King's Landing 300 AC.
Oberyn.
He woke up to find Ellaria, Arianne, and his girls looking worriedly at him. Oberyn was in bed and could barely remember how he got here. His head hurt, his cheek hurt and it took him a few moments to properly focus on everything around him. When Ellaria handed him the mug filled with water he gratefully accepted it, drinking it down quickly and feeling himself grow more steady as he did so. Once he was done, he handed her back the mug and sat up on the bed, his hands going to his cheek and then to his forehead and feeling a bump on both.
"What happened?" he asked as Ellaria looked at him concernedly.
"You and the prince sparred, he struck you I think." Ellaria said reaching out to touch the bumps herself.
"You think?" he asked confusedly.
"There was a light, from his swords, father, none of us could truly see what happened." Obara said her face tight and she held her anger inside for now.
He closed his eyes briefly as he tried to remember, the images soon coming back to him. They had sparred and he'd coated the blade with a slow-acting poison. Oberyn had been waiting for an opening that never came, the bastard's fundamentals were too good and his moves too quick. Even the discomfort that he'd hoped for and most swordsmen faced when met with his spear wasn't present. Had he cut him? Had he managed to land a blow? He wasn't sure, the last thing he remembered was what he had said about the bastard's mother.
" A whore who died in a bed, that was always to be her life and no good and true man in the realm mourned for the bitch when she fell."
It was what he truly believed but something he'd never said to anyone but his brother and the only reason he'd said it to the bastard was to make him falter. He remembered it clearly now, he'd been frustrated, the bastard was toying with him and he knew all he needed was one opening. So he'd gone for the bastard's jugular and had expected his words would get an angry reaction. That they would make him lose focus and Oberyn would cut him during that distraction. It had made the bastard angry all right, but had he managed to cut him?.
"Was he cut?" he asked to silence "The bastard did I cut him?"
"He was unmarked, father." Nymeria said.
"FUCK." he shouted.
He got up from the bed and was a little unsteady on his feet, Oberyn having to be helped by Ellaria to dress himself. By the time he had done so he'd had a chance to look at the bruises on his face, the one on his forehead was an ugly-looking bump but the one on his cheek could have been so much worse. Had the bastard just hit him a little harder then he may have broken rather than bruised the bone and Oberyn wondered if he'd held back.
Whether he had or not made little difference but it was something that he wished he knew the truth of. Once dressed he broke his fast though it was mid-afternoon and spoke to his children and Arianne to see if Rhaenys or his sister had come to see him. Elia had but his niece had not and it annoyed him greatly. Her closeness to the bastard was almost complete now. She was working with Tywin Lannister to make herself ready to serve as Daemon's Hand should he come to be crowned and that was partly why he'd been so rash.
Time was slipping away from him just as his niece was and should Daemon actually be crowned then the only way he could be removed was in a war. He feared that Rhaenys and Elia would not be on their bloods side in such a scenario and if so, then what? Aegon was unmanned and he too was somewhat in his bastard brother's debt. Who was there for Dorne to crown when they brought the bastard to his knees?. He was sitting there contemplating this when the servant arrived with the note, Oberyn nodding to Ellaria to read it after the boy had handed it to her.
"We're summoned to the Throne Room, all of us." Ellaria said and he motioned to her to hand him the note so he could read it himself.
It was as she had said, summoned, ordered as if they were the same as everyone else and not tied to the crown by blood. His first instinct was to ignore it, to simply tear it up and spend the day as far from the Throne Room as he could. He had no fear of going there, he was a Prince of Dorne and not even Rhaegar had the balls to call him out publicly. Yet for some reason he found that he had a desire to find out what this was all about and so he told Ellaria, Arianne, and his children to make ready.
When they arrived at the Throne Room it was clear that something big was to happen. Oberyn looked around the room to see every person of importance that was in the city was present. The Tyrell's, The Lannister's, his own family, and each and every one of the Small Council members. He looked to see if anyone knew what was to occur and was surprised to find that like he, they were in the dark. The Old Lion must know and yet looking into Tywin Lannister's face to find out what the man was thinking was an exercise in futility.
On one side of the room stood the High Septon and various Septons and Septas, on the other stood the bastard's red priests and the rest of his accompaniment and Oberyn felt a sense of apprehension come over him for some reason. What that reason was he was about to find out as the Kingsguard began to escort the members of the Royal Family into the Throne Room. The Bastard and his wife, Rhaenys and Aegon were all announced and were soon taking their places on either side of the Iron Throne. Then came Rhaella, Viserys, and Daenerys, and then finally Rhaegar and Elia walked in and Oberyn looked to his sister for any sign of what was to happen. Finding to his annoyance that she was not looking back at him.
"His grace has words of great import to share, it would do well to remember where you are and keep your decorum." Tywin Lannister said stepping forward and then Oberyn and everyone else in the room's eyes were on the King as he now sat the throne.
It took Rhaegar a moment to begin to speak, Oberyn was not sure if the man looked nervous or excited as he did so.
"As you are all aware, I have named my son Prince Daemon Targaryen as my heir and as your future king. Normally such a future only comes when a king has passed and though at one point I would have wished for nothing more than to be your king until my dying day, it is no longer something I want or feel able to continue as.
So in consultation with my wife and my family, I've decided that effective immediately I shall be standing down as King of the Seven Kingdoms and handing over my duties and responsibilities to my son, King Daemon Targaryen, the First of his Name. A true coronation will be held within the moon but as of this moment, I am no longer the king." Rhaegar said standing up and moving over to where Elia was before nodding to the bastard.
