Chapter 23 - The Feast (part 3)

122 AC

The thirtieth day of the fifth moon.

Aemond Pov

Dragons. The sole reason that Aegon and his sister's wives were able to conquer the six kingdoms. No one would be able to overthrow the Targaryens as long as the dragons breathe.

A dragon rider is given respect tantamount to a king. But the reason I wanted to bond with one was not because of the power or respect that one gets. All I ever wanted was to be accepted by my father. Aegon had already claimed 'Sunfyre' when he was eight namedays. An achievement for a Targaryen but eclipsed by our sister who was seven namedays when she had first flown on 'Syrax'.

"Let us see how the blood of the dragon flows through you and whether you are bold enough to claim a dragon. Even your nephews have one. It would not suit you as their uncle to not have one", his father had said.

"Whether I was bold enough", he said. I was more fierce than Aegon who was busy whoring and drinking but Father never saw that. He was busy caring about Rhaenyra. There were times when I wondered whether he ever loved me and my siblings.

But the final straw had been when he compared me to those bastards. The blood Of Valyria flowed through me, unlike those brown-haired bastards.

It was at that moment that I made a resolve that I would tame none other than 'Vhagar' the largest living dragon and that would show Father that I was more worthy than my drunkard brother and whorish sister.

When I escaped my room that night I was followed by my bastard nephew but I had shut him up when he started shouting.

The feeling when 'Vhagar' accepted me was unlike anything that I had ever experienced before. I felt complete as If some part of me that was missing had come back.

Just the thought of Father being proud of me and patting my back and mother finally acknowledging me made me giddy with excitement.

Then when I flew into the sky with 'Vhagar' I felt free. Free to do whatever I wanted. I realized how Queen Visenya must have felt when she soared above the clouds. Power. Unadulterated power. It was at that moment that I became arrogant not caring about my actions which would lead to my banishment from Kingslanding.

After finishing my first flight with Vhagar I landed near her cave when I saw them. My nephews and my cousins had come. Whatever happened after that was a blur I couldn't remember what had happened and when the fighting stopped I realized what I had done.

But It was not my fault and I was sure that father would agree with me.

I still remember the moment he struck me. It was not my fault that she had lost her eye. It was the brat Lucerys who had attacked me with a knife and I just defended myself. But It would not matter to the king.

At that moment I realized what a weak man he was. The person who was the last rider of Balerion had died a long time back, replaced by a fool.

When the 'Rogue' threatened to take both my eyes he did not say anything. My father, the man who ruled the seven kingdoms was nothing but a coward.

We left Driftmark that very night and no sooner did we reach kingslanding I was called to the small council room by my father

"You have made a fool of yourself. If not for your mother I would have sent you to the wall", he said. I wanted to laugh at that. As If my mother would let him ever do that, but then I remembered all those instances when my mother refused to reprimand Aegon whenever he called me a failure.

"Aemond the dragon bane", "Aemond the Dragonless", The Rider of the pink dread", he used to call me and she did nothing.

Alone. I was all alone and Vhagar was the only one who would stay by my side. My only companion in this wretched world.

In the end, I was sent to Oldtown along with my uncle Ser Gwayne Hightower. Instead of being praised for claiming the largest living dragon in the world, I was sent away as an outcast.

When I reached Oldtown I was mesmerized by the sight in front of me. If it could be described in one word then it would be 'Marvelous'. The 'Hightower' was massive after all it was the tallest tower in the known world.

When I landed I could see hundreds of soldiers dressed in armor while at their head stood the current lord of House Hightower my mother's cousin Lord Ormund Hightower while beside him stood the former hand of the king my grandfather Otto Hightower. As I approached them I thought about how they would admonish me just like mother and father but then the unexpected happened.

"You have done a great service to your family by taming 'Vhagar', grandson", he said while patting my back. For a moment I was unable to comprehend what he had just said. Finally, someone acknowledged by accomplishment.

"You will be the cupbearer of my nephew while training with your uncle in the art of the sword and you will learn from both of them. Despite the fact that you have tamed the largest dragon in the world you seem to have not understood the ramifications of your actions", he said.

"But you have certainly changed the tides, grandson. I am proud of you".

Hearing those words for the first time in my life It seemed that I was close to being reduced to tears.

After a month grandfather received a letter asking him to come to Kingslanding and become the hand again.

I would be lying If I said that I was not sad that he was going to go to the city where I was not allowed to return.

"Continue training your mind and body boy I know that you will make me proud", were the final words that grandfather had said before departing.

So I did just that. Every morning I trained with Uncle Gwayne for close to four hours after which I would go to the citadel with Lord Ormund and was taught a wide range of subjects related to war, commerce, and politics.

But It did not take long for the rumors to start. "The Kinslayer", they called me. "Child beater", was another famous one. I would hear the servants whispering about it amongst themselves and so did the merchants and the guards along with the vassals of House Hightower.

To make matters worse I started getting dreams. No nightmares would suit it better. The image of Rhaena lying in a pool of blood with her eye in my hand while Darksister pierces my head with the 'Rogue' smiling as he slowly pulls out the valyrian steel blade.

The dreams continued for a few months until I finally went to the Starry Sept in hopes of finding a cure.

It was there that I met the High Septon. At first glance, he seemed to be an old and frail man but then when I started conversing with him I realized how wise he was.

After meeting him for a few more times I told him about the dreams. After a moment of silence, he uttered a word. Repent.

I became livid. Repent. Repent for what? Defending myself from my bastard nephews?

"Repent for what you did to that innocent young girl whom you have scarred for life my prince", he said.

Hearing him It suddenly dawned on me the gravity of what I had done. I had scarred her for life and uttered those horrible things about her mother and when she fought back I took her eye.

I wondered whether the Gods would ever forgive me and asked the High Septon.

"The gods will forgive you my prince If you do what Is right", he said.

After hearing his words began contemplating how to proceed so when I went to sleep that day I prayed to every aspect of the seven and asked for forgiveness promising that the next time I would meet her I would apologize.

Now as I saw her in the distance standing next to her grandmother I became scared. Various thoughts came into my mind. What If she never forgives me? What would I have done If I was in her position? But I knew the answer to the latter question. The previous me would have gone berserk and never would have forgiven the person who had done that to me and I would not rest until I made the person suffer in the most brutal ways. It seemed that due to my bond with Vhagar, my emotions also get stronger so If I am experiencing anger then there are times that I would just lose control.

"You fight like a wild animal", my uncle had said after one of the training sessions back in Oldtown.

But as I made my way toward Princess Rhaena to apologize I saw 'him'. The man who was my rival. The one whom I had trained day and night to defeat in Oldtown. All those blood, sweat, and tears that I had poured into training just so that I could have a chance at beating him.

But before our confrontation in the field, I needed to talk to him about it. Something which only he would understand.