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Rating:
Teen And Up Audiences
Archive Warnings:
Graphic Depictions Of ViolenceMajor Character Death
Category:
Gen
Fandoms:
House of the Dragon (TV)Warhammer Fantasy
Characters:
Ikit ClawRhaenyra TargaryenJacaerys VelaryonLucerys Velaryon (Son of Rhaenyra)Baela TargaryenRhaena Targaryen (Daughter of Daemon)Daemon TargaryenCorlys "The Sea Snake" VelaryonHelaena TargaryenAddam VelaryonBackground & Cameo CharactersSilverwing | Alysanne Targaryen's DragonOriginal CharactersJoffrey Velaryon
Additional Tags:
Crack Treated SeriouslyCanon-Typical ViolenceThe Dance of the Dragons | Aegon II Targaryen v. Rhaenyra Targaryen EraAlternate Universe - Canon DivergenceCanonical Character DeathCharacter Turned Into a HumanIkit got isekai'd as Jace's twinSkaven Species (Warhammer Fantasy)Death to all GreensHuman ExperimentationScience ExperimentsIkit is his own warningSilverwing still has shit taste in male ridersPOV MultipleBackground RelationshipsBackground Character Deathshow canon onlyDragon RidersAnimal AbuseIkit is an abusive dragonriderTho he's fairly mellow compared to his SkavenselfGood Parent Rhaenyra TargaryenNo beta we die like LucerysDysfunctional FamilyCannibalismBlood and TortureCanon-Typical BehaviorBAMF Helaena Targaryen
Language:
English
Stats:
Published:2026-02-26Completed:2026-04-22Words:181,492Chapters:55/55Comments:1,270Kudos:749Bookmarks:160Hits:33,669
The Rat Prince of Westeros
SkilledWarriorKiwi
Chapter 25: Saera
Chapter Text
Ikit did not return to Volantis for nearly several months after the visit from the Queen Who Never Was.
By then Saera had pretty much forgotten the discussion with the washed up old princess, more interested in continuing her life of decadence and prestige. Every day more gifts would arrive with supplicants, from the various nobles and ancient families of Volantis. All of them wanting access to the famed warlock Ikit, whom Saera still held as an honoured guest.
She had expanded to several buildings neighbouring, mostly due to the amount of deaths and dragon-eating that had occurred in the manse. Still, the people of Volantis weren't spineless like Westerosi or the Dothraki who screamed and cried over any hint of magic, they did not flinch from sacrifices and blood shed for gods. No, the young warlock was still a source of deep attention and interest and Saera was all too happy to reap the benefits of his years at Essos and Volantis.
Her information net grew substantially, as did her vault. Both money-wise and her blackmail material, even if she kept her most intensive information diary hidden in little vault behind one of her desks. It contained all her records of her blackmail upon the upper echelons in Volantis, and even visiting guests who chose her brothel with its extensive menu. Who was stepping out on his wife, who had a taste for girls too young to have even flowered, who liked beating their slaves, who favoured goats. All kept in a neat little book and one Saera would amuse herself with flipping through on any boring or bland days.
This was not one of them as Silverwing had been spotted arriving at Volantis that morning. The huge dragon, who had gotten substantially larger since her stay in the First Daughter, had landed over at the great harbour.
Saera snapped into action when one of her sons informed her, quickly sending her slaves to clean up the already impeccable manse. Food was already being cooked in mind, as one thing she rapidly learned was that Ikit was always hungry.
She got up in a shimmer of silk as she proceeded to check her manse over with a sharp, critical eye. Flowers had been changed out, some new portraits and statues, the dusting was- ah, some left upon the top of that vase. She snapped her fingers and the slave girl was seized by two of the guards, Saera ignoring the girl's pleas as she was dragged out to the whipping post. A few good dozen lashes would remind her to get every nook and cranny. Sometimes she wondered why she even fed them, worthless mouths they were.
Prince Ikit had his own rooms she graciously provided but to her annoyance he had always removed any type of secret information when he left or would burn them or they were utterly ineligible. Still, she wasn't in her feckless youth otherwise she would enjoy trying to learn magic. Watching so many hopefuls die horrendously or turn into monsters fascinated her but she wasn't in the mood to do it herself.
