24 Surprise Visit
Year 846
Ehrmich District
Despite appearing outside of the Scout Regiment's headquarters late into the night, Aemon's return does not go unnoticed and neither do his new companions.
"The fearless leader returns." says Balalaika as she leans against the headquarters building, cigar in hand.
"Balalaika. Unable to sleep?" asks Aemon as he approaches her with his four new companions following close behind.
"You know how things are." she replies with haunted eyes, causing Aemon to nod in agreement. "And who are those four little ducklings?" she asks.
With a light chuckle Aemon slightly steps aside for Balalaika to see them all.
"Allow me to introduce you to my long lost family. Rhaenys, Aegon, Daenerys, and Jaehaerys, meet Balalaika my second in command." he says as he gestures to them.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, my Lady." says Aegon with a smile as he extends his hand to her.
Balalaika, expecting a handshake, is quite surprised when Aegon places a light kiss upon her hand.
"Are you trying to charm me, boy?" asks Balalaika with a raised eyebrow.
"I am quite happily married, my Lady." replies a confused Aegon.
"Don't mind her, the proper protocol when meeting someone here is to shake hands regardless of gender. Kissing a lady's hand is generally reserved when one attempts to be charming." explains Aemon with a chuckle.
"You let me make a fool of myself." complains Aegon, seemingly quite offended, yet the small twist of his lip tells Aemon otherwise.
"Please Aegon, you've never needed anyone's help to make a fool of yourself." remarks Rhaenys with a roll of her eyes.
"Sister!" exclaims Aegon.
"Your closest companions are Harrold Hardyng and Theon Greyjoy." deadpans Daenerys.
"You too, wife?" says Aegon before turning to face an amused Aemon, "Do you see what consequences your actions have wrought? My wife and sister are in rebellion against their rightful King. It's the Dance come again." he says with a sigh
"Do not joke about that." reprimands Jaehaerys, his grip tight on Dark Sister's pommel.
"Come now Jae, lighten up. We are worlds away from any politics that could cause the dance." says Aegon as he playfully punches Jaehaerys on the arm.
"The last time you made such a jape the Blackfyres returned with dragons to declare war." says Rhaenys.
Her words cause Aemon to regard them with raised eyebrows, for his own experience with their house's rebellious cadet branch were not nearly as dire as what theirs seems to have been.
Aemon wonders if Illyrio had somehow begotten more than one child on Serra in their world.
"Dragons?" asks Balalaika with a raised eyebrow as she exhales a puff of smoke.
"Aye, dragons." replies Aemon with a smirk as he points to the four sleeping dragons far behind them.
With wide eyes Balalaika beholds the four impressive beasts sleeping mere yards away.
"What the fuck? Are those real?" she asks as the cigar slips between her fingers and falls to the ground.
"As real as you and I, my lady." replies Aegon with pride.
"Are you using those in the war?" she wonders.
"What war?" Daenerys sharply asks as she turns to face Aemon.
With a sigh Aemon leads them into the headquarters, "Come, there is much for you to learn." he says.
…
…
…
Levi awakens to a sound that could only be described as half a song and half a scream, and like any song the sound is beautiful in its own right. Unfortunately however, the beautiful sound is swiftly followed by a terrible screeching sound that spooks the horses.
Alarmed, Levi quickly dons the bare minimum of clothes and runs out of his room towards the sound. As he reaches the courtyard just outside of their headquarters, he finds the entire Scout Regiment forming a crowd. Shoving his way to the front of the crowd, he finds that they have formed a circle around two warriors, one of which he immediately recognises as Aemon due to his long hair, the white streaks in his raven locks, and the gracefulness in his movements. The second warrior can only be Aemon's brother, and perhaps even his twin judging by the sheer similarities in their features.
As they clash with one another Levi cannot help but be enthralled by them. To simply call it a fight would do it no justice, rather it would be more apt to call it a dance simply due to skill and graceful movements being displayed.
To the casual observer the two would seem to be evenly matched, but Levi can easily tell that Aemon far outclasses his opponent in skill, and perhaps even in strength and speed. In the brief moment that he's observed their fight Levi has spotted around three times Aemon could have easily ended the fight but chose not to; God knows only how many more he's missed.
"Not bad. Although you have picked up some of the Kingslayer's habits." Aemon remarks as he and his opponent retreat and circle one another.
"Better his than Barristan's." Aemon's opponent replies before looking at Aemon's swordhand as he twirls the sword through its grip. "Although I don't recall the old geezer ever having a sense of flair."
"He never did." says Aemon before they clash once more and the unique sound that woke Levi rings out through the air again.
"Jae's improved significantly throughout this bout." says a voice to Levi's left.
