. He knew too that the fight he'd avoided today, would not be so easy to avoid in the days to come.
King's Landing 299 AC.
Daenerys Targaryen.
She awoke with a true smile on her face. The visions had returned and she'd spent the night in Rhaegar's arms. They'd spoken of their worries and concerns and Rhaegar had told her of the agreement he'd made with the Free Folk. Dany had then told him of Aegon's supposed return and had witnessed his anger rise with each word. There was no doubt in her husband's mind that his brother had died. So even had Dany doubted it still, she'd now no longer do so. As for what to do about her so-called nephew, Rhaegar had left it to her to decide their course of action.
"I am doing as I must, I trust you to do the same, my love."
"You'll return soon?"
"I will. Speak to the babes for me, talk to them where I can not."
"You believe they hear my words?" she asked amusedly.
"I believe they hear us both."
Now fully dressed, she and Missy made their way to break their fasts. Ghost soon joined them and Dany giggled when both the white wolf and the grey one lay down at her feet. Nymeria was just as eager to be spoiled with food from her table as Ghost was it seemed. They were joined by Sansa and her mother, by Aemon, and then by Ned Dayne, much to Sansa's delight. Her Goodsister had told her that she and the young Lord of Starfall were betrothed and her happiness had been written all over her face as she'd done so. Looking at the young man, it was clear that he too was just as happy as Sansa with the match.
Dany spoke a little to both her granduncle and to Lady Catelyn. The older woman was eager to travel back to Winterfell, though she would be stopping off at Riverrun first once her brother had been removed from his position. Usually after eating she'd speak to Sansa and ready herself for the day. Today there was far too much to do and so it was to a hastily arranged Small Council meeting that she and Aemon now hurried to.
They were joined by everyone other than Prince Oberyn. Lord Reed informed her that Varys had made his way to Oberyn's chambers and Dany would need to wait until the prince had finished his meeting with the eunuch. Ser Barristan stood in Arthur's stead. While Ser Richard, Marwyn, and Monford Velaryon quickly arrived to take their seats.
"I've spoken to my husband, he and the Free Folk have come to an agreement." Dany began.
"What agreement, your grace."
"The Free Folk are to be allowed through the Wall, Lord Reed. They are to be settled on the lands of the Gift and are subject to our laws while there. Should they break those laws then they'll suffer the same fate as any other lawbreaker would."
"The North may take some issue with this, your grace."
"My husband is well aware of such, Lord Reed. Yet he believes it is imperative that the Free Folk are moved to this side of the Wall and that they are moved there most quickly."
"They've already started, your grace?" her granduncle asked.
"They have, uncle."
After bidding Lord Velaryon see that some supplies were delivered to both the Watch and the Free Folk, Dany turned to the key matter at hand. Aemon had already spoken to the Small Council about Aegon's supposedly miraculous survival and not one of them had believed it possible. Lord Monford had even been angered by it. House Velaryon had always been Leal to her House and now it seemed to her and Rhaegar even more so.
"My husband has left it to me to deal with events in King's Landing and though he is soon to return, I'd see our attention was focussed upon other matters once he does. So for now we allow this mummery to continue and for all intents and purposes, we make it seem we believe it to be true."
"You're certain of this, your grace?" Richard Lonmouth asked and then hurriedly added in case she thought he was questioning her right to decide their course "That this is the right action to take."
"I am, Ser Richard…."
The knock on the door stopped her and while she wished to look to Prince Oberyn, her eyes instead followed the young man who carried the note to Marwyn. Oberyn took his seat and seemed to have words he wished to share, but the Mage beat him out for now.
"From the Reach, your grace. House Tyrell." Marwyn said handing her the scroll that he'd just been handed a moment earlier.
"Who is there left…." Barristan began.
"Willas," Oberyn said interrupting the Bold while Dany broke the seal.
She read the words quickly and then handed the scroll to Aemon once she was finished. Allowing her granduncle to take the lead while she bid her children not to come to her as they were now doing. They'd felt her worry and anger grow as she read the words and thought her to be in danger. So she let them know she was not and that she'd see them soon.
"Lord Willas has removed the treasure from Highgarden and wishes to pay ransom for his kin. Would that were the only words contained in his message to us. Stannis Baratheon has taken Highgarden and invaded the Reach." her granduncle said.
"How?"
"That's impossible.
"With what forces?"
Aemon quietened down the raised voices and Dany herself listened as he spoke about the Golden Company and how they were essentially now at war once again. She bid him call for Lord Tarly and the other Reach lords and though she wished to climb onto Drogon's back and fly and lay this invading force to rest, she knew she could not. There was still far too much to do here and Varys and his plots could not be allowed to continue now that there was another even graver threat to her and Rhaegar's rule.