Oberyn didn't need to look to see the shocked faces and he could only imagine what his own looked like. He did look at Daemon as he walked to the Iron Throne and as he took the seat that had been vacated by his father.
"King Daemon Targaryen long may he reign." Rhaegar shouted.
"Long may he reign." he heard Elia, Rhaenys, and Aegon say.
"Long may he reign." Rhaella, Viserys, and Daenerys said loudly.
Soon everyone in the room was chanting it, even he and his family, though with no great feeling. Oberyn found his eyes drawn to the bastard's own and he saw the small smirk on his face as he looked at him.
'War it was to be then.' he thought as he looked at him and he felt a shudder when he swore he saw flames in the bastard's eyes.
King's Landing 300 AC.
Rhaella.
She wasn't sure what bothered her most, that the fool of a Dornish prince had seen fit to provoke Daemon or that Daemon cared not about it. Had it not been for what Rhaegar was about to do then that and that alone would have been her focus. However given what Rhaegar was to do and that it was something she'd wished for, planned for, and believed would never come to pass after Daemon's disappearance and was now about to actually see, it was that her attention turned to. Her eyes were everywhere as she and her children took their place near the throne and as Rhaegar began to speak. Mainly though they were on the fool of a Dornish prince whose own eyes were focussed firmly on her grandson.
When the chants broke out, she could see how false his own were and that he and his equally foolish brother would not be best pleased about this turn of events. It gave her pause, made her worry on a day when she should rejoice. Not that Oberyn, Doran, or Dorne could actually pose a military threat to the rest of the Seven Kingdoms. Even without Daemon's dragon, Dorne was outmatched. Especially now they had the West, Reach and North tired up in a nice little bow. No, it wasn't a military threat that she worried about, it was a far more direct one to Daemon himself that she feared.
Poison was the way of Dorne, the way of the Red Viper, and Daemon would need to be on his guard because they would seek to see him fall, of that she was certain. As her family left the Throne Room, she resolved to speak to Daemon about this but again she found her attention drawn elsewhere. This time to her oldest son, Rhaegar for the first time looked relaxed and almost dare she say it, happy. Elia too seemed to almost bounce from the Throne Room and it brought a smile to her face as she looked at them.
"Mother?" Dany asked when she noticed her smiling.
"Your brother looks happy, Dany." she said softly as Dany turned to look at Viserys before she realized she meant Rhaegar.
"He does, this is what he wishes?" Dany asked.
"I think it's what he needs, Dany." she said and her daughter nodded.
When they reached the family apartments, Rhaella noticed it for the first time, how the Kingsguard now were far closer to Daemon than to Rhaegar and it made her wonder if he'd keep them as they were. Would Daemon seek newer members? Some of his own men, perhaps? Or would he seek to keep men like Arthur and Oswell as his own guards or maybe just appoint them to guard the rest of their family. It made her think of Rhaegar and Elia and their own plans, what guards they may take or need with them and what it actually meant to have a living king replaced rather than a dead one.
"I think that went well." Daemon said and she found herself ready to chide her grandson only to see the smirk on his face and realize he was simply trying to lighten the mood even further, Rhaella then chuckling despite herself.
"What happens now?" Viserys asked and as she readied to answer it was Rhaegar who did so.
"The ravens have been sent to those not here to call them to the coronation and in time Elia, Aegon, our granddaughter, and myself will move to Summerhall." Rhaegar said and though it barely covered all that was to happen, it was succinct and to the point.
"And Daemon?" Dany asked.
"Apparently, I'm the king now." Daemon said rolling his eyes and Rhaella shook her head both glad to see him so relaxed and annoyed he was taking things so casually, something he picked up on when he looked her way "I think we need to speak as a family, those who are staying anyway." Daemon said more seriously before looking to Rhaegar, Elia, and Aegon. Rhaella laughing fully when her son spoke.
"I think we've just been dismissed by a king, my love, an odd feeling but one I very much enjoy." Rhaegar said and he, Elia, and Aegon turned to leave, Daemon looking to his father and giving him a nod and a look which to her mind said they'd speak later.
Once they were gone, it was only she, Daemon, Rhaenys, Dany, Viserys, and Myrcella who were left in the room, Daemon bidding them sit and sending out for refreshments. Rhaella didn't think any were hungry or even thirsty and yet she knew they welcomed the thought all the same. She looked on as Daemon spoke softly to Myrcella and then to Rhaenys and when she turned to her children she saw that they looked almost lost, not quite put out but almost at a loss for what to do. It made her think that perhaps they needed a role, or that they wished for one and it was something she resolved to speak to Daemon about. Her grandson surprising her and them when just after the food and wine arrived, he brought it up himself.
"As you know Rhaenys is to be my Hand and most of the Small Council is to stay as it is. I've yet to speak to Arthur about the Kingsguard or to Elia and my father about what guards need to be put in place to see to theirs, Aegon's, and my niece's protection. But that can be sorted later, what needs to be sorted now is your own roles, aunt, uncle." Daemon said and Rhaella found herself looking curiously at her grandson.
"You're sending us away?" Viserys asked, his voice sounding worried and angered.
"What? Of course, not, the last thing I wish to do is send you away uncle. I was thinking more of some formal role for you and for Dany, if that's what you wish for?" Daemon said.
"I.." Dany said.
"You care about the smallfolk, Dany, your work to see them fed and clothed though charitable and good is almost a distraction." Daemon said and Dany went to protest only for Daemon to speak quickly, thankfully "I don't mean it's not something you care greatly about, more it's on a small scale. Perhaps you'd like to do so in a much larger way?"
"Daemon?" Rhaella asked curiously.
