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I tend to upload drafts of early chapters on there to get people's opinions on them, so you can read up to 20 chapters ahead as a bonus.
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123 AC, King's Landing
He raised Blackfyre and moved with purpose out of the Dragonpit, towards the Godswood, with Cregan Stark following him. Rhaenyra matched their pace, with surprising urgency. Despite his aching body, he pushed forward, for he would not rest, not now, not while Helaena was unaccounted for.
Cregan Stark walked alongside the two Targaryens, and he couldn't help but feel like something was amiss. The previous battle was certainly draining, and he still felt his body ache with the memories of fighting these cursed Shadowbinders. They were not individually powerful enemies and obviously did not know how to battle in cohesion. However, this all changed, as the more of them he slayed, the more powerful the remaining ones became, as if their power was split amongst the survivors.
That aligned with what had supposedly happened in Asshai, when their stolen lives started to quickly wither away. They killed one another in desperation, massacring friend and foe alike for just a few moments of life, until very few of them remained, and the infamous city had become ruined. In a way, it was utterly terrifying; Harry Potter had destroyed an entire city, one that was likely older than the Valyrian Freehold, without even meaning to, while also being on a different continent altogether.
If he had to guess, the remnants of Asshai likely had chosen not to attack the nobles directly or even the royal family, and targeted only their dragons, because most cities in the world would not truly care should the beasts perish. Their presence in the hands of House Targaryen alone was a constant danger to any city. House Targaryen could easily burn any stronghold in Westeros or perhaps even an entire Free City in Essos without warning or even opposition.
Killing the Dragons was something that likely every power in Essos thought about, but decided not to risk, but wiping out King's Landing, killing the royal family, well, that would not remain unpunished for long.
Nevertheless, Cregan had done his duty and protected House Targaryen's precious mounts. He had defeated the Shadowbinders with a combination of his growing mastery over his ancestral weapon, as well as aid from the red dragon that the Targaryen prince, Aemond, had released.
Still, he had found himself respecting the boy even further, who had actually done something, as opposed to most of the so-called knights that followed him to battle. Hells, they spent more time praying to their gods than they did fighting, and they only became of some use against the shadow beasts that spawn occasionally, thanks to Sara's leadership.
Cregan could already imagine the fanciful stories they would tell the rest of their courts, of their valiant deeds against the monsters. Then again, grandiose and often false boasting after a battle was almost akin to a tradition.
Nevertheless, they remained victorious, with half of the Dragonpit having collapsed. It had been Princess Rhaenyra who had dealt the final blow, but that alone was strange.
The woman was alone, without any guards, and yet looked utterly unharmed by the attack, or even tired. Sure, she was a Dragonrider, and yet, her dragon was not with her. It also did not explain what she was doing in the Dragonpit in the first place. She had claimed that she had been separated from her husband and children, and yet, she did not seem like a distraught mother, especially given her readiness to look for her half-sister, whom she was rumoured not to care overly about.
The fact that his medallion hummed faintly at her presence, and even Ice buzzed for a moment when she tried to convince him to leave them be, corroborated these worries. Sure, Cregan's understanding of the weapon was superficial at best. He had learned to use his sword's light in different ways, shaping it into a great weapon indeed, but his last attack alongside Ghost had been completely by instinct. Cregan knew that he had much to uncover on that front, but that did not change the fact that he felt that the sword had buzzed in a warning manner when he had spoken with Rhaenyra Targaryen.
Something was very wrong with the princess, something that Cregan had a feeling was part of the reason Harry Potter had asked him to come at this moment, not a day earlier or later. Perhaps he wished that whatever had happened would not take a measure of his skills.
He still planned on having a talk with the man about involving him in plots without his agreement, especially not ones that concern the royal family. A part of him thought that the sorcerer had not truly forced him into anything, but anyone who knew Cregan would have known that he would have involved himself in this mess anyway.
And now, he felt compelled to see it through, to uncover what unsettled him so.
He did so first by breaking the silence, "Is the Red Keep usually this empty?"
Prince Aemond froze for a moment, but continued walking anyway, "Not truly. There are usually servants moving around, and guards patrolling. Perhaps most fled when the Shadows appeared or had come to the Throne Room to aid the King."
