Prologue 8

Year 284 AC

Three moons after Azaerys departed from the Tower of Joy.

A large Trading Vessel without a flag approached Dragonstone from the East, and its sight alarmed the Targaryen Fleet around the Island.

The Garrison of the Targaryen, stationed on Dragonstone, quickly assembled on the beach, but the battle they awaited did not happen.

Since it was a Trading Vessel, they did not initiate the attacks. Only warnings were sent.

And people relaxed when the Vessel anchored a few hundred feet away from the shore.

Those who disembarked from the ship and entered the boats wore the armours of the Targaryen Kingsguard, and they were followed by some more Knights who had no emblems on their armours.

Once they arrived on land, Gerold, Arthur, and Oswell stood facing the Garrison, which soon knelt to them, and only then did they signal for their Prince to come on the Island.

Azaerys ignored the soldiers who greeted him. He did not care for them and was aware of their treacherous thoughts that stemmed from their fears.

He smiled as he watched a young boy running towards him as if his life depended on it, and opened his arms to his Blood.

"Azer!" Viserys tried his best to hold back his tears as he hugged him tightly, but failed.

"Viserys."

The two hugged each other for a good minute, and when they separated, the Prince started crying.

"They killed Rhaegar, Azer. They killed Father. Ser Willem said that they want us all dead..."

"Shush..." He stopped the younger boy from speaking and wiped away his tears. "No one is going to kill you. I promise."

Viserys nodded his head to him, and then curiously looked at the sack that he was carrying.

"For you," said Azaerys as he handed it to the younger Targaryen, who curiously opened it.

"A stone, Azer?" The boy looked annoyed.

"A Dragon Egg, Viserys." He chucked at the way his eyes widened in shock. "Your Dragon Egg."

"Thank you!" He said and stared at the bronze Egg, but then he remembered something. "The Maester said that Dragons are gone..."

"They are," nodded Azaerys. "But they will be back, and we will claim what we have lost on their backs." He promised and smiled at how his Uncle, who was like his younger brother, accepted his words and nodded.

A few soldiers weirdly looked at him after hearing his words, but they dared not say anything when they saw the four Knights they were familiar with, more who wore no coat of arms, and a dozen Martell Soldiers, who followed the Princes towards the Castle.

People were really curious about the group of cloaked ladies, one of whom was even holding a baby, but the few who managed to see the black hair of the child did not think much.

And following the ladies was another group of a dozen Martell Soldiers.

"Was Azaerys in Dorne?" They all wondered.

"Azer!" By the time he nearly climbed the stairway that led up the Castle, a voice that brought a smile to his face, called out to him, and following it, a figure came rushing over to hug him.

"Ashara." He hugged back the young lady, who and just turned fifteen and was beautiful enough to sway even the most honourable of hearts. "You are almost as tall as me now." She separated and commented, smiling at him with a radiance that he reflected.

"You are just short. I will soon be much taller than you."

"I am not short. You are abnormally tall for your age." She shook her head and then curiously looked at Viserys, who was hugging the sack. "What have you got there?"

"Mine!" The Prince said and stepped back, almost fearing that Ashara would take away his Egg, and this only made the Dayne more curious.

However, she ignored the Prince whom she loved bullying and walked over to her brother, hugging him.

"It's good to see you." Arthur gently said to her, and she nodded her head before turning to look back at Azaerys.

However, the young King was already on his way inside, and he seemed to be in a rush.

Ashara did not care about anyone else and rushed after him, and Knights followed her but did not seem to be in any hurry.

"Munazma." Azaerys softly called out to his Grandmother, who was listlessly looking at her hands, half-lying in the bed.

His call worked like a charm on her, and the moment her eyes caught the sight of him entering the room, tears pooled up in them.

Before Rhaella could stand to rush to him, he was already by her side, hugging her, comforting her, and his warmth broke her into sobs.

Ashara stayed at the door when she saw the scene and lowered her head. She silently closed the room and then told those who were outside to not disturb the Queen and Azaerys.

"Grandfather... He asked me to tell you that he was sorry for what he had become." He whispered, and Rhaella's body went stiff.

"Did he?"

"He did," promised her Grandson.

Rhaella shed some more tears in pain and cried without a care in his arms.

Azaerys stayed with her, listening to her half-formed sentences, words, and cries, all of which carried immense emotional pain, and he consoled her.

"Where were you? Why did you not come sooner? I was so scared..." She asked, and he smiled at her before he started telling her about what he had been up to in the last five months.

For the Queen who had lost her husband, had lost her beloved son, it was the first day in over five months that she laughed, and despite chatting with her Grandson for hours, she still did not get tired.

The two were eventually disturbed when the dinnertime arrived, and Ser Willem Darry, who was an old man, but loyal to the core, knelt to Azaerys when he opened the door.

"Your Grace!"

"Stand, Ser Willem." He placed his hands on the old man's shoulder, guiding him to his feet. "Thank you." He sincerely said, and the man smiled at him.

"I will be at your service as long as I can breathe." He promised, and Azaerys nodded to him. "Prince Oberyn is waiting to see you."

"I understand. Gather my family, Ser Willem, and call Allyria Dayne as well. Gather the Knights who are loyal to us. Only those whose loyalty can not be questioned. Prince Oberyn and his trusted companions are invited. I will see then in the Chamber of the Painted Table."

"As you command, Your Grace." The old man bowed to him and immediately got to work.

"Munazma. Do you have strength?" He turned to look at his Grandmother, who smiled at him.

"I am a Dragon, my Child." She said as she forced herself to stand up, and the moment she staggered, he was by her side to help her stabilise on her feet.

"What do you think it is? A boy or a girl?" She curiously asked as they walked to the door.

