[Chapter Size: 2500 Words.]
Third Person POV.
Stormlands.
...
...
A few days had passed since the execution in King's Landing. Quickly, the news began to spread throughout the kingdom.
It would not take more than a week for the other part of Daemon's army to reach the capital, leaving the land of the rivers and passing through Harrenhal.
But, of all the reactions that occurred, the most noteworthy came from the South, when the news finally reached Storm's End. Despite having thousands of men waiting for him, Aegon was dejected, with a tired look. And how could he not be? He had somehow lost his dragon to that damned squid, Euron Greyjoy.
When Aegon entered the city atop his dragon, in Oldtown, he was confident that he could deal with the ironborn.
He saw the city in chaos, especially at the harbor. He had unleashed flames with his dragon, massacring the first ships in the port with the ironborn panicking, when he heard laughter coming from their largest ship. He looked and saw that Euron, shouting something to his men and pointing at Aegon on his dragon, he was happy instead of panicked.
Aegon managed to see some kind of horn in the middle of the deck and also a woman tied up, but he could not identify her. There were other people tied to posts about to be burned.
Aegon turned his dragon around. He did not like the way the ironborn shouted from below, like an arrogant and madman. As soon as he moved to eliminate him once and for all, the man was already over the horn, while his men carried out some kind of ritual, burning people on the pyres near him.
But Aegon did not care. He simply advanced, preparing to cover the ship in a sea of flames, just like the men who had just been sacrificed.
What he did not expect was that when Euron began to blow that enormous horn, a blast, a sound simply exploded through the air, catching Aegon and his dragon by surprise. But what frightened him most was not the sound itself, but the way his dragon reacted.
The creature began to thrash violently the next moment, letting out sounds of pain, as if whatever came from the horn was deeply tormenting it.
"Calm down!" he shouted.
But the dragon simply began to tilt to the side, and Aegon could barely control it as the creature moved away from the fleet, trying to flee out of the city.
"Stop! Return!" Aegon shouted in desperation.
The dragon did not obey. No matter how much he pulled on the reins, the creature simply surged forward uncontrollably. Aegon was terrified when he saw the dragon crash into the ground near the city walls. Without resistance, it struck hard. He felt the brutal impact, his belt snapping, and he fell to the ground, rolling breathless as the world darkened around him.
He knew he had broken a few ribs from that, but all he could think about was his dragon, which still seemed agitated at his side, trying to fight against its own mind. He could do nothing. The sound of the horn blasted once more, and Aegon completely blacked out.
When he woke, he was in a cart, heading toward Highgarden. Men from the Reach had rescued him. He immediately demanded answers about his dragon and was told that the creature had simply departed, with the ironborn accompanying it, after it had burned part of the city.
Aegon threatened to cut off with Blackfyre the head of the man who claimed to have seen Euron Greyjoy riding his dragon, while the woman Euron had held captive on the ship was devoured by the dragon itself, obeying Euron's orders. Some were frightened, but others insisted he was not lying.
Aegon was left speechless. The Tyrells had asked him to carry out a simple task: merely drive the ironborn out of Oldtown. And he had lost his dragon. His glory. The power of war that would make the Seven Kingdoms unite. Lost to a Greyjoy? How could that be possible? He refused to believe it, even when reality said otherwise.
The men kept recounting what they had seen. Some were in the city, others outside it, but they all said the same: they saw the dragon land before Euron's ship, and he himself deliver his niece to be devoured alive. After that, all the Greyjoys who were loyal to Asha simply knelt before Euron. He himself mounted the dragon and began to attack the city.
The Citadel had become a chaos of destruction, much of it collapsed!
No one had heard from him since. He had vanished, remaining hidden. Perhaps he had returned to Pyke, which had been destroyed by the other claimant to the throne.
Aegon had much to think about when he arrived at Highgarden. The mood was not good. Olenna seemed quite worried that he had lost a dragon, but they still spoke. After that, Aegon secluded himself in his chamber. He did not want to speak to anyone, not even his future wife, who tried several times to talk to him.