"Ser Richard, Lord Reed. I need you to find out all you can and confirm this from whatever sources you can call upon. Lord Velaryon, you will be needed here and so for now your journey to the Wall is postponed. Marwyn find as much about the Golden Company as we can…."
She stopped Aemon in mid-sentence and bid him deal with this while she and Prince Oberyn spoke alone. Rising to her feet, she, Ser Barristan, and Prince Oberyn walked from the Small Council chambers and were soon back at her own. After they entered, she listened while Oberyn spelled out the plan that Varys wished to put into place. It made her reconsider things somewhat. Letting it continue could and would prove who was truly loyal to her and Rhaegar and who only paid lip service to such. Nipping it in the bud allowed her to concentrate on Stannis Baratheon and the threat he now posed.
In the end, she couldn't decide which was the best course of action. So later on that day when Varys, Illyrio, Jon Connington, and Aegon came and called for a Grand Council, she allowed them to do so. When Aegon then asked if he could spend time with her and the dragons, she agreed to it too. Dany was more than eager to see how her children reacted to the pretender in their midst. She rode upon her silver to the Dragonpit. Aegon atop his own horse beside her. Ghost to her surprise walked closer to Aegon than to her and then she began to wonder if Rhaegar was looking through the wolf's red eyes.
Ser Barristan, Ser Jorah, Grey Worm, and more than two dozen men of the Unsullied would see to her protection and Aegon had actually made a grand show of proving he was unarmed. Yet looking at the White Wolf, Dany knew should her so-called nephew prove a threat to her, then it would be Ghost who took him from this world and ushered him into the next.
Her children awaited her at the Dragonpit and they even allowed Aegon to softly stroke them much to her surprise. It made her briefly question whether or not he may not be a mummery at all. Only for a conversation with Aemon and Marwyn to come to mind.
"My children would never accept someone who was a false dragon."
"Yet he may have dragon blood in his veins, your grace," Marwyn said and Dany looked at him angrily only for Aemon's words to calm her ire some.
"You believe him a Dragonseed, Marwyn?" Aemon asked curiously.
"I believe he could be, Aemon. And as well you know, Dragonseeds have claimed dragons too."
"My children are bonded, Marwyn. Their riders are not yet born but they are bonded to them still," she said, her hand touching her belly as she did so.
Watching now as Aegon rubbed his hand over Viserion's snout, she wondered if he'd have accepted him as a rider was she not with child.
"They are truly magnificent, your grace," Aegon said and for a moment his praise of her children made Dany ignore that he'd not called her aunt.
"They are," she said proudly.
"I had hoped to see them when I heard of you. That I would be gifted the sight of them at least, your grace."
She turned from Drogon and looked at Aegon. Dany had ignored it the first time, she could not the second.
"That's the second time you named me a queen and not an aunt, nephew," she said, still holding to her own mummery.
Aegon looked at her and with his eyes, he begged permission to move closer. Looking at Ghost and seeing him laying on the ground and that both he and her children showed no concern for her safety, Dany nodded and allowed him to do so.
"I am not your nephew, your grace." Aegon whispered in her ear "Nor have I any wish to see anyone but you and your husband upon the Iron Throne."
"I.."
"My name is Aegon Blackfyre, your grace. We are kin by blood and yet your House and mine own have long been at odds. I would seek to change that if you would but let me." Aegon whispered.
"How?"
"By exposing those who wished you harm. By your good grace, being given leave to be who I was born to be and for once again our Houses to be as united as they always should have been."
"How can I trust you?"
"Call the Grand Council, your grace. Allow me to speak and prove I am a good man and true. Allow me to regain the honor that my House lost so many years ago. Forgive me for the mistakes made by my kin and know I forgive you for those made by your own."
She moved away from the young man and looked deep into his blue eyes. Dany believed she saw a yearning there, a pleading, and turning from him to first her children and then to Ghost, she nodded her head slightly. When Ghost rose to his feet and moved to lick first her hand and then Aegon's, her nod became a little firmer, and yet she made the warning all the same.
"Should you prove yourself untrue…"
"Fire and Blood, your grace."
"Fire and blood, Aegon."
Walking from the Dragonpit, Dany again wore a true smile on her face. She believed he'd spoken true to her and even had he not, his words had removed any shred of doubt in her mind that he was her nephew. Could he be playing her false? mayhap. Yet to do so would end only in one way and it was clear by Aegon's words that he knew that to be so. Dany felt she was right to believe him. She hoped to be proven right.
Beyond the Wall 299 AC.
Ōñosmaghare.
The feelings he'd had about these lands had been proved true. Once he and his rider had left his rider's kin, his protector, and the girl his rider loved so much behind and flown further north, the truth of this place had been shown to them both.
