I don't own A Song of Fire and Ice.
Chapter 1
Oberyn Martell walks in a fast-paced way through the halls with his spear in hand. Oberyn's appearance was that of a lined face with thin eyebrows, black "viper" eyes, and a sharp nose. His hair was lustrous and black with only a few silver streaks which receded from his brow into a widow's peak. All the servants and guards stir clear out of the vipers' rage.
He banged open the door where his mother Dowager Princess Dariya Nymeros Martell who is around sixty-eight years of age. The Dowager Princess is grieving for her daughter Princess Elia and her two grandchildren, Rhaenys and Aegon.
Now in days, she will be wearing nothing but black, and her hair will be covered to show her grievances.
On the other side of the chair is his older sister and the first-born daughter of Dowager Princess and her consort. The beauty of her black and luscious hair is long flowing like the river down to her butt. Her face is elegant and sharp which makes her a very attractive woman. Her body is still healthy since she trained in swordsmanship and archery. She is quite a tall woman around her time.
Like Martell's members, the Dornish looks of her skin are considered beautiful.
Aliandra Martell had returned. She was once widowed by her lord husband Daemon Jordayne who died the same year as Doran Martell.
It was an odd coincidence when her lord husband died the same year as Doran Martell.
In Doran's last will and command, he declared Aliandra as regent as long as she didn't marry until his only daughter and heir, Arianne was of age to rule by herself.
Aliandra quickly came with the sad news that her lord husband had died as well. It didn't make sense. How could Doran know that her husband was already dead and a widow when she was summoned back home?
His muses were cut off when he saw their niece Arianne looking glum and wearing black over the news. No doubt they told her over the news about what happened during the rebellion.
"What is it, Oberyn Martell?" His mother quietly questioned her second son. "I don't recall raising you to be this rude."
Oberyn seethed, "Mother, I came here to ask you, what is it to be done? This war had caused the death of our sister. Your daughter's death at the hands of the Lannister's dogs. Jon Arryn is coming here to bring their bones to us."
"Isn't that good news?" Aliandra questioned her brother.
"You know damn well this is an insult to us! Our sister was crown princess consort to Rhaegar Targaryen. She and her children had the right to be buried in Kingslandings as royalties." Oberyn argued that. It's not that he didn't want his sister to be buried with the Martell graves in Dorne. He felt it was an insult to deny her rank as crown princess to be buried with the other royal Targaryen like Myriah Martell had the honor of it.
Oberyn turned to his mother, "Give me a word and I shall make sure Jon Arryn will never live the next day! He came here under the pretense of peace when we all know that Robert Baratheon had rejoiced at Elia's death and her children wrapped in Lannister's red cloaks!" Angry tears are shown on his face.
Aliandra stood and ordered, "You will not lay a hand on Jon Arryn's life. Doing so will bring endless war on Dorne. A war we cannot allow to happen."
The Dowager princess nodded, "Listen to your sister, Oberyn. This will bring more harm to our house and Dorne will suffer from our mistakes."
"Well, maybe you didn't love Elia as you like to believe Aliandra!" Oberyn angrily retorted.
SLAP!
Quick as a viper his mother Dowager Princess Dariya raised her hand to hit the foolishness of her son. She will not allow any estrangement over her two surviving. They must depend on each other more now that Doran and Elia are gone.
"You foolhardy of a boy!" Dariya cries. "You think this was easy for you. For me? For Arianne? For your sister?! Aliandra… heart was broken into pieces. Not because of shame or lack of love for Elia. But because she knew that she did not wish to let anyone see her broken!"
Dariya dropped her hand. She looked at her son and then her daughter. "Aliandra knew she could not afford to shed any tears. She cannot afford to show that they've broken her. Because she knew her enemies would grow their egos that they'd won! It takes an act of great courage to endure. That is what Dorne is. This was taught since we were born into the House of Martell. We endure. No matter what shame they had given us. No matter how much we cry over insults. We cannot show them that they won!"
She gently caresses her son's cheek. "It hurts, doesn't it? Tell me, Elia did not feel this way when she was shipped out to marry?"
Oberyn wept and let out a great cry over Elia's death. His mother kneeled and held her son. Arianne jogged up to them and hugged them.
Aliandra kneeled and spoke, "I know how difficult this is. Elia was the sweetest and strongest woman I had ever known. She endures everything and takes it like a true Martell princess. Justice is delayed, yes. But not forgotten. Not what they have done to her. We need to safeguard her reputation."
Oberyn sniffed and heaved as he looked back at his older sister. "What safeguard?"
"Rhaegar had done more insult and damage to not only Elia. But he did far worse to us as well."
