61
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188 AC
Kingslanding
Daeron Targaryen
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"Tough day?" My wife asks as I down another cup of wine hoping it will help ease my stress.
"Tough day." I respond as I refill the cup but she takes it before I can set down the jug and she downs it herself.
"Let's talk about it then." I sigh hearing amusement in her voice but she manages to keep a serious look.
"Oh you know, the council goes on and on as if Westeros is on fire and I have to jump around to put it out. Half of what I hear honestly just sounds like nonsense sometimes..." I am just glad they have not brought up my brother in a while, it is nice that the 'fire' named Aerion Targaryen has lowered in intensity in their eyes.
Though I am sure it will kick back up sooner rather than later if his recent Ravens are anything to go by. He is moving a lot of men around and shifting a lot of his focus to Skagos to begin the construction of a new 'Dragonstone'. When his personally trained and equipped men are hunting Wildlings no one says anything but I expect there to be a sudden 'problem' the moment they start doing something unexpected.
To be honest I just hope I get to see the location at least once after all the things I have heard about it from my younger siblings. It will be a pain in the ass to travel that far North though on short notice so I will wait a few years to both plan the trip properly and let things get started. I don't want to sleep in some tent on a frozen mountain anyway, I have a Martell for a wife... I love the hot sun.
"Baelor has been taking up some more responsibilities?" My wife asks and I nod with a small smile.
After the birth of his firstborn Valarr, he spent quite a few months with his wife and newborn, it is nice to see him so happy. But even though I won't admit it aloud I am even happier he has returned to sitting in on council meetings. But he is doing it of his own will so there is nothing my wife or good daughter can say, instead they can focus their critical looks at my son.
"Maybe it is time to visit Harrenhal once more." My wife speaks up and I take a deep breath.
"Trying to force it won't change if it will happen or not." After word arrived that Visenya the daughter of Aerion and Mya was able to hatch an egg she has been more restless about the dragons.
When it was just Aerion and Daenerys it was one thing, their kids gave hope that the dragons would return under the crown as well. But with Visenya also having one and not being from Daenerys it changed things as that is now five dragons under my brother. I trust him, if he wanted the crown he would have it by now so there is no reason not to, my Wife as well as she is not a fool. But that does not stop the whispers, nor does it help with the negotiations with House Martell to bring Dorne under the Iron Throne.
I made it clear that my brother's kids are his own and I would not offer anyone of their hands in marriage to complete the pact to bring Dorne in. So far Prince Martell has been silent after the first request to marry his heir to one of Aerion's spares, but I know it will come up again. That is why I am approving of Aerion's request to pass it into law that only a 'Targaryen' can have a dragon.
It will be worded carefully but also in a way where there is some wiggle room.
I can see his goal with it as the Dragons are all coming from his branch of the family thus far and he does not problems to occur. But if for example, a dragon rider married out of the family the kids will either be Targaryens or not get dragons, simple. If some House wants to marry a daughter of House Targaryen and earn her hand just to have their kids be Targaryens and have their name fade to history we will have to handle that problem as it happens. The way it stands now should I pass the law a Arryn for example could marry a Targaryen and have the kids get dragons but the Arryn name will die as the Vale will be then ruled by a Targaryen who has a dragon.
That can be a problem so it will need to be addressed carefully, but it also has potential to annex lands into the Crownlands if done carefully. Using Arryn's once more if they did do that for some foolish reason we could slowly strip them of dragons by marrying their riders into the main branch. Some underhanded tricks could definitely be used to slowly grow the Crownlands but that is not really a concern in reality anymore. The main concern is keeping dragons away from anyone who is not wearing the three-headed red dragon on their chest.
So long as a Targaryen has a dragon we will be Kings even if we only hold a single castle.
"I will ask if Baelor wants to visit his uncle for a while if only just to have the babes see each other. They won't remember one another but it will be a good habit to keep in hopes a natural attraction can form. I have no doubt my brother will have many children at his current rate so I do not fear Valarr being unable to find love with one of his daughters. Valarr is the future King who hopefully will bring the dragons back under the crown with his children." Aerion also mentioned this as well so I have no concern about if it will happen or not, it is only a matter of time.
