53 Chapter 53
Chapter 53
DAEMON TARGARYEN
Daemon frowned as he watched the two groups of his Gold Cloaks engaged in conflict outside his manse. Two captains of his order were there outside his manse engaged in a fight with swords on their throat.
"What goes on there?" he shouted, still atop Ceraxes as he saw a certain portion of the Gold Cloaks looking at him with complex gazes, their swords drawn in hostility.
"Betrayal! My Prince! Betrayal!" shouted Bryer, a burly captain of the Gold Cloaks, while Lyonel's eldest son, held a sword to his throat.
The words making him frown as he looked towards Harwin, he recalled the name of Lord Strong's eldest son.
"Tell me why you point a blade at your comrade, Strong. Remove it at once, and I shall consider sparing your life" he snarled, as his eyes narrowed.
Harwin Strong didn't back down, from his gaze, as he stared at him. The man had courage, he would give him that,
"I am afraid I cannot do that, my Prince," he replied, making him frown.
"I command you as the Lord Commander of the City Watch," he shouted.
"Remove that blade!"
Yet the giant of a man didn't budge, his eyes met his as he replied.
"I am afraid that you are no longer the Lord Commander, my Prince. The King has removed you from the position and has appointed me as the new Lord Commander," came the answer making his temper flare up as he realized to what Bryer was alluding to.
"Ohhhh! So you wish to replace me," he smirked and then broke out into a chuckle, for he found the whole idea rather amusing.
"Haha, have you forgotten who I am. I made these men into what they are, I gave them their cloaks, their blades. They would be nothing but commoner pests without me. Do you really think you can replace me!" he snarled as Ceraxes roared into the sky, his laughs spreading throughout the area until he suddenly stopped as he realized that only half a dozen of his men now surrounded his manse.
His mind raced before his laughter halted at once and he turned to face Strong, his voice snarling in rage.
"Where are the rest of my men, Strong!" he shouted as he pulled on the reins of Ceraxes who bellowed threateningly at the burly man, who at least had enough courage to not run away.
"Those who refused to follow their oaths to the Crown are now in the Black cells," he replied and his face flushed at those words.
"You dare!" he shouted, his whip cracking into the groud as Ceraxes roared, loudly.
"ROARRRR!" its screeching bellow shook the whole ground as it put down its winged arms, getting low to the ground, as it brought his face closer to the ground.
"Why gave you that authority! WHO!" he snarled angrily.
"The King," came the answer, and for the first time he could see a hint of fear in that gaze as Ceraxes bared its teeth merely a few feet from his face, yet he continued.
"The King has also sent me here to escort you to the castle, as well," the man continued, his words catching him by surprise. For he saw the meaning behind those carefully chosen words, for if it was nothing but a simple summon, Viserys could have written to him.
No, this was an arrest.
"My brother insults me! Replaces me, and now has the gall to send men to arrest me like a common criminal!" he snarled in rage, disappointed and enraged at Viserys for this. His grip on the whip in his hand tightened as he looked towards his replacement and shouted.
"Tell me why does my brother wishes me to enter the very halls he has barred me from for months," he questioned, and the answer didn't come from the man, but from a very familiar voice from behind.
"To swear fealty to his proclaimed heir," Mysaria's voice rang out, and he glanced back and found the blonde woman stepping out of the manse, looking towards him.
"Is this true?" he questioned through gritted teeth, looking towards the giant of a man.
And no reply came which was answer enough on its own.
The audacity! Daemon's temper flared up at the sheer audacity of Viserys, and he glared towards the men infront of as he snarled.
"So, you brought these men here to arrest me," he snickered in rage, and belittlement as he shook his head.
"Then let me tell you brought too few," and with that the whip cracked once more, as Ceraxes wrung its neck into the sky as Daemon commanded.
"Ceraxes!" he shouted in High Valyrian, and saw many of the men step back in fear, as they saw his dragon's gullet brighten up.
