Chapter 8
LD1449
To the last; Kill them all
- Location
- The other side of the labyrinth.
Chapter 8:
Edelgard:
She would say this at least about the Dothraki,
If nothing else, they knew how to cover a great deal of distance in a very short amount of time.
Danny's wedding to Khal Drogo had not been a quick, or dull affair; the celebration had taken place over the course of two entire days, with the third spent resting, and by the fourth they were leaving for Vaes Dothrakk.
The journey should have taken at least a month or even two, but the reality was that, at their current pace; if Dany's navigating and map reading skills was anything to go by… weeks at most.
And yes, that was taking into account the occasional raid and detour- the horde moved that fast.
It was barely two weeks now, and they'd already passed Norvos and were well on their way to Qohor
Honestly it was… somewhat distressing, for a variety of reasons, but most importantly many messages needed to be sent out immediately and all she could do was pray that they arrived in time or that at the very least none took offense if things did not proceed according to plan.
Targaryen's could scarcely afford to offend what few allies they had.
Not that her brother seemed aware of this.
"He is traveling in the wrong bloody direction."
Edelgard struggled not to roll her eyes.
"Dany will not be giving birth for months yet brother." She answered him, seeing him turn in his saddle to face her. He looked very much as though he wished to tell her something in a tone that was likely to be less than courteous, but one challenging stare from her, and Jeritza at her back had him reconsidering the idea.
Instead he scoffed, turning away to look back towards the front, where the Khal marched at the head of the army, Danny riding just a bit behind him.
Her elder sister rode with grace, and hadn't once looked back, no matter how nervous or frightened she must've been, even in the earliest of days.
"So we must travel for nine bloody moons to Vaes Dothrak and then Nine moons back- IF she births a boy as the first child? It's absurd. He should simply march his army now and the conquest will be finished by the time the little brat is pushed out."
This time, she did roll her eyes
Her brother just kept proving his own stupidity. If he thought the conquest of Westeros would take nine months he had absolutely no mind for warfare.
Memories or not, lifetimes experience or not; she could still read, even the Conqueror himself, riding on the back of three dragons- three dragons more than they had at the moment mind you -it took two years. And even then, he'd never conquered Dorne
No. She suspected that barring certain things going just right; the struggle for the Throne would not be a short one.
Speaking of past memories however, she would have to make certain to maintain a correspondence with Lysithea- their conversations past their… initial meeting had been… extensive, and… concerning?
It was clear not all of their dreams or memories 'lined up'; certain things shifted or altered with very few constants.
There was one thing that was a constant though.
The woman; sometimes of dark hair and blue eyes. Sometimes with Green hair and green eyes.
But still, they both knew her. She was important.
Sometimes, the name was on the tip of Edelgard's tongue, only for it to slip past her grasp like water between her fingers. The ache that came with that feeling was almost like a genuine mourning, a loss.
But neither of them could recall. For all of her prevalence in both their minds.
A ghost of their pasts.
Edelgard didn't know if that made it better or worse.
Pushing the melancholy out of her mind, she distracted herself, or at the very least, set her eyes on an objective to distract herself with.
She kicked at the flanks of her horse, speeding him up into a light canter, gesturing for Jeritza to hold back, and ignored the curious look she received from Viserys.
She rode up about half the distance between Viserys and Jeritza to where Dany and Drogo rode, reaching beside the Khal's enovvu.
His sister.
The young woman turned, curious and surprised. A known name… a known face.
But there was no spark of recognition there, no widened eyes. No moment of realization.
Not like Lysithea.
Edelgard remembered her.
She did not remember Edelgard.
"Yes?" Even her voice was the same. Although; the accent was rougher, likely due to the different language.
Edelgard offered her a smile, however small and spoke in her own, somewhat hastily learned Dothrak. It would not do to be traveling for months on end with these horselords without knowing their tongue.
'You are the Khal's sister, Petra, yes?'
Her one time friend nodded, smiling.
"Yes." There was a twitch in her expression, a hesitation. "If… you teach me your Westerosi, I will teach you Dothrak"
Edelgard let herself smile. "Is my accent that bad?"
Petra let herself laugh just a bit. "No worse than my Westerosi."
"It's a deal then." She promised.
—
By the time they arrived at Qohor; Petra had indeed become a friend, as far as that concept went with Dothrakki.
The core of the young woman, the friend Edelgard remembered, was there: the desire to learn, the martial prowess, the devotion to family and the unbreakable pride, even the soft naivete and trust at its center.
She was there and yet she was different.
She'd seen Petra challenge a man who raped one of her servants and leave him disemboweled and dying in the sun. She'd seen her propose soft or easy targets for raiding by the fires when speaking to her brother.
She was Petra.
And yet she was Dothrakki.
She had to reconcile that within herself. And remind herself, however changed, it was good to have her friend back.
They arrived and began to make camp outside of Qohor by nightfall. No doubt as a way to intimidate the civilians. To go to bed one night and wake up the very next morning with a horde of Dothraki outside your gates would frighten anyone.
