Chapter 20 (a)

It was the sun that first awakened the prince.

Or perhaps it had something to do with the fact that he was sleeping in a soft bed for the first time in a week and the unfamiliarity of the situation threw him off balance.

As it was, he awakened with a sheet as light as a feather covering him and in clean clothes that were not caked with dust and sweat from a week of travel and lying beneath the stars as he had become accustomed to.

He did wake with a smile on his face, however.

He looked across the room half expecting to see Orin asleep on the small pallet on the floor he usually frequented during the nights before the prince remembered that he had chosen to bunk with Missandei during their stay.

I do believe he likes her better than me, he thought to himself with a smirk as he slowly sat up. Or maybe it's because of her mothering personality…he probably hasn't experienced anything like it before.

And speaking of not experiencing things before….

Caspian got to his feet and strode to the window, stretching his arms above his head to work out the kinks from sleep. The sunlight coming in from the window was a blessing as it shone in his face, kissing his skin and making the prince remember that no matter what happened to him and how dangerous things became, the sun and its light were a constant thing.

No matter what happened…things went on.

So would he.

He turned back into the room and away from the buildings outside of the chamber's window and stripped off his clothes so that he might change for the day.

There appeared to be no dresser in the room but when he glanced back at the window seat, he was surprised to find a pile of neatly folded clothes resting there.

One of the servants must have come in while I was sleeping, Caspian thought to himself, not sure how entirely comfortable he was with the knowledge that someone had access to him while he was sleeping.

But there was nothing to be done about it now.

As he walked back over to the window, he happened to pass the small mirror tacked to the wall and caught sight of his form in the reflection.

There were scars on his body that had not been there before, small slash marks across his chest and arms that he had never seen before.

Some of these must have been from the shipwreck, he thought to himself and smirked slightly.

He turned around and caught sight of the particularly long one on his back. It was thin and white so it must have happened months ago and he frowned upon seeing it. It reached from his left shoulder blade to the middle of his back.

Where the hell did, I get this?

It was then that he remembered the day he had met Daenerys and how he had had to save her from the warlock.

He had slid across the deck of the market towards them and there had been a sharp searing sensation in his back which had lasted only a moment before it was gone and he had focused on the task at hand.

Even now it was very thin and probably hadn't been enough to draw blood and he didn't remember if it had.

Odd how so small a thing changed the path I was on, he thought absently to himself. I wonder what would have happened if I hadn't done anything that day on the pier. Life would have carried on in a much different way.

He looked at his naked body a while longer before the day called and Caspian strode over to the window seat so he might dress.

The clothes were simple and yet inconspicuous so they would serve his purposes in the city perfectly.

As he put them on and felt the rough cotton against his skin, Caspian realized he didn't miss the fancy stitched and elegant robes he had worn as a prince in King's Landing. If anything, they were restrictive in their movements and did not allow him to extend to his full range of motion.

In fact, they were almost annoying.

Once he was dressed, Caspian turned back to the bed and took up StormBreaker in his hands from where it was resting.

I don't think I have ever felt as physically comfortable as I have when I am in the training yard with Ser Barristan or any of the other knights in Father's old guard. I am mentally stimulated in some places but sometimes physical stimulation outweighs mental stimulation.

He unsheathed the odd-looking blade and passed it from hand to hand, watching as the sun caught the metal and making it seem as if he were holding pure light in his hands.

The sapphire stones in the hilt made the whole piece seem to glow with another worldly light that chilled Caspian.

How many times has this weapon passed from hand to hand? He wondered before he put it down, moved but not knowing why by the experience.

There would be time for that later however and he was just about to leave the room when there was a timid tap upon the wood.

He frowned at it. "Come!"

A moment later the door opened to reveal Orin and Missandei standing there and looking very uncertain of themselves…well at least Orin did. Missandei looked nervous.

He could tell in the way she had her eyes lowered and the edge of her mouth clamped between her top two teeth.

He frowned at him. "Well come in. What is it?"

