Words about the enemy
Despite the earlier beating from Morwen and scolding for lying about his name so long ago, Aragorn had not blamed her that much. Besides, with her oldest grandson so seriously injured that the King of Rohan could not lead his Kingdom in war against Mordor, a lot of pressure was put on the other adults in the House of Eorl to help him in whatever duties they could do in his stead.
"You have done well in the medicinal treatment of his wound before I came. But yes, his recovery will take many weeks, if not the whole spring at the minimum, because of where his injury is placed."
Aegon made a sour face at that information, acting very much like his actual age. Not that he had any plans to try and speed up the recovery of his stepfather, he would never be forgiven for such a dangerous stunt by either his mother or the healers that were his teachers in the occupation, but rather over the unfortunate timing of it all.
"I want to let that Wizard have a taste of how it feels to be helpless…!"
Rare were the times when he showed hints of his paternal blood, but in this moment Aegon would have reminded a lot about his ancestor Maekar Targaryen around the same age with the angry wrinkle between his eyebrows and unhappy face.
"From what Boromir has told us about your maternal family, I am sure that Saruman will come to regret attacking the King of Rohan very soon."
Of course, Boromir had not told the Fellowship much details about their magic and such, but enough hints to reveal that House Martell would not let Saruman escape some form of punishment.
~X~X~X~X~X~X
Now when her husband had been given medicinal treatment again and Aragorn could tell that he would survive though recovery would take long time, Elia took the chance to acting as a proper hostess to her new guests, with the household maids hurrying to serving a meal, Elia took the chance to at least explain some things that they were bound to notice during their stay here in Rohan. Just to be on the safe side, she went with the official story that her family had agreed to tell Boromir and Faramir in the past, that House Martell was the descendants of a very loyal maidservant to Khamúl and his family back when he was still the mortal Farao of Kemet in present-day Rhún.
Once the meal was finished, Elia summoned the whole council for a talk about what to do next. The news of Théodred being out of danger was welcomed, even if they all felt less joyful over the fact that his recovery was going to likely last for several months.
"However, there is something important we must do, despite the threat from Mordor growing bigger everyday. We must deal with that traitor Saruman first, before he tries to literally stab Rohan in the back and weaken us even more against the possible attacks from Mordor."
The old warlords of Rohan nodded, understanding what she meant. If Rohan was attacked by Saruman from Isengard, then they would be unable to aid Gondor in later battles.
"Madre," Aegon spoke up from the other end of the Golden Hall, his eyes glowing in a manner that revealed that his foresight was acting up again, "We must defend Helm's Deep. When I held that strange helmet from the Uruk-hai now, I saw that Saruman planned an attack on it within the coming days."
Théoden was not alone in realizing what this very likely danger meant. Helm's Deep was the strongest fortress in Rohan, thanks to being a remainer from the time Rohan once had been part of Gondor. If the Hornburg fell, then Edoras would likely be the next target as the capital of Rohan.
"Father-in-law, I want you to lead that defense if our riders can get to the Hornburg in time. Éomer, please help your uncle in this battle, but also send out riders with orders to check that all the nearby villages have been evacuated. Éowyn and Laywyn, I entrust the defense of Edoras, the Golden Hall and the rest of us in the House of Eorl to you two alongside the shieldmaidens."
Elia did not need to mention that soldiers from Dorne would come and add to the numbers of defenders at both Edoras and the Hornburg. This was what Doran had been waiting for since eight years back, even now as the main advisor to Arianne as the current ruling Princess of Dorne.
As he naturally woke up from the sounds of activity outside the bedchamber, Théodred was informed by his twin children over what had happened since yesterday night.
"Your madre is clever as always. The shieldmaidens will have a good set of leaders in my fathu and cousin."
"I think any orcs that dare to come close to Edoras, will get shot by great-grandma Morwen as a warning of what to come," Andréth said when recalling how the former Queen Mother was still fearsome with her old trusty hunting bow even in her high age. Her twin brother looked up from the list of information that Elia had entrusted them to tell their father.
"Yes, great-grandma is actually a little scary at times…I think she would try to beat up that wizard in Isengard if she could do that."
"Or ealder-fathu Laywyn."
Théodred would have laughed at how that comment reminded him of some very truthful tales of a younger Morwen during her time as Queen consort and his own childhood memories of Laywyn, had it not been for his stomach injury at the moment.
