Aemon The Conqueror: The Rise of the Dragonknight

by Alperez16

Aegon and his sister-wives looked East instead of West and the Valyrian Empire was born. Jon Snow, a prince of the empire and the first Dragonknight in over a hundred years was born to wage war and strike down the empire's enemies. Exiled to Dragonstone because of his desire for his sister, how will the Seven Kingdoms react when the Dragonknight seeks to unite them under 1 King.

18. Go North and Prosper

Harrenhal 300 AC.

Rhaenys.

She put aside her worries about what her uncles' actions truly meant and instead tried to concentrate on the journey that they had in front of them. While they'd be flying to Winterfell and the North, they'd not be doing so alone and all in all, there would be close to a hundred people in their party. Some had already set out and would meet them at the great keep itself, the ravens having been sent so that Aemon's family knew they were coming and that those who traveled through their lands were friends and not enemies.

Rhaenys had listened to those who knew the North better than she and had arranged for warmer clothing to be made, yet she was bringing much of her own clothing too. Apparently, the keep itself was kept warm by hot water that was piped through the walls and Aemon had told her that once inside she'd feel as if she was back in Volantis. Apparently even outside this was something she was to soon feel too as the glass gardens were as warm as a summer's day according to her husband. Aemon may not have set foot in the North other than at Moat Cailin, but he'd grown up with the stories his mother had told him and she had no doubt he spoke true.

Other than her husband, it was Dany who was most excited by the journey they were to undertake. Thoughts of seeing a land she'd only heard about when Lyanna had spoken to them as children or on the odd occasion that Rhaegar was in a mood to speak on it was enough to fuel that excitement, especially when added to the fact that Dany was the least traveled of all of them. Her aunt had been the most protected of them, the most sheltered, and was enjoying the freedom and adventure she'd found since arriving in Westeros. Something that Rhaenys was about to find out even more as Dany came into the room and frowned at the fact that she'd not finished packing yet.

"How does it take you so long?" Dany asked as she sat down on her and Aemon's bed.

"Because sweet aunt, unlike you I pack correctly." she replied as she neatly folded another dress and placed it in the trunk.

"As does Aemon and yet he's packed already." Dany said with a chuckle.

"He's even more used to packing than me and do you doubt his clothing is even more neatly folded than mine own?"

"Never." Dany said with a giggle.

Rhaenys continued packing while Dany helped or hindered or simply passed time. When she was done and told her so, her aunt's excitement only grew and she grabbed her arm to lead her to the breaking of their fasts. They spoke of inconsequential things as they walked. Rhaenys asked about Dany's impressions of the Reach men and finding out that she'd liked them and one in particular. Dany's words on Ser Garlan were ones that she took note of and though she had no wish to, Rhaenys spoke the words anyway.

"You know it can never be." she said softly and Dany nodded.

"I know, Rhae, Rhaegar would never agree to it, and as for Aemon…."

"Aemon would do as you wished, Dany, he'd fight for you were you to but ask it of him. But not for that." she said and Dany looked at her and smiled, her aunt not as put out as she feared she may be.

"It's fun to have them look at me though." Dany said and Rhaenys pretended to be shocked, the two of them laughing fully by the time they reached the room they took their meals in.

Harrenhal had many such rooms. There was a large room with more hearths than she could count that could hold more than two thousand men and smaller ones that could hold up to a hundred or more. The one they ate in this morning was one of these and as they walked into the room it was to see it half empty. Aemon had sent most of his army back to their keeps, his words leaving them in no doubt that should they be called upon, then their return was to be with haste. What his plans were for the West and Dorne she knew not as of yet, though she knew he had some.

Daario had been sent off to who knows where with his Second Sons and while Thoros and their men would hold Harrenhal, they too would have parts to play soon enough. As would Torgho Nudho and Aurane and their men too. For now, it seemed they were at peace, or in a shadow war of sorts and she well-remembered something their granduncle would say.

"The Empire is like a still lake and though that may be comforting it's very much not. For beneath the waters, things move and eventually reach the surface and the not knowing of when that's to occur is the most dangerous time of all."

Aemon she knew was always prepared for that rise and he too was like the still lake that his namesake would speak of. While to any who looked at him they may think her husband at peace, he rarely was and it had served the Empire well that he was not. She had no doubt it would serve their own kingdom just as well and as they took their seats, she saw Aemon, Torgho Nudho, Arthur, Aurane, Thoros, and Ser Barristan walk into the room.

The look he gave her was an odd one and when he took his seat beside her, she turned and whispered in his ear and asked if anything was wrong. Though it was that she'd sent Arthur from her door to get some rest and had promised him that she'd not be leaving the room that was what concerned her husband. Something she knew would begin an argument between them was she not to say that she had no intention of doing so until Dany had arrived.

"You can't do this when in the North, Rhae, you or Dany. Arthur and Ser Barristan are to guard you both at all times, along with some of Torgho Nudho's men." Aemon said softly so that only she could hear.

"You fear us in danger from your kin?" she asked to a shake of his head.

"I'd not believe so, but I'll not risk it either, So I'll have your word on this." Aemon said firmly, his voice a little louder and she looked to Dany and shook her head to let her know all was well.

"You have it, Aems." she said before kissing his cheek.

"You too Dany. You go nowhere without Ser Barristan, you understand?"

"And you?" Dany asked cheekily, Rhaenys hiding her smirk.

