Chapter 78 – The Defiance of Duskendale
Rhaegar spurred his horse, racing from the Dragonpit Camp back to the Red Keep.
Behind him rode his retinue of knights.
The king's page was pale with panic; the matter had to be dire.
The very name Duskendale cast a shadow across Rhaegar's mind.
House Darklyn of Duskendale was now only a second- or third-tier house; with King's Landing ascendant, few cared what happened there.
Rhaegar strode into the council chamber and found the mood already foul, every face daubed with gloom.
Nearly every Kingsguard knight was present, weapons in hand, eyes hard.
The chamber looked different: a haggard Queen Rhaella Targaryen stood near the table, while Prince Aerys Targaryen, Prince of Dragonstone, was conspicuously absent.
Rhaegar's heart lurched.
His gaze swept the great lords, faces once bright with pride, now twisted by anger, hatred, or dread.
A map of Duskendale lay spread across the table; the once-bustling port had never before drawn such attention.
"Sit, Rhaegar. House Darklyn has risen in revolt; they hold your father," King Jaehaerys II Targaryen said curtly.
So the Darklyns truly hate the Iron Throne, Rhaegar realized. They would rebel regardless—and now they have taken Father. Has the wheel of fate simply turned early?
"Ser, you escaped Duskendale—report," the king commanded a travel-stained youth, Ser Lake, an enemy of the Darklyns who had fled to King's Landing with the news.
"Lord Denys Darklyn is young but doubly greedy. He took a Myrish mistress called the Lace Serpent, and coin soon ran short. Remembering Duskendale's old prosperity, he asked leave to set his own tariffs. The Small Council refused only days ago, yet his greed festered. When Prince Aerys sailed the coast collecting stone for the Dragonpit, the Darklyns lured him ashore, slew a Kingsguard knight, and seized him, demanding the Crown heed their terms."
"Damned Myr again—those filthy schemers and their poisons!" Lord Munde, Hand of the King, snapped, face flushed. Westerosi loathed Myr and Lys alike; more than one Targaryen had fallen to Essosi blades.
"They murdered a Kingsguard, abducted the Prince of Dragonstone, and dare dictate terms?" King Jaehaerys II thundered. Abduction alone was treason—yet they demanded concessions.
Rhaegar mourned Aerys and, silently, the Darklyns as well. Treason would wipe them from the board. Speed was vital: captivity breaks men, and Duskendale lay too close to King's Landing for weakness to be shown.
"They demand the Iron Throne grant Duskendale the right to set its own customs, repeal every law of King Aegon V Targaryen that curbs noble privilege, and allow House Darklyn to rule the town through an autonomous council," Ser Lake continued. "That Myrish woman whispered poison into his ear."
A Myr again, Rhaegar thought grimly. Lord Denys and his Lace Serpent were well matched.
No spy had warned them. No one believed Denys Darklyn bold—or foolish—enough.
He dreamed of the age before King's Landing, when Duskendale rivaled the great ports. His Myrish mistress spoke of Free City liberties, insisting his demands were modest.
"Treason! But how did the prince walk into such an obvious snare?" Lord Munde demanded.
Lord Tywin Lannister, Master of Coin, glanced at Rhaegar. "The prince sought stone for Prince Rhaegar's Dragonpit. The Darklyns offered it freely. He came with only a small escort. The moment he landed, the trap closed. Ser Gwayne Gaunt died defending him."
Rhaegar remained silent. Fetching stone was a trivial task, yet Aerys had embraced it—and walked blindly into the net.
"Fool! He's no dragon—he's a goose!" King Jaehaerys roared. "I should have kept him at court!"
"Your Grace," Queen Rhaella said, voice shaking, "with his Kingsguard slain… will Aerys survive?"
No one answered. The Darklyns had already spilled royal blood.
"Summon the Royal Fleet, the Red Keep garrison, every loyal lord—strike by land and sea," Lord Munde urged.
"I can ride at once," Rhaegar said. "Four hundred swords—trained and loyal."
The revolt must be crushed swiftly and decisively. Delay would shatter royal authority.
"Duskendale's walls are strong, the Darklyn keep commands the harbor, and the prince is their hostage," Lord Tywin warned calmly. He valued certainty above all.
"I propose two forces," Rhaegar said, pointing to the map. "One to pin them, one to strike."
"Explain," the king ordered.
"A feigned parley while a second force infiltrates the town and frees my father," Rhaegar replied.
Hostages were their only leverage. Once Aerys was free, Duskendale would fall.
"Let me enter the town and bring the prince out," Ser Barristan Selmy said. "Give me a day."
Rhaegar met his eyes. Of all the Kingsguard, Barristan alone possessed both daring and restraint.
"I will treat with Denys Darklyn—or take my father's place," Rhaegar offered.
Queen Rhaella cried out in protest.
"Too dangerous," Lord Tywin said sharply. "We cannot risk both heirs."
"My youth is my disguise," Rhaegar said, drawing his sword and laying it across Duskendale on the map. "But my steel is no less sharp."
"Let the prince parley only after I am inside," Ser Barristan proposed. "I'll stir the nest first."
Silence followed. The plan might work.
"Once Aerys is free, we raze them," King Jaehaerys II said coldly. "Every Darklyn complicit in this treason will die."
The Iron Throne would not be mocked again.
The plan was set—hammer and anvil.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you like the story please give it some power stones and reviews. And if you want to read 40+ advance chapters or just want to support me please join my patreon at [email protected]/Translatingfanfics