~X~X~X~X~X~X
Acting as a messenger to Sunspear, Rhaenys told Arianne and the rest of her maternal family of what to come. The twenty-year-old ruling Princess of Dorne still needed to recover after the birth of Ramses, but with Daemon supporting his wife out to the balcony, Arianne could face the gathered troops of Dorne here in Sunspear:
"People of Dorne! It is time to fulfill our oath to help Rohan in war, to defeat the Dark Lord who will try to attack our world as well, shall Middle-earth fall! The current King of Rohan saved my tía Elia and her older children, Rhaenys and Aegon, from a likely death caused by the actions of Rhaegar Targaryen! Shall we just stand back, passively witness how Sauron, this Dark Lord from Mordor, may try to offer the two remaining Targaryen to have the Iron Throne back, only for them to become puppets under his control?!"
A choir of responses was heard. Dorne had never forgotten how Elia had been dishonored twice by Rhaegar, even if the existence of Visenya Waters and the true drama at the Tower of Joy had never been revealed to the public. By mentioning the exiled Viserys and Daenerys Targayren possibly becoming the puppets of Sauron if he found a use for them, Arianne could unite her people to remember that House Targaryen had a very mixed history here in Westeros.
"TO THE SPEARS!"
Smiling over that Dorne would indeed help their allies, Arianne turned towards her family to divide their tasks.
"Tío Oberyn, I want you to lead the soldiers to the Hornburg, and make sure to have both the ballistics and the wildfire ready for use. If those can be used to turn the battle into favor for us and Rohan, then our enemies will have a taste of what is to come."
Knowing the nature of her Sand cousins after growing up together, Arianne requested the three oldest to help defend Edoras with those Dornish soldiers who had never seen battle before or had been children during Robert's Rebellion, just like themselves.
"Quentyn. My dear hermanito, do you understand why I am not letting you go out alongside Oberyn to the Hornburg this as your first battle?" Arianne asked, and her oldest brother looked her into the eyes, not doubting a moment about the possible reasons as he had heard them all his life.
"I am not yet sixteen years old, with two months left to my name day despite being a handful of months younger than Rhaenys and roughly ten months older than Aegon. You want me alive, not merely for the sake of our parents, but because I am still your heir following Ramses and your oldest sibling."
Smiling in pride, Arianne actually kissed Quentyn on the forehead despite that he had almost grown past her, with Arianne taking after Mellario with the same height of standing at five foot two.
But Rhaenys had another goal in mind now when she was here in Sunspear. Walking down to the Sandship, she followed the tunnels and trapdoors down to the burial chamber of her original body alongside that of Morgan Martell. It almost seemed like he had waited on her, from how he smiled in joy at seeing her come in, carrying a touch so she could see in the underground darkness.
"Mother, I welcome you," the spirit of her past-life son greeted her, kneeling on the ground like he had done when she was Mara, the lost princess of Kemet.
"My dearest son," Rhaenys said in the voice of Mara, her eyes turning amber, "I have found out though the water mirrors about something that I do not like. A spiritual threat against poor Rhaella Targaryen, the paternal grandmother of this current life of mine, who is about to be reborn in a new body. I want to use the souls of her selfish parents, Jaehaerys and Shaera Targaryen, as well that of her unwanted brother-husband Aerys, to become the padlock for closing the portal at Dragonstone, before Sauron can threaten Westeros from that island."
Morgan Martell smiled in a manner that would have reminded a lot about Khamúl back as a mortal.
"A much fitting punishment for the parents who failed to see that their own children were not a mirror image of themselves and their unnatural feelings for a opposite-sex sibling born to the same mother and father. And perfect for a cruel husband who should have died years earlier and leaving her free from the fate that she sadly ended up having."
Taking hold of the spear still laying on top of the granite sarcophagus where her original body laid as a mummy for the afterlife akin to the beliefs of long-gone Kemet, Rhaenys felt her magic react stronger and stronger for each moment, like a heartbeat.
"Come, my son, let us give those fools a taste of real magic not depending on dragons."
It was well past time to let some members of House Targaryen learn just how insignificant they were, as the last descendants of Tar-Minyatur, her cursed half-brother from her life as Mara.
