[THIRD’S PERSON POV]
A full day had passed since the miraculous hatching of the miniature version of Balerion, and Princess Rhaena still could not fully believe what she was seeing.
Despite having the tiny black dragon flying right in front of her very eyes, while she carefully carried her beloved child in her warm arms, she remained extremely surprised at the stark appearance of the creature.
It was exactly like seeing a living phantom of the monstrous dragon that had brutally claimed the lives of both her first husband and her precious daughter.
“What kind of cruel joke is this? Am I being punished by the heavens above?” Princess Rhaena could not help but ask the empty room.
However, all she received in response was a loud, playful hiss from the black hatchling, followed immediately by her infant son laughing brightly.
The little black dragon then continued to seemingly entertain her son with its clumsy aerial acrobatics.
After a few more pleasant minutes of the hatchling playing around the spacious chamber, it suddenly raised its scaly head and looked sharply around the room.
Princess Rhaena could almost see a profound intelligence hiding behind the deep eyes of the beast.
But before she could closely examine this strange phenomenon, the dragon started flying rapidly around the room as it actively looked for an open window.
When it finally found exactly what it was looking for, it swiftly flew right outside into the open sky.
After carefully noting the highly unusual behavior that the young dragon had just displayed, Princess Rhaena turned her undivided attention back toward her infant son.
Aelor was now sleeping peacefully in her arms.
Princess Rhaena placed him gently into his wooden cradle and sat down heavily on a rocking chair resting nearby.
She slowly began to close her tired eyes, not feeling overly concerned about exactly where the dragon hatchling had gone.
She simply took it as a completely natural instinct of a newborn dragon wanting to fly and explore its new surroundings.
It was very similar to how her own mount, Dreamfyre, had recently begun to become much more active around the immense ruins of Harrenhal.
The older dragon had started to actively hunt for her own food across the fertile lands and would sometimes not come back to the castle courtyard for an entire day.
What Princess Rhaena simply did not know was that behind the tightly closed eyes of her sleeping son, an entirely different scene was currently playing out.
Instead of the regular, chaotic dreaming that should have been present within the developing mind of Aelor at this exact moment, something truly magical was happening.
While his infantile brain certainly had a deep biological need to rest properly considering his extremely young age, a vivid mental projection was completely overriding his natural dreams.
The sprawling scenery of the entire castle of Harrenhal and its surrounding lands was being projected directly into his mind.
Aelor was actually seeing the waking world from the soaring perspective of something that was rapidly flying high above the clouds.
[AELOR’S POV]
As I dozed off into a peaceful sleep, my rest was abruptly interrupted by a sudden blinding light.
The bright flash forced me to open my eyes once again.
However, this time, instead of seeing the gentle jawline of my mother as she held me safely in her arms, I saw her from a distance.
To my absolute shock, she was holding what appeared to be my very own infant body.
“What is happening?” I asked in utter confusion.
But instead of hearing my own human voice, I only heard a low, rumbling growl echoing in the chamber.
It was then that I finally noticed the sharp claws firmly connected to a pair of leathery wings.
I realized that I could also move my completely different head around to clearly see the scaly black back of my own new body.
After just a few brief moments of intense contemplation, I finally reached a stunning conclusion.
‘I am skin-changing into my dragon.’ These were the very first coherent thoughts that entered my racing mind.
But before I continued to deeply contemplate the profound reality of my current magical situation, there was something thrilling that I desperately wanted to do first.
I started trying to learn the strange motor functions of the beast.
It turned out that my dragon, whom I firmly decided to name Ancalagon, was already naturally forming the basic muscle memories required for flying.
After just a few short moments of focused effort, I was able to figure out the exact way to take off from the stone floor.
I looked around the room for an open window, and once I found the perfect exit, I eagerly flew toward the opening.
As I flew outside into the open air, I immediately extended my newly discovered wings to glide properly upon the wind currents.
Despite not having much practical flight experience, my extraordinary circumstances had blessed me with a highly advanced mind.
Thanks to the remarkable enhancements of my Essence granting me superhuman intelligence, I was perfectly able to figure out the complex aerodynamics.
This incredible mental capacity allowed me to use this precious time to practice a much more efficient way of flying across the vast sky.
‘Ah, the sheer joy of flying,’ I thought to myself, completely marveling at the sensation.
‘This was the greatest desire of mankind in my previous life.
My old world built massive airplanes, metal rockets, and so many other advanced machines just to allow ordinary people to conquer the skies.
But look at me right now.
I am physically inside the body of my own dragon, flying entirely on my own power.
I am getting to experience this ultimate freedom personally.
How I truly wish that all of this magic had existed in my past life.’
As I soared high above the massive ruined towers of Harrenhal, my thoughts shifted toward the deep mysteries of my own lineage.
‘I genuinely did not expect that my sickly father would carry the ancient blood of the First Men.
I always thought the First Men were supposed to be rugged, resilient, and remarkably strong warriors, not frail or sickly lords.
Perhaps the ancient blood running through my father had just become extremely thin over the centuries, making him physically closer to an Andal than a true son of the First Men.
However, in my unique case, the miraculous purification of my Essence has brought that latent heritage to the absolute peak of its potential.
Combined with my Valyrian dragon blood, it has allowed my mortal body to perfectly contain the highest possible potential of both legendary bloodlines.
Does this incredible fusion mean that I am also a greenseer, a powerful dragon dreamer, and completely immune to burning flames?
‘
‘Perhaps I should test those incredible theories one at a time,’ I concluded with a mental chuckle.
‘I certainly have plenty of time to slowly discover the true limits of my abilities.
After all, the long reign of King Jaehaerys the First is relatively peaceful, aside from the brief Dornish conflicts, the mountain bandits, and a few other minor disturbances.’
Just as I finished that comforting thought, I suddenly felt a gentle but firm push coming directly against my conscious presence.
This instinctual pressure let me know immediately that the true consciousness of my infant dragon was waking up and getting ready to take back control over its own body.
I allowed the natural shift to happen immediately, completely relaxing my mind as I peacefully disconnected my soul from Ancalagon.
My human eyes fluttered open back inside the quiet stone chamber.
‘I must have been flying in the sky for several hours.
I was having so much fun that I did not even notice the rapid passage of time,’
I realized with a sense of wonder.
I noticed that the thick wax candles scattered around my spacious room were now almost completely melted down to their bases.
My mother was gone from the rocking chair where she had been sitting earlier, and my loyal wet nurse had quietly taken over the duty of watching over my cradle.
I could not help but smile brightly in the dim light.
I eagerly looked forward to the next rising sun, knowing that I would skin change into my magnificent dragon once again tomorrow.
I silently promised myself that I would continue to do this incredible magical practice every single day without fail.
I would share the skies with Ancalagon until he grew large enough to be ridden with a saddle and until I grew large enough to proudly ride him as a true dragonlord.