Princess Rhaenyra continued with a smooth voice, "Fear scatters even the boldest men, and one must admit that the quality of armed men dropped significantly since my husband's banishment from the Capital."
The scarred boy seemed like he wished to argue, but he did not, likely prioritising finding his sister. Cregan, on the other hand, wished to pry slightly more, "You said that you were looking for your children…"
"They were in their chambers after… after our arrival. The blood of Driftmark may run in their veins, but they are still not used to travelling by ship, not yet. I think that they prefer riding dragons, alas, their mounts are too young to ride and thus remained in Dragonstone with our Dragonkeepers."
Cregan hummed, "Dragonkeepers… Weren't there supposed to be a few of them in the Dragonpit?"
Aemond stiffened, "I had not noticed that. Do you think that the Shadowbinders killed them? The training they require to take care of our dragons is extensive indeed."
The princess was the one who answered this time, scoffing, "Dead or not, it is of no consequence. If they live, they will be branded as nothing more than deserters and traitors, and they will be killed anyway. I hope, for their sake, that they perished protecting our dragons, for even the Dragonkeepers on Dragonstone would suffer because of their cowardice."
It was a harsh opinion, but Cregan had to admit that he agreed with it somewhat. There was honour in dying to perform one's duty, and in the North, had his men shown such cowardice against an enemy, he would have likely had to execute them. However, that was against a normal enemy, not an army of shadow monsters and Shadowbinders, and especially not while taken by surprise. Some might have even decided to guard the royal family, imagining that the dragons would be safe. There were many possibilities that occurred, given the nature of the situation, things that the princess was obviously not considering.
Then again, this was not the North, and he cared not how Southerners handled their matters. Still, he couldn't help but ask, "Perhaps. Though I find it… unusual that you are so focused on Princess Helaena's well-being. It is a noble sentiment, of course, but I always imagined that a mother would be beside herself with worry regarding her children's safety, especially after an attack."
"Daemon is with them," The heiress to the Iron Throne answered curtly, "And I trust him to protect them from anything."
Aemond seemed confused as well, "Didn't you state that you were separated from him..."
The woman turned towards them both and glared, her eyes looking like they had been burning for only a blink of an eye, "Daemon and I saw to the safety of our children during the attack. They are currently under the protection of my household, including the Sea Snake and his men, who, I assure you, are more than capable of performing their duties. Daemon and I had planned on riding our dragons and ending the invading monsters, as is our duty as the future Queen and King Consort of the Seven Kingdoms, before we were separated. If I were to guess, my husband has either returned to protect our children or gone to protect his king, as an honourable brother would, just as I, as an honourable sister, have decided to look for poor Helaena, who, might I say, is the only missing member of our family, and also a Dragonrider. She would be a handsome prize indeed for many of the delegations that came from Essos. And need I remind you that I do not have to justify my decisions to either of you? Now, can we simply proceed to look for my sister?"
The princess was quite… agitated with her answers, something that Cregan found strange indeed. There were also issues with her stories, including her complete certainty of her children's well-being, which was never the case after a battle, and also by the fact that she was more agitated when answering their queries than she was for her family's well-being.
The fact that Cregan felt his medallion hum faintly for a fraction of a second pushed the matter further. There was magic at play, but what kind?
To Cregan's surprise, Prince Aemond nodded absentmindedly, "You're right. We should continue looking for Helaena."
The Lord of the North would not say that he knew the one-eyed boy's character intimately, but he seemed like a bright young lad, and one that should have easily seen the many irregularities in the Princess's tale.
Something was amiss, something he felt was sinister indeed, and he had an inkling what that was.
Still, he chose to remain silent and continue marching to the Godswood, deciding to see how this affair would unfold. Perhaps Princess Helaena would shine some light on the subject, strange though it may be.
They quickly found themselves before the Red Keep's Godswood and… it was small, around an acre at most. It looked certainly like a peaceful place, and Cregan felt more at home there than he had since the moment he left Winterfell, but it wasn't nearly as large or as otherworldly as the one in his home; there was still something there, something familiar.