"Lord Stannis is Master of the People, perhaps you could as Rhaenys has with Lord Tywin, spend some time working with him, him and perhaps with Lady Melisandre too." Daemon said and Rhaella looked to Dany who seemed almost excited at the idea.
"You wish my daughter to replace him one day?" Rhaella asked.
"I wish our family to work together, to be a family, grandmother as I know you do too." Daemon said and she smiled at him as he turned to Viserys "To that end uncle, I'd like for you to work with the Lord Commander of the Gold Cloaks, to learn from him all you can about the enforcement of laws, which ones work and which ones do not." Daemon said and Rhaella found herself smiling beamingly at her grandson as he spoke.
He wished Viserys to be his Master of Laws but he knew as she did that her son wasn't ready, he'd spent far too many years not caring about anything and so he'd be unsuitable. Unlike with Dany, he couldn't put him to learn from the current holder of that position as having Viserys too close to Dorne would not be a good idea, especially if what Rhaella feared was to come to pass. Having him instead learn about the practicalities of laws, that was different and would be the best training he could have. She waited to hear what Viserys said, Rhaella worrying that her son may see it as a slight or think he was being given a meaningless position, or that his own feelings for Daemon may cloud his judgment.
"I'd like that very much, Daemon, very much indeed, thank you." Viserys said and both she and Dany were almost stunned by how happy Viserys sounded when he spoke.
"Things will change here, with my father and Elia gone, once I'm crowned and sworn in for true then things will change. I'd like to keep those changes to a minimum between us, for us to be a family where we can be." Daemon said and she saw Rhaenys, Viserys and Dany all nod "Can you give me and my grandmother a few moments."
"Of course Daemon." Rhaenys said and Rhaella watched as Daemon spoke to Myrcella before she rose and then she, Rhaenys, Dany, and Viserys left the room leaving them alone.
She almost laughed when Daemon almost shrunk in his chair, his shoulders slumped as if he'd just removed a huge weight from them. When he offered her a glass of wine she took it and then watched as he poured himself one, the two of them sitting there quietly for some time before Daemon spoke.
"I'd ask you not to get angry but I know that won't be something you'll be able to help, so instead I'd tell you that I was never in danger and that I will be dealing with him." Daemon said.
"Daemon?"
"Prince Oberyn tried to kill me today." Daemon said casually.
"What? When? The Spar?" she asked her voice calm though she was anything but.
"In the spar, his blade was coated with poison and he sought to cut me with it, to provoke me to lose myself so he'd get an opportunity. He insulted my mother, greatly, and even had he not tried to kill me, that is something I can't forgive." Daemon said, his voice like ice, and yet his eyes promised nothing but fire and she welcomed seeing it.
"What are you going to do about it?" she asked.
"I'm going to kill him, I just need to pick my moment." Daemon said.
"You should just do it now and be done with it, Daemon." she said her anger boiling now.
"I cannot, war may be inevitable, grandmother but it won't be me that starts it. Dorne awaits an excuse, I'll not give it to them, when it comes though, I'll end him, Doran, Arianne, and any of them that I need to. Oberyn though, he dies regardless, even if my god didn't demand it of me, my mother's honor does." Daemon said.
"R'hllor demands it?" she asked curiously.
"He tried to kill his chosen, grandmother, R'hllor doesn't forgive such things." Daemon said with a half-smirk on his face.
She nodded as she looked at him, not sure if she herself could wait to see Oberyn dead and it was something she knew that she needed to speak to Bon about, but she was relieved that he was well aware of the dangers he faced.
"Thank you for Viserys and Dany. It means a lot to me that you seek to bring them closer." she said reaching out her hand and glad when he did likewise and took hers in his own.
"I know it's what you wish, grandmother, but it's practical too, we can't trust anyone more than family, ours, Myrcella's, mine in the North, and the Tyrell's too when they're joined. I'll expand the Small Council so that we can still see the realm rewarded but Dany and Viserys they need a purpose." Daemon said.
"They do."
"Besides, I have more selfish reasons too." Daemon said a smirk on his face.
"Which are?" she asked curiously
"This way I get to keep my grandmother close as well." Daemon said and she shook her head as she laughed at him.
"How did you get so wise, grandson?" she asked laughing still.
"I had a grandmother who taught me very well." he said and she looked at him proudly.
Yi Ti 300 AC.
Daario.
It took them almost a moon to reach Carcosa and Daario was amazed that Pyat Pree was able to ride as hard as he was and keep up with them. The warlock was far more durable than he looked and as they ate one night, Daario found himself wondering if it was their god's favor that made him so. He himself felt stronger too, less in need of sleep, and more able to almost wave off the effects of tiredness and fatigue. Yet there were also some big differences between him and the Warlock in terms of size and appetite. Daario finding himself almost ravenous at times while Pyat barely ate anything.
They were almost two weeks from Yin when they saw the cloud of dust heading their way, Daario looking to their men and telling them to stand down, not truly knowing why he did so but feeling that these were allies rather than enemies that rode their way. It turned out to be the right thing to do for a couple of reasons, as the men were allies and if they had not been then the few men with him wouldn't have been able to stand against them anyway. He looked to Pyat and saw the warlock had an excited look on his face, it was one he wore only when he spoke of their god and of their plans and so he knew now who it was that led these men.