"I walk with the prince." Torgho Nudho said after a nod from Aemon, his words spoken so seriously that did she not know the man as well as she did, she'd not have seen how full of humor he was.

"Then I accept, my king." Dany said rising to her feet and giving Aemon a curtsy, shrieking loudly when Aemon rose to his own and grabbed her before lifting her in the air.

"Be very careful Aunt, for you not too big for tickles." Aemon said winking at her over Dany's shoulder.

The meal they had was full of such moments and it showed just how good a mood her husband was in. Be it that he cared not about events in Dorne or that he was simply eager to be on his way to the home of his mother, it mattered not. After they'd eaten, she learned that Aurane was not to travel with them and that he'd be heading to Driftmark and then on to scout the lands that were to be the site of the new city that Aemon intended to see built. The future seat of House Velaryon of Westeros was to be as grand as Volantis in time and she'd asked Aemon why he wished it to be Aurane and not they who ruled from there.

"Commercially and logistically it will be the center of our kingdom, and while I'm good with both, Aurane is better than me in this regard. Militarily this is the most important place in Westeros. We're right in the center of things here. The Vale is to our east and the Reach to our south, we have the North behind us and easy to be called to us should the need arise. In time the West too will be easy to bring to us. Were that not all, then this keep is as safe for us as the Grand Palace has always been. Even without dragons, I could hold this keep against any foe, with them, from here we can take down any who dare to threaten our rule. So let it be Aurane and his future sons and daughters who rule over the new city, it'll be yours and mine who rule over all."

As they climbed up on the dragons and headed North, she wondered when the time would come for a son or daughter of theirs to be born and hoped when it did that it would be only peace that they knew.

The conquest of Westeros XLII

Princess Nymeria and the Flight of the Rhoynar.

The Rhoynar were ever a prideful people and as the old adage goes, pride comes before a fall. Never was this more true than when Prince Garin united the Rhoynar against the Valyrian Freehold during the Second Spice War. Buoyed by an early victory and the death of two dragons, Prince Garin believed himself invincible and in control and refused to listen to those who counseled that pulling on the dragon's tail was a sure way to bring about their end.

While the truth of those words was soon proved true and Chroyane and the Rhoynar all met their doom at the hands of the dragon, Princess Nymeria had led her ten thousand ships and had found a new land for the Rhoynar to settle. Yet some lessons are forgotten and time once passed can never be regained. Pride once again threatened the lives of the descendants of Princess Nymeria and it was up to those descendants to remember her words and follow her example.

While one spoke and epitomized all that the Princess herself had, another very much did not and whether it was to be Chroyane's and Prince Garin's fate or Princess Nymeria's and her ten thousand ships own, it was soon to be known. For make no mistake and mark my words, the Freehold may be no more but the Dragonknight was just as deadly and just as dangerous as the more ancient Dragonlords had been, and he too had his tail pulled upon.

A history of the conquest of the Dragonknight,

Marwyn the Mage.

Dorne 300 AC.

Oberyn.

Watching ships with lion sails enter the bay was not something he was happy about. Nor was being the welcoming party for said lions, but he did as he was told and thus far his arguments with Doran about the wrongness of this had gotten him nowhere. While they'd been waiting for Tywin Lannister and his brood to arrive so this godforsaken wedding could take place, events to the north of them had taken a turn.

His niece and her husband now controlled five of the seven kingdoms and pretty much six of the nine regions of Westeros. The Reach had joined with the Vale, Stormlands, and Riverlands while the North too had knelt. It was the latter of these that gave Oberyn the most pause and caused him the most anguish. Finding out that, unlike Doran and Dorne, the Starks and the North had knelt for kin was something that only made their own position even more untenable in his opinion. Yet not even his words to Doran on this matter had been heard. His fool of a brother simply believed that their alliance with the Lannisters and the fact they were kin to Rhaenys would in the end be enough to see Dorne retain its independence.

Oberyn was pretty certain it would not. If anything this alliance may very well be the beginning of their end and should the dragons come for them, he wasn't certain he'd be here to face them. Feeling Ellaria's hand in his, he put aside his feelings for now and looked to the docks, watching as the ships finally reached them. They then had another hour or so to wait for the Lannisters to actually disembark and he wondered if the Old Lion was pulling a power play of sorts. Upon seeing them do so, he was sure of it, as he was that he liked these people not. Their pale skin, blond hair, and green eyes seemed so very out of place to him amongst the darker skin, hair, and eyes of his countrymen.

"Come we had best at least perform this mummery." he said to Ellaria who didn't hide her smile as she, him, and their girls moved to form a line to welcome the Lannisters to Sunspear.

He gave them another look over as he did so. The Old Lion was exactly as he expected him to be and the man who moved with him could only be his brother. Beside them an older more stout woman and a weasel-faced man moved and then Oberyn saw the Lannister twins. Were they wearing the same clothing then you'd not tell them apart, other than Jaime Lannister had longer hair. Though they didn't move together, they did almost move in unison. Little attention was being paid by either to their spouses by their side as both instead focussed on their children.

Though he was loath to admit it, the girl who walked closest to Jaime Lannister and who he assumed was his daughter was a beauty and he knew his nephew would be taken with her. The girl next to Cersei Lannister could well have been her twin too as could the three boys, two of which looked like warriors in training. Yet it was the third that he concentrated on and he liked not what he saw. Oberyn knew cruel men when he looked upon them and this boy was or would be if given the chance. Seeing how he looked at his daughters brought the fatherly protector in him to the fore and he knew he'd be speaking to his girls before the day was done.

