Chapter Text
There was this feeling inside of her, one that she couldn’t explain, but she felt it, nonetheless. It was a feeling that she felt when she sent her sons out to send messages to the Lords of the Seven Kingdoms. This time she recognized the feeling for what it was, dread, a feeling of incoming doom. She had let Rhaenys go to fight in Rook’s Rest all by herself, it was a decision she was starting to regret terribly. Her father said that there were many dragon dreamers in their family, perhaps this was part of it, the feeling of what was to come. She couldn’t handle another loss like the one she had with Luce, her sweet boy. No, she couldn’t let Rhaenys fight alone, even if everyone advised her against going. She couldn’t just sit back, she was a dragon, too. And she had lost far too much already.
And so, Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen, First of Her Name, Queen of the Andals, and the Rhoynar, and the First Men, Lady of the Seven Kingdoms, and Protector of the Realm walked towards her dragon in her armor with a sense of foreboding, followed by Corlys Velaryon, Jace, and Baela. “If anything should happen to me, I have already told and taught Jace everything that he needs, you will need to crown him. I trust him to you, Lord Corlys.” They protested her going, but she didn’t care, she didn’t want to lose Rhaenys to those people. They were traitors to the realm, and she would be damned if she ever let them take another person from her. “Syrax, it’s time for our first battle.” She whispered to her dragon as she went to pat her, Syrax trilled at her affectionately back and bumped her head to her chest.
“Your Grace, please reconsider. My wife is formidable, she can handle this, you must not put yourself in danger like this. If Aemond and Vhagar are out there, it will be much too dangerous for you.” Corlys told her desperately as he went to stand beside her and put his hand on her arm. “Don’t do this, you are the rightful queen, you must not fall. It’s harsh to say this, it really is, and it breaks my heart to, but if Rhaenys were to die in battle, it would be a loss far more acceptable than losing you. You must not let your emotions guide you, please, your Grace.” She looked the older man into his eyes and smiled sadly at the loss that he was prepared to take. He was so loyal to her cause even after what happened with Laenor, she was grateful for all of it. And that was precisely why she couldn’t let him take this loss for her. As queen, it was her duty to protect the realm and her people. She wouldn’t sit around and let others fight and die for her. The world was cruel as it was, it didn’t need anymore cruelty. And the least she could do was ensure Rhaenys survival, after all, even if they didn’t acknowledge it, they needed Meleys far more than they needed her beloved Syrax.
She shook her head and sighed. “As the queen, it is my duty to protect my kingdom and its people, I cannot simply allow Rhaenys to die. Lord Corlys, I want to thank you for all of your support, please take care of my son and make sure that he is crowned should I meet my untimely doom.” With that, she climbed onto her dragon’s back and looked down to see Jace looking at her with tears and fear in his eyes. “Take care, my son. And watch out for your brothers for me, I will always love you and I will always be with you.” With that, she commanded Syrax to move forward and take flight once they were outside of the Dragonmont. “I’m nervous too, Syrax, but we must be brave. We must do what is needed to win this war.” She told her dragon as they flew towards Rook’s Rest, preparing for the battle that was to come.
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The first thing she saw was smoke coming from the battlefield and shouts were everywhere, people were crying. She didn’t pay them attention and braced herself when she finally saw what she was looking for. Rhaenys was locked in battle with a golden dragon that she knew was Sunfyre, but before she could get any closer, Vhagar ascended towards them and breathed fire onto both of her brother and Rhaenys. Her breath hitched as her grip on Syrax’s saddle tightened. “Let’s go, Syrax.” She whispered as she watched as the smaller dragon shrieked and fell to the ground, while Meleys escaped the same fate. There was a sizeable difference between their dragons and Vhagar, and Meleys was hurt already. She was right to come here.
Swiftly, she ordered Syrax forward to catch Vhagar unguarded as the old dragon watched Meleys turn back towards it, her brother preparing to attack. But Rhaenyra steered Syrax into battle. “Dracarys!” She hissed out when she got close and smiled in satisfaction when she caught Aemond off guard and he got hit with dragonfire along with his dragon. “Your Grace!” Rhaenys gasped in surprise as she looked at her with worry. “You must hurry away from here; it is not safe. Quickly, as I distract Vhagar and Aemond.” The older woman was still trying to protect her, and she was grateful for that, but she made her choice, and she was going to stick to it. Who knows, perhaps she was going to avenge her son’s death today, she could only hope at least. And in the worst-case scenario, she would have Rhaenys escape so that the older woman would live to fight another day and protect her son.
“I can’t let you take the fall for this, Princess. We will fight Aemond together. I want to win this war and avenge my son’s and father’s deaths, and I need your help to do that. The Stranger will not take you today.” She gave her a reassuring smile, which only made Rhaenys sigh and shake her head, her worry increasing. Rhaenyra knew this was a dangerous game that she was playing, one where there was a good chance that she was going to lose her life. But how much did it matter that she would die if her son were to take her place? Would it make a difference? She couldn’t say, but she was willing to take the risk, in fact, she couldn’t call herself queen if she didn’t. “Let’s attack together.” The older woman finally agreed, albeit reluctantly, as she circled around to face the giant beast. “Dracarys!” She yelled out again once she was close enough, letting out another bout of dragonfire.