Pol Qo, The Hammer of the Jogos Nhai, one of the two men that Bu Gai had ordered him to see dead. Why he feared this man was immediately clear as he and the men he led, seemed to Daario to be men he'd not wish to be on the wrong side of. They were larger than most Yi Ti men, bald-headed apart from a strip of hair down the middle of their skulls, skulls that were large and pointed at the top. Even amongst them, Pol Qo stood out, be it a presence, how his eyes seemed almost as dark like a moonless sky, or how when you looked into those eyes you could almost see the cruelty that lay within the man's soul. Cruelty that when Pyat Pree told him tales of had made even Daario shudder.
"Do we call him God-Emperor?" Daario asked Pyat, his voice barely a whisper.
"No, that's just a ruse, he named himself the Orange Emperor so that Bu Gai wouldn't know that he truly served the Yellow Emperor Chai Yen." Pyat said.
"Serves him?" he asked as Pol Qo and his men dismounted from their Zorses.
"Commander of his armies." Pyat said both of them looking at the men in front of them and not each other as they spoke.
It was a strange thing to him, his relationship with their god was vastly different than Pyat Pree's. The Warlock at times seemed to know things that he did not and yet it was clear that he deferred to him and not the other way round. Pyat telling him that their god had marked him out as different and that it was for Daario to lead and Pyat to follow. It brought him comfort and fed into his ego he knew, but he also knew that Pyat spoke the truth, after all their god had told him so.
" You shall be highest of my servants, Daario Naharis, my chosen above them all." the voice would say at night and he'd feel a warmth come over him when he heard it.
Pol Qo didn't smile when he reached them, he didn't even look pleased to see them and yet he bowed, he deferred to him if not to Pyat. His opening words proved who he truly served and though they were spoken in Yitish, Daario found he could understand them completely, something that he decided to keep to himself for now. They didn't stay and speak long, Pol Qo's men joining with their own and not long after they'd met the man, they were riding just as hard and fast as they had been, this time with him.
Each night they stopped to rest, Pol Qo spoke of what they would do to Bu Gai, that Daario had been sent to see it done, to see the false God Emperor fall. Daario paid it little mind though he did think it funny that he had met one emperor who sent him to kill a man he thought another and now that same man wished him to kill the emperor who had sent him to him. When he began to think of Chai Yen asking him the same, he needed to get up and walk from the fire they sat around, the humor of the situation requiring him to laugh loudly. That was something he doubted Pol Qo would find as funny as he did and so he moved from the camp and made his way to some nearby trees.
" These men are merely tools, Daario Naharis, a means to an end. You will do as they bid but not because they bid it, because I do, but you only do so when they give you the Arakh and not before." the voice said as Daario stopped, his laughter now a thing of the past.
" As you will it, so it shall be done, my god." he said softly and he swore he heard a god's laughter when he did so.
When they reached Carcosa he found it to be a far larger city than he'd expected, Bu Gai had spoken of it as if it was little more than a village and yet it was anything but. It reminded him of Mantarys, both in its layout and in the feelings the city engendered in him. There was an overwhelming sense of oppression and darkness here, a sense of things happening behind closed doors that he dared not wish to open. The closer he got to Chai Yen's palace the more that darkness seemed palpable, almost as if it was reaching out for him and would envelop him in its cold embrace if he let his guard down.
He caught Pol Qo looking intently at him and he saw it clearly then, the man seemed to share some of that very same darkness. It should scare him, terrify him, and in some ways, it did but also there was a small part of him that almost wished to close his eyes and welcome it. Whether it was him or his god, that feeling soon rescinded and they were welcomed by more of the pointed-headed Jagos Nhai and led inside to meet the man who would rule Yi Ti.
The palace itself was darker than he had expected and though it was full of elaborate decorations, they were barely able to be seen. Though Daario did see jewel-filled tables and golden torches that barely lit their path. It looked to him as almost an afterthought, a simple fact of life. The wealth that surrounded him was hard to truly discern and yet it seemed as if no one cared for it. As if it mattered so little or that they had so much of it that they just placed it wherever they wished. For some reason, he knew immediately that no man had ever so much as managed to take even one jewel from this palace and that those who tried had very quickly wished they had not.
"You are in the presence of the God-Emperor of Yi Ti, The Sorcerer Lord of Carcosa, the Nine and Sixtieth Yellow Emperor, Chai Yen." a young girl with silver hair said and Daario found himself in a large open room that he had no memory of entering.
In front of them sitting on a throne that looked as if it was made of pure gold and was covered in gems larger than any he had ever seen, was Chai Yen. He was a larger older man that looked far more like a typical Yitish man than Pol Qo or the men who surrounded him did. He had a large beard that grew down to his chest and was perfectly groomed, eyes of a blue so bright that Daario was certain even at night you'd see them and he held a gold scepter in his hand, with a giant emerald set in the middle of what looked like a sun at its top.
"Chaos is a ladder, Daario Naharis." Chai Yen said.
"Chaos is a ladder, God Emperor." he replied with a small nod.
They were feasted that night, Daario again one of the only ones of their group who ate more than just picked at his food. He sat to the side of Chai Yen and across from the girl who had announced the God-Emperor and who he had named his daughter. Yet she looked anything but, instead, she almost looked Lyseni to him and the way she looked at him made her interest clear. That the God-Emperor could see her interest and welcomed it which discomfited him somewhat and he had the feeling that he wished for them to sleep together, perhaps he would encourage it even. It was something that he wasn't sure he should do and yet knew he would at the same time, and as he looked to Pyat Pree, he could see the warlock almost willing him to do so.
Tonight however wouldn't be the night he found out, as once the meal was ended then Chai Yen bid him join him and led him from the room and down some steps into an even larger room that was beneath it. If he thought the rooms and hallways he'd seen so far were full of gold and gems, then what he looked at in this one made those seem barren. He'd never even imagined such wealth and doubted that even the Iron Bank had as much in their vaults.
