18 Moving On

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-Dorne, Sunspear Interior, 277 AC, One Day Later-

"How about this; you give us ownership and rights to land with potential for construction or farming around 'The Broken Arm' and 'The Greenblood,' and in exchange, we give you eight hundred and thirty-three thousand golden dragons, sounds fair, yes?" Proposes a Warden diplomat - the negotiations have been going on for hours; Liam and Oberyn fell asleep during the second hour.

'Please accept, please accept, please accept...' Justus thought desperately; he wanted to do anything else than 'this' at the moment.

"You look a little tired, Lord Daubeny," Elia mentioned. "Is something wrong?"

"Nope, everything is fine; I'm just a little eager to get business over with so I can travel around Dorne some more," Justus replied; he was a bit sweaty since in Dorne - it was either warm or hot, and everything in between.

"Not often do we see men of the North such as yourself come down here, nor do we see them actually want to stay longer than necessary," Doran remarked.

"I guess I'm a different man from the North." Justus shrugged.

"Hm, your proposals are reasonable, my prince; what do you think?" Asked a Martell negotiator (The Martell and Warden negotiators have been talking the most throughout the deal).

"Hm, it will suffice," Doran replies; Justus sighs in relief internally. "But I think I have another thing to ask of you, Lord Daubeny."

'WHY!! LET ME GO!!' Justus internally screamed. "Ahem... What is it?"

"I'm just wondering, are the rumors true?" Doran asks. "Do you possess Valyrian armor?"

Justus thinks for a moment about his answer, "Yes, but I am not putting it up for sale if that's what you're asking me."

"Ah, never mind then, what about weaponry?" Doran continued. "Could you make one for my house?"

"Er, it will probably take time, but I think I can make it happen." Justus didn't know if Jesus could do him another solid; he'll have to hope for the best. "Is there any specific weapon you want to be made?"

"A spear, of course," Doran answered. "I don't believe the details matter, but please make it the most decorated spear in all of the Seven Kingdoms."

Justus cups his chin before speaking again; he considers a suitable price. "I see, very well, payment will be... let's say half."

'Half?' Doran pondered. "What do you mean?"

"Half of what I gave you for that land, Valyrian steel is hard to come by, you know." Justus lied; Jesus was his primary source of Valyrian steel.

"Er..." Doran was getting a little anxious; half of the price Justus paid for the land was substantial. "Ahem, very well."

"Great! I'll have it made for you once I return from my journey." Justus then got up and smacked Liam's head to wake him up.

"HUH?!" Liam interjected. "Is it over...?"

"Yes, hurry up and get together; we're leaving for Starfall," Justus said. "Oberyn, you still have time for that spar?"

"Ugh..." Oberyn was a bit tired from his night of debauchery previous and was definitely not going to wake up any time soon.

"Unfortunate, oh well." Justus shook his head in disappointment; he wanted to see if Oberyn was as strong as the lore. "Let's go, Liam."

"What about our stuff?" Liam asked.

"I'll have our Wardens deal with it; for now, let's get to the boat."

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-Dorne, Shadow City Port, 277 AC, One Hour Later-

The guide, Ureo, returned to the Daubeny Party once they were done with their negotiations and helped direct them to their ship. Justus told Liam to send out multiple letters to Wardens traveling the Seven Kingdoms to report to 'The Greenblood' and 'The Broken Arm' to oversee the development of farmland and construction of two new fortresses ('River Fort' at 'The Greenblood' and 'High Fort' at 'The Broken Arm'). Justus originally planned to travel to numerous houses in Dorne to conduct business. Still, after realizing that he would have to sit through conversations that may be as long as the ones he had with the Martells... he thought it is better just to send out diplomats to do the talking.

'I'll probably only go to houses, I think to require my direct presence...' Justus affirmed. "Hey, Liam, how long do you think it will take for us to get to Starfall?"

"I'd say a day or two; it's at least a much closer destination for us than Sunspear was," Liam admitted. "I forget, who is the current lord of House Dayne?"

"Someone named 'Beric Dayne,' he is the father of Arthur and his siblings," Justus claimed. "They say Ashara is quite the looker."

"Is that his sister?" Liam asked curiously. "Not sure if it's smart to go after someone related to the 'Sword of the Morning.'"