"King Tywin, welcome to Sunspear." he said in as friendly a manner as he could.

"It is good to be welcomed, Prince Oberyn. May I introduce you to my son Prince Jaime and his daughter the Princess Joanna." Tywin said proudly.

"My prince. My princess, it's a pleasure, truly." he said with a nod of his head to one and a kiss on the hand to another "Mine own paramour, Ellaria Sand." he added a moment later while introducing Ellaria and watching for the reactions which didn't disappoint, the disdain they showed being yet another reason why he misliked them already.

Once the introductions were done, he led them to the waiting carriages and as Ellaria, Nymeria, and Tyene all got in different ones with some of the Lannister women, he joined Prince Jaime and the three boys on horseback along with Tywin and Kevan Lannister. The ride to the Old Palace was spent speaking on general things, Oberyn not pressing Jaime too much and speaking to the boys of spars, which two of them at least seemed interested in. Once again it was the third boy that he found his attention on and after finding out that this was Prince Joffrey, he found his first piece of enjoyment of the day. Were this the boy that was to be tied to their house, then he'd have seen him dead before his wedding night and ended the alliance in one stroke. So they were very lucky it was a girl that was being offered up as that alone would stay his hand.

Later that night as he prepared for the feast, he pondered on what was needed to be done. He'd sent the DarkStar north to meet with his niece and her husband. Oberyn was sure it would lead to the man's death and he'd welcome it if it did so. He'd outstayed his welcome in Volantis and had disturbed the princess and was lucky enough he'd left that place alive. Knowing the man how he did and that Ser Arthur was with his niece, he'd be stunned if he left Harrenhal alive. Were it not for this wedding then it may have been with the Darkstar that he himself had traveled, as distasteful as that idea was. One last chance to try and bridge the gap between his niece, her husband, and Dorne would be one that he'd welcome and one he feared that this wedding would make impossible.

"Are you dallying, my love?" Ellaria asked from behind him, his love ready and looking as beautiful as ever, while he was half-dressed.

"I find I've no desire to sup with lions." he said and Ellaria laughed as she moved and handed him a shirt.

"We must do things we've no desire to do, my love, it makes those we do desire that much more appealing."

With a nod, he finished dressing and made his way to the great hall. Doran's gout meant that there would be no big entrances or announcements made and he liked that much better than the thoughts of having to escort a lioness into the hall. His arm instead was linked with Ellaria's as they entered and made their way to their seats. They would not be sitting at the high table, though it was out of choice and not for any other reason. Oberyn had suggested to Doran to have his sons and daughter sit there along with the Lannisters while he sat with Ellaria, their girls, and her family at a lower table. One that was thankfully bereft of any men or women of the West.

He listened as platitudes were given, his brother naming the Lannisters as their most welcome of guests and soon to be joined to their house in marriage. Looking to Trystane he could see that his nephew was more than pleased by his betrothed's looks and that the lady in question was just as happy with his. The rest of the Lannisters were exactly as he imagined them to be. Kevan was a man who tried to imitate his older more successful brother as best he could, Genna a matriarch who was less used than she may have been. Cersei spent more time looking to her twin than to her husband and yet Jaime seemed to pay his wife as much attention as Oberyn did Ellaria.

Again it was the oldest of the boys he looked at as he tried to flirt with Arianne and found little or no success. Every so often he'd get a look on his face that Oberyn knew all too well and he wondered if he pushed him just a little would it be enough to derail this wedding. Or would the boy himself do enough without needing to be pushed? Looking to his brother, he felt that unless Joffrey Lannister actually attacked Arianne, then he'd not see anything put the match at risk and he sighed. The path they were on was not a good one and the further they walked it, the less likely it was one they could turn back from. The thoughts of fighting against his niece were not ones that he welcomed, not ones that he felt he could see through, and yet if he didn't lead their men, then who would? Try as he might to not think this way, he couldn't let it go for the rest of the night, and even after he and Ellaria had exhausted themselves in their bed once the feast was done, it was still to these thoughts that his mind would turn to.

"Oberyn?" Ellaria asked when she woke to find him dressed and ready to leave the room.

"I must talk some sense into my brother, my love, I must try."

"Doran will not stop the wedding, Oberyn, you know your brother's mind on this." she said as she sat up in the bed, the sheet falling to uncover her breasts.

"I know, but the wedding can still go ahead, the alliance cannot."

"You truly believe this will lead to war?" she asked worriedly.

"I believe my niece's husband is not yet done conquering, Ellaria, and now in mere men alone, we're outmatched. We cannot beat the dragons and to fight them is folly."

"You would have us kneel?" she said shocked.

"To kin I would."

As he made from Doran's solar he knew they were truly lost, his brother not listening to his explanation of the numbers and speaking of plans in the making that would win him a war before it had truly begun. Oberyn had tried his best to make him understand that Harren Hoare and Robert Baratheon both probably believed that too and had found out to their cost how wrong they were. In the end, it had mattered not and so once this wedding was done, he, Ellaria, and the girls would make their way to Harrenhal and do all they could to see Dorne and House Martell survive what was to come.

Volantis 300 AC.

Aegon.