She doubted the Guard or the city leadership would be caught quite so flatfooted, no doubt scouts and sentries had seen them approaching days ago. But by morning; the tribute would be paid and the Horde would leave the day after next.
"You are tired." Jeritza observed.
She nodded, staring out across the expanse of land. Not quite a 'swamp' but damp and balmy regardless. There was no point in hiding the truth from him. "I'm almost tempted to ride into the city to search for an Inn with an actual bed.
He turned, looking to her with a question on his expression before she shook her head.
"No. You don't have to ride into the city to find me an inn." She clarified.
The Dothrakki were already making camp around them. A practiced, efficient machine. Even her own tent would be set up in a matter of mere minutes. The nomadic people could establish and break camps with a speed that was downright terrifying. By her count, thirty seven minutes.
Just thirty seven minutes for a Horde of nearly twenty thousand to be up, on its feet and moving was… mind bending really.
All of it without shouted orders, or cracking whips or even lieutenants. A single Horn was blown in the morning and… that was it.
Whoever didn't keep up was left behind.
And being left behind meant Death in the Grass sea. Or so she'd heard.
She'd never seen the grass sea.
She wondered if it was dreadful, or beautiful.
Jeritza moved suddenly, placing himself in front of her. Edelgard knew better than to startle, especially when she saw him place his hand over his sword hilt.
Peeking over his shoulder, she saw that a rider with a wagon was approaching through the gloom of night, a tiny little lantern hanging off the front of the cart, jostling with every bump. She could see two people riding at the front of it, though not much beyond there being two of them.
The Dothrakki began to take notice too; for all of their efficiency in making camp, they had a feeling of invincibility that made them lax in their own security. No rider, let alone a rider with a wagon of all things should have ever gotten this close without alerting at least a single sentry.
Many of the Khalassar stepped forward, Torches and arkh blades in hand, some jeered and laughed, hollering that the merchants were just giving them the stolen goods now without needing to be chased down.
Edelgard saw someone, the driver stand up at the front of the cart and from their silhouette they were… waving?
"~Yooo-hooooo~"
The voice was… not something Edelgard was expecting at all, truth be told.
It was definitely a woman's voice, high and… almost manic. Its tone a joyful cry.
"My lady please" an elderly voice called, she could hear the dismay in his voice as the Dothrakki reached them. "This is not the time to be careless."
"Nonsense Rogier, I can see the princess there! We're perfectly safe! Hallo Gentlemen"
The words made Edelgard obviously start. This woman was… looking for her? Here?
"Be on your guard." She whispered; Jeritza nodded quietly.
It very likely could be an assassin sent by the Baratheon King; but if it was it was certainly a… unique one.
In a much louder and commanding voice she spoke up, calling down to the Dothrakki in their tongue. "They seem to be searching for me, or your Khaleesi,"
The blood riders eyed her, either with leering disdain, suspicion or dismissal, but a few recognized it would not bode well to potentially anger the Khal's new bride, and so they backed off.
The wagon riders kept approaching.
"Who goes there?" She demanded of them. "Name yourself."
Someone stood at the front of the wagon, at last coming into the light.
It was indeed a woman, pale skinned, blonde hair. She smiled brightly at Edelgard and offered a stage worthy bow.
Edelgard knew her.
"My warmest greetings Princess of house Targaryen. I am here to pledge my service to your house and claim, in the hopes of restoring both our houses to their rightful places!"
"My lady-" The old man at her side, her servant, or her driver, or both groaned. At which part exactly she wasn't sure, but likely a combination of all of it.
"I see-" She raised a slender eyebrow. "And you are?" Even knowing her name, she still needed to confirm.
The woman's smile grew, as if just waiting for someone to ask the question.
"I-" She pressed her hand to her chest. "Am Lady Constance. Constance Reyne!"
—
Even all the way across the narrow sea, she'd heard the Reyne's of Castamere.
The entire house, and the Tarbecks, slain overnight by Tywinn Lannister.
It was a famous event around the world, not just in Westeros, rarely had a house, let alone two, been so absolutely destroyed in just a single night.
And yet here she sat, sharing tea with someone who claimed to be the last living descendant of both houses.
"Do you have any proof of what you claim?" Viserys demanded; for once, not insensible.
"My lady Constance bears records of her lineage-" The servant, Rogier answered, sitting next to and behind his mistress. "Her grandmother was the lady Rohanne Tarbeck."
"Rohane Tarbeck never married." Edelgard pointed out- at least, not in the records she'd read.
"After the destruction of our house my Grandmother went into hiding; for safety, she never contacted Grandfather. Too close to the King; and thus, too close to Tywin. For both courts come to think of it" The woman answered with little in the way of hesitation.
"A bastard then." Viserys sneered, scoffing. "And you would use us to lay claim to House Reyne?"
"No more than you are using… everyone you can get your hands on to get you back on your Iron Throne." Constance shot back with a sunshine bright smile.