"She's my Daenerys." He said, and his Grandmother stopped to look at him with wide eyes. "Isn't that the name you chose for her in case she was a girl?"

"Will she live?" She hopefully asked, and her voice was trembling in fear and hope.

"She will rule by my side, Munazma." He smiled at her and watched her break out in the most radiant smile that he had ever seen.

"Your Queen?" She teased.

"No." He shook his head. "She will be my Empress."

"What's the difference?" She laughed. "Ashara told me that you asked her to marry you."

"I did." He nodded and then smiled at her. "What do you think of a betrothal between Allyria Dayne and Viserys?"

"You are the King now."

"I am no King yet, Munazma. I am just the Lord of my House." He shook his head.

"The Iron Throne is yours." She seriously said, and he smiled at her.

"And I shall take back what is mine. However, for now, I am just the Lord of my House."

"People will rally behind a King, Azaerys. They will not rally behind a Lord of a Hosue which does not even belong to this land."

"I understand, Grandmother. It's enough that I am aware of the truth. Keeps your mind clear." He laughed, and she smiled at him.

"Why a Dayne? They are ancient and noble, but they don't have enough power." She returned to the subject of Viserys' betrothal as they walked down the silent hallway.

"It's not their strength that I care about, Munazma. It's the blood that flows in Ashara and her siblings. They are the Blood of the Dragon."

Rhaella stopped as soon as she heard those words, and her heart started feeling unwell.

"You mean of a Valyrian descent? I know Lord Beric is the Gradson of Rhae Targaryen, but neither he nor his children can be considered the Blood of the Dragon." She frowned. "If that was the case, then the Usurper is the Blood of the Dragon too."

"It's not what you think." He comforted her. "Neither the Usurper nor Lord Beric are the Blood of the Dragon. If they tried taming one, they would be burnt alive if not eaten." He chuckled. "And I mean what I said. They are the Blood of the Dragon. I can sense it now, feel the dormant magic."

"How?" She asked, truly surprised at his words.

"Do you know that Rhae Targaryen had an older sister?"

"Yes, Daella Targaryen. She married into the Velaryon Family."

"And she had two daughters, one of whom was Viserra."

"Yes, she married a Knight of House Dayne and is Arthur, Ashara, and Allyria's Grandmother." She nodded. "Still doesn't make them the Blood of the Dragon." She raised her brow at him.

"Ashara's mother was the illegitimate daughter of Daeron Targaryen, son of Aegon the Fifth, and Viserra Velaryon."

As soon as she heard his words, her eyes widened in shock.

"But Uncle Daeron..."

Azaerys told her exactly what happened back then, and by the time she finished hearing his words, she looked very restless.

He had seen the pasts of so many people.

"Did you also see the past of your Grandfather?" She timidly asked, and to her fears, he nodded his head. "Ser Jamie, Cersei..."

"I saw it." He sighed and squeezed her hand, comforting her.

"Do you hate him?"

"Ser Jamie?" He asked and saw her nod her head. "Why do you ask, Munazma?"

"He's a sweet boy, Azaerys. He was by my side ever since he entered the Kingsguard. I know he is kind. He was always there for me... He was loyal..."

"I know." He said. "Don't worry. I don't hate him or dislike him."

"Killing your blood is a sin, Azaerys. The gravest sin for us Valyrians." She weakly said. "He's cursed..."

He sighed at the words of his Grandmother and nodded his head.

"I pity him, Munazma. " He truthfully said and then squeezed her hand again. "Everything will be fine. I promise."

"I believe you." She wiped away the tears and smiled when she saw Ashara enter the hallway.

The girl immediately walked over and helped her, and the former Queen could not help but feel warm in her heart.

Now that she took a better look at her, except for her hair, she really looked like a Targaryen. Arthur and Allyria were the same. Even her cousins bore the looks of the Dragonlords, but unlike her, they were not the true Blood of the Dragons.

And she was already being hailed as the fairest lady in the entire Westeros, just like Cersei.

She never had any objections to Azaerys marrying her, but now she felt ever more relieved in her heart.

With such a trustworthy and caring wife by his side, she did not fear that her Grandson would feel lonely in his life. And she prayed to the Valyrian Gods that the two would stay safe from the Evil Eye.

Rhaella would never say it to anyone, but a part of her heart always feared that her sons and grandson would grow old to be mad just like her Husband.

Aerys was kind too, caring, charming, the light of her life, but the world broke him. The cruel life took away his smile.

He could not have Joanna, and perhaps, he blamed her for it. But Rhaella knew that he loved her as well. Her brother was so kind to her. Even after they got married, he cared for her a lot.

She always knew what Joanna and he were up to, had ignored his affair, even facilitated it at times, and he was grateful to her for her understanding. However, once she lost one child after another, which saddened him a lot, and finally, when Joanna married Tywin, he started growing crazy.

What happened next were just tragedies.

The same Tragedy with love struck her son and cost him his life, but Azaerys...

She looked at her Grandson, and all her worries abated.

He was different. He was a True Dragon.

The Fire could not harm him, the Magic was his companion, and no traditions of the Seven or the Old Gods of the First Men bound him.

He was a Valyrian High Lord, like those that she had read about in their books.

She really believed that he was even more special than all of them. And Gods she prayed that he would become more powerful than anyone in their history.

"I agree with it," said Rhaella, and Ashara curiously looked at her.

"What?"

"The betrothal." Rhaella teasingly smiled and smiled some more when the girl blushed, thinking that she was talking about her and Azaerys. "Between your sister and Viserys."

"Oh... what?" She was surprised and looked at Azaerys for confirmation.

"Do you have any objections?" He asked, and she shrugged.

"Other than that Viserys is too timid? No. But I suppose it is a good thing. If he ever bullies my sister, I will bully him." She grinned, and both Azaerys and Rhaella laughed at her words.