He looked over the reports and found them troublesome. Khal Bharbo's death had not been as decisive a victory for the Empire as Aemon had believed it to be. His brother had taken many lives including that of the Khal and now that he looked at the words in front of him, Aegon wondered if he should have let the man live. A defeated and broken Khal who still held sway was better than one who'd not yet tasted defeat and sought vengeance. Khal Drogo was being talked about as being even more fierce than his father and the small Khalasar that his father had given him to make his own name with, had now grown as large as Bharbo's own.

With the addition of the remnants of the Khalasar his brother had broken having now joined up with them and with more and more seeking him out, he could in time have the largest Khalasar they'd faced in their lifetimes. Were that not worrisome enough, they had no Aemon to send to break him long before then, and without him, they lacked a true deterrent. For that's what his brother had become over the years, a name to be thrown about to stop a war before it took place and a leader of men to send once one did.

Rubbing his hand over his eyes, Aegon found himself wondering had Dany arrived in Westeros yet. Had she met up with his brother and sister and had her travel been uneventful. Were they all right now enjoying being together once more? He wished he could be there with them or better yet that all of them were here with him now. His mother and father were still unsure that it was to Westeros that Dany had gone or the reason for it if she had. He'd had to talk his father out of climbing up on Arrax and heading out to find her and instead to allow ships to sail and men to ride to do so. Word had gone out through the Empire to report sights of Nightwing and of its rider and none as of yet had been reported. Yet Aegon knew his aunt had gone to his brother and sister, his sister even more so than his brother as it was always what she would do.

"Your father has called a meeting, Egg." Talisa said from behind him.

"He sends for me?" he asked and she nodded as he rose to his feet, the soft kiss he gave her as he walked from the room one that was far too brief.

Ever since his father and mother had spoken to him about his wife, they'd become closer. He'd actually listened to her concerns about slavery and found they mirrored those he'd heard Aemon's mother speak to his father when he was but a boy. In time a man or woman would find their shackles to be too much of a burden to carry and one they wished not to be tied to anymore. They'd seek their freedom and those who kept them captive would be who they focussed their ire upon. In Volantis alone they were outnumbered five to one and while they had dragons and felt they treated their slaves well, slaves they still were.

As he nodded to his guards and they walked to his father's rooms, he pondered on this and other things. Small little thoughts that soon took him down dark paths and worse case scenarios soon began playing out in his mind. It would take a generation or more to change the Empire from one built on slavery to one that was not. There would be many cities and magisters who would need to be almost forced into doing so and he wasn't sure if he had the strength of will to be the one who did so. He knew his father may have had that strength, but if Lyanna couldn't get him to act, then no one could.

"My father sent for me." he said to the guard outside his father's chambers and with a nod he was let inside.

The sight that greeted him was a pleasant one and yet one that saddened him a little too. His father and mother, Viserys and Aemon, all his family barring the three who weren't in Essos. His uncle looked as if he'd not slept for a few days and his granduncle seemed even older and weaker than he'd been the last time they'd spoken. While his father too had dark circles under his eyes and only his mother seemed to be herself.

"Have we gotten word? Is it about Dany?" he asked to shakes of heads.

"We've received no word, son. Your uncle has offered to take flight and head west, to see the truth of whether or not that's where your aunt went." his father said.

"She's gone to Aemon and Rhaenys, father, you know this as well as I. Uncle, I swear to you I know full well my aunt's mind. Something upset her and so she sought my sister out as she would were Rhaenys here." he said and saw the small look his mother gave his father and the guilty one on his father's face "Aemon will protect her as if he were any of us, father, he'll make her welcome and then see her home." he added to a nod from his granduncle.

"Your brother is at war, Egg, a war that is no place for my sister to be a part of."

"Aemon would never. By the gods, he'd not even allow Rhaenys to take part in one, let alone Dany." he said defending his brother.

"Yet he is at war regardless." his father said and Aegon nodded.

After some more back and forth, where they got Viserys to agree to give it until week's end, and should they not have heard the news by then, he'd fly with him, his father asked him to stay and the others left them alone.

"You are so positive that Dany is with Aemon and Rhaenys, why?" his father asked.

"You think I knew that's where she was going or that she was going at all?" he replied angrily.

"No son. I wish to know your mind on this, truly."

"Forgive me father." he said to a nod of his father's head "When we would play together, as we grew, it was always Rhaenys that Dany sought. You saw how they would fly together almost as much as Rhaenys and Aemon did." he said seeing his father relax "I know my aunt, father, and when she's sad, happy, scared or lonely, it's to Rhaenys she looks and so for whatever reason she left, be it one or all of them, then it'll be to her that she goes."

"And how can we be sure she reached there unharmed?" his father asked, his worry clear.

"Because the dragons know, father. Were you to climb on Arrax or Dany on Nightwing, were we to ask it of them, they'd take us to their kin, our kin." he said and his father seemed somewhat in agreement with him, enough that he asked him about events in Vaes Dothraki and the Great Grass Sea.

"A new Khal you say?"

"Drogo son of Bharbo."

"You think him a threat?" his father asked.

"I think he will be in the future, may even be one now, so yes."

"I'll task Varys to look into him some more."

It was three days later when the first of the letters arrived, his father not telling him the source of it and only sharing the contents as he called them all to another meeting.

"Dany is with Aemon and Rhaenys, she arrived unharmed." his father said and Aegon looked to see the weight that was lifted from Viserys' chest as if it was an actual thing.

"The war, nephew?" his granduncle Aemon asked before anyone else could and Aegon was surprised to see the smile that appeared on his father's face, it was one he too wore a few moments later.

