Chapter 097 – Aemon Targaryen

[298 AC]

Somewhat surprised by the question, Phenex gave the man a deeper look and discovered the magical potential inside the aged Maester.

Aemon Targaryen was not a magician or sorcerer, but he could seemingly use his inborn talents to sense the presence of others, and with that came the ability to glimpse at the other party's life force.

Slowly approaching the table, Phenex took a seat opposite to Aemon, as he answered him honestly: "I am the Red God, indeed."

"Have you come to fight against the Others?", Aemon asked calmly, his experience and wisdom giving him a composure that was vastly superior to normal mortals.

"No.", Phenex replied directly, seeing no reason to lie to the old man, especially so since Aemon would not be able to tell another living soul about this conversation if Phenex did not want him to.

It was also something very rare that someone was able to recognize what he was, as only the Children of the Forest and Kinvara had been able to do so since his arrival in this world, without him actively concealing his existence.

"The Night's Watch cannot stop the wildlings, much less the White Walkers.", Aemon remarked with surprising calm and clarity, "The Realm, it needs your protection for what is to come."

"No, what the realm needs is a wake-up call, Maester.", Phenex answered, "The White Walkers might be a great threat, but the cruelty, greed, and debauchery of those in power are much more harmful to the realm. You have seen it yourself, you know what your family has brought to this land since its arrival."

"Aegon conquered and unified six of the Seven Kingdoms, which brought great prosperity to the land, but since then, how many Targaryen Kings have truly deserved to sit on the throne? How many of them have brought nothing but death and destruction to these lands?", Phenex ended in a low voice.

A moment of silence spread between the Red God and the old Targaryen Maester, before Aemon once again addressed Phenex.

"Will this be the end of the Westeros?", the old man inquired wearily.

"It will be the end of the Seven Kingdoms, Maester Aemon. Not of Westeros.", Phenex replied concisely.

These words seemed to have hit the old Maester rather heavily, as he seemed to have lost even more of his vitality, his shoulders having sunken a bit and his milky blind eyes growing even dimmer.

"M-my House, my family. C-can you tell me about them, my Lord?", Aemon asked quietly, pain and longing in his voice.

He had been sent to the Citadel as a boy because his father had too many heirs and was worried about the conflict between them when it came to the line of succession. And later on, he had chosen the Wall himself to avoid being used against his brother in a political ploy for the throne.

Aemon had never gone back on his oath, but the fate of his family had hit him hard nonetheless.

As he had said in the original timeline to Samwell Tarly: 'A Targaryen alone in the world is a terrible thing.'

Grabbing the old and bony hand that Aemon had rested on the table with his own, Phenex answered quietly as he shared his fire with Aemon for a short while.

"I have righted past wrongs, Aemon. Rhaella Targaryen is one of my beloved wives and I have given life back to her grandchildren and daughter-in-law. Young Daenerys has become a dragonrider for the Red Temple and her fierceness is no less than Aegon the Conquerer's was."

"If it is your wish, I will take you to Volantis and give you back your youth, Maester? To spend your life by your family's side like you wished for all your life, I can fulfill this wish of yours.", Phenex offered.

Aemon gave Phenex' hand a slight squeeze while a minute smile appeared on his face, before retracting his hand while addressing Phenex.

"Y-you have my heartfelt gratitude, my Lord, and I truly yearn to be with my family, but my watch is not yet over.", the old Maester replied, his voice steady and low.

'Aemon Targaryen', Phenex thought with admiration, 'what a remarkable man.'

A man capable of turning down what he wished for, just to fulfill his oath until the day he died, was a man that was truly worthy of his respect and admiration, and Phenex felt somewhat gratified knowing that they were related by blood, however distant this connection was.

"I will remember you, Aemon Targaryen, Dragon in the North.", Phenex voiced out, as he quietly rose from his seat and left the old man to his thoughts.

He knew that Aemon had not long to live and that he would most likely never see him again, but a man like him should not be forgotten and Phenex didn't plan on doing so.

…

Finally the next day, the passage through the Wall was opened and Phenex, Arianne, Missandei, his Feathers, and the veteran members of the Fiery Hand followed the dozen or so Night's Watch members through the gate into the wintry hell beyond.

A group of three guided them towards the heart tree not far from the Wall, while the rest went and began to patrol the nearby woods for wildlings and other threats, like direwolfs or shadowcats.

The walk was relatively short and despite the freezing cold, none of the members of Phenex' party seemed to be affected at all, which wasn't too surprising considering their allegiance with the Aspect of Fire itself.

The ankle-deep snow also did not slow down the horses, so they reached their destination in just under half an hour, arriving before a great heart tree.

"You three may leave now, we will find our way back on our own.", Phenex addressed the three Night's Watch members.

And even though they had orders to escort the visitors back themselves, the tone of Phenex' voice compelled them to do as he asked and so they left.

Still, they did steal a few glances at the exotic beauties at Phenex' side as they left, though Phenex couldn't really fault them for that as Arianne and Missandei looked just hauntingly beautiful.

Wrapped in grey and white fur coats with slightly rosy cheeks, their caramel skin stood in stark contrast to the all-encompassing white landscape around them.

Curious as she was, Missandei approached the weirwood tree and was immediately fascinated by the face carved into it, frozen red tears streaking from its eyes.

"Who carved this?", she asked with a glance at her lover.