"Ha! Imagine!" Justus replied. "I'd probably be killed or something by an overprotective brother; I mean, if he is overprotective."

"Whatever," Liam looked at Sunspear for a moment. "What did you think about Elia Martell?"

"Elia? Hmm, I dunno; she's lovely and is exceptionally crafty."

"A perilous mix," Liam argued. "Would you prefer her?"

"I didn't get a chance to properly get acquainted, so I have no idea," Justus admitted. "Maybe I'll know what I want when I'm older."

"Good luck; this world might not give you that opportunity one day," Liam confessed. "War, politics, et cetera, everything will be unforgiving."

"Yet, here I am, nineteen and single," Justus replied smugly - what is he proud of?

-Pause-

"Oh Gods, I might never get a maiden at this rate." Justus realized.

"Yep."

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-Dorne, Starfall, 277 AC, A Few Days Later-

Justus has been talking to Beric Dayne for as long as he did with Doran; he was slowly dying on the inside from Beric's storytelling about his son, Arthur.

'Why... why did I have to do this...?' Thought Justus with absolute sadness.

Off to the side, Liam leaned near a wall, closely next to Ashara Dayne, watching the two lords bargain silently. They looked at each other for a moment; Liam could not deny that Ashara was beautiful and curvaceous, while Ashara couldn't deny that Liam was handsome and mysterious.

"Hey." They said simultaneously - interested in hearing each other's voices for the first time or prompting a conversation.

-Pause-

'Nice.' Apparently, both were satisfied with a simple greeting.

"LET ME TELL YOU!!" Beric yells while slapping Justus' back; he is incredibly drunk. "WHEN MY SON SLEW THE DRAGONS-"

"FUUUUU-" Justus Daubeny was losing his mind.

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-Dorne, Starfall, 277 AC, Another Day Later-

Liam seemed to be in a cheery mood; he enjoyed his time at Starfall and was glad to have met Ashara Dayne since they seem to have similar interests: music, reading, and writing. Suddenly, he heard some screaming from behind him - it was Justus, and Beric seemed to be running after him with several of his guards.

"GET ON THE SHIP- GET ON THE MOTHERFUCKING SHIP!!" Justus screamed.

"HUH?! WHAT DID YOU DO!!" Liam cried as he followed Justus' orders.

"ARE OUR NEGOTIATORS THERE TOO?!" Justus questioned while running and panting heavily.

"YES!! BUT WHY ARE THEY CHASING US?!"

"I COULDN'T STAND ANYMORE OF THE STORIES!!" Justus then leaped on the boat, hitting his stomach on the rails before slowly heaving himself onto the ship. "OOMPF- FU- SHIT..."

"WHAT?!" Liam followed Justus and plunged himself into an open window on the ship - at the same time, the plank used to board the vessel fell into the water, implying that the ship was now departing. "OH SHIT-"

"GET THIS SHIP SEAWORTHY OR SOMETHING!!" Justus ordered the marines on the ship immediately move into action and start making the departure quickly.

"LORD DAUBENY!! I MUST TELL YOU ABOUT MY SON ONCE MORE!!" Beric said while throwing fish at Justus.

"YOU ARE DRUNK, MY LORD!! PLEASE COME BACK INSIDE; THE NEGOTIATIONS HAVE ALREADY PASSED!!" Pleaded a guard who was trying to bring Beric indoors.

'HE ONLY DRANK THREE TIMES, THOUGH?!' Justus exclaimed.

The ship eventually made it out of Starfall and was now in open waters, away from Beric Dayne's storytelling and praise to his son. "Thank the Old Gods..."

"I-" Liam began before Justus put his hand in his face.

"No words..." Justus ordered. "Just relaxation... we're going back home..."

Liam said nothing and only looked back at Starfall; a woman was standing on the edge of the dock near an old man carried away carefully by some guards. "I wonder if she's thinking of me..."

"Huh? What did you say?" Justus asked.

"I said nothing!" Liam stated.

Justus smiled smugly, realizing what had captivated his young ward. "Ah! I didn't know you would be interested in her!"

"What the f-" Liam looked at Justus, annoyed. "YOU-"

"I'm sure she feels the same about you!" Justus said while chuckling at Liam's little affair.

"STOP TALKING!!"

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