She watched as the smoke cleared, but Vhagar wasn’t there, her heartbeat increased as she looked around, along with the Princess beside her. Where was her brother? She knew he didn’t go down; the hoary old bitch was far too strong for that. As the minutes ticked by, she saw a shadow above her and looked to see Vhagar descending towards them. “Dracarys!” Her brother’s voice commanded as he swept right to them and Rhaenyra thought that at that moment she would face the Stranger in the Seven Heavens, for dragonfire descended upon them. Meleys managed to dodge it quickly, and Syrax did as well, without her command. But somewhere, something went wrong, and she ended up falling from her saddle, she didn’t feel the regret she thought that she would when faced with her death, only peace that she would meet her loved ones in the afterlife. The last thing she saw before her world went dark was Syrax screeching when she realized what happened and Rhaenys horrified face as she raced to catch her on her dragon.
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Rhaenyra heard noises around her, swords clashing, yelling, crying, cursing. She couldn’t understand what was happening around her and why she was not dead. The only thing that came to mind was that Rhaenys had managed to save her. She really was a valuable treasure to her, and she must thank her when she sees her. She opened her and looked forward at the sky, the trees all around her. She must have been laying on the ground, so she didn’t feel any pain. She stayed like that for a moment as smoke and burning flesh reached her nostrils. Slowly, she closed her eyes and sat up, looking around where she was and to see what has become of Rhaenys and Meleys after presumably saving her. When she spotted movement to her side, she looked to her younger brother with a sword and Sunfyre before him.
Her breath hitched as she felt the sense of danger upon seeing him. Where was Rhaenys? “Aemond!” She heard Cole’s voice call out to her brother from a distance and watched as the younger looked back at the Hand of the King before sheathing his sword with a cold look on his face. Then he knelt down and picked up the dagger that Aegon had dropped, the same one that belonged to her father. “Where’s his Grace?” The man asked as he limped over to him, not looking at her even once. She didn’t know if he even noticed her, but this was her chance to escape from them. She had to get away and find Syrax, before they noticed her. She saw Aemond point towards Sunfyre with the dagger and carefully flipped onto her knees and started crawling away, careful not to make any voice. She heard a thud behind her, but didn’t turn around to look as she continued, before finally getting up onto her feet to run once she thought she was a safe distance away from them.
But before she could manage to get any further, an arm wrapped around her figure and drew her close to a broad chest. “Did you think I would just let you get away, sister? I may have let the old bitch get away on her dragon, but I'm not about to let you get away from me. No, you're a much bigger prize than even the Queen Who Never Was.” He told her as he brought his lips to her ear and tightened his grip on her. “You should thank me; I saved you from your untimely demise. It would have been easy to just let you plummet to your death, but I find myself in need of a wife now that I'm about to become king and I seem to have found the perfect candidate.” Her breath grew ragged as realization hit her and she started struggling against him. No, she would never let him do this! How dare this murderer, this monster would ever think that she would agree to this! “No, none of that, sister. You will be a good little wife for me and spread your legs so I can fill you up with my seed and child. That will be your only duty from now on, I will not tolerate any defiance from you or scheming. You will fulfill your role and nothing more.”
Rhaenyra growled and shook her head as she tried to break free from him, when she couldn’t manage that, she turned to look him in his eye and spit in his face. “I will never marry you, kinslayer! You have killed my son, you're crazy if you think I will let you do this. I would rather die a thousand deaths than let you lie with me!” She cried out when he backhanded her and crashed onto the ground, her body aching from the slap and the fall. “Kill me! Kill me now!” She yelled at him as tears welled up in her eyes and she bit her lip. “You even tried to kill our brother, your usurper king. You are the worst of the worst, and I will never marry you.” Tears fell down her cheeks as she looked up at him ruefully. “Not that you even can, if you have forgotten, I am already married to our uncle.”
Aemond looked down at her without any amusement in his eyes and knelt before her. “Aegon dissolved your marriage when he became king, probably in preparation to take you for himself. But I have denied him that right. Why should I, ever the good soldier, be denied what I deserve for a wastrel who’s never taken half an interest in his birthright? It is I, the younger brother who studies history and philosophy, it is I who trains with the sword, who rides the largest dragon in the world. It is I who should be king and who should take what is rightfully mine.” He told her coldly as he looked down at her tear-streaked eyes, with a red mark on her cheek where he slapped her. “I'm next in line to the throne and you will help me legitimize my claim by marrying me and giving me sons, as well as help me win this war.” He grabbed her arm then and hoisted her up as he got up as well. “I will not kill you, you're far too valuable for that, now your sons on the other hand…You bastard sons will have to die, but if you behave, I might spare your trueborn Targaryen sons. But be warned, unlike our brother, I have no patience for insolence. You will do as you're told, or I will beat obedience into you. Do you understand me, sister? I am not our brother; I won’t let any insolence or disobedience from my wife happen. Now be good, we will be flying back to King’s Landing on Vhagar.” He finished and dragged her along to Vhagar, not caring for the resistance she tried to put up and hitting her when she refused to get in the saddle of his dragon, carrying her onto it and then sitting behind her, one hand tightly holding her waist, while the other held the saddle. They ascended up into the air as Rhaenyra continued to cry, tears streaming harder and harder as they flew.
This world, it’s cruel. Too cruel.