113 A.L. Lys
Moro Mopatis
The wars between the Triarchy and the Iron Throne of Westeros were at an end. The wars which Moro had always thought had been a grievous waste brought on by the greed of the Senate and the Admirals had cost Moro and the people of the Daughters their freedom and their pride. Moro had never truly cared for power, he had been elected as head of the Senate simply by chance, he had been clear in his goals from the beginning, the Triarchy had been tearing itself apart since the loss of the Stepstones and Moro had intended to stop that and reunite the Daughters. But the Senate and the Admirals had been determined to win the Stepstones back and perhaps even gain some of Westeros. They had not stopped to consider what the full force of the Iron Throne could bring on them, and for the past three years they had finally learnt what it meant to anger the dragon. They had been humiliated on the seas by the Targaryen fleets, and had lost their best men during those battles, then King Aemon the Unifier had descended on them atop his beast, and had laid waste to Myr and Tyrosh, those two cities had put up a stiff resistance and still they had fallen. Pentos and Bravos had abandoned them once Myr had fallen, and Moro had pleaded with the Senate to end the war and to seek terms with the King, but they had refused and so when the Targaryen forces and their dragons had been sighted Moro had said a quick prayer to the old gods of the Valyrian pantheon and commanded his men to their deaths. Lys had fallen some three weeks ago and Moro had watched as those he had called friends and allies were killed or turned on one another.
As for the Targaryen King, Moro had only the greatest respect. King Aemon Targaryen, first of his name and King of Westeros and now the Daughters, rode the mighty dragon Vhagar, and as far as Moro was concerned was the true heir to Aegon the Dragon. From what he had seen of the king, he commanded great respect from all of his lords and commanders and exuded confidence, exactly the time of man fit for riding the greatest dragon and god the world had ever seen since the Dread had died. As for the King's other family members, Moro had little interaction with them, apart from that viper Prince Daemon. The man was cunning and smart, and was also a great warrior, he too would make a great ruler of the Stepstones, idly suited to ruling a land filled with pirates and cutthroats. As to the King's own daughter and heir Princess Rhaenys, he viewed her as her father's daughter and a true example of the conqueror's heritage, and would also make a great ruler when her time came. The rest of the King's family, as far as Moro was concerned were not all that important or great and were simply examples of different aspects of the Dragon's lineage.
He saw once again the greatness that was King Aemon the Unifier as he was brought before the king who was sat on a throne carved of bones and battles, the same throne where Moro had sat for many a year. The king was surrounded by his lords and commanders who were all murmuring something or the other as Moro was dragged before the foot of the throne, they all stopped when the King raised his hand and spoke. "Senator Moro Mopatis. It has been long since we took your city and ended the reign of tyranny that the Daughters had become. Myr, Tyrosh and now Lys have all fallen to the throne and are now part of the realm that I rule. Lord Berros Celtigar has been named as Lord Paramount of these lands and he shall appoint lords for Myr and Tyrosh. I have brought you here to have you answer for your crimes. You and the senate broke the treaty that was signed to bring an end to the taxes and foreign influence of the Stepstones. Your fellow councilmen have been executed or have become dragon fodder. Now I will give you a chance to justify what you did."
Moro straightened then, if he was to speak to a king he would do it standing straight and proud. "Thank you Your Grace. Though I am sure my fellow senators gave you their reasons for why the treaty was broken, some might have said it was me to wanted it broken given my role as the leader of the Daughters. However, this is not true. I was strongly against breaking the peace, for I knew what it would bring. And I have been proven correct, fire and brimstone that was what has been brought to the Daughters and her people. I take no pleasure in being right about that. But I know that we are a warrior people and though we entertain notions of equal rights, we were a flawed people who acted on a response that was many years old and out of date."
There was some murmuring and then a voice said. "He coats his lies with sweetness and sugar Your Grace. The man lead the Daughters throughout all of this, if he was so against war with us, why did he not propose a peace?"
"Thank you Lord Borros for that." The king said in a quiet manner, he turned to Moro and asked. "You heard the question Mopatis. If you were truly against this war, then surely you would have sought a way to end it before more destruction was wrought. And yet you did not, and now three years have passed and a great coalition has been ruined."
Moro looked at the king then and said. "A man has his pride. Surely you understand that Your Grace. I was the leader of the daughters, and as such I needed to support the measure if I were to have any chance of leading them to the light should we have triumphed. And besides, I did truly wish to test myself against you. It is a shame that I came out lacking, for I do believe that I could have given you a fair enough fight."
The king laughed at that and said. "A good response, and the response of a leader. Very well Mopatis, I accept your explanation. Still what am I to do with you? I cannot let you leave here a free man, for there are those who would use you as a rallying point to ignite rebellions against Lord Celtigar, and we have just managed to end the last bout of fighting. My men are tired and weary and wish to go home. I cannot let you remain a prisoner, for then there is the risk that some idiot will take it into his head to have you killed, and start another war that way. I could simply kill you, but then where would the fun be in that?"
Moro was silent for a moment and then he said. "I would rather die fighting than be kept alive as a slave or prisoner. And to be set free would be an embarrassment to me and my family. The way I see it Your Grace has only one option, to let me die."
"What would you suggest then Moro? Trial by combat with a knight of my choosing or with myself?" The king asked.
Moro stood up straight and said in as loud a voice as possible. "If I am to die, let me die by the hands of the most ancient and magnificent of creatures. Let me fight your dragon Vhagar Your Grace. If the Triarchy must die with me, let her die in the most glorious manner possible facing a god of Valyria."
There was some murmuring and then the king asked. "You wish to fight Vhagar? Are you sure Moro?" Moro nodded his head and the king said. "Very well then. Let us not tarry, take him to the foot of the Stone God. We shall have this done with now."
And so Moro was dragged down to where the dragons were kept, and as one they all looked up at him and snarled, but the one that Moro and everyone else was most interested in was the big green dragon that was staring straight at the king. The king said a few words and the dragon's chains were taken off, and soon enough Moro was staring a god in the face. His chains were taken off and a sword was placed in his hand. He said a quick prayer before the final battle of his life began. Before he died, he saw the flames and he laughed.