Orin who had had a light hold on Missandei's dress let go of it and shut the door behind them so they had some privacy.

"Ser Barristan is guarding the door," the servant said. "We wanted to talk to you without being overhead."

"Very well," Caspian replied. "What did you wish to talk about?"

Missandei twisted her hands together. "I don't doubt you my lord, but Orin had concerns about trusting Master Aurelius, and nothing I say will seem to persuade him that we are safe."

The little boy nodded vehemently and Caspian took a deep breath

"Don't we all," the prince muttered before speaking up more clearly. "Missy despite your accolades on the man earlier I don't trust him either but at the same time, it's not like we have any other choice. Our task for the queen here is to spy on the defenses of Yunkai and its citizens and leaders and see how weak or strong the city is and how long it will take to conquer. We are a small party and would most likely have been sleeping in the streets if it weren't for Orius. He has offered us his home and a somewhat decent plan for taking Yunkai and its population of slaves and Unsullied from the hands of the Wise Masters. No, I do not trust him but I do not have to for this plan to succeed. Like I said to Ser Barristan the night before I do not have any qualms about taking out those who get in our way despite the loyalties of the spoken word. If our host seems fit to shake our hand and with the other hold a knife behind his back, I will cut off each finger before he can draw it."

Orin looked a little relieved but Missandei looked slightly concerned. "I am not worried about your defense of us my lord and of the queen's mission, what I am worried about are the circumstances that will lead up to that point. We're on dangerous grounds."

"That's not something we can do anything about," Caspian said as he belted StormBreaker to his waist and fixed them with a long look. "So, I say we forget about the notion of being betrayed because we face them every day and get done what needs to get done."

"Yes, my lord," Missandei said her expression turning blank once more.

"Now come," Caspian said. "Let's go down and greet our host because I have a feeling it will be in poor taste if we remain hiding up here like a craven."

Ω

As it turned out, Orius had put a lot of thought into the plan for the taking of the city from the inside.

When Caspian, Missandei, and Orin came down for breakfast on a staircase lined with Unsullied who had seemingly made it their mission to not sleep the night before as the queen's Hand was to rest first, the master of the house was waiting for them in the same solar where Caspian had eaten the night before.

Caspian exchanged a glance with Ser Barristan before quickly entering the room and nodding at his host. "Good morning."

"Good morning your grace," Orius replied looking up from his desk at the papers he was reading to give Caspian a genial smile. "Did you sleep well?"

"Quite well thank you," the prince said politely. "May I ask what you're doing?"

"Assessing our plans," the healer said.

"Our plans?" Caspian asked.

"Indeed," the man replied. "Today I have been called to see the daughter of one of the Wise Masters who is currently suffering from an ailment that I am almost certain is incurable. It is my wish your grace that you and your female servant will accompany me under the guise of servants so you may see the inside of the Wise Master's homes and assess their defenses for yourself."

Caspian was at once impressed and wary. He was being offered a custom-made excuse to look into the homes of the Wise Masters, find out information on them and report back to the queen how best one might enter the city.

"It is a wise idea," he said carefully. "But is it necessary that Missandei come as well? She acted as translator to Kraznys in Astapor who was one of the leaders of the city and who we took her from. Isn't she likely to be recognized? Would it not be better to bring one of your own female servants as the Wise Masters are likely to know them better and thus won't ask questions?"

Orius nodded. "Very well your grace. It is a sound idea. But you will need to be absolutely silent as I perform my tasks and though we will be going throughout the house seeing to its residents, if you leave my side there will be questions asked. So please for both of our sakes and the sake of the future ensure that you are no more than three steps behind me."

"You might as well just claim that I am mute," Caspian muttered and Orius' eyes gleamed as if he had just gotten an idea.

"Perhaps that is a viable option, your grace," he said and Caspian wanted to throw his hands up into the air.

"Very well Master Aurelius," he said. "Do what you have to do."

