[CHAPTER 1] — THE EXILE
[DAEMON's POV]
The salty wind bit at Daemon's face as he looked down from Caraxes, his dragon. Below him, the sea churned, and King's Landing sprawled out like a messy puzzle.
It had been years since he'd been back to Westeros.
Years since betrayal had left a bitter taste in his mouth. His brother, Viserys—the man he'd once promised to protect—had thrown him away like trash.
The annulment he'd asked for? Denied.
His attempts to explain himself? Ignored.
Then came the humiliation.
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Otto Hightower, a snake in the shadows, had whispered lies, and Viserys had listened.
Daemon lost everything: his titles, his place at court, his home.
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He left Westeros behind, tired of the politics, the jealousy, the cold love of a brother who no longer cared.
He wandered the world, restless. He fought the Dothraki, their war cries ringing in his ears.
He walked the streets of Qarth, where secrets hung in the air like smoke.
He even stood at the edge of the Smoking Sea, where the ground shook under the gaze of forgotten gods.
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But he never forgot his family.
He sent letters and gifts, keeping a thread of connection alive.
Only two wrote back: Aemma, his kind sister-in-law, and Rhaenyra, his fiery niece. Her words always lit something in him, a reminder of the fire he still carried.
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Then Aemma died.
The news hit him hard.
Life was fragile, and he knew it.
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He returned to Westeros for the funeral, the smell of the sea both familiar and painful.
Grief hung heavy in the air.
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But Otto Hightower didn't waste the chance to stir trouble.
He whispered doubts about Daemon to Viserys, painting him as reckless and ambitious.
Viserys, already broken by loss, believed him.
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He sent Daemon to the Stepstones, calling it a mission of honor.
"Clear the seas of pirates," Viserys said, his voice empty.
"Bring glory to House Targaryen."
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Daemon knew the truth.
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It wasn't a mission—it was banishment.
A way to keep him far from court, far from Rhaenyra, far from the whispers that could destroy them both.
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As Caraxes carried him away from Westeros, Daemon made a promise.
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The Stepstones would be his.
He'd build his own kingdom, free from his brother's control and Otto's poison.
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The sea stretched out before him, endless and wild.
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For the first time in years, Daemon felt alive.