Despite his interest, Levi decides to keep his eyes on the fight as Aemon begins to increase the pressure on his opponent. Soon the other warrior finds Aemon within his personal space and the blade of the sword at his throat.
"Did you see that maneuver?" asks another voice, this time a woman's.
"His footwork is ridiculous. Jae must be cross eyed right now." replies the man as Aemon's opponent yields.
"Not just his footwork, but his awareness and control also. A lesser warrior could die attempting that in a spar with live steel, to say nothing of doing so on the battlefield." says the woman.
"Watching him move, it's like watching an Other fight; inhuman." adds the man as Aemon Jae approaches them.
Observing them closer, Levi is almost certainly the two are brothers. The only thing stopping him from being absolutely certain that they are twins is Aemon's inhuman beauty. Although that's not saying much considering Jae is barely within the bounds of what Levi would consider humanly possible.
"Levi, allow me to introduce you to my brothers, Jaehaerys Targaryen…" he says as he gestures to his sparring partner, "And Aegon Targaryen." Aemon says as he points to the man who commented on the bout.
Next to the man is a young woman with the darkest skin he's ever seen, and brown hair that Aemon introduces as his sister Rhaenys, and another young woman who shares Aegon's peculiar coloring that is introduced as Daenerys, Aegon's wife.
Looking at them standing together, Levi briefly wonders what their parents and upbringing must have been like to produce such beautiful people and fierce warriors. It's unnatural.
And while he would love to sate his curiosity, he has better questions that need answering; besides he's sure that Hange will extensively question them on the matter.
"Are they all dragonriders?" Levi asks.
"Aye they are." replies Aemon.
"Good, and the training?" Levi responds.
"Balalaika will be in charge of that." Aemon says as he nods to someone behind Levi before walking towards the entrance of the headquarters with the Targaryens in tow, the crowd opening a path for them.
Turning, Levi finds himself facing a heavily scarred blond woman with an unlit cigar in her mouth.
…
…
…
"How do you feel?" asks Aemon as they enter the headquarters.
"Better than ever, the pain was well worth it." replies Rhaenys, causing him to nod in agreement.
He too had felt that way after ingesting the Body Purifying Pill.
With his 5,000 CP he had been able to buy four Body Purifying Pills, one for each of them, leaving him with 4,600 CP. He had thought of offering them the magically enhanced super-soldier serum, but thought better of it. Right now they are barely processing the concept of being in another, a magical ritual that has the potential to change their race may be the straw that breaks the camel's back. With him being a fae now the possibility of them no longer being human after ingesting the concoction is near certain.
"If you are not training the soldiers, what's the plan for today?" asks Aegon.
"There is some place that I wish to visit, and for that we will need a guide." replies Aemon with a smile as they stop before a closed door.
"Hange." Aemon calls out as he knocks on the door.
Not much time passes before the door is violently opened and a brown haired woman in glasses excitedly walks out.
"Aemon, my otherworldly friend!" she excitedly says as she pulls him into a tight hug.
"What brings you here today?" she asks as Aemon calmly forces himself out of her arms. "Oh, and you brought friends." she observes.
"Family actually." Aemon corrects as he introduces them all to her.
"Oooh family. Can I meet your dragons?" she asks with a grin and wide eyes.
"No." "Of course." Aemon and Daenerys say at once.
"Not all of our dragons are as murderous as yours and Jaehaerys'." Daenerys says before grabbing Hange by the hands "You can meet Shrykos and even come flying with me." she adds.
"Awesome!" exclaims Hange as she frantically shakes Daenerys' hands before turning back to Aemon. "Now, what can I help you with?" she asks.
"I have heard rumors of a place called the Underground?" Aemon says with uncertainty. "I wish to visit."
"That is a dangerous place, are you sure?" Hange asks with a frown.
"Aye." replies Aemon resolutely.
Staring into his eyes Hange can tell that he will not budge, so with a sigh she enters her room.
"Wait." she says before closing the door.
"What is the Underground?" asks Jaehaerys in High Valyrian.
"Think of Flea Bottom if it were belowground." Aemon replies.
"Why would you wish to visit such a place?" Rhaenys asks with a grimace.
"All is not as it seems when it comes to the government of this nation. There are factions that wish the population to remain ignorant of the threat beyond the walls and of the world's hatred of these people. They wish for the status quo to remain unchanged and are willing to commit any action for their goal." Aemon explains.
"You wish to use the Underground as a place to build forces loyal to you alone, and what better people to recruit than those rejected and mistreated by the current regime. With the right incentives they would swear their dying loyalty to you." Jaehaerys adds.
"Undying." Aemon corrects with a smirk. "They would swear their undying loyalty to me." Aemon says.
"What does that mean?" asks Daenerys with narrowed eyes as Hange exits her room.