We are well past the realm of logic at this point, I might as well dive the rest of the way into insanity.

"Excellent," the healer said.

He then turned to the door where a servant had been waiting with a steaming plate of food and gestured for them to come in where they set the nourishment before Caspian so that he could eat. "The moment you finish your grace, we will depart from the house."

Caspian nodded before turning to see Orin standing at the door watching him and gestured for the small boy to come closer.

The moment Orius turned away and left the room, the small boy scampered in and Caspian took the moment to impart a private message.

"Are the wagons still in the lawn Orin?"

"Yes, my lord," the small boy said.

"Good, now the moment that I am gone with Master Aurelius please go to the wagon where we have hidden Tessarion and bring her into the house and up to my chambers before she is detected. I don't think that I have to tell you to not let anyone see you as no one but you and I and the queen know of their existence and I wish for it to remain so for the foreseeable future. Do you understand?"

Orin nodded. "Yes, my lord."

"Good. Also, while we are away, I wish for you to send ask Missandei to send a letter to Queen Daenerys and find a raven so that she may do so. I wish to keep the queen apprised of our activities at all times so there is no miscommunication and we may be ready at a moment's notice for trouble."

"Very well my lord."

"Good."

"And while she does that," Caspian said. "I have another very important task for you today as well Orin. While I am away from this house, I would like for you to go throughout the city and take a look at the walls and grates specifically that we have seen the night before and assess which are the weakest. Don't get caught, don't be seen, and above all else don't go out completely into the light so others can see you. Be fast and be silent. I don't want you or anyone else in this company being taken in by any Unsullied belonging to the Wise Masters. Do you understand?"

"Yes, my lord."

"Excellent."

Orin disappeared to return to the door by Ser Barristan who bent down so no doubt the small boy could whisper part of what the prince had said into his ear. The old knight nodded and straightened up just as Master Aurelius returned to the room.

Caspian focused his attention on wolfing down the breakfast he had been served as his stomach was already protesting from not having eaten for the last eight to ten hours.

I have a feeling I'm going to need as much energy as possible in the next few weeks that we are residents of Master Aurelius' humble abode. If I'm going to be running about the city trying to find weak political offenses as well as weak physical defenses then I think I will need to be eating and sleeping as much as possible. Now, why does that seem to be the last thing that I will be doing?

Caspian locked eyes with Ser Barristan over the top of his plate before turning back to the healer who was watching him carefully.

He raised an eyebrow at Master Orius and then opened his mouth, giving voice to none of his somewhat tired thoughts.

"Where will be we going to visit today?"

Orius gave a sharp nod as if he were glad that Caspian had finally caught up to his own thoughts before leaning against the desk and placing his tightened fists against the edges.

"Today we will be frequenting the home of the Wise Master Razdal mo Eraz, a member of one of the elite families of Yunkai. His wife has been suffering from a particular illness that I do not know yet how to cure and so this requires me to travel to his home once every few days to monitor the progress of the treatments I prescribe. As a "servant" you will be accompanying me, your grace."

"Very well," Caspian replied. "When are we leaving?"

"Right now," Orius replied.

With that said be swept out of the room without waiting for Caspian to follow him, causing the former prince to raise an eyebrow.

He glanced at Orin and jerked his head towards the wagons that were parked out front of the house inside the gates.

The little boy gave him a short nod and dashed outside.

Caspian waited a few moments before he came racing back in with the small box and hurried up the stairs to the prince's chambers, taking them two at a time before he heard a door close.

As soon as it did, Caspian breathed a sigh of relief and followed Master Aurelius out the door and shut it behind him.

It was now time for a different sort of assignment.

Ω

"Well, that was a bloody waste of time," Caspian muttered.

It was a few hours later and he was walking behind Orius through the streets of Yunkai. A day at the market in the late afternoon was in full session and they had just returned from the last of the magister's houses.

They were all a bunch of pompous self-inflated windbags that Caspian would have dearly loved to take StormBreaker and gut the lot of them like fish. Almost all of them had absolutely no idea of how to govern a city and had more gold than they needed, enough to drown in it.

