Author's note: The story is inspired by a campaign from CK3AGOT, so the lineage of characters, and timeline of events, may be different from Canon.
Prologue: HighTide
Hightide drew a handsome silhouette against the full moon, it's spires and domes casting long shadows into the acquainted sea. Aelyx watched as waves washed toward him in hushed tones before retreating from his boot. Along the shore, in scattered fashion, the Anogar Dragons grumbled and cooed in their sleep. Their backs rose and contracted with each breath, like living mounds moving to the rhythm of the sea. The salted breeze brushed his silver hair as Aelyx gazed out onto the endless horizon. No sign of the apparition, only darkness.
As he stood there, hemmed between the two great symbols of his heritage, he felt as though he were listening to some great call, or a faint whisper, unable to ascertain it's meaning. Fire and Sea, the stirring within his blood would not cease, Destiny, Salt and Smoke. There! Almost as far as the eye could see, there was a glint of light, the moon's reflection hovered just over the Blackwater. The vision vanished as quickly as it came, it was all hardly a second.
Aelyx sat upon the sand and took a drink from his wineskin. The empty night was calling to him. 'Aelyx', it said, 'look upon me, cloudless and full'. The voice grew louder and more fractured. 'Aelyx! Aelyx!', 'Salt and Sea', 'Aelyx! Aelyx!', 'Fire and Blood'; the sea foamed and swirled, shaping into an image of many forking paths. 'Embrace me and I shall make you whole' the voice fell faint, carried by the gentle wind 'you shall live forever in the annals of men'. He curled his toes and willed himself out of his trance, a cold sweat beaded across his forehead. Catching his breath he took one more drink, he still heard his name being called. Jaehaera was approaching, she walked across the beach waving her hands, her platinum hair even paler in moonlight.
"I was calling you from the ballustrade" she said, "were you ignoring me?"
"Never" he said with a wry smile, "I was simply lost in thought?"
"Well, we should all try new things I suppose… How was it?"
"Horrible"
They shared the laugh together, short and tender. Jaehaera fixed her gown, tucking in the hem, and sat down next to Aelyx. Taking the wineskin from his hand, she took a small sip. They sat in silence.
"If I am to brood effectively I must know the direction. Hmmm… perhaps the Sea? The Travel? Or maybe all the Bird Shit?" He smiled, she pressed on, wrapping her arm around his shoulder. "You and I cousin. We shall make the world tremble with all our brooding. We shall fell the Cannibal himself with anxiety — Oh, father may prove to be an obstinate foe…" he pushed her arm off his shoulder. "What's the matter?" She asked.
"I was hoping it was Aerea that came…Ow", her punch was swift and accurate. They laughed together once more.
" In all seriousness, Aelyx, what's the matter?" She asked in Valyrian.
" I can't really explain it," his face darkened, " I feel as I felt when my egg turned cold"
"Why now? It's been years…"
"I know it's been years," he interrupted " I traded an egg of stone for a sword. I've lived my life by the sword…but now…I am Targaryen, the blood of the dragon, Grandfather, and the Conqueror. Yet I do not possess their boon, steel does not replace fire."
"You are the spitting image of Grandfather Aelyx, how many times must you be called "the red dragon", and "Daemon's image" before you learn that Dragon's are not all that we are."
""The Red Dragon" with no Dragon, "Damon's image" but only a reflection. If I am to resemble him cousin then it is only as a wraith of his memory…" silence took the space between them. "… That is to mention only half… Grandmother and my Father, through them is Salt and Sea. I would not be so remiss of a Dragon if I could set sail like the Sea Snake. We are here, scions under his great castle and I can't stand in a boat without throwing up…" Aelyx began to laugh. " You are right. Thinking doesn't suit me."
"You had me worried," a half-smile grew on Jaehaera's lips, "I'd never known you for self-pity."
"And you shan't." Aelyx let out a long exhalation, " I always long for a fight, but I fear one is coming that I cannot win — that we cannot win"
"We're going to King's Landing in peace, there is no quarrel, why fear a future that will not come."
"There have never been this many dragons since Old Valyria, the house of the dragon has split. The peace between us is but a sandcastle, Jaehaera, the issue with the stepstones is only the beginning. Your father arrives to negotiate with 5 dragons — why bring Aunt Baela — Caraxes — if not to show force…"
"You lecture me on diplomacy as though I were not a Princess, Aelyx, I know the frailty of our bond with the Red Keep. But we are not so meek, we possess Vhagar, Caraxes, and even Syrax back in Myr…"
"And they Dreamfyre, Silverwing, and perhaps even Vermithor…"
"Both smaller than Vhagar — and hardly half as fierce as Caraxes…anyhow let's stop the conjecture, there will be no fight. Neither King Dareon nor my father wish to have one."
"And Valarr?"
" Valarr is not king."
"Indeed, Valarr is not king, but he shall one day be King Valarr of New Valyria, rider of Vhagar, lord of the three daughters and defender of the stepstones. I will defend him, I will fight any smarmy Volentene or bloody Pentoshi for him, but if that day comes when he looks across the Narrow Sea, what then?"