"The North, Vale, Stormlands, Riverlands, and the Reach have knelt to their new king and queen, Aemon and Rhaenys of the House Targaryen." his father said proudly.

"All of them so soon?" his mother asked stunned.

"They've not faced a Dragonknight before, mother." he said as proudly as his father.

"There are still battles to be waged no doubt, but they've taken the great keep of Harrenhal for themselves. Lyanna spoke to me of it once and said it put Winterfell itself to shame in terms of size and structure." his father's words putting him even more at ease.

"Does the letter say when my sister will return?" Viserys asked and Aegon looked to see his father shake his head.

"No, it would not say such a thing, though I've no doubt this won't be the last letter we get, brother mine." his father said looking and offering Viserys a comforting nod.

Once again he was proved right, Aemon, Rhaenys, and Dany all writing and the letters arriving over the next few days. Knowing he was right about one thing, soon made him fearful he was about another too and so it was no longer Westeros that he looked to with even one eye, but to the Dothraki and Khal Drogo with both of them that he focussed on.

The Riverlands 300 AC.

Daario.

He'd sent the letters to Rhaegar regarding the conquest and how it had gone so far, only for the princess' arrival to require him to send another. That she had done so while they were on their way to Tumbleton did at least allow him to let the High Emperor know that his son had gained yet another kingdom and had done so easily. They'd not even had a true battle yet and already three kings had knelt. One who had been killed in a trial by combat and the other had fallen to men who'd then knelt to Aemon.

If he was being honest with himself, he was disappointed. He'd expected far more from this conquest and though he thought little of the Westerosi, he'd expected some sort of fight to be put up. Not that it was one they would win or that would even truly trouble them, but at least something to get his juices flowing. He missed it, the ebb and flow of battle, the thoughts that one wrong move could be your last. To challenge yourself against a man who sought your end and could bring it about, only to emerge victoriously was one of life's greatest thrills, and serving Aemon Targaryen had let him know many such days.

Coming here, following the Dragonknight when he was exiled would have been something he'd have done even had the High Emperor not asked him to. He had known that Aemon wouldn't sit idle for long and that the urge to conquer and take these lands for himself would soon be upon him. That it had taken as long as it had was a surprise and so Daario had begun to reevaluate those they were facing just a little. It had made him wonder if the prince knew more than he. No that wasn't exactly true, as when it came to battle no one knew more than Aemon Targaryen, it was more he wondered if he knew more of these people than he. In the end, it had not been wariness or concern for their opponents that had stayed Aemon's hand and the quickness with which they'd conquered since then had only proved that even more.

So finding out that at least two kingdoms wished to actually challenge them and that a true fight was to come, Daario had felt his excitement rise once more. To be then asked to go on a mission and do some of the things he most enjoyed doing, only made that even more so. An investigation, scouting and probing for weak spots, and a true mapping out of the lands. Other than fighting, drinking, or fucking, this was what he longed for.

"Someone killed my grandfather, Daario, my uncle. Both of them were lured into traps and ambushed and while one happened before the conquest had even begun, the other happened during it. I need to know who pulled those strings, who gave the orders and I feel the answers to this are to be found in the West." Aemon said as they sat in his solar.

"Why the West, my prince?"

"All the others have knelt, other than Dorne and I can't see the Martell's advantage in seeking the killing of my kin. The Old Lion was making moves long before anyone other than myself. He was the one who sent his son to seek an alliance and a man who does such a thing before a battle is waged is a man who's planning a battle to come."

"But why kill your kin?" he asked not seeing the reasoning for such an action.

"One to weaken the North and one to weaken me. I believe had we not arrived then war was coming to Westeros regardless. That it had remained peaceful for so long was actually unusual and you and I both know the only two reasons why armies are at peace."

"Because they've beaten all their enemies or they're readying themselves for war." he said to a nod of Aemon's head "You think our arrival hastened things?"

"I think so. My grandfather sought to carry out plans he'd spent years delaying, his allies sought to finally commit to such plans. The North and Riverlands moved against Harren Hoare with such haste that it suggests a campaign had long been agreed upon."

"And you believe the Old Lion took advantage of your grandfather's movements to take a piece off the board?"

"My uncles were unknown quantities, men who'd not led men and so the loss of my grandfather would have two effects. It would harm the North and weaken them and force them to seek out those responsible, turning their eyes further from the man who may very well have been."

"And your uncle?"

"To force the North and us to fight each other and to weaken us both. I believe the Old Lion likes to play games, Daario, thinks himself a strategist and he's even made some of the same moves as I would make. He reached out to the Storm King and had Robert Baratheon then we acted how he expected then I feel we'd have had lions at our backs."

"A move maker." he chuckled.

"A player of the game." Aemon said looking to the Cyvasse set in the corner.

"What is it you wish of me, my prince?"

"Go to Wendish Town, find out as much as you can about the men who ambushed my uncle. Look over the lands that my grandfather met his end on. The Frey's played their part and so send some of the Second Sons to see what they can find out about their own motives and then head West."

"You don't wish me to return once I've found out whatever I can?"

"I'll be going North and may be there for some time. Go West, find out all you can about the men and their mettle. See what advantages can be found for our army should it need to march, what obstacles they face and whether or not it's men, horses, or dragons or all that would be needed to bring the lions to heel."

"And the lions themselves?"

"Busy organizing a wedding with people and a land that you'll be visiting soon enough, Dorne, Daario, Dorne, and a Mummer's game."