"Our God is good, Daario Naharis, and to him you are special, but wealth is not what men like us seek, not when power is so much more important." Chai Yen said.
"Not just power." he said softly.
"No, vengeance too. In this, we both concur. Bu Gai and his ilk have taken what belongs to my blood and you Daario Naharis will see that righted for me."
"Why don't you march, you have the coin to buy the largest army the world has ever seen, you could take Yin in the blink of an eye, could you not?" he asked looking to the other man who bid him follow as he walked through the room to the front of it.
"I follow my god's will and he wills us to make ready for when he has need of us. Our fight is not with our fellow men, it's with those from a distant land, with the Horselords and the brother of the man your own fight is with." Chai Yen said and Daario looked at him and then watched as Chai Yen picked up an Arakh that was laying on a table "From our god." he said handing it to him.
He took the Arakh and held it in his hand, quickly feeling that it was lighter than his own. With a nod from Chai Yen, he stepped back and began to swing it. Moving it in arcs as he turned left and right and he could feel it almost like it was an extension of his arm. There was something else there, something more and he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was. All he knew was that he was meant to have this for himself and now that he did, he'd never wield any other blade than this one.
"When you take Bu Gai's head, make sure you use that blade, then you'll see our god's true favor." Chai Yen said.
"Chaos is a ladder." he said with a smile.
"Chaos is a ladder." Chai Yen said.
King's Landing 300 AC.
Arthur.
Rhaegar's news had caught him by surprise, not that he was stepping down but that he was doing so this suddenly. That he had then named Daemon as king had also created problems that Arthur hadn't even considered before now. What was to become of the Kingsguard? Who were they to guard? Did Daemon even need them to guard him? Those were the easier questions he found, the more difficult ones were of a more personal nature and related to him and to Rhaegar.
Should he leave with his friend? Act as his guard and his alone as he had for more than eight and ten years or should he stay by her son's side? Did he wish to? Or did he wish like Rhaegar to just walk away from it all, to simply hang up his white cloak as his friend had hung up his crown? It was to thoughts like this that he found himself contemplating as he sat in White Sword Tower, thoughts like this and knowing that he had work to do either way. Were he to leave then he needed to leave the order in a better shape than it now was. They needed to be seven once more and so they had places to fill, more if he and others decided that their service ended when the king's had. He turned to hear the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs and was surprised to see Jonathor, Oswell, Barristan, and Daemon all walking into the tower. Arthur rising to his feet immediately and almost forgetting that Daemon was king now as he asked who guarded Rhaegar and the others.
"I've asked my own men to do so for now, Ser Arthur, I wished to speak to you all, to speak on the future." Daemon said looking at him.
"Of course, your grace." Arthur replied.
"Daemon, please, I know I'm to get used to it and that people will need to refer to me as such, but I bloody well hated being called a prince, it's so much harder to get used to being called a king." Daemon said with a chuckle as he bid them all sit.
"Some wine, Daemon?" Oswell asked and Arthur almost glowered at him only for Daemon to nod and ask him to bring some for them all.
"We should not…." he began only for Daemon to interrupt him.
"For one night perhaps we should, this night especially, Arthur." Daemon said and as Arthur looked to Barristan and the others he saw them nod and so he did likewise.
Oswell brought the wine and five glasses, pouring them each one, and Arthur watched as Daemon sipped his while Barristan and Jonathor did the same. He picked up his glass and looked at it for a moment, almost feeling that he should just leave it untouched before he then took a small sip and saw Daemon smile and his brothers relax.
"I came to speak on the Kingsguard, Arthur, to speak to you all on it. Though I may not have shown it since I came back, as Barristan would no doubt attest, I am well aware of how important it is for them to be seen guarding the Royal Family and myself even more now" Daemon said with a chuckle and Arthur looked to see the small nod from Barristan.
"It is essential, Daemon." he said and Daemon nodded.
"I have my own guards, my own skills. I've told my grandmother that I walk with a god's favor and that I at times have to face things that even men such as you, Arthur, are no match for. But… I also have to face things that are and those others are in the future while I'm here to speak of the now. I know not your plans, Arthur, I've no doubt that my father's own have caused you to reflect on where to go from here." Daemon said and Arthur found himself concentrating on the ease with which he named Rhaegar his father, finding that it pleased him a little to hear him named as such.
"I have, Daemon, both because of my own feelings regarding his grace and not knowing your wishes regarding the Kingsguard." Arthur said to shocked looks from his brothers, Barristan and Oswelll even more so than Jonathor.
"I can offer no answer to the first of those, Arthur, but let me tell you of the second. I, my wife, my grandmother, Rhaenys, Dany, and Viserys, all of us will be staying in the Red Keep. In time my grandmother will no doubt seek to return to Dragonstone, be it for visits or for longer stays. At times, I'll need to leave, to take flight and travel, journeys such as the last one I was on and though I will always have Thoros with me, in future I'd seek a Kingsguard to join me also."
Arthur looked at Daemon as he picked up the wine glass and took another sip, trying to judge both his mood and his mind. He was saying that he wished a Kingsguard, that he was accepting the need for one, which was a relief in some ways. Though the idea of him flying off to gods knows where was very much not. His mood though was harder for him to figure out, Arthur not sure if Daemon was trying to be kingly or if he was nervous and in the end, he believed it was a little of both.
"I would seek the Kingsguard to be as it was, to be seven again and for you to lead them Arthur and serve me as you have my father. I would ask each of the seven to be assigned to the positions they would hold, each of my family to have their own sworn shield just as it was supposed to be, with two serving the king or queen when they sit the throne. I intend to speak to my father to have him agree to accept some of my own men to act his guards in Summerhall, men that I trust to serve as their lealest protectors." Daemon said.