"I believe this shall be answer enough for Viserys," he shouted as many of the man began to run, dropping their swords, though Lord Strong's son stood there, rooted to the ground.
"Dra….
"ROARRRRRRR!" though he was stopped mid-sentence by another massive roar, one which tore through the skies. The voice coming from right above him and he looked up, much like everyone else and found another dragon descending towards the ground at breakneck speed.
This one colored A silvery grey, with hues of blue mixed in.
And he knew of only one dragon with such coloring.
Grey Ghost! And that meant only one thing, Aenys!
"ROARRRR!" it roared once more as it descended towards them, landing on the ground opposite to him with a thud opposite to him, cratering the ground with the sheer wight of its landing.
Grey Ghost, his brother's dragon stood there opposite to him, nearly equal to Ceraxes in size yet for some reason faster.
The two dragons snarled at each other, much like their riders. And as their eyes met, Daemon snarled.
"Aenys!" he snarled, his eyes going over his brother's form, his disheveled hair and riding leathers spoke of a rather hurried journey.
"Daemon." he replied, and there could only be one reason his brother had rushed back to the capital from the Vale like this. He was somehow behind this, and he snarled angrily at that.
"I should have guessed you were behind this," he accused, and his brother didn't reply, his eyes simply scanning the area around them. Though it was not like he needed such confirmation.
"This farce has gone on for long enough Daemon!" Aenys voice rang out as he looked at him.
"You have caused enough strife and destruction in this family. Bend the knee and end this whole thing once and for all," he said, and it was the first time his ambitions had been acknowledged so openly.
He snarled as he shook his head.
"I would never give up on my birthright, let alone bend my knee to a woman!" he spat to the side.
"It is not your birthright, Rhaenyra's is the King's only child and so his heir, you have no claim!" Aenys replied, and he smirked.
"No woman has ever sat on the Iron Throne, and none shall as long as I live!" he refused as their eyes met, and he could see Aenys grind his teeth.
Both of them stared at each other, with either refusing to back down. Their dragons now stood inches from each other, and then suddenly saw a glimmer of hesitation in Aenys, and before he could pounce on the opportunity a child's voice cut in through the tension.
"Mnuaa!"
"Baelon!" Mysaria's voice cut in as well, and he glanced back and found the blonde now held in her arms his child.
"If you refuse to bend the knee then you have no place in this Kingdom!" Aenys's voice cut in.
Strong and his men surrounded him and Mysaria as well, and Aenys stood there opposite to him with his dragon. He stared at Mysaria anger and frustration bubbling in his heart, and she gave him a small nod.
He pulled on Ceraxes reins and the dragon coiled back its head, bringing him near Mysaria and his child, who climbed up the saddle behind him.
He now glared at Aenys once more, body rife with complex emotions as he snarled.
"Then I have little need of living in such lands as well!"
And then he swung his whip once more as a cracking sound cut through the air.
CRACK!
He then turned to look towards Bryer and the rest of his men.
"All those of you who still call me commander shall be welcome in my Halls. Take a boat and ride to my kingdom and you shall share my hearth once more," he said and there was a small cheer from these men, as he, with a final glance towards Aenys shouted at the top his lung.
"Ceraxes! Soves!"
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AENYS TARGARYEN
Aenys found himself in the Council chambers with perhaps the three most powerful yet short-sighted idiots in the whole realm. He sat on the end of the table, tired and still clad in his riding leathers, with Viserys and his two Hands occupying the other side.
Otto Hightower looked at him with a piercing gaze, while Lyonel seemed to have aged a few years, realizing that he would have lost his only son today if not for him.
"You do know what kind of disaster this could have caused," he said as his whole body creaked in dull pain from the hurried journey he had been forced to undertake.
"But it was you who advised me to deal with this whole matter," Viserys replied, with a frown making him roll his eyes.
"Yes, I did, but I didn't ask you to do so when Daemon was the only dragon rider in this city!" he said, not missing the frown Otto Hightower was sending his way.