So he'd sent Luceron and some others to find out all they could about the Freys and had made his way to Wendish Town. Soon finding out that it was men dressed as their own who'd brought down Brandon Stark. The leader of such men though was none that was in their party and a man who should be relatively easy enough to find. After all how many men could there be in Westeros who were almost eight feet tall?

The mummery that had been performed there was a poor one and not one that would fool any who were practiced in such things. Yet his prince's words rang through and he could see how if things had been different then they and the North would have been forced to face each other. Aemon would never accept being named a Kinslayer and while the Starks had barely treated him as kin, he'd see them that way. To name him such would lead to a fight that the North was ill-equipped for and one they would lose and was he a man seeking an advantage against his enemies, it would be one he'd have tried to provoke as well.

After finding out all he could, it was to the lands where Rickard Stark had met his end that he moved to next. Daario soon found that some effort had been made to cover up where exactly those lands were. It took him some time to truly find them and once he had, he then set his men to work. Unlike any other who'd sought answers in this place, his men were more thorough and knew better what signs to look for. It didn't take them too long to find something, and what it was proved that Wendish Town was not the only place a mummery had been performed in.

"Find anything?" he asked as Jaedor walked towards him.

"Some burned clothing and this."

"Which is?" he asked looking at the piece of wood in Jaedor's hands.

"A piece of a shield. Look at the markings, that's a boar, I'd stake my life on it."

"Valarr, you have the book?" he called out.

"Which one?"

"The houses of Westeros, look to the West and tell me does any use a boar in their sigils?" he asked as he looked more closely at the wood and saw it more clearly.

"House Crakehall, Commander."

He smirked as he handed the broken shield back to Jaedor and then he ordered the men to mount up. His prince had been right and it was just as well they were already to be headed west as were they not then he'd have changed their orders himself. It had been the lions that had decided to cull some wolves and it was in the West that he was sure he'd find a man over eight feet tall. They had many miles to cover and much work to be done, but the battle he sought and longed for was growing ever closer he was sure.

Winterfell 301 AC.

Robb Stark.

He'd done his best with the news of his uncle's death and had led his house while his Goodaunt grieved. Thoughts of vengeance and justice for both his uncle and grandfather were never far from his mind as he did so. So when word had come that his father and the Northern Army marched back to Winterfell, that they'd passed Moat Cailin and were soon to arrive, Robb had welcomed it and looked forward to hearing the tales spoken of those who'd dared strike at the wolves. What he got instead was something he had never expected and he and his father spoke angry words that day.

They marched back not as returning heroes but as a vanquished force, a force that had lost a war that was never truly fought and the right to name themselves as kings. For eight thousand years the Starks had ruled as King's in the North, in less than one of those years all had come to an end. Two kings had been murdered and remained un-avenged, the third had become the first Stark king to kneel and even if he had knelt to a man who was their kin, it still left a bitter taste in Robb's and other people's mouths.

Not even word of how easily his cousin had taken the Vale and the Stormlands or how he'd taken Harrenhal in less than a day and night had been enough to stop Robb's harsh words for his father. They'd been spoken more than once and he'd been named a green boy who knew nothing about war and the world, more times in the last few weeks than he had in his life. His mother had taken a different approach and had said that in truth there was no real difference between a crown on his head and being the future Warden of the North. That other than they'd need to abide by the laws of the new king and come when bid, nothing really had changed. Yet as he'd pointed out to her, never before had they to do either and while being named Warden seemed all well and good, in essence, they were little more than Bannermen to a king.

"You did not see the forces your cousin assembled, Robb. Nor see a dragon for true. Ask the Knights of the Vale if they felt it shameful to kneel after the Bloody Gate was destroyed? Or the Stormlands after their king and their six best warriors were defeated with ease by the Dragonknight and his own?" his mother said looking at him.

"And what of uncle Brandon and Grandfather? Are their deaths to have been for naught?" he asked angrily.

"Is the new king not their kin as well, Robb? Do you believe that he'll not seek out justice for the loss of an uncle or grandfather too?"

"He knew them not mother, so why would he care?"

"Because blood is blood, Robb, let no one tell you any different."

He sought solace with Cregan and the other young men who'd not marched south. In drink too and had spent more than one night having to be carried to his bed after he and his friends had named their father's as craven and cowards, or come as close to it as any of them were like to do. His mornings would be spent with a sore head and no appetite and he'd ignore his father's disappointed looks in his direction. Or he did until his father could hold his tongue could no longer.

"You boy, with me." his father said and Robb barely heard his mother's protest "NOW!" his father said a little more loudly.

Rising to his feet, he followed after his father and felt his head ache and his stomach threaten to turn. Where he was to be brought to he knew not, but he followed regardless. Finding out it was the sparring yard was a surprise as he'd not seen his father spar since he was a young boy and when the blunted blade was thrown to him, it bounced off his chest and crashed to the ground.

"Pick it up." his father ordered and despite his anger and annoyance with him, Robb had never refused a command his father gave and this would not be the one either "Ready." his father asked and he nodded, though he was anything but.

Less than a moment later he was on the ground and the embarrassment he felt made him rise to his feet quickly. His stance was then one more suited to a spar and he intended to both show his father that he was the better blade and to take some of his anger and frustration out on him as well. It was not to be, as once again he was knocked to the ground and then again and then a fourth time. Having learned his lesson, he didn't jump up this time, and instead it was his father's hand that helped him from the ground.