The only one that he could take somewhat seriously was Razdal mo Eraz. He was much younger than the rest of the fools he had seen with Orius today and dark-haired, olive-skinned, and sharp-eyed. His dark eyes flashed with intelligence and ruthlessness that Caspian knew he would need to watch carefully. He could pose a problem in the future.

He had nothing all day but pose as a servant and hold the necessary tools and potions that Master Orius used to administer to the necessary people.

In that time, he had observed what was going on around him and had picked up a few things that might be useful but altogether would not guarantee any sort of success.

The one he hated the most Yezzn zo Qaggaz. Caspian had heard the man spoken of in whispers and Orius had conveyed to him after they had left that he was dubbed the Yellow Whale and also Lord Yellow belly.

It was a sentiment that Caspian agreed with wholeheartedly. He had been stunned and appalled at the man's immense size when he and Orius entered the gardens to tend to the man. Orius had privately expressed to the prince later that the man suffered from dysentery and constant indigestion.

The prince had snorted and sarcastically wondered why.

"Not entirely my prince," Orius said quietly as they walked and he gestured for Caspian to walk next to him so that the two of them could talk. "Today was merely to observe, and have you found any within the walls of the palaces we visited that could prove loyally to the queen's cause?"

Caspian thought quickly and then nodded, remembering some of the people they had visited earlier in the day. After hours of visiting some of Orius's patients, they had all begun to run together in his mind making recalling them annoying.

"There were two," he said quietly. "The one called Malazza."

"Ah, the one dubbed the Girl General."

"Aye, why someone would name her something so foolish is beyond me."

"You disapprove of the title?"

"Not at all, but they seem to refer to it as a mocking sort of title. One I can tell she does not like."

"Well done your grace. And you think that we can win her to our side?"

Caspian pursed his lips. "Perhaps with a few carefully placed words in the right ears. Malazza is a Yunkai nobility and commands a force of her own. It is a small force but something tells me they could be as formidable as the Unsullied if she wished them to be. They are all young and well trained from what I have heard. I have also heard that she has trained them herself which is an impressive feat for a woman in Essos. This means she holds a certain deal of affection for those she takes under her wing. She sees that they are well armed and have the means to defend themselves while not taking their dignity like it was taken from the Unsullied. The fact that she is a woman and has these tendencies while still being a formidable warrior might be enough to make Queen Daenerys appealing."

"Well done," Orius said looking pleased. "So, the day was not an entire waste then?"

Caspian smirked slightly. "No, I suppose not."

"Were there any others that you noticed?"

"Aye, there was Peazhar zo Myraq. While the man owns his own force of slave soldiers' part of me thinks that their great height is a way for compensating for his own lack of stature. He is nicknamed the Little Pigeon by those who see him and thus may harbor some resentful feelings towards those Wise Masters who allow this. He may prove useful as well."

"Good. And what of Yurkhaz zo Yunzak?"

"He will need to be dealt with as soon as possible. A Supreme Commander of the Armies of Yunkai and their Allies is too dangerous to be left alive."

"We will have to dispatch him before the queen arrives as the man may close the city and be able to withstand a military assault."

A pity the queen's dragons are not full-grown, Caspian thought grimly to himself as they walked. No army can withstand an assault from the air. The Vale and Harrenhal can attest to that.

"There is one more," Caspian said.

"Yes."

"Qaggaz has a son Tezzn zo Qaggaz, a rather meek individual who is more prone to his books than his father's eating habits and whoring ways. I kept an eye on him while you tended to the man and he appears to be an intelligent individual. Do you recall when he brought a proposed solution to his father on how they might increase the road size and thus trade into the city how Qaggaz responded?"

"Aye, he mocked him."

"He did and I watched him closely after that. There was a fire in his eyes so he refused to say anything. He is obviously used to being handled by his father in such away. He may prove useful as well."