Viserys turned red, blue and purple with rage. "How dare-"
"Say that we were to entertain this notion of an alliance of mutual restoration-" She interrupted. "It's clear what we can offer you should we be successful. But what can you offer us short or long term?"
The lady Constance gave a high, almost airy laugh. "Well, for starters; funding. I'm no Illyrio Mopatis, but my house still commands a respectable fortune. Grandmother and Father were quite savvy when it came to making coin. Furthermore not everyone in the Westerlands is very adoring of the Old Lion of Lannister. More than a few resent him. It's simply that there's no other lion to contest the Gold. Place a red one as an option-" She grinned. "They'll come around."
"That's a lot of supposition." She countered. "Unless you have letters to back up these claims of support; we might simply solidify the Westerland rule under Tywin by introducing a would be usurper and a baseborn one at that.
"My mother and father were perfectly and legally married I'll have you know."
"Your father was a baseborn." She corrected. "Your grandmother never married your grandfather."
"Oh- yes. That's one thing I can bring to the table, or at least pull off the board." Constance grinned. "Grandfather dearest."
That made Edelgard raise an eyebrow. "He's still alive in Westeros?"
"And important enough that we should care?" Viserys dismissed taking a long gulp of his wine. "Well. Out with it. Who is this alleged grandfather?"
Constance's grin grew very large indeed.
Then she answered.
Edelgard's eyes widened. Even Viserys did a double take.
"If that's true…" She worked a muscle at her jaw. "If-" She stressed again, reminding herself of it as much as Viserys and warning Constance. "Then that changes things."
—
It had been a very long night of discussions, by the time she got to bed it was late, and a bedding of horse furs and dirt didn't help her mood much.
But when she finally opened her eyes and noticed that the sun was very very bright outside Edelgard balked, shooting up to her feet. "Jeritza!"
Her Death Knight marched in from the outside, awake and clad in his armor.
"Why did you not wake me?" She demanded. "We're about to be left behind!"
"Camp has not broken." He answered simply.
"It… hasn't?" She scrunched up her features. "Did Qohor not pay?"
"They have paid." He said. "We have visitors. Your Sister is seeing to them."
"My- Dany?" Sleep was causing a fugue to settle over her brain that she was struggling to shake off. She shook her head. "Who came for a visit? A bloody Gardner?" She huffed out a sardonic laugh.
Jeritza didn't share in her humor, he rarely did.
"Oberyn Martell and his daughters arrived early this morning."
Never in her life had she dressed so fast.
—
"Ahh, the fair Princess Edelgard joins us."
Oberyn Martell was a handsome man. Fine silks, bright clothes. Flamboyance and opulence had clearly been in his upbringing but his gaze had a sharpness to it shared only by his smile.
She noted four girls with him and a lady that was by his side.
She struggled for a moment to remember how many daughters he had. Ten? Was it ten or was it nine?
Dany sat beside him, her dress was simple, as she'd 'preferred' (or her husband preferred) since she'd been married. It was still an elegant garb of fine material and she wore it well at the very least; she looked nervous but it was to be expected given their guests.
She bowed to Oberyn. "Prince Oberyn, forgive me for keeping you waiting." She looked around. "Where is Viserys?"
"He looked tired-" Danny answered just a hair too quickly. "I ordered that he not be disturbed- I… called you. Surely we can entertain Prince Oberyn until Viserys wakes."
She could almost kiss Danny right now.
The last thing she needed was Viserys being left unsupervised with their most important ally.
"At the very least we should make him aware." She answered diplomatically before turning to Jeritza. "Could you go and inform Viserys? Tell him precisely who our guests are. I'm sure he'll make all due haste."
Translation- tell him exactly who this is and how little she would tolerate him screwing things up while they were here.
Jeritza nodded. Planting a fist over his chest before turning and marching away.
"That is the famous Jeritza Velaryon." She heard Oberyn whisper to his paramour, Elaria. "They call him the Death Knight. Do you think I can beat him?"
You can't. She didn't say, plastering on a pleasant smile.
"At the very least, until Viserys arrives introductions can be made." She said. "I've heard of your daughters but never met any of them."
"Of course." Oberyn nodded happily and proceeded to go down the line of girls.
The first was a larger girl, muscled, with a brutish face who's nose had been broken at least once before, likely more than once.
"This is Obara. My firebrand warrior." He grinned, pride shining through his eyes.
"Princess." The girl grunted, lowering her head. The courtesies of nobility were clearly not her strong suit.
The next girl was a dark haired beauty with purple silks who smiled at Edelgard with her father's silken charm.
"Nymeria; my fair but vengeful flower."
The young woman rolled her eyes before she too lowered her head demurely. "Princess."
The next girl- Edelgard recognized.
Her skin was the dusken dark of the Dornish, but her hair a flaming striking red, like red flowers in full bloom, chains clinked around her wrist and neck in a sort of jewelry.
Yes. Edelgard remembered this one very well.
Oberyn smiled like a child. "Hapi- my lucky charm."
"Irony doesn't suit you papa." Hapi deadpanned- she, unlike her previous two sisters, was still standing, so she offered a formal bow. "Princess Edelgard."
