" The Wall of Illusions?! I thought that was a joke? " Rhaenys blabbs, skirts swishing as she gestures, eyes focused on the woman sitting on a small bench.
" It is a a construction that Esena ordered to be made, it is a high wall, not large but high, even higher than the highest tower of the Aegon fort. Also, it is a construction that can be moved. This thing, it is actually a tower that once was supposed to be part of a castle in the land near Esena's house. Since no one is the owner of it, she has been able to take the pieces and make something like this. It is made for dangerous climbing.
This girl, she's been planning it for months, long before she challenged Lysei's crown!" Vysenya nearly growls, pounding her fist on the table with refreshments.
" There is a chance I might not win this." The brown-haired queen's voice breaks the silence as the Targaryen sisters look at her, for once silent.
Lysei sighs, her shoulders drooping forward. Then a large hand is posed upon her right shoulder and to her surprise Aegon stands beside her.
" It will be okay." The king says, voice soothing. Then he sits next to her and kisses her forehead. " You will do fine, my love." The third queen's breath stutters in her throat and before she knows it, tears are running down her face.
Aegon merely shushes her, brings her closer ot him, her head in the juncture of his neck, jaw resting on her brown hair. Vysenya and Rhaenys look at each other and then approach, sitting before their brother.
Lysei opens her eyes and smiles at them, then kisses both Vysenya and Rhaenys on their cheek. Aegon smiles, then brings both his sisters forward. Rhaenys rests her head against Lysei and Vysenya rests her head against Aegon's.
" The three of you have brought more happiness to me then you will ever know. I love you Aegon, I love you Rhaenys, I love you Vysenya with all my heart and my soul. I love the three of you , and I will forever." Lysei murmurs in the protective bubble they have made.
Lysei utters the last words in Old Valyrian, and by the breath her three companions share, she knows they have understood her.
This is her. Consort and married to Aegon the Conqueror, the king of the seven kingdoms, and third wife. She has perhaps never made vows to Vysenya and Rhaenys, yet where she has first started to love Aegon, her feelings have turned to Vysenya and Rhaenys as well and she loves them now, loves them as they were her wives as well. She's never seen them as sisters and she realises she loves them the same as she loves Aegon. The love that can only exist in a couple, between lovers, passionate deep love.
The three of them are part of her now. They have equal parts of her heart. She's served them on a platter to them, and it is theirs to do with as they please. They are part of her, she loves them with all her soul and essence and she will not love like this again, not ever.
And this is her truth.
Targaryen Queen. Consort. Friend. Wife. Lover. And perhaps, they will love her equally one day.
A hush falls over the crowd, a path lined between the fields where they have been brought to, as both contendors focus on the path ahead of them.
It's not far to the construction in front of thm, but it is high, and the road is muddy.
A trumpet resounds and off they are. Adrenaline kicking her forward, Lysei shoots away like an arrow from a bow. She sees Esena following the corner of her eyes, but all she thinks about is to keep her breathing regular.
She turns, mud and grass flying onto her pants and boots, but she doesn't care. Soon enough she approaches the structure, and then grabs hold of the first pieces she sees sticking out.
Esena is quicker than her, but she knows very well the danger that lies ahead. She hears the stone and wood croacking and sees Esena slip beneath her, falling back, just about holding on to the wall.
It is indeed a wall of illusions. The higher they go, the more dangerous it becomes to hold onto the construction, every step to take calculated to be safe most off all.
The crowd is silent now, their sounds below them as it grows colder.
She doesn't know how long, but Lysei cannot hear Esena anymore, her cursing nor her breathing. As fast as she can with being safe, she climbs higher and higher, tearing her hands and legs on pieces of stone and wood.
The sun shines hard on her back and then she sees it, a small balcony. It's been explained to them that the first to reach the balcony will win the first challenge. When the piece of cloth tied to the top is taken by one of the two, it gives them a win for the second challenge.
Depending on which are won, they will have a winner.
With a last surge of hope, the brown-haired queen pulls herself up, stands up on the small balcony, aware of the judges and no one else then Orys and Argella on the small open space.
Lysei huffs and then reaches the pieces of cloth, inlaid with precious stones and then tears it off the pole it is tied to. The moment she tears it off, the pole falls down and a fire lights itself.
She can hear the judges and Orys and Argella cheer. " We have a winner! Queen Lysei has won the two final challenges. First reaching of the top , which earns her the first victory as well as the second by first reaching the cloth; 2 points to 0. Queen Lysei has won the final challenge! With this Queen Lysei has earned 4 points and Esena only two. Queen Lysei wins the complete challenge! She's the victor ! She's the winner! "
Lysei is surprised to see a glitter in the corner of her eye and then Rhaenys appears. " You won, you are the victor!" Rhaenys grins and then pulls her in her arms. She takes hold of Lysei's cheeks and then presses a kiss to her lips. Lysei's eyes widen and then soften, pressing a small kiss back to Rhaenys's mouth.
The two queens grin and laugh at each other. They turn when, about two to three minutes later, Esena's head appears and she struggles to bring herself onto the balcony.
