Chapter 20:The Flowers Festival(Nate's POV)

Finally, this d*mn war has come to an end. Selhorys was destroyed by a group of the most peaceful beasts that existed in this world, the holy Old Men of the River. Valysar was gone. Volantis went from the wealthiest valyrian colony to the poorest. Why can't these valyrian b*st*rds let us in peace? We rhoynars don't go to invade any kind, we mostly only wanted to enjoy our time with our family and enjoy the wealth that holy Mother Rhoyne provide us.

The workload that came with relocating all the free slaves to our cities was exhausting, but it was worth it. It would have been hard to feed all these mouths if not for the food in the warehouses of Volantis and our much greater harvest thanks to my brother's revolutionary agricultural method and equipment.

Brother was with us because we were close to the Flower Festival a tradition of our city

"Brother, there is something I need to talk to you about."

"Ok" Karna said.

"Years passed since you became a ruler prince. I am only the heir of the heiress and am younger than you, but I am already a father. You are older and you are still not even married yet, besides you are a ruler that needs an heir. I know how busy you are, but stop running from responsibility and go find yourself a wife. Our grandparents are getting old and they deserve to be able to see more grandsons and granddaughters. "I said.

"Yes, boss" Karna said, bowing. I nearly apologized for my authoritative way of talking that made my brother apologize intensely and ashamed. I and my slow mind took a while to see that he was teasing me with a smirk.

"You!" I said

"Yes, boss" Karna repeated.

"I give up" I said.

"At least participate in the Flower Ritual. It is a tradition of our city as you know well."I said.

"I understand brother." He said, then he hugged me and to my surprise, he took me in his lap.

"Take me down! I am no longer a kid!" I shouted.

"You used to like it a lot when I carried you on my shoulders and we go adventure on the palace." My brother said.

"I was a child!" I shouted.

"You may have grown a beard, be married, and have kids. I know you are a grown man, but in my eyes, you will always be my little brother. And I would be a fool if I lost this opportunity to tease you, as we rhoynars say it is Mother Rhoyne that forgives, we rhoynars tease"

I was left speechless.

"You don't need to worry about your older brother" Karna said.

I was glad no one was there to see our odd family interaction. A tall man like me being carried by a giant-like man like Karna would be a really strange scene to see. Brother has this strange habit of showing family affection by teasing people. His citizens would surely be surprised to know that their holy prince (yes people started worshipping him) is quite a mischievous character. Now talking about my brother's height he was very tall, making me really believe he has giant blood in him.

He was nearly ten feet tall. If it was not for his gentle appearance, children may have nightmares about the rhoynar giant prince. Even if the giants were believed to be extinct and they were gone from Essos for a long time, scary tales about their kind persist to this day. Brother seems rhoynar in general, except for his yellowish-brown eyes and his ability to use water magic shows that he has royal blood, but his origin is still a mystery. I am very curious to know what beings were able to give birth to someone who can kill a dragon with his fists.

The Flower Festival was a small Festival traditional in our city. It was in other to glorify Mother Rhoyne for the fertility she blesses our land with. We have bards playing songs all around the city, making it seem a little more like the city of music Ny Sar. Stalls all over the city sold different kinds of grilled fish flavored with local spices and lemon, and some even with the spices from the Summer Island. Oh, how good a grilled fish with lemon is. There are also all kinds of sweet cakes being sold here, like cinnamon pie, lemon cake, honey cake, and cream cakes. Some are enjoyed by the wealthy, while others are cheap and popular among commoners.

We, from the royal family, would usually go out and enjoy the city

"My dear wife, please eat some fish. Only eating sweets is not healthy for the baby." I asked my wife, whose name is Ysilla.

"No, father I don't want to eat lunch. The baby only wants sweets." she said, teasing me. Why everyone teases me every time?

Then, all of a sudden people started running to river shores.

"What is this commotion?" I told the guards to stand washing my wife for a while to see what was happening.

The Flower Festival was called as such because of the Flower Ritual we performed during the day of the festivity. Now at the end of spring when flowers blow through our city, the Royal Palace's Garden, the biggest garden in the known world, is open for visitors. People from all over the city cut a flower from the garden planting a seed in return, and go to the Rhoyne river and throw a flower in honor of Mother Rhoyne's beauty and grace. Legend says that whoever performs this simple ritual will be able to find true love.

The type of flower is also said to attract different types of lovers. Roses may attract the most passionate, sunflowers the most tender, Gerbera may attract the calmest, and so on... Single men and women perform this ritual in hopes of getting married. Mother said that some years from now, the ritual has been working like a sort of magic for a great number of people, even her. However it's not considered a form of water magic, but recently there have been reports of small parts of the Rhoyne shining for a second after receiving the offerings.

My brother like thousands of single men in the city went to perform the ritual but being my brother, it did not end normally. The Rhoyne waters tremble and a breathtaking beauty, but not nearly as beautiful as my wife Ysilla, came out. She has smooth olive skin, black hair, and dark eyes. I quickly covered my eyes. There was a supposed fool named Saathos the Wise that thought Qarth so beautiful that he blinded himself because he knew that all he would see after would be ugly in comparison. Seriously the milky cowards cannot invent a better story. I think it would be possible to happen something like that, but to someone who saw a rhoynar city and was forced to live in that ugly city. Common how can a city that even can't provide plenty of fresh water and crops for its people be beautiful?

The Rhoyne houses:

Chroyane, with streets made of water, where rowing boats travel throw the crystal clear water, and houses originally of white alabaster stone that as time passed gradually became golden colored, filled with statues and temples, green obelisks, trees, spires, and marble stairs, and the islands of the Palace of Love and the Bridge of Dream; its also nicknamed the city of festivals because its grand festivals, that several cities included my own took great inspiration upon.

Ar Noy was a great city famed for its green marble halls and called the city of halls because of it. The city was famous for its artistic grass fields, which house complex works of art made by great gardeners, that can only be truly appreciated from the city's tall observation tower, which from its thick clear glass ceiling allows one to appreciate the sky. Ghoyan Drohe, a fair place, with green and flowering, a city of canals and fountains, often called the northernmost beauty.

Ny Sar, the city of music, alive with songs, with a colossal royal palace of pink and green marble, with its domes and spires looming large above a row of covered archways, and also disputing the position of the city of fountains with Ghoyan Drohe, a rivalry from the fountain-building artisans that precedes centuries.

Sar Mell, my home city, called the pale city because of our white marble constructions, especially the white palaces where our family lives; and known for our flowers and housing the largest garden in the known world.

Finally, Sarhoy a great port city made of Pink Sandstone, filled with canals and saltwater gardens, which houses a unique collection of fishes from all over the known world, and some species that can only be found there. Some fishes there are so flavorous and valuable that they were fished at a controlled rate, salted, and sold as luxurious goods.

So, if there is a city that deserves the name of the city of cities it's definitely a rhoynar city. It has been obvious, but I have a high-interest architecture. It's incredible to see how much with the blessing of Mother Rhoyne, we could achieve, even if we are not united as one. This allows us to understand why our ancestors welcomed the valyrians, we may have felt pity for the mountainous sheep herders that lived too far to appreciate the beauty and glory of the Rhoyne.

I may not be him, but I may lose my eyes if Ysilla nows that I saw another woman naked... No, I am only being dramatic, she would probably solve it will just a slap in my face.

"It has to be you to make something so strange happen, brother" I murmured to myself.