"And lastly-" Here he introduced another dark skinned girl, curly hair that was so different from the Dornish waves. "Sarella- my little Maester."
—
"While we certainly do appreciate you coming Prince Oberyn; it couldn't have been easy." She said, one leg crossed over the other.
"Oh it was not." He assured. "Once we heard of the Princess' marriage to the Khal, we knew enough about the Dothraki to understand that they would be headed to Vaes Dothrakk, so we made all haste to intercept you here, made it just in time too it seems."
"Like I said, it is appreciated-" She nodded. "But the question remains- why?"
"Well it's simple" He grinned. "Dorne has been funding you, as our rightful rulers for some time. But now that it's clear you yourselves are beginning to make certain… moves. We would like to… be at your side for them. Show our support early, and assist you more… tangibly. To ensure your success."
"Translation. They want to make sure they're not backing three children who'll get themselves killed from stupidity or madness… Rumors of Viserys, or even myself must've reached them."
She thought for a moment; grinding her teeth ever so subtly.
"Is this Oberyn's will? Or Doran's? One is a whim, the other is a calculation."
"On that note, Oberyn continued, before anyone said anything. "I have heard of your proposal for the Dothrakki to invade through the Southlands, Oldtown specifically."
"Didn't you just arrive this morning?" She questioned.
Oberyn smiled and then spoke in perfect Dothrakki "Word travels faster than sound Princess."
So it did.
"As such, I might already have a means of helping with such an undertaking."
His smile was all arrogance and self assuredness. A man utterly secure in his plans and skills. She could respect that.
However, while confidence was a weapon; overconfidence was not.
"And what might that be?" Danny was the one who asked, brave enough to chime in.
Before more could be said or specified, the tent was opened and Viserys, clearly out of sorts, all but stumbled in.
"Prince Oberyn-" His eyes cast over the assembled 'Sands; and she glared at him fiercely where their guests couldn't see.
Whatever Jeritza said or did seemed to be sticking for now, because her brother schooled his expression into one of placid neutrality. "Forgive my lateness- I was… occupied."
"Not at all my King." Oberyn smiled easily. "I was just about to suggest an addition to your sister's plan to invade through Oldtown."
She noted the pointed words, no doubt Viserys did so as well. Her brother's expression twitched, but, remarkably, he did control himself. "Oh?"
The man nodded. 'Sarella." He called.
One of the sandsnakes, the one with curly hair, stood, silks of yellow and gold slipping to their full length like watery cloth.
"The Maesters of Oldtown, as you know, control a great deal of Westeros, house Hightower itself is very powerful. However, they are overconfident. They wouldn't expect an infiltrator."
Viserys raised an eyebrow, eyes darting between Oberyn and Sarella. "And… what? You're claiming you would infiltrate them?"
I already have." She answered easily; and then gave a bow. "Allow me to introduce myself, My King, Princesses; You look upon Alleras the Sphinx; acolyte of Old Town studying to be a Maester."
"And what exactly does that get us?" Viserys demanded. While Edelgard did not like his tone, the question was a legitimate one.
"Knowledge is power." Saerella smirked. "And the Maesters and Hightowers do very little to guard it well. For instance, do you know by chance where the Hightowers store their grain? How many fighting men they have? When are their harvest times? Which lords give the least taxes, indicating which are unsatisfied or disloyal? Perchance which lords have received a new Maester who might be… malleable to a Targaryen return? Because I do."
As she spoke, Edelgard felt her smirk tugging more and more upon her lips.
"I… I see." Viserys swallowed his tongue, even he could see the potential benefit when laid out like that.
"All of this and it's just our first day of collaboration." Oberyn laughed. "Of course- to continue such; I would love to join you on your journey to Vaes Dothrakk. I've never been; and I would indeed love to see it before I leave this world. You understand of course. And it would give us a chance to truly become good friends."
And like that; the smirk slipped from her features.
Two- likely more months… with their greatest ally, in a camp with Viserys…
"I… what about your daughters and paramour?" She asked… not desperately. "Would you not worry about them returning alone?"
"The only one who need return is Sarella; back to Oldtown, Obara and my guards will escort her well. No, Ellaria and the others are all coming with…" His smile was all sharp teeth and knowing wickedness. "I trust you don't mind."
He knows… or at least suspects that Viserys is unfit.
She scrambled, searching for a way out, a reason, however flimsy however false; it would be better than-
"You may." Viserys nodded. "A King should know his future subjects, especially the loyal ones."
She was going to kill him.
"Marvelous!" Oberyn's delight was saccharin and guile all wrapped together into a package.
Edelgard's despair was genuine and her fury immense.
"Lucky charm." Hapi mumbled, just loud enough for Edelgard to hear.
(X)(X)(X)
And so, some new members join the party for Edelgard
Betcha none of you thought Constance would be a Reyne
Advance chaps will be up on Patreon in a few hours, so join us there if you'd like to get the next few months updates ahead of time.