The days passed, and he decided to return to Storm's End. He still had dragons and an army, even after everything. But he would have to marry Margaery at Storm's End, meet with his other allies and then advance. Under the orders of General Tarly, the army that had been stationed at the Reach's border was already marching to the location and arrived a few days earlier.
Aegon was accompanied by Garlan and Loras, as well as hundreds of men. Together with Margaery and Olenna, they arrived at Storm's End, finally passing by the enormous armies gathered.
His men were there, waiting, with worried and even nervous looks.
Where was the glory he had when he set out? Perhaps because of more news from the north, Aegon wondered. It was not strange. After learning what was happening in King's Landing, he received a messenger on horseback, bringing letters stating that the army of Daemon Targaryen, the other claimant, had reached the capital.
Aegon was deeply frustrated. He hated the fact that he had lost his dragon. And now, he might also lose the glory of conquering the capital and judging, before all his vassals and the seven kingdoms, those he had sworn to take revenge upon.
It was frustrating, as if everything were going wrong. If he still had his dragon, he would have flown to King's Landing, taking his other two with him, to show his superiority and prove that that bastard, Daemon, would have no right to his fight or his glory.
"You may have lost a dragon, but there are still two," Olenna had said to him. "And two dragons are better than one. No matter what kind of creature rides that white dragon, dragonfire can turn everything into ashes."
As he moved toward his men in the castle yard, they all knelt.
"Your Majesty, you have finally arrived. We are glad that you are perfectly well, even after everything," said Jon Connington before everyone.
"Please, rise. I have a few broken bones, but it is all right..." He said dryly, but continued. "I want to know if there are any updates from the north," said Aegon, pressing his lips together. They certainly would not be good news.
"The Tyrells will be with us at the meeting. They are now our allies. Any news from the Martells?" he asked, as a man approached with a smile on his face.
"They will be coming soon, Your Majesty. And it is a relief to see you," said a Dornishman, with a woman at his side. Aegon knew who they were at once.
It was Oberyn Martell, beside Arianne Martell, the Princess of Dorne. Behind them were several young women, all with similar features — Oberyn's bastard daughters.
"Uncle," Aegon said upon recognizing him. Surprised to see him there before the Martell army.
Oberyn opened a presumptuous smile. Aegon did not like it, but did not show negativity.
"It is good to see you. You have grown," said Oberyn, pointing to the girl beside him. "This is my niece, Arianne Martell, heir and Princess of Dorne."
"Your Majesty, or should I say, cousin? It is good to meet you for the first time," she said, with a look heavy with desire and lust.
Aegon noticed Margaery Tyrell approaching at his side at that moment. She seemed bothered by Arianne's gaze upon him, something he noticed from the corner of his eye.
"It is a pleasure, Princess Arianne. We shall speak later... Now, my lords. These are Randyll Tarly, Olenna Tyrell, Margaery Tyrell, Garlan Tyrell and Loras Tyrell, who will be with us as allies," Aegon announced.
They remained there for some time, making introductions, as the new council began to gather to discuss urgent matters: the loss of the dragon and Daemon Targaryen's advance in the North.
The room was gradually filled by more people within Aegon's inner circle. Randyll Tarly, Olenna Tyrell and Oberyn Martell were now also part of the council as allies. Varys, Harry Strickland and Jon Connington were among his chief advisers.
Varys began to report what had happened in the north, while Aegon seemed increasingly irritated by the news of the past few days.
"They took King's Landing?" Aegon asked, this time with a voice laden with disbelief.
"Yes. They conquered the city and executed nearly all the Lannisters a few days ago, and publicly. The last were sentenced to be sent to the Wall and to the Silent Sisters," Varys replied.
"That was not supposed to happen, not like that!!" Aegon shouted, unable to believe what he was hearing.