"Follow." his father said after he'd put the swords away and Robb tried not to look at the crowd they'd garnered.

He soon found himself in the crypts and was taken to where two spaces had been cleared out. As they walked past the King's of Winter, he felt some of the anger he had buildup once more and it was only seeing his father's face as he looked to the empty spaces that stopped him from speaking up.

"Your grandfather and uncle's statues will go there. They will stand as the last true King's of Winter, for I don't dare name myself in their company. Many years from now they'll name me as the King who Knelt and forget the why of it, just as you seem to forget it now. A king's responsibility is not to the crown he wears but to the people he serves. Their safety, their security, and their comfort come before his own if he's to be a good king. Their wants and needs are more important than a king's, else that king has proved himself unworthy of the throne." his father said firmly.

"Father…"

"Both I and the Lords of the North swore a blood oath to see my brother and father's killers face justice and were we not to live up to that oath, then there is no place with the Old Gods for us when we ourselves meet our end. Do you think this is a thing we do lightly? A thing we take as a suggestion and not a command?"

"No." he said.

"To bring that justice we must be alive, whole, and in a position to do so. Something we'd not have been had we faced your cousin and yet that was not why I knelt. I knelt because, for the first time in any Stark's life, an enemy that could not be held back by the Moat or the fierceness of the Northmen had come to our shores. An enemy that the cold winds that blow of a night and the deep snows would be no obstacle to. Was he to wish it, your cousin could come and strike us right in the heart of the North. Winterfell couldn't hold him back, nor could running and hiding in the Mountains. We couldn't starve him out, nor could we face him in an open field, and was he to turn cruel as war oft leads men to be…."

"Father?"

"Farms, villages, keeps, how do you defend them against dragons, son? How do you defend against something that can fly over your defenses and hit you from the rear? Something that can burn you from your keeps and travel faster and further than you?"

He looked at his father and saw it for the first time, the pride that he'd thought he'd lacked was still there and yet his father had knelt anyway. For the people, for the North, and for him too, and Robb felt shamed by his words and actions since his father and the others had returned. That he didn't know what to say was the only reason the silence went on for so long, Robb eventually decided to then ask the one thing that this place made him think most on.

"Uncle Brandon and Grandfather?" he asked softly as he looked to the empty spaces.

"Will be buried once their statues are ready and with the honor they deserve."

"And their justice, father?"

"I'm not the only one who seeks it, Robb, for the man we named king is our kin too and soon to be here."

For the next few days, he did his best to make up for his attitude and to set those who shared it straight. He spent time with Lady Wynafryd and they spoke on their future and he found himself keener for the match as they did so. When the raven came to tell them that the new King of not just the North, but the Riverlands, Reach, Stormlands, and Vale, was on his way to Winterfell, Robb looked forward to taking the measure of his cousin. He did not have to wait long to do so and in that his father's words were proved even more true.

While a part of his cousin's party had passed through the Moat, it was not the one containing his cousin nor his wife and it would not be by road that they'd be arriving at Winterfell. Nor would it be when they were expecting as the reality of how quickly dragons could travel was soon made apparent. As for the dragons themselves, never had he seen anything like them when they flew over Winterfell and made themselves known. That there were three of them seemed to surprise his father and uncle, yet it was the sheer size of the things that he found himself concentrating on when they landed. That and the figures that climbed down off their backs and made the way towards them. His cousin, the man who'd taken their crowns for his own had finally arrived.

A history of the conquest of Westeros XLIII

Grumpkins, Snarks, and Magical Creatures.

In the known world, there were many strange and deadly animals. Sothoryos was full of strange and oft perplexing creatures from Wyverns to bats that fed on blood to large apes that could fell an elephant with one blow from their mighty fists. Tales were told of snakes that were as large as some of the dragons themselves and few who traveled too deeply into the lands themselves were ever heard from or seen again.

Basilisks, Fire Wyrms, Griffins, Harpies, Cockatrices, and many more magical and mystical creatures were spoken of in Essos and some had been seen by more than one, and others were merely spoken of in tale and script. Some were worshipped almost and others were much sought after for their blood and venom and simply for their value. For the magisters and even the dragons themselves were oft known to keep menageries full of the rarest of creatures.

Westeros had their own share of such magical beasts. Ice Spiders, Ice Dragons, Mammoths and Shadowcats, Lizard Lions, and things that were even less spoken of such as Grumpkins and Snarks which were used to name a thing as false and untrue, just as they were both claimed to be. Some of these creatures were not as rare as others and Lizard Lions, Shadowcats and Mammoths had been seen by enough learned and unlearned men to prove them true. As had Direwolves too, though few had ever been studied or seen up close and none were ever seen south of the Wall. Until they were and that it was the Dragonknight who attracted the beasts to him was or should have been no great surprise, for magic knows magic after all.

The Conquest of the Dragonknight,

Marwyn the Mage.

Winterfell 301 AC.

Aemon.

He'd experienced some of the North when he'd flown Gaelithox to Moat Cailin and yet it was truly very little and almost the South still. Flying over the lands further north than the Moat was a much different experience and he was glad that he'd told those with him to wrap up warm. They landed some distance from Winterfell, near some woods and a stream and he could see how cold Rhaenys, Dany, and the others were when they climbed down off Meraxes and Nightwing. While he'd felt it too, he'd welcomed it more than they, believing it brought him closer to his mother mayhap being the reason for such.