"Well done your grace. He, Malazza, and Myraq are the ones we need to focus our attention upon. I would propose sending a letter to her grace to inform her of these developments. They may prove useful in the future."

"Indeed, there is still the sellsword company to deal with outside of the city gates and a supreme commander that needs to be dispatched, there is still a good of work that needs to be done."

"Indeed."

"In the meantime, we need to figure out some way to get the gates of this city open and allow the queen's army entrance."

Oddly enough Caspian immediately thought of the wildfire that had nearly destroyed King's Landing when King Aerys had been on the throne.

If only there was some way of having that replicated without it destroying anything organic in its path.

He glanced up at the man who walked beside him as they headed up the hill and mused to himself. If Master Orius is a healer who is well versed in all sorts of medicinal remedies, he must have a lot of experience in mixing chemicals. There must be some sort of concoction that he can come up with that will prove useful.

A moment later the sounds of the marketplace faded behind as the two men walked up the hill towards the healer's house.

The moment it came into view, Caspian let out an unconscious sigh of relief.

The moment they were in the door the prince could see his familiar young servant hurrying towards him from down the stairs with Missandei on his heels.

"My lord," Orin called out. "My lord a letter for you."

"Quietly Orin, quietly," Caspian said and the small boy immediately slowed down a look of reproach on his face.

"I believe I should let you attend to that your grace," Orius said. He gave the prince a short bow and moved off into his study leaving the three alone.

As soon as he was gone Caspian turned to the queen's female servant. "Missandei where is Ser Barristan?"

"He took a walk through the city not long ago my lord," the brunette informed him. "I believe his purpose was to look at the city walls."

"I do hope that he didn't do anything to make himself conspicuous," Caspian muttered to himself. "A knight of Westeros in armor is surely noticeable."

"He was wearing a dark cloak my lord when he left with the hood pulled over his head, my lord. I don't think anyone would notice him."

Caspian nodded. "Good. Orin, did you complete that errand I asked you about this morning?"

"Yes, my lord."

"Good, then come with me both of you."

The three of them headed for the stairs and the moment they reached the landing and Caspian's chambers, the prince showed them in and bolted the door.

The small crate that was bearing Tessarion was still sitting on the bed and Caspian set the letter down beside it before carefully removing the top of it and peering down at the blue dragon inside with a smile.

Missandei meanwhile was looking at the creature in shock. "My lord – "

"It's alright Missandei," Caspian said calmly, "this is all above board. The queen knows of this dragon already. And no, it is not one of hers."

"It isn't?" the brunette asked and the prince shook his head. "No. This is Tessarion and she is my dragon. Her two other brothers and sister are in Astapor where they are being kept an eye on by the queen."

"She's beautiful," Missandei said moving closer so she could reach out and touch the head of the dragon.

Though Tessa had grown bigger in the last two months since she had hatched, she was nowhere near as big as Drogon but in Caspian's private opinion, she was far more beautiful.

While Drogon sported a black-red hue that made him look fierce, Tessa was a deep blue with scales that shone like pure silver in the right light making her appear in the sky and her scales the stars.

I wonder how big Edrion, Zergyx, and Veneys have grown in this time, Caspian thought to himself.

Tessarion regarded Missandei's hand for a moment as if sniffing it delicately and then turning her back to the servant so that Missy could pet her scales.

Caspian chuckled. "Arrogant little thing. I suppose she is already so self-aware that she has deemed you worthy to touch her scales."

"I thought the queen's dragons were the only ones in existence," Missandei replied. "Now there are seven."

"Ironic, isn't it?" the prince muttered under his breath.

He was still thinking about the Seven and their odd relationship to this. But now was not the time.

So instead, he carefully picked up the letter that the queen had sent to him and carried it to the window where the late afternoon sunlight was shining before breaking the seal and removing the parchment sheath.