"I believe his grace has picked men to serve as his guard, Daemon." Oswell said and Arthur knew that he had, though it had been more a household than a true guard.
"I would seek my own men there too, Oswell. The Unsullied are unmatched, my father, Elia, my brother and my niece could have four times their number in guards and bannermen and yet they'd not be of a match with the Unsullied who'd guard them on my behalf. It would not only give me peace of mind but it would ensure their safety, especially if they had a man in charge of their guard who they can trust completely." Daemon said looking to him.
"Daemon I…" he said and he wondered how he'd known that he was considering that as one of his options.
"I'll not hold it against you if that's your choice, Arthur, nor ask you to stay if you don't wish to. I'd like you to, but I understand this is a unique situation and so I'll leave it to you to decide it free of any worries about how your decision will be welcomed." Daemon said before rising to his feet "I'll leave you to discuss things to yourselves, my own men await me outside and I'll not be leaving the Red Keep tonight nor will any of my family, Good Sers." Daemon said with a small nod before walking from the room and leaving the four of them there looking at each other.
Arthur almost laughed when Oswell moved to fill the glasses once more, finding himself drinking down what was in his own and holding it out for another much to Oswell's surprise. He looked to Barristan and to Jonathor and saw they were deep in thought. Both men thinking of the past, the future, and of what Rhaegar stepping down truly meant, and he was pleased to see a smile on both of their faces as they imagined what serving in Daemon's Kingsguard may be like. He knew that Barristan wished to be back in King's Landing with the rest of them, that Jonathor liked serving the Princesses Daenerys and Rhaenys as much as he had ever liked serving anyone As for Oswell, his brother was easy, he lived to wear a white cloak and Arthur could see that he was thinking of just how much fun he could have with a king who laughed and japed just as much as he did.
For Arthur he found that he had no choice, no true decision to make, he was a Kingsguard, Lord Commander, and Daemon was now his king. As much as he'd miss his friend when he left King's Landing, the idea of serving Daemon and of being his sworn shield appealed to him greatly. As did the idea of fights to come, not threats to the king's safety or knives in the dark, but fights, true fights where Dawn could sing and legends were born. Guarding his king's back was an honor but at times it was and had been incredibly dull, he doubted that guarding Daemon's back would ever be something he'd see as such.
"To the king, long may he reign." he said catching the others by surprise.
"Long may he reign." his brothers said as they sat, drank, and for the first time in many years, Arthur Dayne went to bed drunk.
King's Landing 300 AC.
Cersei.
Knowing your daughter was to be queen one day and preparing for it in your head was far different from your daughter being queen now. It had caught her by surprise, Jaime by surprise, and Tyrion also. Though she doubted her father hadn't known beforehand and she felt a little put out that he'd not spoken to them about it. When Rhaegar had made the announcement, she'd looked to both of her brothers and found them dumbfounded, though quickly they'd begun to smile when they realized that Myrcella was now the Queen of the Seven Kingdoms.
She'd wanted nothing more than to go to her girl, to speak to her and tell her both how very proud she was of her and that she was there and would be there for anything she needed from her. It was not to be though, as soon as the announcement was made, Myrcella, Daemon, and the rest of the royal family departed and they accepted no visitors. Not even her father was allowed to speak to them, though again it was something that she was sure he'd known about beforehand. It had made her ride back to their manse to be an annoying and frustrating one and not even Tyrion's good cheer as they sat in the carriage had relieved her of either of those feelings.
It was only later that night when they'd eaten and spoken briefly about what this meant, that she soon found a way to make her think of something else. Jaime just as he had always been able to quickly making her forget the troubles or annoyances of her mind and concentrate on things that were far more pleasurable. That he didn't tease, didn't prolong and instead just brought her over the edge, again and again, was something she welcomed greatly. As she did laying in his arms when they were finished and feeling his hand in her own.
"Our girl is queen, Jaime, queen and married to a man who is good and true." she said happily.
"She's happy, Cersei, all I ever wished was for her to be happy, I feared a crown would never make her so." Jaime said and she smiled as he played with her fingers.
"Daemon, you like him don't you?" she asked softly.
"I do, though he confuses me too and I know not how to explain the things he does or says, but he loves her and she loves him." Jaime said and she smiled, glad he felt as she did.
Her father liked Daemon because of what he had done for them, true he liked that he made Myrcella happy also and he respected the man that Daemon was. It was however how far he'd made their family rise that pleased her father so. Tyrion was far more simple in his reasons, her brother was a lot like their father too in some respects but he wore his heart far closer to his chest and Myrcella was ever his favorite. He had liked Daemon before he'd disappeared and he was happy to see him return, that he had made Myrcella so very happy though was all Tyrion truly cared about.
For her, it was still a little of both, she wanted Myrcella happy of course she did, it was all she ever wished for any of her children. Joffrey she knew now could never have been happy, his problems and temperament would never see him so. Tommen was getting there each and every day and though she may not be best pleased that he had found a rose to court. Perhaps that was just because she saw too much of the girl she'd once been when she looked at Margaery Tyrell. Myrcella deserved to be a princess, a queen, and though it had been at one time her own dream to be so, she felt no jealousy that it was her daughter who managed it and not her.
"I must go." Jaime said and she kissed him before he left the bed, Cersei rolling over to fall asleep once he did so.
