“Otto, patience.
Let the Grand Maester finish.” Viserys tapped the table lightly, motioning for Otto to sit.
“Forgive me, Your Grace.
The news is so dire I forgot myself.” Otto bowed his head and slowly returned to his seat.
Grand Maester Mellos opened a book and continued.
“According to the records, House Valezeth was one of the Forty Dragonlord families.
The last Valyrian emperor, Orion Valezeth, came from this house.
After the Doom, the family lost all its dragons.
Its descendants retreated behind the Black Walls of Volantis, surviving on the vast wealth their ancestors left behind.
But the previous head, Cleorius Valezeth, was a prodigy.
He amassed an even greater fortune and raised a standing army of several thousand full-time soldiers.
That force fought the Dothraki and sellsword companies for years, gaining deep combat experience.
Over a decade ago, Cleorius wed…”
The Grand Maester stopped.
“Continue,” the king said, pressing his head.
He had been stunned by this information too, and even after long thought, it remained hard to accept.
“The self-exiled Princess Saera Targaryen.”
The councilors fell silent.
Even Larys Strong looked down and toyed with his jewel, his thoughts unreadable.
“The princess bore three sons: Lancel, Valar, and Raymond.
It was Lancel Valezeth and Valar Valezeth who tamed the adult dragons.
Word from Pentos says the Valezeth fleet is sailing west.
At least three hundred large ships.”
“So they have dragons, wealth, and thousands of battle-hardened soldiers?” Ser Tyland Lannister pointed out the problem, deftly avoiding any mention of Princess Saera.
“Your Grace, we cannot allow dragons to slip beyond our control.” Otto Hightower rose sharply.
“I know.” The king waved a weary hand.
“Then tell me what we should do.”
“Send dragons.
We have Vhagar, Sunfyre, Dreamfyre.” Otto paused.
“Dragonstone holds Syrax, Caraxes, and Princess Rhaenys’s Meleys.
Our dragons are more numerous.”
“Lord Hand.” Larys Strong’s flat voice cut in.
“I must remind you that Princess Rhaenyra is with child.
As everyone knows.” He set his jewel back in its groove.
“A pregnant woman cannot ride.
Prince Aemond has only just risen from his sickbed and has ridden Vhagar once.
The same for Princess Helaena.
As for Prince Aegon…” Larys glanced sidelong at Otto.
Otto pressed his lips together and sighed inwardly.
He sat back down.
“Your Grace, if this matter is not handled swiftly, we risk a repeat of…” He did not say Aegon’s Conquest.
Viserys understood.
He looked to his other councilors.
Queen Alicent glanced at her father, then at her husband, and said nothing.
Lord Lyman coughed.
“Your Grace, the only dragonriders we can send to battle are Prince Daemon and Princess Rhaenys.
But…”
“Your Grace, since he is Princess Saera’s son, why not win him over and bring him into the realm?” Lord Jasper suddenly said.
Otto opened his mouth to object, then saw the sense in it.
No one at this table was a fool.
Every man here had read enough history to know what awaited a dragonlord house in Essos.
If Lancel stayed in Volantis or anywhere else in the east, the chaos that followed would swallow the continent and eventually consume his family and his dragons.
The purpose of his fleet sailing west was plain.
“At the Great Council of your grandfather, Jaehaerys the Conciliator, the children of Princess Saera were stripped of their inheritance rights.” Lord Jasper went on.
“And women in matters of succession…”
“Cough.”
Lord Lyman coughed loudly, cutting him off.
“Lord Wylde, do not drag other matters into this,” Lord Lyman warned.
The king’s face flickered, then steadied.
“Continue.”
“Forgive me, Your Grace.” Lord Jasper apologized quickly.
“Since inheritance is not at issue, we can regard him as another House Velaryon.”
“Lord Wylde.” Otto cut in.
“House Velaryon has followed House Targaryen for centuries.” He looked at the silent King Viserys.
“The two houses have intermarried for generations.
Only in Lord Corlys’s time, through Princess Rhaenys, did they briefly hold dragons.
There is no comparison.”
“Lord Hand, Lord Jasper has a point.” Grand Maester Mellos looked at Otto.