He was pleased to see that she too had written in the common tongue and her words were backward as well. The structure of the letters was a bit wobbly seeing as how she had never done this before but for some reason, Caspian found it somewhat endearing. He wondered why she had taken a risk in writing back and when he had told her not to but decided that whatever it contained couldn't have much crucial information.

The sable-haired young man was surprised to see that the letter was only one line and when he had held it up to the small mirror in his room, he was further surprised to see what it said.

Do what you think is best my lord Hand. I trust you.

He didn't know why, but a warm feeling filled his chest upon reading the brief communication and he smiled slightly to himself.

He and Daenerys, even while apart seemed to have come to a point where they could put aside whatever past their families had and focus on the future. It was a calming thought to know that she trusted him as Caspian was now able to admit to himself that he trusted her. Daenerys seemed to be the sort of woman who was loyal to those who were loyal to her. If he proved himself to her in this way yet again, it would give her one more reason to trust him. Trust seemed to be everything with her and Caspian knew it was a simple enough thing to gain when going about politics.

His uncle had often told him that the quickest way to gain someone's trust was not to spend hours thinking about it but to simply do what they want, no matter how demeaning or strange. The most prominent example of that at least in his uncle's case was how he had managed to escape the Eyrie with the help of the sellsword Bronn.

Bronn had gained his uncle's trust by simply doing what he wanted and now he had a source of protection.

As did he.

"Wherever did you find them?" Missandei asked.

"After I was shipwrecked, I somehow washed up on a cave on the outskirts of Slaver's Bay. It appears as if that must have been a segment of Old Valyria because I found the bones of a dragon farther back in the cave with four eggs buried in the water between its front paws. I am at a loss as to how the dragon managed to get into the cave but the only theory, I have come up with is that the dragon must have been trying to escape the Doom and in doing so fell into a rocky place where it later died and time covered over the place with rocks and created a cave. I didn't know if the eggs would hatch but at the moment even a dragon egg is worth its weight in rubies. Even by selling the one I would have been a very rich man and had enough to buy my passage back to Westeros. However, when I was able to buy passage aboard a spice ship from Qarth bound for Astapor and had to, unfortunately, take out some of the men on the ship, I burned their bodies, and the eggs hatched."

"I was there," Orin whispered to Missandei.

"And what have you named this one my lord?" the former slave asked.

"Tessarion," the prince said scratching her scales fondly. "Tessa for short. She hatched first, her sister and brothers have remained behind in Astapor."

"She will grow quickly," Missandei said looking at the little dragon fondly. "It will be hard to keep her hidden for much longer."

"I don't intend to hide Tessa for any longer than necessary," Caspian said calmly turning his gaze to the open window and the sun that was beginning to go down. "She will be necessary soon enough. Seven dragons are a weapon that the world has not seen before and never will again."

He turned back to the small boy who had served as guardian for Tessa when he was away. "Orin if you could go down to the kitchen and retrieve a haunch of roasted meat for Tessa, I have a feeling she is rather hungry."

Once the small boy had gone, Caspian sat down on the side of the bed and absently petted the dragon.

He glanced up after a moment to see a strange look on Missandei's face. "What is it, Missy?"

"I suddenly had a feeling that the world is not going to be the same after this, my lord," she said with a hint of wonder in her voice. "You and the queen have the power to change the world at your fingertips in the form of seven creatures that listen only to you. That is an immense gift…but also an immense responsibility. Stories of the Mad King were told here in Essos and of his downward spiral into madness. Some believe that Summerhall was the result of the Targaryen's trying to bring about the return of the dragons and you and the queen have the most in recent history. It has been over a century and a half since the last dragons were seen and now you have seven. I would advise that you be careful with what you do from here on out. For that action will determine who you are."

Caspian looked at her for a long moment, somewhat struck by her wisdom and astuteness. He was suddenly glad he had asked for her to be freed out of all of the slaves in

Astapor that he could have asked for.

"I know," he said quietly. "The queen and I both have the weight of legacy about our shoulders. And we have a responsibility to be better than our fathers. It's something I hope we can live up to."

Ω