Ōñosmaghare had felt the corruption as they neared the things that marched south. It was a dark and twisted thing and yet amongst it there were things even more dark and twisted than those they soon saw. He'd relished being given leave to loose his flames and had felt righteous when he'd done so. Then he'd felt the danger from those dark and twisted things and had told his rider so. Fear was a curious thing to feel and one better shared than faced alone. His rider feared as much for him as Ōñosmaghare did for his rider. They were bonded, two who were truly one and it was that fear which bid him fly and leave those dark twisted things away. It was the sharing of that fear that gave him the strength not only to do so but to feel the fear as it then lessened.
It was fear of a different sort that he and his rider felt as they neared where they'd left his rider's kin, his protector, and the girl his rider loved so much. Fear for them and not for Ōñosmaghare or himself. This fear had fuelled first the fires that he'd laid down on more dark and twisted things and then the flight away from them with more passengers upon his back. His rider's kin had been joined by more kin. The old god's servant by many more of them, his rider's protector, the girl his rider loved so much, and his rider himself. It was more than Ōñosmaghare have even borne at one time and yet he bore them easily.
Both he and his rider felt it when the old god's servants they'd left behind had taken the even more dark and twisted things from the world. Their fire was different than his own and yet it had burned just as truly. His rider had bid him to fly fast and true, to fly for longer and Ōñosmaghare shared the urgency his rider felt and so did as he was bid. Eventually, tiredness, hunger, and the added weight upon his back, all of it combined to allow him to fly no more and so he'd landed. Yet there was no scorn in his rider's eyes as he looked deeply into Ōñosmaghare's own. No chiding in his words as he spoke to him. Gratitude, Praise, and Love, that was what his rider shared with him and it allowed Ōñosmaghare to eat the food that was brought to him by his rider's kin and to rest when his rider bid him to.
"You saved us, Ōñosmaghare. We live because of you. You are unhurt?" his rider said and asked, Ōñosmaghare rubbing his head against his rider's chest in response. "Rest and soon we'll leave these lands behind us and be with your brothers once more."
There was much he wished to share with his brothers. His fear would not be welcomed by them, but together they would overcome that fear and they would be as wary of the dark and twisted things as they should. Together with his brothers, he and his rider would bring light to the darkness.
A/N: Thanks to all who've read and reviewed. Up Next: Rhaegar flies to Winterfell and speaks to Bran and Rickon before leaving some guests for his brothers to look after. King's Landing readies for a Grand Council which is interrupted by the arrival of a king eager to spend time with his queen. Bloodraven and Shiera get reacquainted and the man with a thousand eyes and one meets more of his kin. While Olenna finds out the fate of Highgarden and what it means for her own future. Varys and Illyrio make their case unaware that the king they wish to crown has no wish to be one.
For those following my other fics. Dragonverse will be updated this week, with either Brother's Keeper, When the Dragonwolf Danced, or even both joining it.
Missed reviews:
Matt Black: Some people defend Ned with the "He didn't send Jon to the Wall" defense and technically they're right. What they fail to take into account is that he pretty much leaves him with no other choice. Jon was out of WF the moment Ned left, he's the one person who can stop that and either make Cat accept him, or make a different plan so it would never come to that. In the end, he does neither. Most Ned supporters think that any criticism against him is because he didn't immediately make a claim for the Iron Throne for Jon when almost everybody takes no issue with that.
Had he done so, he, Jon, and everyone most likely dies and so no one blames him for not doing so. Allowing his wife to treat Jon contemptuously makes no sense. "Oh, but it sells the lie" yes it does and it harms Jon in the process. Would it not make just as much sense for the most honorable man in Westeros to make his wife treat his so-called son as well his son. Or for him to name him a Stark, I mean he's the most honorable man in Westeros remember. Surely him treating his bastard son as if he was trueborn (which some already claim he does by raising him in WF) would not have people questioning Jon being named as a Stark and given a keep? Instead, we get BS excuses as to why he can't do so while at the same time we keep getting told he's the "Most Honourable man in Westeros" and the two don't tally.
So for me, I take issue with him not making plans for Jon, then later with him betrothing Sansa to Joffrey while allowing Jon to go to the Wall. I mean Ned is not a Moron, he understands that he's allowing his nephew to throw away any chance at children while at the same time ensuring that Sansa's, hence his own grandchildren will sit on the Iron Throne that he knows his nephew has at least a claim too. That's usurpation no matter how you cut it. Hell people name Doran Martell as duplicitous for doing the same thing in most fics and Doran never even did what Ned did.