Asking Ikit was just a mess as she couldn't understand him half the time but whatever it was, he made things interesting. She hadn't been lying when she told that shriveled up old princess she wished Ikit was her son. She would've taken over Volantis if that were the case. Instead all her children were painfully average and grandchildren even more so.
There was some hope in later generations as when Saera was snarling at one girls, hand twisted in her hair and making her cry out, she heard a very terse, 'Grandmother' from the entry.
She let go of the girl, throwing her aside and turned to the open door with a smile.
"Oh, Vaelora! How is my favourite granddaughter?" Saera greeted with a coo, enjoying the hostile glare the girl shot her.
Out of all her grandchildren, Vaelora reminded Saera the most of herself. Vicious, cunning, knew full well what she wanted, and had her own prestige as she refused any and all help from Saera.
Pity Vaelora held affection for her beaten dog of a mother, something Saera had never managed to twist her out of despite her attempts over the decades. It was part of the reason why Saera found it so humorous to keep her idiot daughter around. She hadn't spoken until she was six years old and Saera couldn't remember but she probably dropped her on her head as a babe or something. Would explain quite a lot.
Even now, with her mother still enslaved to Saera, Vaelora continued to visit if only to speak to her mother. Otherwise Vaelora would spend her days down at the docks where she worked as an administrator for one of the trading companies. Or something along those lines, Saera wasn't entirely sure as she tended to tune her out when she got too boring or long winded. Several times Vaelora had tried to buy her mother's contract but of course Saera couldn't bear to part with one of her beloved children.
"I have those loan slips you needed from Markus," she said coldly, offering Saera a series of thick envelopes.
"Don't be so formal, darling. Come in, come! Prince Ikit will be here soon and I know how curious you are about him."
Vaelora just gave her a flat cold stare but nonetheless entered. It was all business from her, even when she handed over the information and told her about how Saera's exports were going. She regularly traded, sold or brought whores, always to keep her merchandise fresh, and Lys were her most favoured trade partner. She always liked working through Vaelora's company, always to keep her family close.
The hostile looks just made everything even funnier, as she set down her accounts and started going through the loans as Vaelora sat glaring across from her.
"Yaela, get here now," Saera called, suddenly thirsty. Her daughter appeared in an instant, eyes downwards as always. When she finally served wine Saera sent her off with a careless wave of her hand. Should have her feet whipped again, just to keep her sharp.
Vaelora didn't even twitch at the coming-and-going of her mother, even when Saera sweetly asked if she wanted anything to drink. By the time they were done, both could hear the approaching noise of dragon wings. A distant rhythmic thunder.
"It's always wonderful to see you, my dear, yet it seems our time is up. Please visit again," Saera said as she escorted her granddaughter to the exit.
A hateful look and she was gone, with Saera chuckling in amusement even as there was a shudder as the dragon landed.
Saera noted with interest how Silverwing had changed over the years, her grey scales starting to get edged in green with ore-like spikes budding down her back and jutting out her tail. She also started drooling profusely, the saliva making the ground smoke where it dribbled. Saera was also quite certain the creature was growing additional eyes, now green instead of blue. Disgusting beast, she was quite certain it had to do with the warpstone Ikit kept feeding the dragon constantly, hidden within the meat. She did wish she could make a ring with that pretty little magic rock, but Ikit hoarded it like a dragon and any fool who got too close just turned into a monster who got eaten.
Magic, so funny and intriguing. Oh if only she was some decades younger.
It was even more apparent when Ikit appeared, so changed from the little boy he had been upon his arrival. Now he was taller than her, with numerous pieces of Valyrian armour including a breast plate and limb pieces. Still not fully encased but then again he was only seventeen namedays. Still growing. His hair was longer, shaggy like a mane, and his earrings had little pieces of warpstone threaded into them much like his armour. He certainly looked like a warlock from the tales, with those green eyes and sigil-scorched armour.