In the end, it took her more than a day to finally get a chance to see Myrcella. Cersei first going to the manse where Daemon and his men had made their own only to find that Myrcella had moved to the Red Keep. It annoyed her and yet pleased her greatly at the same time. When she reached the Red Keep she then found that she had to wait to see Myrcella and the wait seemed endless. After she was finally brought in to see her, Myrcella apologized immediately. Her daughter told her that she'd been spending time with Elia going over some of the duties that were now hers, and unbeknownst to her, word had been given that she'd not to be disturbed.
"Forgive me mother, I wasn't aware you'd come." Myrcella said worriedly.
"That's quite understandable, Your grace." she said and saw her daughter frown.
"Mother." Myrcella said reproachfully.
"You are queen now, me calling you Cella is a thing of the past." she said smiling as she did so.
"I understand now why Daemon hates it so."
"Is it truly so bad, to be queen?" she asked half in jest, and yet she worried a little too.
"No, there is much I need to do, much I need to learn. Daemon's grandmother and Queen Elia have been most helpful and with Elia here still it isn't as overwhelming as it may have been, but it's the protocol, the deference, it's odd when you've not been used to it." Myrcella sighed.
"People have always deferred to you, your grace." she said, seeing Myrcella threaten to roll her eyes, more so she guessed because she knew now that she had been serious and wouldn't use her name very much if ever from this point on.
"People yes, Lord, Ladies, Princes and Princesses not so much." Myrcella said.
"When is the coronation?" she asked as she finally took a seat, Myrcella sitting across from her.
"As soon as Daemon's uncle's and family arrive from the North." Myrcella said.
"In the Sept of Baelor?" she asked and Myrcella shook her head "Myrcella he can't." she said her shock at thinking that Daemon would insult the faith so making her forget titles for a moment.
"No, he can't, but he'll not do it in the Sept either, he's agreed to do it on the steps so the people can see and he's made the High Septon agree to allow Lady Melisandre and Thoros give him a blessing from the Red God too, though the Faith will get to place the crown on his head." Myrcella said laughing.
"Your grace?" she asked confusedly.
"He threatened the High Septon that should he not agree to his demands then he'd have Lady Melisandre crown him in a ceremony of fire in the Dragonpit. One that would have made our wedding's flames seem as if they were but a candle in the night." Myrcella said and Cersei found herself laughing at thoughts of what the High Septon may say to that before she then began to worry a little.
"You cannot provoke the faith so, your grace, either of you." she said and Myrcella nodded.
"Daemon won't be what he's not, mother, nor will I. We stand as the faith's truest protectors but we are responsible for Seven Kingdoms and not all of them follow the Seven."
Cersei found herself looking at her daughter proudly, hearing the resolve in how she spoke alleviating the worry and concern for what the faith may feel, for now at least. She listened as Myrcella told her of the plans for the Small Council, for the Kingsguard, and then when she asked her if she was staying here when her grandfather went back to Casterly Rock, Cersei saying that she of course would stay for as long as she was needed and laughing when Myrcella said that meant that she'd never be allowed to leave.
Later that day she spoke to Daemon briefly, to her father even more briefly, and was joined by Tyrion on her ride back to their manse, both of them speaking to each other and the little things they'd learned. Tyrion informed her that he'd been asked to stay on and become a member of the Small Council. That with her father going back to Casterly Rock, Daemon wished to have a member of their house serve still. Her brother both proud of the offer and yet not sure if he should take it and Cersei telling him to speak to their father before he turned it down.
She tried not to think of Jaime leaving and of how long it may be until she saw him or Tommen again if he did so and when they reached their manse she found there was a letter waiting for her. The seal was unknown to her and yet when she broke it open she found that the words made it clear who it was from.
Dragons may be a law upon themselves, but lions are not. What will the realm think when it finds out that the lions think themselves equal? When the realm finds out that it's not just dragons that lay in their brother's beds? What would the realm think if they found out that the cubs come from the union of a white lion and a golden lioness, rather than the tale that which most believe? What will the cubs think? Questions, questions, and yet no answers to them need to be found, instead, they can lay in the grass and wait for as long as any snake if a lioness does what she's bid. To crown a king is one thing, to crown a queen another, love finds a way and so to this I have but one suggestion. See that a prince remains a prince and a princess remains a princess and then secrets will remain where they belong, in the dark of the night and not in the light of the day.
She felt her chest tighten, her breathing coming in quick gasps and when Tyrion looked to her worriedly, she crumpled up the letter and shook her head, composing herself and hoping he'd not seen it. Jaime, she needed to speak to Jaime, she needed to do so quickly as she had no idea what it was she needed to do.
King's Landing 300 AC.
Ned Stark.
He tried not to laugh at the thoughts that he'd been in this city more since his nephew had come back to Westeros than he had in his entire life up to that point. Ned finding that he actually enjoyed coming here, or perhaps it was for what he was coming here for that he found his true enjoyment in. To see a king crowned that he was willing to serve with all his heart, to see her son be named as the king, that was something he found brought him more enjoyment than he ever knew he could feel.
Ned wasn't the only one happy to be here, Cat, Sansa, Arya, Bran, Rickon, and Benjen, all of them had looked forward to seeing the coronation from the moment that the raven came. Robb was the only one who had needed to temper his wishes to see his cousin named as king, as there must always be a Stark in Winterfell, and with all of them gone it really could only be his heir to sit in his stead. That it would give him practice for the day he ran it for true was no great comfort, though his son was happy enough to do his duty.