'You must avenge your family to win the favor of Westeros. You need to wage a military campaign worthy of heroism. You will be a new Aegon, the Conqueror — perhaps greater than he was,' Varys and Jon Connington used to say those words to him.
But deep down, ever since he had heard about his supposed bastard brother arriving with a massive army in King's Landing, Aegon had already assumed the worst. And it had truly happened.
'What has he conquered so far...?'
"They did not have great difficulty in taking the city, to tell the truth, Your Majesty," Varys continued in a forcibly calm tone.
Aegon knew he was being restrained, but he was too irritated to comment. "Tell me what happened. I want the details!" Aegon demanded.
"Some of my little birds, still surviving in King's Landing, said that the king had left for a few days with his dragon. When he returned, he had captured Jaime Lannister, who had fled to Essos at his father's command, taking gold to live in isolation. I must say it was a rather brilliant move by the old lion. He knew they might lose and took precautions for that. But it seems the other claimant hunted him across the sea until he found his ship. He himself brought him back to the north. We do not know exactly how, but he also took Amory Lorch along with Jaime Lannister," Varys explained.
"The man who killed my sister!" Aegon exclaimed, consumed by rage. Even he could see Oberyn clenching his fist upon the table. The Dornishman was furious as well.
Once again, that Daemon had taken from them the right of vengeance.
"He returned only with Jaime from the north. He likely went to Winterfell, and Amory Lorch must be dead, since Jaime Lannister was the only one who returned," Varys continued.
Aegon was not only frustrated. He was wounded in his pride. He felt Jon Connington's hand touch his shoulder, like a father trying to comfort a son. Jon had shouted a great deal in recent days. He did not want them to see Aegon that way. He needed to be strong for the boy, so that they could conquer what was his by right.
Aegon nodded at the touch of the man who had come closest to a father figure in his life. After all, Illyrio had never been a present father, because of the ambitions they shared. He had sent him to the Golden Company long ago.
"The following morning, Daemon placed Jaime Lannister before the gate before cutting off his head, delivering his death sentence. Tywin himself saw his son killed by Daemon. He took advantage of this and, that very night, sent his dragon, which unleashed white flames and broke the gate, as well as destroying the wildfire field that Tywin had planned to use to halt the massive northern army."
"And the next day, they invaded the city and conquered it before midday. Daemon stormed the Red Keep even before his army and managed to subdue all the Lannisters and take control of the city. After that, it was easy."
"Jon killed Kevan Lannister on the battlefield. After they put all the other Lannisters in prison, he was executed the following day, while Daemon announced to King's Landing their crimes and the sentence."
"Tyrion, Tommen and Lancel were stripped of their birthrights and sentenced to the Wall. As for Joffrey and Cersei, they were executed, the latter in a rather unexpected manner. Daemon merely recounted Tywin's crimes and cut his neck himself without any ceremony."
"It was you who should have avenged him. It was you who should have wielded the sword and cut off Tywin's head," Jon said, with fury.
"Well, there is nothing to change now, is there?" Olenna suddenly spoke. "You may have lost your vengeance, but that does not mean you cannot conquer the throne. We are already here, committed to you. Your ambition was not in vain. So to hell with it. You still have a throne to conquer."
Olenna spoke firmly. She knew they were stepping into a pit they might not be able to climb out of. She knew Daemon was resolute and cruel when necessary. He had already exterminated more than one entire family since he began his military campaign. Now they were in a critical situation: either they won, or they would lose everything. If she regretted anything, it was already too late.
Aegon remained silent for a while, until he sighed.
"Well, there is no way to change it, is there?" he said. "So be it. Then let us prepare for war in the north. After all, we still have a capital to conquer. We still have a powerful army and dragons. We will finish that bastard," Aegon declared.
He then turned to Olenna.
"Let us prepare for the wedding and seal our alliance. Let us make your granddaughter a queen," he said, knowing that he also needed the Tyrell army after having lost so much.
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