"Hopefully the girl will have Targaryen features as well..." My wife sighs and I can't help but feel anger for a moment knowing why she says this.
Many have been caught whispering about my son and heir looking more Martell than Targaryen, some have also lost a tongue as well. Valarr thankfully pulled from his Targaryen heritage if only a little, a silver streak is in his hair, and his eyes a light blue. The eyes could be from his Mother but the silver hair is from his Targaryen blood without a doubt, it will silence a lot of the whispers. A dragon-riding silver-haired wife would sew all of them shut though, which is why I hope even if the girls born so far are uninterested in Valarr given time to grow up another will be born with those features who is interested.
It is odd, many Houses jump over themselves trying to get the hand of a future King but my brother is clutching his daughters close. It just shows how little interest he has in the throne and how much he loves his young children as he is thinking only of their own happiness. It makes me proud of my little brother, I could not be happier with who he is and the things he has done.
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188 AC
Harrenhal
Aerion Targaryen
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"HOLD IT FUCKING STILL!" The forge master bellows and I squeeze my hands on the end of the rod with the red of the heat of the slowly melting steel inching toward my hands.
"If this shit burns me I will shove it up your ass." I hiss back at him as he shakes a box of mystery powder onto the steel that has been submerged while red hot into dragon blood.
It even has some of my own blood dripped into the mix as well, if this does not work I am going to throw this old man on his ass out of my castle.
"Almost!" I can hear his excitement as he folds the steel with heavy strikes and I wonder if it will snap again like last time.
The metal bends back touching itself halfway down the steel rod and with a possessed madness, the hammer comes down like a storm. The echo of the hot steel reminds me of the clash of Valyrian steel and it gives me the stirrings of hope. The hammer is not Valyrian steel but this rod soon to be ingot very well might be... or something close to it.
The latest attempt at forging Valyrian steel with the old man who reforged the axe into two swords. I left the unnamed blades hanging on my wall for my kids to claim one day when they get knighted or win some tourney or something. But here and now I am trying to recover the mystery of the steel itself... something that will fire up my craftsman spirit if it works out.
I want armor and weapons for each of my kids and their moms as well... maybe a few of my trusted knights on the condition the steel is returned when they die. Wouldn't be hard to keep up with the armor, if someone showed up with full Valyrian steel armor and it was not one of my people I can track them down on Dragon's back and recover it. Hell, I might even do it on purpose and let one of my kids track someone down as like a 'quest' or something.
That might be a bit too hardcore...
"HOLD!" My arms are going sore with each thunderous blow but I can easily keep this up for hours before I really tire out.
The only thing I am worried about is the old man falling over dead with how much he is sweating but when I see the obsessive look in his eyes I toss that worry aside. This is a craftsman who is attempting to complete a life goal he has long chased. I could hold him at sword point right now and he would keep hammering to achieve something long coveted.
I do worry about if his heart will survive all of this afterward though... I at one point planned to kill him if we learned the recipe. I do not want to the recipe to get out so it only makes sense, it's why I am slaving away with him and not some random forge boy. But knowing the recipe so far involves dragon blood and dragon flames and maybe even some dragon bone dust I doubt anyone can make some Valyrian steel without my permission.
It will just be another reason people want dragons though if this does work.
"You are shaking too much." The old man huffs as she stops to catch his breath and I bite my tongue to stop myself from saying it is him who is shaking.
This old man is like a leaf in a hurricane but his sheer willpower is the stuff on legends, I think it has to do with me though. I told him I am new to a forge so he takes it personally when I can last longer than him even though he is swinging a heavy hammer. Some kind of 'old timer' thing where he is refusing to let the young guy pass him up easily. Too bad he does not know I have stupid cheats and can outlast him even if he was in his prime.
"Good." He readies himself and I nod ready for him to start once more, my excitement building knowing we are closer to an answer.
If this works it is likely the first time this steel has been 'made' in almost two hundred years, the failed attempts are a foggy memory the more the hammer strikes down. Like scratching lottery tickets or something I can't stop myself from wanting to keep experimenting until I unlock the truth.