“House Velaryon once held three adult dragons, including Vhagar.
But after Lady Laena’s death, Prince Aemond reclaimed Vhagar.
And Seasmoke returned to the wild after Ser Laenor’s accident.”
“I understand you, Grand Maester.” Otto spread his hands.
“Bind them through marriage, and reclaim the dragons through that bond when they die.
But the royal house has no girls left.”
Queen Alicent finally found her opening.
“My lords, my son Aegon and daughter Helaena have already been wed and blessed by the Seven.
And Rhaenyra’s sons are betrothed to Prince Daemon’s daughters.”
“We can handle this through the next generation’s marriages,” Larys Strong said.
“Or wait for a new royal daughter to be born.
Grand Maester, if I recall, there are three brothers.”
Mellos nodded.
“Yes.
The youngest, Raymond Valezeth, is only twelve.”
“We can wait,” Larys Strong said.
“Or we can stir conflict among the brothers.”
“Lord Larys.” Ser Tyland cut him off.
“Your Grace, you must understand.
If we mean to win them over, marriage alone will not suffice.
They are bringing hundreds of ships and thousands of people.”
“Land, wealth, titles.” Lord Lyman said.
“These are the three things young men chase.”
“Easy for you to say, Lord Lyman.” Lord Jasper shot back.
“Land?
Which land?
Your Honeyholt?
My Rain House?
The Seven Kingdoms are vast, but every acre has a lord.
Carving out new territory means negotiating with every local lord.
That is no simple task.”
“Enough.
Let me think.” King Viserys could take no more.
“I favor the approach of winning them over.
But how to do it, discuss that among yourselves.” He pressed his head and gestured for Queen Alicent to help him.
“Mellos, search for any unclaimed or crown lands that can be granted.
The rest we will discuss next time.”
“As you wish, Your Grace.”
They watched King Viserys leave.
The councilors drifted out of the Red Keep with their doubts.
Only Ser Otto Hightower walked toward the Tower of the Hand with a hard expression.
Several Hightower attendants saw him coming and hurried over.
“Write to Lord Hobert.
Tell him to clear a tract of land near Oldtown.
Quickly.”
The attendant froze.
Otto kicked him in the rear.
“Now.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Watching the man scramble toward the ravenry, a faint smile crossed Otto’s face.
The Summer Sea.
The Valezeth fleet grew larger by the day.
Lady Clivna did nothing to stop the ships from loading soldiers, craftsmen, and commoners and sailing out of port.
On the contrary, she watched with deep satisfaction.
She even helped provide vessels.
“Magister, the Tiger faction’s envoy has been shadowing us for days.” Vansen Caon stood steady on the deck, speaking to Lancel, who was watching his youngest brother play with the hatchling.
High above, Vermithor and Silverwing circled the Silent Lord.
Valar was up there, practicing his flying.
Whether it was the egg or something else, Raymond’s dragon was growing fast.
In just a few weeks, its scales had hardened and rows of dense, vicious spikes had emerged.
The hatchling had swollen several sizes.
But it was different, this dragon was lean, so slender that without the spikes and scales, there would be almost no flesh on it.
Raymond had named him Shadowmare.
It was the name of his favorite pony as a child.
That pony had died.
And his falcon, Flamewing, had died in the sky after the last group withdrew from Volantis.
Raymond held a piece of roasted meat high, teasing the hatchling.
The dragon’s neck shot out like lightning and snatched the meat whole.
“Brother, do you have more?”
“Yes.” Lancel smiled and told the cook to bring more meat.
Then he turned to Vansen.
“No meeting.
The Tigers want to drag us into the Essosi mire.”
“But Westeros…” Vansen pressed his lips tight.
“Forgive me, it is a backward land.
Savage.
No civilization to speak of.”
“I know.” Lancel looked up at the sun and narrowed his eyes.
“This is an attempt.
And a duty.”
Vansen lowered his head.
His voice came deep and steady.
“House Caon is your spearhead.
Where you go, I go.”
Vermithor passed overhead, blocking the sun.
The boy’s gaze stretched toward the distant west.
15-30+ chapters are available now and daily updates!