A Sword Without a Hilt: A Song of Ice and Fire/D&D 3.5 Crossover

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Sixteenth Day of the Twelfth Month 293 AC

Imperial Palace, Yin Yi Ti

Valaena Velaryon had only known one king in all her days, the one she had found in her father's study without warning two years ago, and whose coming had heralded a change in her life beyond her wildest imaginings. For all that, King Viserys had a charm about him that you could imagine just as much at home in a dockside tavern as in a throne room. As a matter of fact, she knew it had been at home in the worst taverns, having heard enough of his days hiding in Braavos, first from him when she hatched Dawnfyre and then from the princess. She could not imagine Bu Gai, Lord of the Four Quarters, Steward of the Kami, and Son of Heaven, in any setting but this, surrounded by silk and amber, as much a piece of the palace as the jade throne upon which he sat.

When she had heard that she, alongside Nuri, Theon, Leto, and Poledron, one of the bolder Lantern Archons, had been summoned into the Imperial presence for a private audience, Valaena had expected that she would need to hide some of her feelings on the matter. There was annoyance at the endless bureaucratic shuffling that went into legally acquiring the method to produce rice paper, even though the master craftsmen were involved, frustration at being parted from her weapon because the Emperor's guards drew the line at Hell-forged weaponry, though apparently not devils themselves. What the young woman had not expected to feel was pity. He can't be more than five or six years older than me.

"Be welcomes in the Halls of the Kami under the jade seal, peace and wisdom be upon you..." he began, looking to each in turn, his gaze lingering upon Nuri with familiar appreciation and upon Leto's black-winged form with veiled disquiet.

It was clear, even to one who had not spent much time around high lords and courtiers in their official qualities, that the young man upon the throne was not certain how to address his guests. Formally, as his realm understood the world, he was the highest and most revered power in the world, but that dignity must be uneasy to stand on when meeting the eyes of one of the Fallen whose long and bloody life made the whole of his dynasty seem new and short-lived. Valaena herself was no stranger to that hollow feeling of insignificance, of feeble insignificant mortality, when she pondered the true shape of the world and the horrors that lurked within it, but she at least could dream with dragons and, in the echo of their pride and power, find solace. What did the Son of Heaven dream of, she wondered.

Between Nuri's enthusiastic and often blunt account of the battle in Jiang to supplement the accounts they had already shared with the Emerald Magistrates, and Poledron's quiet words on the celestial lore shared at the beginning of the month, Valaena found herself with little to do other than watch Bu Gai's entourage. She was quite certain it was not ordinary in such a meeting to bring a concubine, much less one from the northern provinces that were currently either in open revolt against the throne or apathetic to its commands.

Mei Lin had been forming her own faction at court. Playing upon her part in revealing the traitor eunuch and her willingness to associate freely with even the most unusual of the foreigners who had come to the shores of Yin, she was positioning herself as being even more reform-minded than the ironically named Minister for Imperial Heritage who had been spearheading the efforts to reorganize mages in light of their greater powers, strike beneficial bargains with the newly reawakening kami, and more recently dealing with blood magic-wielding fiend-summoning foreigners. Valaena had to admit the Sealord's representative was right about the minister's mandate wearing rather thin. Was he using Mei Lin's 'youthful impetuousness' as a front for reaching out in ways he could not officially do, or was she playing her own game?

Valaena shifted slightly in her seat. She was not used to playing these games, but she was also no fool. I'll have to learn sooner rather than later. Dawnfyre saw to that, and I would not trade him for the world.

The thought broke off abruptly as the Emepror addressed her directly with a question. "Honorable Gao-Qibing," he began. The term meant sky-rider, or something like it, the itchy feeling of the translation spell at the back of her mind informing her that it was an uncommon composite likely made up by some court scribe not wanting to associate too closely with the formalities used by the Yellow emperors. "I wished to ask this of you before speaking to your lord's steel herald, and I wished to do so in person so that there be no hint of subterfuge towards those who have proven such generous friends to the Golden Empire..."

Please not another bloody marriage proposal, Valaena thought, hoping her dread did not show on her face. Her knowledge of Yi Tish protocol did not extend to knowing how to politely reject that.

"How would your lord react if more of these lesser drakes were hatched by my shugenja in the service of the Golden Empire?"

For a long moment there as silence as the entire delegation considered the implication of the Emperor's words. From the expression on Theon's face he was considering an accusation, or at least a sharp questioning.

Valaena considered the Moonchaser and her sister ships, she considered the armies of flesh-forged beings pouring from Lys and Gogossos, the dragon-blooded Darkenbeasts and titanic sea creatures. "His Grace would not intervene in the inner workings of a sovereign state, arcane or otherwise, so long as they do not pose a threat to his interests or the world at large."

"Wisely said for one so young," Ping Lan said from the throne's left side, relaxing into his seat for the first time since the meeting had begun.

His pleasant mood did not last long as Nuri turned to him, curiosity flickering like embers in her eyes. "So you had a ritual to hatch them already, but did not do it lest Tiamat be able to meddle in it, right? Clever that, where did you get the lore?"

The corners of Bu Gai's lips twitched in amusement. "Some of the dragon lore we now possess originated with documents that survived from the time of the Yellow Emperor's alliance with Valyria, most of it, however, was obtained by study of the eggs. You would have to ask the scholars themselves for the details, I would be a poor voice to speak of such mysteries. Indeed, with regards to such things, I would hear what lore you might be willing to share and what you desire in return. The archives are deep and the memory of the kami deeper." He paused a moment, with the distant look of someone conferring mentally. "I will, of course, place these same questions before the Harbinger, but it is better to know the general shape of the answers before any formal request to avoid misunderstandings."

To avoid any loss of face from public rejection on either side, Valaena translated mentally. As little patience as she normally had for such subterfuge, it did make perfect sense in this case. The idea of sneaking the Harbinger into the palace was almost enough to make her give a completely inappropriate giggle.


What exchange of lore do you make?

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OOC: Things like the training methods of the Emerald Magistrates are not on the table right now, but they might be later as the alliance grows. Not yet edited.