They'd arrived just in time, their journey through the North had suffered some bad weather and they'd stayed a little longer in Riverrun than he had wished. Though he'd not begrudge Cat time showing their children around their family home and they'd needed to wait for the Blackfish to come and join them on their journey too. Ned had been surprised with just how taken Brynden had been with Bran and with the cryptic words he spoke to both him and Cat. Brynden saying something about Daemon having some news for them once they reached King's Landing that he'd not go further into.
" What news?" he asked, as Cat looked to her uncle.
" I cannot say, Ned, Cat, truly I cannot. Only that it's important and it benefits both our families." Brynden said.
It had made him resolve to speak to Daemon once he could, to ask him what Brynden was speaking about, only he hadn't had the chance to do so as of yet. They'd barely had a chance to truly speak to Daemon other than to be greeted by him as he acted as the king, no, he was the king, even if he'd not been crowned yet, he was the king. Ned had looked and seen Ser Arthur Dayne standing at his shoulder and not at Rhaegar's letting any who doubted it know it to be true.
His daughters were upset a little that their own time with their cousin was even briefer than his. Sansa almost swooning when she saw Myrcella and speaking glowingly of her that night as they ate. Ned trying not to smirk when Arya rolled her eyes as Sansa said how Myrcella looked how a true queen should and he could see that Cat was relieved when Arya kept it to looks and didn't use words to annoy her sister. Bran and Rickon spoke of knights and of the Kingsguard, of Barristan the Bold and The Sword of the Morning and he knew that he'd have no choice but to stay for the Tourney now as well.
While his family hadn't truly spent time with their kin, the wolves very much had. Nymeria, Lady, Summer, and Shaggy Dog all running to Ghost as soon as they had seen the white wolf. Benjen was worried that the wolves wouldn't be welcomed, either in the Red Keep or in the city itself, only to find his worries were for naught. Daemon has seen that his family had been given rooms in the Maidenvault. They were the best guest rooms in the Red Keep and he knew that Cat and Sansa thought it a great honor, he though found the rooms too fancy, too luxurious, as they put even his own in Winterfell to shame and worse still he barely slept despite how tired he was. It was why he was up so early the next morning and then had to wait for the others to rise to break their fast and he was glad that the coronation was to take place early that day.
"Do I have to wear a dress?" Arya said grumpily.
"We're going to see a king crowned, Arya, of course, you have to wear a dress." Sansa said almost shocked by the idea that Arya would not dress appropriately.
Ned tuned out the inevitable arguments and by the time they left to head to the Sept of Baelor, it was only Sansa who looked truly comfortable in her best clothes. Arya fidgeted, Rickon looked ready to bolt and find the nearest puddle to play in and Bran just kept trying to get the collar of his shirt not to chafe his skin. All was forgotten when they reached the Sept though, Ned marveling at the crowd that had turned out. They were escorted to where they would stand, his family placed beside the Lannisters with the Targaryens on the opposite side. He looked to see the Old Lion standing with his granddaughter, a look of immense pride on his face and as he looked to the girl's mother he was surprised to see she wore a worried one on her own.
Across from them, the Targaryens looked otherworldly, Daemon's grandmother, his aunt, uncle, and brother, all bearing the looks that their family were famous for. Rhaegar looked far more relaxed than he had ever seen him, the man almost looking happy and he swore there was as much pride in his expression as there had been in the Old Lions. Elia stood with her daughter and a young girl who bore the looks of the Targaryens too, her red and black dress matching the ones that the princesses and Daemon's grandmother wore.
"The Lady Melisandre and Thoros of Myr." the herald called out to loud cheers "The High Septon." the same man said though this time the cheers were more muted.
Ned could feel the crowd's anticipation and then he saw his nephew out of the corner of his eye. Daemon was dressed in black and red, his swords rested on his back and he looked more nervous than he expected.
"Prince Daemon Targaryen." the herald shouted and the cheers were deafening as Daemon walked out with Ser Arthur behind him carrying the crown on a cushion and Dawn on his back just in case it was required.
He chuckled when Arya waved to her cousin and Rickon joined in, then laughed when Daemon actually waved back only to move his hand back down quickly when his grandmother frowned at him. Then he and the crowd hushed when Daemon took to his knees and the Lady Melisandre and Thoros moved forward.
"Today we come here to crown a prince a king in the light of the gods." Thoros said.
"Before the faith does so, R'hllor wishes to crown his chosen too." Melisandre said.
Ned found his eyes drawn to the red priestess and the priest as they stood on either side of his nephew, their hands hovering no more than an inch or so from his head.
"In the Name of the Lord of Light, The Heart of Fire, The God of Flame and Shadow. We name you not as our prince, but as our king. King Daemon Targaryen, the First of his Name." Thoros said.
Then as Ned and the others looked on, a ring of fire began to surround Daemon's head, forming into a crown and settling on his head before it faded away. He heard the gasps of the crowd, the cheers, and then both Melisandre and Thoros moved away and the High Septon stepped forward. The man rubbing some oil on Daemon's forehead before taking the crown from the cushion that Ser Arthur held.
"In the Name of the True Faith, of the Seven who are One, In the Name of the Father, The Smith, The Warrior, The Mother, The Maiden, The Crone, and The Stranger I crown Prince Daemon Targaryen as our king. Rise, King Daemon Targaryen, the First of his Name, King of the Andals, The Rhoynar and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm." the High Septon said loudly.
He looked on as Daemon turned to the crowd and then he heard the roar in the sky as the Black Dragon flew overhead, its flames coming in celebration and not in warning. Ned heard the crowd cheer loudly and as he looked to his nephew he and the others saw it clearly. The crown was aflame and a heart burned brightly at its center, its flames growing brighter and brighter before finally, they faded away and Ned listened as the cheers grew even louder still.