Ned needs to be looked at with the same eye we look at anyone else and not through rose-tinted glasses. People ascribe intent to him when there is literally nothing there that proves that to be true. For all we know he could have wished to see Jon suffer for what his father or grandfather did, we don't know, we assume not, because he's the "Most honorable man in Westeros "and yet his actions and that phrase are at times very much at odds.
You're spot on with Varys/Illyrio, but they've been working toward this goal for years and it's very hard to just give it up. You could I suppose argue the same about Dany or Viserys seeking the iron Throne, if they looked simply at the odds, they'd have given up years ago.
Chapter 23 Reviews.
Daryldixon: The other alternatives are the Wall or death. You can't allow someone who some may say has a claim and could rally around to remain free. Even if that claim is bogus. So being sent to the Citadel is the merciful option.
Iacopo: Sono così felice che ti sia piaciuto.
Xaax: I think there are some theories about that but I also think it's more a fanon thing than an actual canon thing. It sort of works in fics, but GRRM never even hinted at it other than Elia being somewhat weak. You'd be right though, if that were the plot point it would be a great way of revealing it. But I'm going with him being a true Blackfyre and as you see, he's well aware of his truth. The next chapter will have his pov.
Redlox: I think with other people leading fAegon then you would face maybe a different set of reactions but Varys and Illyrio immediately raise some hackles in both Dany/Oberyn. I actually think Oberyn would handle it worse than Doran as I still think Doran wasn't power as much as justice, while Oberyn only wants the latter.
Celexys: We will see more of the Free Folk soon enough. I'm glad you liked the punishment and Dany dishing it out, she was able to hold her temper more and as punishments go, they could be much worse.
Keb: No Tyrion, no. Oberyn would poke the holes in the story quick enough I think. The fact that join/Dany have given him his vengeance too really helps as he's not angered at them which allows him to think rotationally. Had this been said earlier, before he'd been given Tywin, then he may be so angry at Jon/Dany that he'd not think clearly.
Rhatch: He is a true fake, but a real Blackfyre.
Orthankg: Thanks so much.
Syrius: Really glad you think so, I've been waiting to do this particular fAegon story for a while.
Dunk: I think it sort of explains the main reason why Varys/Illyrio wait so long in canon too. They basically want to arrive when just the fact of them arriving and the hope it brings is enough to stop any questioning really. I mean I've said it before, but the Golden Company allied to the Reach and with Dorne is a winning combination for me. Tywin is a badass but he can't beat those odds and so while it makes sense to wait until Robert/Jon A and even Ned are taken out of the equation, to wait still makes none. Olenna would have jumped at the marriage offer and so once the WOTFK is inevitable, Varys should have gone to her, then to Dorne and it's game over. That he didn't sort of proves the truth.
Here, Oberyn maybe if he was still pissed and hadn't been given his revenge or felt Jon to be a stain on Elia, he may be more likely to listen to Varys, but without that, he's always going to distrust and so poke holes. Dany finding out that Illyrio is involved, well that's just game over given their own history.
But I always wanted to do something a little different with the Faegon storyline and having him know the truth of himself was a big part of it for me. We'll see his pov next and find out more.
No, the clearing out of HG was to be a surprise, Stannis arrived there and found it was gone and then explains it all here in this chapter. I think as headstrong and stubborn as Stannis is, he's a practical man too, but the moment that Mel is put in the picture, all of that goes out the window. Whether it's lust for her, his own sense of injustice and not getting what he deserved being played upon by her, or simply the whispered words in his ears, she literally corrupts him and turns him into one of the worst men in Westeros by the end. Assuming that it will be he who orders Shireen to be burned in the books that is.
Allysane: She'll be wed better than that and a Handmaiden is as far from a servant as you can possibly get. To be one of the ladies that serve the queen, that's huge. Both Joanna Lannister and Princess Elia's mother were Rhaella's handmaidens. Noble ladies serve as handmaidens to those of a higher rank all the time and even someone like Margaery Tyrell would probably serve as a queen's handmaiden in a different canon.
Xan Merrick: Thanks, my friend.
Tfranco: I'd not thought of a Dany/Oberyn fic before it could work. With fAegon he too is working against Varys/Illyrio, they really have no idea how badly they've messed up. Aemon pretty much made it clear ages ago that Aegon couldn't be real when he had Jon open the vault on DS. So even though Dany is not thinking of that, Aemon is. Last Wolf should be updated in a couple of weeks, we're working on the chapter now.
Tim: Yeah I got my Jons mixed up, Smalljon doing things that the Greatjon was supposed to lol. I'd honestly not thought of Balerion, but I may steal that for another fic. I'll credit you if I do.
Lazymanjones: So glad you thought so.
Biohazard: Really glad you liked it.