And it seemed they finally understood the gravity of their blunder, though thankfully, it hadn't come to that. As soon as the letter had arrived from the Red Keep bearing the King's intentions, he rushed back, and he was thankful that he had made such a decision.
"I hadn't thought he would return so quickly, and it was a mistake on my part, my Prince," Lord Strong cut in, sounding apologetic as the man gave him a small bow.
"And you have my utmost gratitude for saving my son's life. I am in your debt," the man continued, and he waved him away.
"There is no need for that," he replied as he nodded at the man, with the chambers returning to silence once more.
"Where is Rhaenyra?" Viserys questioned then, sighing in frustration.
"She is in the Vale and will return later after attending the tourney. I believe Daemon's behavior has given enough insult to the Vale and its Lords. I wished not to add to it by having no one from the Royal Family attend the festivities they had prepared for us," he replied, not mentioning her pregnancy.
"Good, that is good, but we must now return to the matter at hand," Otto cut in as he looked towards him.
"I am afraid I must ask you, why didn't you engage Prince Daemon as he escaped these lands?" the man questioned, and both of them looked at each other, eyes narrowed, minds racing.
"Indeed, Aenys. You do know that I had asked for his arrest, yet you still let him fly away. Why?" Viserys added from the side, and he raised a brow glancing between the two men.
"Because of his child," he answered honestly, for he had little patience for Daemon now and wouldn't hesitate to put him down like the rabid dog that he was.
Yet earlier, it was not the time to do so.
"Daemon's child had somehow run out of the manse and would have died if we had engaged with each other, let alone the whole city would have burned and caused a massive, and I wished to avoid causing such disturbance right before the Rhaenyra's wedding," he replied.
"That child is a bastard, his death would have been inconsequential, my Prince," Otto replied, and he shook his head, his voice becoming cold as he replied.
"A bastard it may, but it is still a child, a child carrying Targaryen blood. I would not have my name tainted as a child butcher," he snarled, his voice cutting across the room.
"Regardless, I was too tired from the journey as well and wished not to risk fighting against Ceraxes and Daemon in my fatigued state," he added as he leaned back.
"Your sentiment is noble, my Prince. But this gives Prince Daemon much advantage, especially with his upcoming marriage with Lady Laena. This would mean that he would have at his call three dragon riders, including himself, Princess Rhaenys, and Lord Laenor. Such a thing is not good for the Crown," Lord Strong added, and his point was valid and the concern rather great.
"Lord Strong is right. This is not a good look for the Crown," Viserys snarled, his fist balling up.
"There is no need to worry in that regard, Lord Strong," he added, making the incumbent Lord Hand frown.
"Why do you say that, my Prince?" he questioned.
"The marriage between Laena Velaryon and Daemon will not happen," he announced, and the whole chamber became quiet at his declaration before Viserys cut in.
"How can you say that? Corlys himself gave his ascent to the match, and Rhaenys refuses to reply to either yours or mine letters. Then how do you plan to stop the marriage," Viserys questioned, and he refused to answer.
"It won't happen. I won't say how, but you have my word the marriage will not happen. On that you have my absolute assurance," he declared once more. His informants had already informed him of the recent happenings of High Tide.
He had already taken care of arrangements regarding his plan.
"That would be a welcome development for the Crown," Otto cut in, and he nodded, sighing as he pushed himself up, stifling the yawn that threatened to break out.
"Ok, that will be all from me. I am too tired. If there is anything else we can tackle in the morning," he said as he made his way out of the room, before suddenly Viserys's voice cut in from behind.
"Aenys, wait," and he frowned as he turned to face his brother, who was now looking at him with a rather cryptic smile.
"I have some news for you as well," he began, his words making him somewhat anxious.
"What?" he motioned for him to continue, yet his words would literally knock the sleep out of him.
"Your lady wife is pregnant!"
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