Now... who do you all think Constance's Grandpappy could be? :3
Edelgard:
She would say this at least about the Dothraki,
If nothing else, they knew how to cover a great deal of distance in a very short amount of time.
Danny's wedding to Khal Drogo had not been a quick, or dull affair; the celebration had taken place over the course of two entire days, with the third spent resting, and by the fourth they were leaving for Vaes Dothrakk.
The journey should have taken at least a month or even two, but the reality was that, at their current pace; if Dany's navigating and map reading skills was anything to go by… weeks at most.
And yes, that was taking into account the occasional raid and detour- the horde moved that fast.
It was barely two weeks now, and they'd already passed Norvos and were well on their way to Qohor
Honestly it was… somewhat distressing, for a variety of reasons, but most importantly many messages needed to be sent out immediately and all she could do was pray that they arrived in time or that at the very least none took offense if things did not proceed according to plan.
Targaryen's could scarcely afford to offend what few allies they had.
Not that her brother seemed aware of this.
"He is traveling in the wrong bloody direction."
Edelgard struggled not to roll her eyes.
"Dany will not be giving birth for months yet brother." She answered him, seeing him turn in his saddle to face her. He looked very much as though he wished to tell her something in a tone that was likely to be less than courteous, but one challenging stare from her, and Jeritza at her back had him reconsidering the idea.
Instead he scoffed, turning away to look back towards the front, where the Khal marched at the head of the army, Danny riding just a bit behind him.
Her elder sister rode with grace, and hadn't once looked back, no matter how nervous or frightened she must've been, even in the earliest of days.
"So we must travel for nine bloody moons to Vaes Dothrak and then Nine moons back- IF she births a boy as the first child? It's absurd. He should simply march his army now and the conquest will be finished by the time the little brat is pushed out."
This time, she did roll her eyes
Her brother just kept proving his own stupidity. If he thought the conquest of Westeros would take nine months he had absolutely no mind for warfare.
Memories or not, lifetimes experience or not; she could still read, even the Conqueror himself, riding on the back of three dragons- three dragons more than they had at the moment mind you -it took two years. And even then, he'd never conquered Dorne
No. She suspected that barring certain things going just right; the struggle for the Throne would not be a short one.
Speaking of past memories however, she would have to make certain to maintain a correspondence with Lysithea- their conversations past their… initial meeting had been… extensive, and… concerning?
It was clear not all of their dreams or memories 'lined up'; certain things shifted or altered with very few constants.
There was one thing that was a constant though.
The woman; sometimes of dark hair and blue eyes. Sometimes with Green hair and green eyes.
But still, they both knew her. She was important.
Sometimes, the name was on the tip of Edelgard's tongue, only for it to slip past her grasp like water between her fingers. The ache that came with that feeling was almost like a genuine mourning, a loss.
But neither of them could recall. For all of her prevalence in both their minds.
A ghost of their pasts.
Edelgard didn't know if that made it better or worse.
Pushing the melancholy out of her mind, she distracted herself, or at the very least, set her eyes on an objective to distract herself with.
She kicked at the flanks of her horse, speeding him up into a light canter, gesturing for Jeritza to hold back, and ignored the curious look she received from Viserys.
She rode up about half the distance between Viserys and Jeritza to where Dany and Drogo rode, reaching beside the Khal's enovvu.
His sister.
The young woman turned, curious and surprised. A known name… a known face.
But there was no spark of recognition there, no widened eyes. No moment of realization.
Not like Lysithea.
Edelgard remembered her.
She did not remember Edelgard.
"Yes?" Even her voice was the same. Although; the accent was rougher, likely due to the different language.
Edelgard offered her a smile, however small and spoke in her own, somewhat hastily learned Dothrak. It would not do to be traveling for months on end with these horselords without knowing their tongue.
'You are the Khal's sister, Petra, yes?'
Her one time friend nodded, smiling.
"Yes." There was a twitch in her expression, a hesitation. "If… you teach me your Westerosi, I will teach you Dothrak"
Edelgard let herself smile. "Is my accent that bad?"
Petra let herself laugh just a bit. "No worse than my Westerosi."
"It's a deal then." She promised.
—
By the time they arrived at Qohor; Petra had indeed become a friend, as far as that concept went with Dothrakki.
The core of the young woman, the friend Edelgard remembered, was there: the desire to learn, the martial prowess, the devotion to family and the unbreakable pride, even the soft naivete and trust at its center.
She was there and yet she was different.
She'd seen Petra challenge a man who raped one of her servants and leave him disemboweled and dying in the sun. She'd seen her propose soft or easy targets for raiding by the fires when speaking to her brother.
She was Petra.
And yet she was Dothrakki.
She had to reconcile that within herself. And remind herself, however changed, it was good to have her friend back.
They arrived and began to make camp outside of Qohor by nightfall. No doubt as a way to intimidate the civilians. To go to bed one night and wake up the very next morning with a horde of Dothraki outside your gates would frighten anyone.