"Later." Aemon replies, the smirk still plastered on his face.
…
…
…
Even though they set out at sunrise, the trip to the inside of Wall Sina took much of the morning with the group arriving sometime before noon. With Hange's credentials and them being dressed in the Scout Regiment uniforms, it was no issue for them to be admitted within the wall without any trouble nor without relinquishing their swords.
"Impressive. It's more beautiful than I expected." remarks Aegon as he takes in the splendor of Paradis' innermost territory.
"And it doesn't smell like shit." adds Jaehaerys.
"Not every capital is as poorly planned as King's Landing." Aemon says as their carriage comes to a stop and they disembark.
"Aegon, Jaehaerys, and I can go the rest of the way on our own. It would be best if Daenerys and Rhaenys did not experience the Underground. Perhaps they can visit the market." Aemon says.
"Are you sure?" Hange asks with a raised eyebrow.
"Please Hange." pleads Daenerys as she tightly grips her arm as she does her best to look fearful while Rhaenys glares at her and Aemon.
Hange silently regards them for a moment before acquiescing.
"Sleep with one eye open tonight." Jaehaerys warns Aemon as they watch the women walk away.
"And be wary of your drinks from now on, especially if they come from Rhaenys." Aegon adds, causing Aemon to sigh.
He can't exactly say that he is surprised by this development considering Rhaenys is more at home with a spear in her hand as opposed to a needle.
"Your concerns have been noted." Aemon replies as they make their way into an alley.
With Hange's directions finding the entrance to the tunnel leading to the Underground is a trivial matter, and even without her directions Aemon wagers that it would not be too difficult; for the alley leading to the tunnel is one the people seem to actively avoid as if it were plagued with disease. Considering the nature of the Underground it may just be so.
As they prepare to enter the tunnel blinding lights flash around them, startling them.
Despite not being able to see properly none of them are slow to react as they immediately draw their swords and point them at the perceived threats.
"Woah! Woah! Woah!" exclaims Simon as he finds himself on the pointy end of Longclaw.
Not far behind him, Aemon hears the snap hiss of a lightsaber igniting and a voice that can only belong to Anakin Skywalker warning Jaehaerys to sheath his sword.
"Everybody calm down." commands a woman's voice from Aemon's left.
Taking a deep breath, Aemon allows himself to process his current emotions and to allow the adrenaline to run its course. It would not do for him to kill Simon because of a simple jumpscare.
Turning to the voice as he sheaths his sword, Aemon sees Jennifer Shepard pointing her pistol at Aegon's head while Aegon has a dagger inches from her throat.
"Simon, Anakin, Jennifer." greets Aemon with a nod, making sure to avoid looking directly at Jennifer. "What are you doing here?" he asks as he gestures for Jaehaerys and Aegon to sheath their weapons.
"You never answered our messages." says Jennifer as she holsters her pistol.
"We grew worried." Anakin adds as he puts away his lightsaber.
"I was quite busy." Aemon says as he gestures to Aegon and Jaehaerys who seem quite perturbed by the sudden change of events. "But since you're all here, you may as well help me." he says with a smirk.
...
....
...
Author's Note: Here's the latest chapter, tell me what you guys think. I know that my decision to bring in four new characters is not popular amongst you guys, but I do have my reasons and it wasn't spontaneous so please bear with me.
For one, I wanted Aemon to have family who understands him to help flesh him out more. Originally it was going to be his Stark siblings, but I felt that Aemon is as connected to his Stark side as much as possible and that his Targaryen side was being neglected.
Second, I don't want to use the chats to carry the bulk of the character interactions like most of these types of fics do. I want the interactions to be in person so as to be more sincere and natural. It also didn't make sense for the chat group to be constantly active because all of the members have their own business to attend to. Shepard and Anakin are both part of a military order so for them to be constantly active makes no sense lore wise, the same for Dr. Hamilton who is a professor and head of one of the most scientifically advanced organizations in his world. Percy and Simon are basically on constant survival mode, and Bilbo wants nothing to do with them yet (the same way he didn't originally want to go on an adventure). I'm not saying that they won't interact, just that they will do so when they visit each other/help each other/when they all have a moment of downtime.
Third, I wanted to give Aemon companions outside of AOT world because he's not going to stay in AOT forever, and outside of the chat members because they all have their own lives and aren't close enough to each other yet to be constantly chatting. Especially since it would be out of character for them to be constantly chatting with strangers about their private lives for no reason.
Fourth, I just binged the Originals and want to turn Aemon and his siblings/aunt into a family with a similar dynamic to the Mikaelsons (without the extreme toxicity.)
Fifth, because I thought it would be cool, especially when they activate the Planetos travel gate and end up sometime before even their grandparents were born.