Nevertheless, given the size of the Godswood, it was quickly obvious that Princess Helaena was not there. And with every moment where their search ended, Princess Rhaenrya became more and more frustrated.
He heard her mutter to herself multiple times, asking herself where Helaena was. The princess's muttering grew sharper with each passing, and Cregan saw her hands curling and uncurling, a further showing of her agitation.
Finally, she released a sigh and spoke up calmly, with a forced smile on her face, "It seems like she is not here, at least not unless she has decided to hide behind the trees. Perhaps it would be wiser to divide our efforts. Aemond and I shall search the inner keep; hopefully, our sister would have decided to seek familiar halls if frightened. And you, my lord, may search this area once more. A fresh set of eyes may discover what we overlooked. I would have stayed, but it would be… improper for me to wander the keep alone with a man who is not my kin."
Despite knowing that this was a ploy to separate them, Cregan decided to agree and offered her a stiff nod. "Very well. I will search again."
He did not exactly have a choice in the matter; this was all but an order from the heiress to the Iron Throne, which meant that he could not actively refuse it. However, this would also give him the opportunity to observe what exactly the princess wished to do with her half-brother.
As both turned away from him and headed down the covered walkway, Cregan waited for long enough that they would not glance back before moving after them without a sound. It was only then that he heard the princess's tone, one far harsher than it had once been, "Aemond, stop!"
He did as he was told, though he answered in a confused tone, "Why have we stopped?"
The princess's tone became much darker, "Where is Helaena, Aemond?"
"I told you, I do not know," the boy answered, obviously frustrated.
"But you do. I thought her clever to have hidden in the Godswood, but it seems like she has learned to hide in another way. Isn't that right, brother?" she almost spat that last word, "Unluckily for you, you are still within my sight, and I have seen it in the flames; you are to lead me to her, so tell me, brother,"
"What are you talking about? What flames? Rhaenyra, have you gone mad?"
Suddenly, in a surprising feat of strength, the princess gripped her brother by his throat and lifted him from the ground. The boy started to choke, his weapon suddenly clattering down to the ground, and the woman remained utterly unconcerned by the possibility of harming him. "Where is she?"
"I… I don't know," the boy answered.
"DO NOT LIE TO ME," the princess bellowed, and her voice was darker, deeper, and almost layered. Cregan swore that her eyes had turned completely crimson and were almost glowing from the sheer emotion she felt.
Deciding that this was enough, Cregan released a small shockwave from his sword, making the princess stumble in shock, allowing the Lord of the North to quickly grab the boy, giving him his sword back. The situation was quite delicate. He couldn't exactly hurt the princess, not without being blamed for killing the King's favoured daughter, and yet, allowing her to choke the prince to death was simply not an option.
He did not have the time to decide when the woman quickly righted herself and bellowed, "YOU!"
She raised her hand, as if ready to attack him, and to his surprise, a ball of fire appeared from her hands and flew towards them, which he was able to dissipate with his sword.
Cregan saw Prince Aemond's eyes widen in both shock and fear at the feat. Did that mean that the princess was not known for being a Witch of some sort? It might be a recent development since the destruction of the Others. After all, in the North, there had been a rise in the number of Skinchangers, so perhaps Valyrian blood had something similar that involved fire?
Still, it was not the time to think of this, as his counter to her flames did not calm the raging princess, "You were not meant to be here! You have hidden yourself from me. How are you here? How?"
With every question, the woman threw a fireball at Cregan, which he parried away from him, and she approached them. Still, her rant did explain a few things, including her attempts at refusing his aid back in the Dragonpit. Whatever magic was employed obviously did not work on him.
The more she advanced towards them, the more intensely her crimson eyes glowed, until suddenly, he felt a sudden pressure that pulled him to the ground. A memory flashed in his mind, "You stole the Shadowbinders' power when you killed him."
A smile grew on the princess's face, "Clever boy."
Behind him, Aemond growled, while raising his weapon, "You will not hurt Helaena!"