They set up camp, though they'd no tents and it would be sleeping in the open, and fires were soon lit so people could warm up and food could be prepared. The stew was most welcomed and even his aunt who preferred far less hardy fare ate more than one bowl of it. There was a quietness around the camp for some time that he put down to the coldness and it was only when he suggested they'd sleep between the dragons that night that people began to relax.

"How can a place be so cold?" Dany asked while shaking, more a reflex than because she was still feeling it.

"My mother always said that the North was a harsh land and bred sturdier people than any of the other Kingdoms. No doubt Ser Arthur would say the same about Dorne." he said looking to the knight who nodded.

"What of you Ser Barristan, does your home know weather such as this?" Rhaenys asked and the Bold shook his head.

"No my queen. We know wind and rain, but other than in winter we know no snow and certainly not like this."

"How can you take it, Torgho Nudho?" Dany asked and Aemon smirked knowing the answer full well.

"I and the prince know such nights as this."

After they'd eaten and gotten somewhat warm by the fire, Aemon called the dragons and had them form a ring around them. The heat from their bodies and the cover they offered soon brought them all a comfort that none would expect to find in these cold and harsh lands. It allowed for Ser Barristan and Ser Arthur to sleep too, though Torgho Nudho would only sleep when ordered to and Aemon knew he'd be awake when he woke the next morning.

"Are you nervous?" Rhaenys asked as they snuggled up together under a blanket that was more for modesty's sake than for a source of warmth.

"I am. Long have I wished to walk the halls of my mother's home. To see the places she spoke so fondly on. The Godswood and the hot springs, the Wolfswood and the Barrows of the First Men."

"Hot springs?" Rhaenys asked eagerly and he nodded which brought a smile to her face "And the welcome?

"We'll find out on the morrow." he said as he kissed her softly and held her tightly against his chest as she drifted off to sleep.

He woke early and it was to find both Arthur and Torgho Nudho up, along with Ser Barristan. It was rare when any beat him to rise and to find all three had was a surprise. Rhaenys slept peacefully as did Dany and as he moved to find a place to relieve himself, Gaelithox moved his tail to give him a gap to walk through. It was not one he was allowed to walk through alone as he heard the footsteps behind him and had no need to turn to know that Torgho Nudho had followed.

As he was relieving himself, he felt the eyes on him and he was not alone in this. His sworn shield's hackles were raised and yet his were not and so he bid Torgho Nudho relax and he looked out to the trees. How he knew it was not men that looked their way, he couldn't tell, only that he was certain that while they were being watched, it was nonhuman eyes that were doing so. For some reason, he was certain too that those eyes were as intelligent as any man's and more intelligent than most. How long he stood there and just looked to the trees, he knew not, but eventually he felt the eyes were no longer upon him and then and only then did he turn and walk back to the dragons and the others.

"No man." Torgho Nudho said and Aemon nodded.

"No man." he replied and for the rest of the morning, he tried to figure out just what it was that had been staring at him so intently.

After breaking his fast and then waiting for Rhaenys and Dany to wake so they could break their own, they then took flight once more. This time they'd not be landing until they reached the keep and he felt his excitement rise the longer they were in the air. When it came into view he was stunned. The large grey wall were imposing and though smaller than Harrenhal it was no less impressive. More so when he considered that this keep had stood for thousands of years while Harrenhal had stood only for a few hundred. They flew over the keep and did a complete circle of it before then landing at the gate nearest the courtyard.

Then after they'd all dismounted, they sent the dragons on to feed and made their way in through the large gates. Once again he felt eyes upon him and yet these were very much the eyes of men and women, some children too looked their way as they entered without question or obstacle. Soon enough they were in the courtyard and he looked on as his uncles stood with his cousins and people he believed to be the same though he knew not for sure. Then without a prompt from him, as one they knelt and didn't rise until he and Rhaenys reached them.

"Winterfell and the North are yours, your grace." his uncle Ned said.

"Rise uncle, all of you." he said and as they did so, his eyes took in the keep.

This was where his mother had been born, where she'd spent the first years of her life. When he was a boy she'd tell him tales of Winterfell and those who named it their home. She'd tell him tales of the Starks and the Kings of Winter and as he looked around at where he stood, he felt the moisture in his eyes, and the tears that needed to be fought back were noticed by Rhaenys who moved to him and offered him her hand.

"Aems." she said softly and he nodded he was well before turning to his uncles.

"May I introduce my wife Queen Rhaenys and my aunt the Princess Daenerys Targaryen." he said composing himself as the introductions then took place for true.

He met cousins that he had not up to then, Robb and Cregan who both looked at him suspiciously, and cousins he had already met, he now met once again. Yet through it all his eyes looked at the keep and the grounds and he longed to walk where his mother had, to see the things she had seen, and to meet people who'd known her then. He'd make sure before he left that he'd see all that she'd spoken to him about and that he'd pray in front of the giant Weirwood that he'd dreamed about when she'd finished telling him about her home. As he was led into the keep itself, he promised himself much and no matter how long it took, he'd see it through before he left.

A/N: Thanks to all who've read and reviewed, I'll get to the reviews next chapter. Up Next Aemon spends time exploring Winterfell and gets to know his cousins better. Aurane finds himself face to face with some troublesome lords and begins work on the new city, Tyrion arrives in Sunspear and a wedding takes place while in Volantis a prince falls and war moves ever closer. For those following my other fics, Winter King, Purple Deception, and probably Am I my brothers Keep will be updated this week with maybe one other too.