She doubted the Guard or the city leadership would be caught quite so flatfooted, no doubt scouts and sentries had seen them approaching days ago. But by morning; the tribute would be paid and the Horde would leave the day after next.
"You are tired." Jeritza observed.
She nodded, staring out across the expanse of land. Not quite a 'swamp' but damp and balmy regardless. There was no point in hiding the truth from him. "I'm almost tempted to ride into the city to search for an Inn with an actual bed.
He turned, looking to her with a question on his expression before she shook her head.
"No. You don't have to ride into the city to find me an inn." She clarified.
The Dothrakki were already making camp around them. A practiced, efficient machine. Even her own tent would be set up in a matter of mere minutes. The nomadic people could establish and break camps with a speed that was downright terrifying. By her count, thirty seven minutes.
Just thirty seven minutes for a Horde of nearly twenty thousand to be up, on its feet and moving was… mind bending really.
All of it without shouted orders, or cracking whips or even lieutenants. A single Horn was blown in the morning and… that was it.
Whoever didn't keep up was left behind.
And being left behind meant Death in the Grass sea. Or so she'd heard.
She'd never seen the grass sea.
She wondered if it was dreadful, or beautiful.
Jeritza moved suddenly, placing himself in front of her. Edelgard knew better than to startle, especially when she saw him place his hand over his sword hilt.
Peeking over his shoulder, she saw that a rider with a wagon was approaching through the gloom of night, a tiny little lantern hanging off the front of the cart, jostling with every bump. She could see two people riding at the front of it, though not much beyond there being two of them.
The Dothrakki began to take notice too; for all of their efficiency in making camp, they had a feeling of invincibility that made them lax in their own security. No rider, let alone a rider with a wagon of all things should have ever gotten this close without alerting at least a single sentry.
Many of the Khalassar stepped forward, Torches and arkh blades in hand, some jeered and laughed, hollering that the merchants were just giving them the stolen goods now without needing to be chased down.
Edelgard saw someone, the driver stand up at the front of the cart and from their silhouette they were… waving?
"~Yooo-hooooo~"
The voice was… not something Edelgard was expecting at all, truth be told.
It was definitely a woman's voice, high and… almost manic. Its tone a joyful cry.
"My lady please" an elderly voice called, she could hear the dismay in his voice as the Dothrakki reached them. "This is not the time to be careless."
"Nonsense Rogier, I can see the princess there! We're perfectly safe! Hallo Gentlemen"
The words made Edelgard obviously start. This woman was… looking for her? Here?
"Be on your guard." She whispered; Jeritza nodded quietly.
It very likely could be an assassin sent by the Baratheon King; but if it was it was certainly a… unique one.
In a much louder and commanding voice she spoke up, calling down to the Dothrakki in their tongue. "They seem to be searching for me, or your Khaleesi,"
The blood riders eyed her, either with leering disdain, suspicion or dismissal, but a few recognized it would not bode well to potentially anger the Khal's new bride, and so they backed off.
The wagon riders kept approaching.
"Who goes there?" She demanded of them. "Name yourself."
Someone stood at the front of the wagon, at last coming into the light.
It was indeed a woman, pale skinned, blonde hair. She smiled brightly at Edelgard and offered a stage worthy bow.
Edelgard knew her.
"My warmest greetings Princess of house Targaryen. I am here to pledge my service to your house and claim, in the hopes of restoring both our houses to their rightful places!"
"My lady-" The old man at her side, her servant, or her driver, or both groaned. At which part exactly she wasn't sure, but likely a combination of all of it.
"I see-" She raised a slender eyebrow. "And you are?" Even knowing her name, she still needed to confirm.
The woman's smile grew, as if just waiting for someone to ask the question.
"I-" She pressed her hand to her chest. "Am Lady Constance. Constance Reyne!"
—
Even all the way across the narrow sea, she'd heard the Reyne's of Castamere.
The entire house, and the Tarbecks, slain overnight by Tywinn Lannister.
It was a famous event around the world, not just in Westeros, rarely had a house, let alone two, been so absolutely destroyed in just a single night.
And yet here she sat, sharing tea with someone who claimed to be the last living descendant of both houses.
"Do you have any proof of what you claim?" Viserys demanded; for once, not insensible.
"My lady Constance bears records of her lineage-" The servant, Rogier answered, sitting next to and behind his mistress. "Her grandmother was the lady Rohanne Tarbeck."
"Rohane Tarbeck never married." Edelgard pointed out- at least, not in the records she'd read.
"After the destruction of our house my Grandmother went into hiding; for safety, she never contacted Grandfather. Too close to the King; and thus, too close to Tywin. For both courts come to think of it" The woman answered with little in the way of hesitation.
"A bastard then." Viserys sneered, scoffing. "And you would use us to lay claim to House Reyne?"
"No more than you are using… everyone you can get your hands on to get you back on your Iron Throne." Constance shot back with a sunshine bright smile.
Viserys turned red, blue and purple with rage. "How dare-"
"Say that we were to entertain this notion of an alliance of mutual restoration-" She interrupted. "It's clear what we can offer you should we be successful. But what can you offer us short or long term?"