Saera was the perfect host, acting the welcoming family as she saw to Ikit's return. Part of it wasn't even a farce, as she was curious about Stygai. Apparently Ikit just wanted a place where he could make a workshop in peace and well, a city of dead was a fairly perfect spot. She noted the strange new objects upon him, one looking like a cluster of glass orbs with a strange twisting smoke in them, an odd item that had a handle like a crossbow yet had a very long narrow tube muzzle like a blowpipe, and of course his halberd even if the blade held a green sheen to it like the warpstone. All with Valyrian steel and stone, mixed with the green crystals.
He explained when she asked, even if she had no idea what a 'death globe' was beyond being a globe that brought death. He tended to be very literal when it came to naming things she had noticed.
Apparently Stygai wasn't too dangerous as long as one just ignored the dead-not-dead lying all over the city. Saera was fairly inured to horror but even a part of her felt disquieted at the description of the place. Well, the boy always was odd. He had done several raids on Old Valyria even if they seemed to be extremely quick, sneaking trips.
'Too many demons,' he had complained, ranting about not being able to explore the peninsular proper because of things that weren't there but decided to be and monsters that didn't die properly.
In turn she told him about Princess Rhaenys's visit half a year ago, about how she left word and then disappeared again due to some silly political tension in Westeros by the Stepstones. Ikit frowned heavily at that, asking her several more questions but seemed satisfied at her suggestion it was solely a family visit. They seemed like a needy lot, across the narrow sea. Their letters had just been sappy rubbish of no real information Ikit needn't bother himself with.
She was happy her Rat Prince had returned, and no doubt all of Volantis would know by the morrow he had returned instead of dying in the Shadow as quite a few speculated. She knew he wouldn't, she had faith that he had a knack for surviving. So she welcomed him in with a lavish dinner, gracious host and all as she kept him fed and informed him of the events in the city before he retired for the night. Dragonriding was exhausting by all accounts so she happily saw him off to bed.
Though to be certain she placed some extra guards upon his room and the hallways before she went in for the night. She wrote several letters by candlelight, sealing and stamping them once down. Now Ikit was back so could again begin to lure in potentials. A few of the more useless maegi and travelers seeking out the Rat Prince she had already clapped in chains to help full up her stock in her pleasure house. She wouldn't turn down fresh meat when it so willingly showed up.
She checked her book, leafing through the pages and wondering if she should start pressuring one of the wealthier Black Wall families. The woman had a jealous husband and she had some exotic tastes Saera was sure her husband would take umbridge with. Ah well, things to ponder after a well nights rest, so she stowed away the book and left the letters in her desk drawer before she went to bed.
However there was no rest for the wicked, so she was abruptly woken in the middle of the night by a hand seizing her hair and yanking her out from under the silken blankets
Her started shriek cut off from the impact to the ground and she twisted, groping for the dagger she kept along the frame only to get kicked hard in the stomach.
Saera groaned, fighting back the surge of nausea as she hugged her stomach. She was bare, as she never bothered to wear clothes to bed, and when she looked up and saw Ikit staring down at her she knew she could have every one of her boys in the room and it wouldn't matter.
He was clearly furious, lips peeled back in a snarl to show all his sharp teeth, with eyes glowing like lanterns.
"Ikit!" she rose, ignoring her nudity as she demanded, "You explain yourself right now! What even is the meaning of this? If it's one of the slaves then you can do whatever you wish of them, not attack me in the middle of the night like some savage!"
"You burned the letters from my family," Ikit said flatly.
She twitched, "I never-"
"Stop lying, you stupid cunt," another voice cut in. "I told him everything, after Mother told me."
Vaelora stepped into view, glaring at her grandmother with unabashed hostility. Clutched to her breast was a very familiar book and in the other was a lantern that cast everything in dancing shadows and yellow glow. Out in the darkened hallway she noticed more lamps being lit even as Vaelora walked up next to Ikit's side.
Saera hissed, "This is all about your stupid bitch of a mother, isn't it? Making up lies, setting me up! I have done nothing but care for the boy as if he were my own-"
"Oh so that's why you thought you could use and abuse him, you mistook him for family," Vaelora scoffed at her.
"Enough," the sheer authority in Ikit's voice made them both fall silent. He cocked his head to the side, his halberd resting upon a shoulder as he continued, "I tolerated you, as you served-supplied a purpose. Now you have expended that, yes-yes. Last final use for you, and if you hadn't burned-destroyed the letters then I may have let it be quick. But no more."