With every step she took, the pressure increased, and Cregan impaled his sword to the ground, creating a shield of light before him that staved it off. Rhaenyra Targaryen continued, while speaking gently, "It need not be like this. I do not desire to hurt anyone, and especially not you or Helaena. You are my blood, after all. I seek only my children's safety, and the flames have shown me that they are the path to it. There is a threat to them, a threat that I must defeat, for I am destined to do so by my very blood."
Fuck!
The woman was obviously mad, and every instinct Cregan had was to slay her. Alas, she was the King's daughter, and so, he used Ice to release a small slash of white light that cut through the princess's pressure. Hopefully, that would give them time to retreat to the Throne Room and have the King deal with the Witch.
Just as he expected, the princess was shocked by the attack, especially as a small cut appeared on her chest. She hissed his pain, and Cregan quickly grabbed the prince by his clothes and pulled back and started to run.
Unfortunately, Rhaenyra Targaryen recollected herself quite quickly; Cregan noticed that there had been no trace of her injury, not even the blood which had seeped into her dress. She then screamed in rage, and a jet of fire appeared from his hand, almost as if it was coming from a dragon's breath. Cregan had to quickly shield against the attack once more and looked for another way to make the woman disengage without accidentally killing her. He would not risk the wrath of a House of Dragonriders, not when they could burn Winterfell to the ground in their anger.
He needed to get to the Throne Room and quickly.
Just as he thought of a plan, a loud voice cut through their battle, "Stop!"
Surprisingly, another Targaryen, likely Princess Helaena, had appeared behind them, in the middle of the scorched corridor. A wicked smile appeared on Princess Rhaenyra's face, "I have been looking for you, sister."
"I cannot help you, Rhaenyra," the younger princess answered calmly.
That seemed to enrage Rhaenyra ever further, "This doesn't need to escalate even further. You only need to answer a single question, Helaena. Where are the Potters?"
The Potters.
What did this mess have to do with Harry and Daphne?
Cregan noticed that everyone involved seemed to know them, too, as Aemond stiffened in shock, and Helaena seemed almost expectant of them.
The younger princess looked solemn for a moment before she suddenly took out a dagger, one that looked familiar; it resembled the one he had used to slay the Night King, the one that Leaf sacrificed herself to empower, the one made from the same material as Ice, one that he never thought he would see the like again.
In the blink of an eye, the princess slammed her dagger onto Cregan's sword, and the moment both blades touched, a loud burst of light appeared, followed by a violent shockwave that sent everything around them flying.
However, Cregan had found himself blinded momentarily by the intense light, and from the sound of it, so had Rhaenyra. He found himself quickly pushed back, and when he opened his eyes, he saw that they were in a strange tunnel, lit only by a single torch, and not in the corridor they once were.
He heard an unnatural scream in the distance, followed by a rumbling, as if something was collapsing. He looked around them and saw that Prince Aemond was safe and sound. The one-eyed boy was gaping at his sister and muttered, "Seven Hells, Helaena."
Cregan, on the other hand, steeled himself, took a deep breath and asked, "Where are we?"
"In a secret passage," the young Targaryen answered, "Do not worry, Rhaenyra should be quite distracted at the moment."
Finally, Cregan opened his mouth and decided to ask the questions that had been haunting him since he set foot in the Capital, "What is going on? And what does it have to do with the Potters?"
The girl looked sheepish for a few moments before slumping down, "It's a long story."
Cregan felt a small feeling of kinship at that, though he had a feeling that he would want to punch Harry in the face very soon.
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AN: I'm a bit unsure about this chapter. I wanted to show Rhaenyra's descent into madness by obsessing over the Potters. Her behaviour should be explained a bit more than usual. Also, about the fight, it isn't meant to be a serious one, since Cregan is forced to keep the kiddie gloves on, hoping not to cause a large political incident with the North. I know that I haven't really shown Harry and Daphne in this 'arc' so far, but you'll soon see why, and also the fact that they are involved but not obviously so. As usual, please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions.
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If you want to support me, check out my patréon at https://www.patréon.com/athassprkr
I tend to upload drafts of early chapters on there to get people's opinions on them, so you can read up to 20 chapters ahead as a bonus.
Thank you guys for your support in these hard times.