The lady Constance gave a high, almost airy laugh. "Well, for starters; funding. I'm no Illyrio Mopatis, but my house still commands a respectable fortune. Grandmother and Father were quite savvy when it came to making coin. Furthermore not everyone in the Westerlands is very adoring of the Old Lion of Lannister. More than a few resent him. It's simply that there's no other lion to contest the Gold. Place a red one as an option-" She grinned. "They'll come around."
"That's a lot of supposition." She countered. "Unless you have letters to back up these claims of support; we might simply solidify the Westerland rule under Tywin by introducing a would be usurper and a baseborn one at that.
"My mother and father were perfectly and legally married I'll have you know."
"Your father was a baseborn." She corrected. "Your grandmother never married your grandfather."
"Oh- yes. That's one thing I can bring to the table, or at least pull off the board." Constance grinned. "Grandfather dearest."
That made Edelgard raise an eyebrow. "He's still alive in Westeros?"
"And important enough that we should care?" Viserys dismissed taking a long gulp of his wine. "Well. Out with it. Who is this alleged grandfather?"
Constance's grin grew very large indeed.
Then she answered.
Edelgard's eyes widened. Even Viserys did a double take.
"If that's true…" She worked a muscle at her jaw. "If-" She stressed again, reminding herself of it as much as Viserys and warning Constance. "Then that changes things."
—
It had been a very long night of discussions, by the time she got to bed it was late, and a bedding of horse furs and dirt didn't help her mood much.
But when she finally opened her eyes and noticed that the sun was very very bright outside Edelgard balked, shooting up to her feet. "Jeritza!"
Her Death Knight marched in from the outside, awake and clad in his armor.
"Why did you not wake me?" She demanded. "We're about to be left behind!"
"Camp has not broken." He answered simply.
"It… hasn't?" She scrunched up her features. "Did Qohor not pay?"
"They have paid." He said. "We have visitors. Your Sister is seeing to them."
"My- Dany?" Sleep was causing a fugue to settle over her brain that she was struggling to shake off. She shook her head. "Who came for a visit? A bloody Gardner?" She huffed out a sardonic laugh.
Jeritza didn't share in her humor, he rarely did.
"Oberyn Martell and his daughters arrived early this morning."
Never in her life had she dressed so fast.
—
"Ahh, the fair Princess Edelgard joins us."
Oberyn Martell was a handsome man. Fine silks, bright clothes. Flamboyance and opulence had clearly been in his upbringing but his gaze had a sharpness to it shared only by his smile.
She noted four girls with him and a lady that was by his side.
She struggled for a moment to remember how many daughters he had. Ten? Was it ten or was it nine?
Dany sat beside him, her dress was simple, as she'd 'preferred' (or her husband preferred) since she'd been married. It was still an elegant garb of fine material and she wore it well at the very least; she looked nervous but it was to be expected given their guests.
She bowed to Oberyn. "Prince Oberyn, forgive me for keeping you waiting." She looked around. "Where is Viserys?"
"He looked tired-" Danny answered just a hair too quickly. "I ordered that he not be disturbed- I… called you. Surely we can entertain Prince Oberyn until Viserys wakes."
She could almost kiss Danny right now.
The last thing she needed was Viserys being left unsupervised with their most important ally.
"At the very least we should make him aware." She answered diplomatically before turning to Jeritza. "Could you go and inform Viserys? Tell him precisely who our guests are. I'm sure he'll make all due haste."
Translation- tell him exactly who this is and how little she would tolerate him screwing things up while they were here.
Jeritza nodded. Planting a fist over his chest before turning and marching away.
"That is the famous Jeritza Velaryon." She heard Oberyn whisper to his paramour, Elaria. "They call him the Death Knight. Do you think I can beat him?"
You can't. She didn't say, plastering on a pleasant smile.
"At the very least, until Viserys arrives introductions can be made." She said. "I've heard of your daughters but never met any of them."
"Of course." Oberyn nodded happily and proceeded to go down the line of girls.
The first was a larger girl, muscled, with a brutish face who's nose had been broken at least once before, likely more than once.
"This is Obara. My firebrand warrior." He grinned, pride shining through his eyes.
"Princess." The girl grunted, lowering her head. The courtesies of nobility were clearly not her strong suit.
The next girl was a dark haired beauty with purple silks who smiled at Edelgard with her father's silken charm.
"Nymeria; my fair but vengeful flower."
The young woman rolled her eyes before she too lowered her head demurely. "Princess."
The next girl- Edelgard recognized.
Her skin was the dusken dark of the Dornish, but her hair a flaming striking red, like red flowers in full bloom, chains clinked around her wrist and neck in a sort of jewelry.
Yes. Edelgard remembered this one very well.
Oberyn smiled like a child. "Hapi- my lucky charm."
"Irony doesn't suit you papa." Hapi deadpanned- she, unlike her previous two sisters, was still standing, so she offered a formal bow. "Princess Edelgard."