"Grab her," Vaelora announced and Saera bristled when four of the whore boys of her guards entered.
She shrieked as two of them seized her by the arms, dragging her after them as she screamed and thrashed. As she was pulled through the manse, screeching and clawing the whole way, the noise was drawing the attention of the other inhabitants. The slaves were still and useless as always, but she noted several of her personal guards appear from one of the doorways.
"Stop just standing there, do something!" she screamed.
Two of them went to move but Ikit was faster- his halberd took off the head of one in a flash of light, severing muscle and bone with ease. No sooner was the decapitated head bouncing across the floor did Ikit seize the other guard by the jaw, yanking him right off his feet with unnatural strength. There was a great flare of lightning across his body before it shot up and crackled about the guard's head which then exploded all over the wall and ceiling.
Ikit dropped the twitching body, looking at the rest and saying, "Who else wants to die-die?"
No one did anything, even as Vaelora ordered, "Secure the manse, Kallos. Kill those we spoke of."
Saera heard one of the guard's voice an affirmative and she was dragged out into the burnt courtyard. She faltered when she realized there were others already there, naked and tied up, spread out around a vast boulder of obsidian in some strange pattern.
"Let go of me! I have friends, I have so many of the nobles owing me!" Saera shrieked, even as she roughly forced face-first onto the ground.
"With what?" Vaelora said off to the side somewhere. "I have your funny little book, remember? Turns out being a mean, hateful old cunt means no one has loyalty when you lose your leverage."
Binding were wrapped around her arms, her ankles, hogtying her in tight restraints. She was then dragged across the ground until she was placed with the others. With her it thirteen of them, and Saera recognized several of her sons, and the rest her grandchildren. All of them were gagged and bound, some with odd symbols cut into their skin. She alone was able to shout.
"I have experimented with this, many times yes-yes. Blood, sacrifice, offerings. I think-believe the blood of dragonriders would be more potent. This is the test," Ikit said, stepping in front of her and idly turning his halberd about.
In the night his eyes glowed and Saera only just realized Silverwing's gigantic form was silently observing the courtyard when her head lowered over the walls so it was only a few feet above her rider. There were scant lanterns lit and an odd quiet nearby. They were given an unusual privacy and dread clutched her breast.
"I cared for you!" Saera cried, struggling against her bonds. "I looked after you, gave you a home and safety-"
"You burned the letters. That is all for your fate-death. It will be unpleasant," Ikit said simply.
"And I will take over your estate," Vaelora announced. "You failed to instill any loyalty beyond the back of your hand. Those that remained are to be culled. I have all your precious blackmail material and I am not surprised you're so stupid and arrogant you failed to anticipate this. You will die and I will gladly wield the blade."
"You would kill your own grandmother? You would commit kinslaying?!" Saera shrieked.
"You made it clear you are undeserving of your title as mother, grandmother. You are no family of mine," Vaelora said flatly. "And regardless, the Under-Father does not consider kinslaying a sin. This is a sacrifice."
"The who?"
Vaelora scoffed, "You truly know nothing about Prince Ikit or the higher mysteries he knows? I do. My mother does, and quite a few of my aunts, uncles and cousins are the same. The rest of the nonbelievers can die with you and we will make something new. Something better. Something stronger."
She tucked the book into her armpit, pulling the dagger from her belt. Saera grimaced, limbs aching and blood staining her wrists, even as Vaelora sliced a triangle into the back of her hand. It was overly long, lines overlapping. Blood dripped down her fingers as she approached Saera, her eyes hateful.
Saera recoiled, raw fear taking over everything else, "Vaelora, don't do this! I'm your grandmother, I'm sorry for how I treated you! I only wanted you to be strong, you and your mother both."
Vaelora laughed, "No, you wanted to abuse someone under your control just like you always have done. Stop lying."
Behind her advancing form Saera could spy the form of Yaela, half consumed by the shadows in the dark courtyard. Watching with those dull eyes, mute and stupid as always.
"All hail Horned Rat," Ikit said, Silverwing exhaling above him and filling the air with a strange stench.
"All hail Horned Rat," Vaelora echoed, before she bent down and slit Saera's throat.
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