She heaves, and then looks up, clearly not impressed. -" How is it possible that you won? How!"
" Show respect to your queen, girl. You issued a challenge and you lost, you own the respect due to royalty. My brother might have overseen your blatant disrespect, but I will not." Rhaenys hisses, eyes dark.
Esena stomps her foot and then opens her mouth to speak but then they hear a strange sound of something breaking. A small shriek escapes Esena as the stone and wood beneath her feet start to creak and burst apart and then she falls backward.
" Esena!" Lysei jumps forward, nearly falling over the breaking stone, grasping the sliding girl by the hem of her shirt.
" Hold on !" Lysei's grip tightens as the girl below yelps and shrieks. Yet, their combined weight is not enough and soon enough the familiar creaking resounds.
" Lysei!" Rhaenys and Argella shout and then the floor gives way and she is sent tumbling down.
Esena, falling below her shrieks and screams as Lysei sta rt to vault and turn overhead, the world tolling around her. In the corner of her eyes she sees Esena able to grasp into a piece of wood but Lysei is to far away and she falls and falls deeper to the world below.
Her heart stutters and panic makes itself master of her. She pushes it down as best as she can and tries to think.
A large pained cry resounds and barely can she look or a large shape appear below her, wings beating to catch up to her. Vezerax, sensing she's in danger, has come. He is now level with her, eyes looking at her, still shrieking the worried sounds.
Lysei looks at him and then he approaches her slightly, neck thrust out, until his wings beat over her. He approaches her again and then with a quick veer of his body to the right, his neck comes in holding distance and Lysei grasps her arms onto his neck. The impact with her dragon has her in pain, and her lungs seem to creak in her chest. As she holds onto his neck, his wings start to beat to fly upwards. The descent is slowed slightly and it gives Lysei enough time to grasp further onto his neck and then onto his wings. Before she knows it, she sits on his back ,hands grasping onto the spikes on his neck.
The worried sounds of Vezerax turn to large roars of victory as he beats his wings, still in the air.
Then she hears another yelp, and sees Esena hanging barely on. The fins on Vezerax's back move slightly as he looks ahead.
" She needs our help." Lysei says and then the dragon starts to fly forward.
Just as Esena is starting to lose hold, a large foot with claws grasp the girl loosely. For a moment Vezerax stays still and then, charge in his backfoot, starts to fall forward, taking speed and flying downwards, the word below them coming closer quickly.
Lysei, holding onto his back , laughs while Esena shrieks ands whimpers. The dragon roa rs, again, fins moving in the wind, and Lysei, hair flying every which way can see over Vezerax's head, the crowd coming closer. Right before they land, Vezerax pulls up and razes over the crowd, throwing Esena up and into a pile of hay in the field below them.
The dragon roars again and then beats his wings, tail swishing as he takes up height.
" I'm happy to see you too. " She says and then pats the dragon on his back.
Finally, Vezerax lands with a thump and starts walking forward, the crowd hushed as the black dragon approaches. She sees that by now everyone has descended from the construction.
The crowd cheers as she is proclaimed the winner and then Esena approaches. The court turns to her but to her surprise Esena smiles.
" I now know that you are a good and righteous queen. Therefore I would like to ask forgiveness for having challenged you. You are the right queen and I proclaim you my rightful queen." She sits on her knees and bows.
" My rightful queen; Queen Lysei Aegys the first. That her reign and that of the Targaryen's can be a long one. I proclaim my loyalty to queen Lysei and house Targaryen. That no one may challenge their reign!"
The crowd and the court cheer and Esena bows again and nods to teh royals. They might not become friends, but at leasth their enemity is gone so they may start anew.
Then Aegon stands. " Today I proclaim that the reign of a queen or king may never again be challenged by a duel or challenge chosen by a noble or any person. This will be decreed by law starting today!" The cheers and laughter is deafening as the three Targaryen's approach.
" Your Highness." Orys holds out his hand and then points to the construction ahead of them. Lysei grins and Vezerax roars again, head pulled up. His shriek is answered by other dragons, as the large green shape of Vhagar arrives, flies around the field and then the she-dragon drops down next to Vezerax. Vysenya smirks as she walks forward, stepping onto her dragon, Rhaenys and Aegon following in their wake.
Soon enough the four dragons are in the sky, flying around the large construction.
" The honour is yours Lysei." Vysenya smiles.
Vezerax bats his wings lazily until he is right in front of the Wall of Illusions. Lysei rights her head, feels the immensely breathing body below her, the beating of the wings as the black dragon slightly drops down.
" Dracarys!" The mouth of the dragon opens, fins moving in the wind and then a sea of fire spitting from Vezerax's mouth sets the structure aflame.
Soon enough Balerion's flames burn the top of the tower and Vhagar flies right, spitting fire in a circle around her. Meraxes comes closer, roars and then spits fire as well. With the four dragons beating their wings with their riders on their back, a sea of fire with different colours reduces the stone and wood to ashes .
A laugh escapes Rhaenys, as she whoops, her hand waving in the air on Meraxes's back.
Aegon and Vysenya join in her laughter and then Lysei woops as well, her laughter responded by the roaring dragon below her.