"My brother is not mindless, he will heed the call of restraint when the time comes — I've never known you to be this afraid of war…"
"You know me well Jaehaera, I do not fear war. I fear THIS war. A war between dragons harms all. I cannot defend you if you were to lock into combat with Sunfyre…"
"I do not need your protection Aelyx…"
"Very well, you do not need my protection, but what of Alarra? And Laenor — he is my uncle and I love him but what would happen if his Liege Lord were to raise his banners against us. Does he not also owe an obligation to his mother's line? — we are in Westeros, cousin, foreigners; grandfather crossed the bridge and Rhaenyra burned it behind her."
"Foreigners with our own Empire…"
"An Empire…Our hold on the Daughters is not so nearly as strong as theirs on Westeros. They possess the numbers in sword, and loyalty. But I do not fear swords, I would lead a hundred wailing merchants against their knights…"
"Listen to yourself Aelyx… you sound like a madman raving at fate for setting to stone something that has not, and may never come. If it does we will do what we must to defend ourselves. We will do what we must to assert our rule. And we will do what we must to compromise. A Targaryen war will never occur so long as cool heads prevail. Fearing every shadow does not bring peace. Ten and eight is far too young to be wont of paranoia."
"I shall take heed to your wise words cousin. My sleep as of late has been ill-taken. I apologize for this turn of character…" She slapped his shoulder.
"You are a fool, Aelyx, perhaps the sword doesn't fit you as well as the cockscomb. You are dear to me, when you are impulsive, and reckless, and a moron. You are dear to me when you have doubts. There is no turning of character — we are not mummer's. We are who we are, in all our shades…"
In her eyes there was enough warmth to bring dawn. Aelyx looked around suddenly, sensing something different. The dragons had begun to stir. They unfurled their limbs, rising slowly, the sound of movement grew into a cacophony of noise and activity. The large bodies shifting around all around them, like the quiet forest suddenly aroused to life by a great gust of wind. The two felt the sand shift and ripple beneath them, the ground was shaking; Vhagar was awake. Every dragon looked to the sky, roaring and screeching into the still night sky. Aelyx rose quickly, helping Jaehaera to her feet.
"What's happening?" She asked, patting sand off her hands and gown.
Jaehaera's dragon, Vaelax, bounded over to them, it's claws slipping and grasping for traction on the coarse sandy surface. It was clearly agitated, continuously roaring and screeching at the night sky. Jaehaera ran over to the dragon followed by Aelyx. She placed her hand on it's head and when it rose to roar once more, on it's chest.
" Leqiri Vaelax, Leqiri" Jaehaera repeated over and over. Her dragon's worry had become her worry. Aelyx watched the sky looking for anything different.
"Aelyx, do you see anything" She yelled.
"No."
An unspoken conversation occurred between them, it did not take long to realize that only a Dragon can worry a Dragon. Aelyx approached Jaehaera and Vaelax cautiously, glancing above him along the way.
"Do you think it's the Cannibal" She asked.
"With Vhagar and Caraxes here — unlikely…", she knew what he was going to say. But not impossible. He reached out and placed a hand on her arm, "You should get inside Jaehaera."
She looked at the sky, then all around her, examining all the dragons. Vhagar, and Caraxes, she thought. The smaller dragons were all agitated, Vaelax, Glimmer, Kastax, and Munax, she realized were making the bulk of the noise. Vhagar was simply still, looking up at the sky and groaning. Seasmoke hardly moved. And Caraxes was giving his distinct high pitched screech, but…
"Wait…" Jaehaera grabbed Aelyx' hand, "do you hear that?"
"Hear what?"
"Caraxes."
Aelyx closed his eyes and listened intently. Separating Caraxes from the rest was not difficult, no dragon alive had such a distinct sound, almost like that of a dolphin when low and enough to shatter glass (and ears) when loud. But it wasn't loud, it sounded more like a call.
"He lacks aggression," he noted "he's calm."
"As are Vhagar and Seasmoke…" her worry faded "…Don't you see Aelyx, it can't be the Cannibal, they must know…"
She was interrupted by an outcry, like thunder from the sea. There was hardly a moment to process what it was, the sound of wings rushed above their heads like wind rattling a Velaryon sail. They followed the sound to the moon, where Hightide stood, and high above, circling, the unmistakable outline of majesty. They gaped in awe at the flying beast. It swooped down once again just over their heads, buffeting the sand around them, and vanishing once more into the darkness whence it came. Vaelax bayed as loudly as it could, the other small dragons followed suit. Vhagar gave a singular soft call, filling the sky with it's texture, before curling up once more. Jaehaera closed her eyes and with one hand on Vaelax, placed the other on her head, keeping her hair in place. Aelyx never averted his gaze, with burning eyes, he witnessed the whole spectacle, he saw the dragon in all it's glory, regal and mighty with a thorny crown upon her brow. The dragon of the Queen who never was, the dragon of his mother's namesake. If even but a moment, Meleys had returned to Driftmark; and in her wake, Aelyx felt destiny rush out before him, from him, he felt as though the earth itself would flee beneath his feet and by those wings he felt the sky was just within reach.
"I've never seen a dragon that fast," said Jaehaera, spitting out sand, "not that I saw it really."
"It was Meleys." Aelyx fixed his eyes on the last place he saw the Red Queen.
"I've only heard of her from Granmamma's stories, I never thought…L eqiri, Vaelax, Leqiri" she trailed off. All the dragons had begun to calm down, Vaelax nuzzled her.
"You look as though you wish to do something rash," she said, eyes fixed on Aelyx' back. His figure carved from his surroundings by a sliver of silver light. The waves crashed slowly, undisturbed.
" You know me so well" he said in Valyrian.