"And lastly-" Here he introduced another dark skinned girl, curly hair that was so different from the Dornish waves. "Sarella- my little Maester."
—
"While we certainly do appreciate you coming Prince Oberyn; it couldn't have been easy." She said, one leg crossed over the other.
"Oh it was not." He assured. "Once we heard of the Princess' marriage to the Khal, we knew enough about the Dothraki to understand that they would be headed to Vaes Dothrakk, so we made all haste to intercept you here, made it just in time too it seems."
"Like I said, it is appreciated-" She nodded. "But the question remains- why?"
"Well it's simple" He grinned. "Dorne has been funding you, as our rightful rulers for some time. But now that it's clear you yourselves are beginning to make certain… moves. We would like to… be at your side for them. Show our support early, and assist you more… tangibly. To ensure your success."
"Translation. They want to make sure they're not backing three children who'll get themselves killed from stupidity or madness… Rumors of Viserys, or even myself must've reached them."
She thought for a moment; grinding her teeth ever so subtly.
"Is this Oberyn's will? Or Doran's? One is a whim, the other is a calculation."
"On that note, Oberyn continued, before anyone said anything. "I have heard of your proposal for the Dothrakki to invade through the Southlands, Oldtown specifically."
"Didn't you just arrive this morning?" She questioned.
Oberyn smiled and then spoke in perfect Dothrakki "Word travels faster than sound Princess."
So it did.
"As such, I might already have a means of helping with such an undertaking."
His smile was all arrogance and self assuredness. A man utterly secure in his plans and skills. She could respect that.
However, while confidence was a weapon; overconfidence was not.
"And what might that be?" Danny was the one who asked, brave enough to chime in.
Before more could be said or specified, the tent was opened and Viserys, clearly out of sorts, all but stumbled in.
"Prince Oberyn-" His eyes cast over the assembled 'Sands; and she glared at him fiercely where their guests couldn't see.
Whatever Jeritza said or did seemed to be sticking for now, because her brother schooled his expression into one of placid neutrality. "Forgive my lateness- I was… occupied."
"Not at all my King." Oberyn smiled easily. "I was just about to suggest an addition to your sister's plan to invade through Oldtown."
She noted the pointed words, no doubt Viserys did so as well. Her brother's expression twitched, but, remarkably, he did control himself. "Oh?"
The man nodded. 'Sarella." He called.
One of the sandsnakes, the one with curly hair, stood, silks of yellow and gold slipping to their full length like watery cloth.
"The Maesters of Oldtown, as you know, control a great deal of Westeros, house Hightower itself is very powerful. However, they are overconfident. They wouldn't expect an infiltrator."
Viserys raised an eyebrow, eyes darting between Oberyn and Sarella. "And… what? You're claiming you would infiltrate them?"
I already have." She answered easily; and then gave a bow. "Allow me to introduce myself, My King, Princesses; You look upon Alleras the Sphinx; acolyte of Old Town studying to be a Maester."
"And what exactly does that get us?" Viserys demanded. While Edelgard did not like his tone, the question was a legitimate one.
"Knowledge is power." Saerella smirked. "And the Maesters and Hightowers do very little to guard it well. For instance, do you know by chance where the Hightowers store their grain? How many fighting men they have? When are their harvest times? Which lords give the least taxes, indicating which are unsatisfied or disloyal? Perchance which lords have received a new Maester who might be… malleable to a Targaryen return? Because I do."
As she spoke, Edelgard felt her smirk tugging more and more upon her lips.
"I… I see." Viserys swallowed his tongue, even he could see the potential benefit when laid out like that.
"All of this and it's just our first day of collaboration." Oberyn laughed. "Of course- to continue such; I would love to join you on your journey to Vaes Dothrakk. I've never been; and I would indeed love to see it before I leave this world. You understand of course. And it would give us a chance to truly become good friends."
And like that; the smirk slipped from her features.
Two- likely more months… with their greatest ally, in a camp with Viserys…
"I… what about your daughters and paramour?" She asked… not desperately. "Would you not worry about them returning alone?"
"The only one who need return is Sarella; back to Oldtown, Obara and my guards will escort her well. No, Ellaria and the others are all coming with…" His smile was all sharp teeth and knowing wickedness. "I trust you don't mind."
He knows… or at least suspects that Viserys is unfit.
She scrambled, searching for a way out, a reason, however flimsy however false; it would be better than-
"You may." Viserys nodded. "A King should know his future subjects, especially the loyal ones."
She was going to kill him.
"Marvelous!" Oberyn's delight was saccharin and guile all wrapped together into a package.
Edelgard's despair was genuine and her fury immense.
"Lucky charm." Hapi mumbled, just loud enough for Edelgard to hear.
(X)(X)(X)
And so, some new members join the party for Edelgard
Betcha none of you thought Constance would be a Reyne
Advance chaps will be up on Patreon in a few hours, so join us there if you'd like to get the next few months updates ahead of time.
Now... who do you all think Constance's Grandpappy could be? :3