There was a knock on the door.
"Come in!" Aliandra ordered.
Areo Hotah, the captain of the guards of Sunspear entered and bowed. Trained as a bearded priest of Norvos, he was an exceptional warrior and had served Doran Martell, before his untimely death. He was now sworn to Aliandra as her sworn shield, then he made a vow to protect Princess Arianne's well-being.
"Have you got him?" Aliandra questions him.
"Yes, princess."
Aero and his three other men carried a big lumpy bag. There were noises and movements, but nobody could understand them.
Aliandra stood and came forward to her prize. "Open it."
The three men opened the sack and out came a living person landed hard on the ground.
THUMP!
A wizened old man, wearing the robes of the faith, who looked very tired and weathered, and was trembling in fear.
"You are Septon Maynard?" Aliandra questioned him. "And you better answer me correctly or else I will let my temper get the best of me." Aero took his big axe and gently glazed it with his fingertips. He looked back at the old man with dark eyes ready to chomp him to pieces.
Septon Maynard shivered in fear and answered, "Yes, princess. I am."
Aliandra looked at the leader of the three men. She waved him forward as he brought the roll of parchment.
She slowly unrolled it. She read the parchment as if it looked normal until her eyes slowly widened to the exact words.
"Is this the only parchment? No others I should know."
"No princess. The gods seemed to favor us that this is the only copy and no others. It seemed that they didn't create any other copies yet."
"What is going on here?" Oberyn stood as he wanted to know what this was about.
"The final insult to our beloved princess." She gave the parchment to her mother. Dariya read it and gasped. The dowager princess looked as if new tears were forming.
"Is this true?"
"Yes," Aliandra glared at the Septon. "And this is the Septon who not only annulled the marriage of Rhaegar Targaryen and Elia Martell marriage that declared her children bastards!"
Dariya shrilled in agony over this insult to her beloved daughter. Arianne went to her grandmother's side as she was scared over this event.
Why?!
What madness did that prince possess to disregard her daughter from this marriage?
"And!" Aliandra showed everyone a new marriage being written. "He married Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark as she was carrying his child in her womb. Didn't you?!"
Dariya screamed louder and landed on all fours on the ground. She cried in bitter tears. Her daughter did not deserve this insult!
Arianne cries as she knows what it means.
Her aunt was divorced, and her cousins are called Bastards. Worse, that silver prince married that harlot!
That northern wench!
Oberyn dropped his spear in shock.
"He wouldn't. He dares not do this to her."
"Another case against Rhaegar…"
Wait! There is more.
"His written confession to you." Aliandra made a pretend shocking surprise. "His sins as recorded by you. Is that he had committed three murders as well borderline of kin slaying."
Her eyes glowed in rage.
"Rhaegar sent three Faceless men after members of Elia's family. First, it was my goodsister, Mellario of Norvos as they poisoned both her and the stillborn of my nephew. Then he sends for a second time to Doran Martell to fill his medicine with mercury to poison him. Then my husband, a good man. He died of a horse-riding accident over cutting his saddle and falling off!" Aliandra's anger was legendary.
Not only did Rhaegar Targaryen annul his marriage to Princess Elia. He attacked family members from the House of Martell and weakened their positions. Oberyn shook in fury and their mother cried with such bitterness.
Their house was weakened by the Targaryen.
They did not want to bring Dorne into the fold.
They want to control them.
They still wanted Dorne to be their plaything. Their pets!
Arianne heard all of this.
Her father and mother were murdered. It was all the prince's fault and the Septon did nothing about it! She ran towards him with fury.
"Murderer! Murderer! I hate you! I hate you!" Arianne pounded the Septon hard multiple times.
All these years, she lost two important people in her life. From the moment she was born, she blamed herself for not preventing her mother's death.
Her father wasn't the same after her mother's death. He would put her in guards to watch her 24 hours every day.
She wondered if she was cursed.
All this time, she blamed herself for losing her mother and father.
She blamed herself for being a girl.
Yes, Dorne had women as heirs and lords of their household, but Arianne felt insecure about not being the son he wanted.
If only she said, "I love you" to her father one last time instead of shouting, "I hate you!" She regrets her words.
In the blink of an eye.
Prince Doran is gone.
Now she knows that her father loved her, and he wanted to protect her all these years. He must have known that they were going to kill him next. Her father feared that they were going to kill her or worse be a puppet.
He sacrificed himself for her.
She will never have the warmth and security in his arms ever again.
Aliandra waved to the governess to remove the princess from hitting the Septon. Arianne was brought away from hitting the Septon more and cried in the governess's arms.
"Are you proud of yourself, Septon Maynard? To not only annul our sister's marriage and give the blessing of his new one. You knew about his murders. Then you just forgive his sins in ignorance. So, tell me, why should you be spared by this event?" Aliandra spoke as she looked down at the weak little man.
"My lady, I cannot disobey his command. He is the crown prince. What was I supposed to do? Besides Targaryen's are known to be taking many incest marriages and multiple wives!" He cried out of desperation, but he made an error on his part.
"WHAT?" As Septon panicked, Myriah Martell muttered even as she wheeled at him, her eyes bloodshot with wrath.
Oberyn went to grab his spear to ram him through, but he was stopped by Aliandra. She cannot let his emotions get the better of him.
"Stop Oberyn!" She grabbed his spear and pressed her hand against his chest to push him away from the Septon.
"No, no!"
"Let me kill him! He deserves what he has done to us." He rages off over his reason.
"And he will." She snarled. She turned her head as the shaking Septon looked at them in fear. "You made a great error. Not only have you brought this disgrace to us. However, we may have forgiven you, but we have not forgotten this insult." Aliandra nodded to Aero.
Aero grabbed Septon's head and gave a clean cut right off his body.
Arianne simply looked at the scene.
The brave little princess did not show emotion. It seemed like she just accepted this penalty. To Arianne, this was the perfect time to prove it.
She wished to rule Dorne just like Queen Nymeria herself did centuries ago.
She must follow the example of what her aunt had done.
"Clean this up," Aliandra ordered her maids. As male servants grabbed hold of the corpse and the head.
They carried it away to be buried in secret.
She grabbed a pouch filled with gold coins as she threw three men behind Aero Hotah as a reward. "You are pardoned for your piracy and your captain will be let out of prison by next noon. I, however, don't want to see you or your ships near Dorne's sea. Do you understand?"
"Yes, princess."
They quietly left the palace with their guards to escort them to another exit.
Now onto the next part of her plan.
"Aero!" She called out her guard.
"Yes, princess?"
"Take yourself and a few of men. Go dress yourself as a merchant in the Free Cities. You and the men will spread the word to hire mercenaries to burn and raid Planky Town. Kill every man, take women and children to exile them in Summer Isle. Your main job is to destroy the Citadel to be pulled and burned to the ground. Leave no trace at all." Aliandra ordered.
"Yes, princess." He bowed and left to fulfill her orders.
Aliandra grabbed the parchment and burned only the annulment and new marriage. However, she will need this to fuel Dorne to rebel.
The confession against the house of Martell shall do the trick.
After all, Dorne must learn the hard truth that anyone who sits on the Iron Throne is the enemy. Whether they are incestuous Targaryen pups or that Whoremonger Stag.
Dorne will be spat over by the world if they do not break away from the iron throne.
This will be her destiny once more!
She will rebel against the once great nation.
Kingslandings will be crushed by her own hands.
For Elia.
For her niece Rhaenys, and nephew, Aegon.
For House of Martell.
For Dorne.
She felt a sharp point behind her neck.
"What are you doing, brother?"
"Who are you?" Oberyn spoke as he didn't remove the spear blade away from her neck.
"What do you mean? I am your sister, Aliandra Martell." She calmly spoke to him.
"No, who are you? A woman whom I grew up seemed. More relaxed than this whoever she became to be."
Aliandra simply sighed and relaxed her shoulders as if she had been living a lie all this time.
"Tell me, Oberyn," She slowly turned to face. "Have you ever heard of reincarnation?"
The scene was cut off and a black screen appeared.
Next Chapter:
"You are going to make Dorne independent, are you?" Dowager Princess Dariya questioned Aliandra.
"No one has loved her country better than you." Voice over Dariya as Dornish cheers for Princess Aliandra.
Dariya steps forward towards her daughter. "Don't waste that power."
When talks of peace fail.
Aliandra sternly walks away from Jon Arryn's party. "I will have no master!" She turned and announced, "Dorne shall have only one mistress here!"
Oberyn looked at his sister. "What shall I do, sister?"
Aliandra placed their banner piece onto the location. "Invade Stormlands."
"Stormlands has fallen! The Dornish marches south!" A crier rider who rode all over the land as the Seven Kingdoms had heard of this travesty.
Aliandra looked at the land as she seated herself on the Baratheon seat.
"Give me the heads of Gregor Clegane, Amory Lorch, and…Tywin Lannister."
Rani Laxmibai also called the Rani of Jhansi was a pivotal figure in the Indian Revolt of 1857. She is also regarded as one of the greatest freedom fighters in India. Rani Lakshmibai was born on 19 November 1828 in the town of Varanasi. She was named Manikarnika Tambe and was nicknamed Manu.