A tale: Reborn in Westeros

Chapter 1

Alex van der Meer ~ Indian Ocean ~ Nighttime

(Note: conversations in bold letters is in Dutch. Further, some words will be written in Dutch but those should be very similar to English. For example: my god - mijn god)

The last few days, I along with some of our international allies have been patrolling the East Coast of Africa against piracy. It has been quiet most of the time. The pirate ships we do see turn around quickly once they spot us. As night rolls around, I am resting in my cabin that I share with my only fellow country man. The commander wanted to exchange some international crew for the day. It was a resting day, but we still have to be alert for any potential threat.

The cabin door opens, and my friend, Victor, walks in. "Still reading the first book?" He says with a chuckle. "Excuse me for being a slow reader. At least I read instead of only seeing the shows," I countered with a soft smile, turning the page. "The commander wants us to check the deck. A storm is forming, and he wants everything secure," Victor sighs.

I close the book and put it on the night stand. "Let's be quick, I want to sleep. It has been a long day, and it should be relatively quick. Most of our equipment downstairs," I say with a long sigh. Victor chuckles and puts a hand on my shoulder. "You're lucky that you have no family waiting. It is worse when you know that you're far away from them," he says. "I guess so. I do miss my parents, though," I say as I put my protective clothing back on.

We exit our cabin and move through the tight corridors towards the deck. The wind and the rain are picking up outside. "Is it not strange? These storms are not common during this time of year," I say as I think about it. Victor shrugs. "Could be climate change? Who knows what kind of effect it has on those storms."

He opens the door, and we already feel the rain hitting our faces. The deck is slippery, and we have to be careful to not get thrown overboard. "Well, let's start on the left," Victor says, his voice louder, so I can hear him. I nod, and we carefully make our way to the left side. It has mainly emergency equipment in case we have to abandon ship. We methodically work our way through the work, but we stop as we hear something snap.

I frown and look towards the sound. One of the ropes seem to have snapped. "How did nobody see the poor condition of the ropes? I will fix it quickly," I say and start walking towards it. Victor watches me for a second before focussing on his own work. The robe that snapped held an evacuation boat in place. As I was about to reach it, more of the robe snaps. The strong winds pick up, and the boat is blown away.

"Alex!" Victor calls out. I was about to jump to the side, but I slip on the wet deck and got hit by the boat on my head. The force of the impact causes me to fall into the water. Slowly, I feel myself being submerged into the water. The last thing I saw was a frantic Victor calling for help.

As I get deeper and deeper into the water, I feel something starting to embrace me. It is a strange feeling. One could describe it as if a mother embraces their child for comfort. As I try to figure out what is happening, I hear a soothing voice. I have never heard such a voice before. It is calm, kind, and soothing. "Rest, child. I am here to help," the voice says. It's definitely a woman's voice, but how is it here? Am I dead? I slowly close my eyes as everything goes black and my senses dull.

"Is he dead?" I hear a voice ask. It is female. The voice is a mix of kindness and authority. "I am not sure, Khaleesi. He is alive for now, but who knows how long he has been drifting on sea," another voice says. That one is undoubtedly male. I start to groan and shift in what I assume is a bed.

"Still alive, it seems. His appearance is curious. So much like my family," the female voice contemplates. "It is, but many people still carry the blood of Valyria. In Lys or Volantis, for example," the male voice says. "Hmm, perhaps he can tell us more when he wakes up. How long till we arrive in Astapor?" she asks. "In favorable conditions, I think the day after tomorrow," he says.

I listen carefully to their conversation. A few things I am already finding hard to believe. Especially when she said Astapor. Is this Daenerys from that show and book series? I was starting to read the first book, but... now I am here? Mijn god, that is unbelievable.

I force my eyes to open and look around. Two persons are standing in the cabin I am in. One is definitely Daenerys from the show. Only, instead of the blue eyes, she has eyes with a purple color. Her eyes have a pained expression in them. One, I have seen in soldiers before. Her skin is also much paler than the actress. Next to her stands Jorah, he looks like the actor of the show. Perhaps his beard is a bit fuller, but that's really it.

"Am... I dead?" I ask with a raspy voice. Daenerys politely smiles. "No, you're still alive. How do you feel?" She asks. Now that's she asks it, but I feel pretty good for some reason. The last thing I remember was getting hit by a rubber boat. And that voice... who was that?

I clear my throat a bit. "I'm fine. Perhaps a bit thirsty, where are we?" I ask. "Your accent... I don't recognize it. Where are you from?" Jorah asks. "I... Is this a movie set? Are you redoing the series?" I ask.

Daenerys and Jorah look at each confused. "Movie? What's a movie?" Daenerys asks, confusion written on her face. "You know... a fictional story that can be seen on a television," I explained. "Perhaps his wound on his face did more damage than I thought," Jorah mumbles. I shake my head. "Is this really Westeros?" I ask softly.

"This is actually Essos. Are you sure you're fine? You speak nonsense," Daenerys asks with slight worry. "I think I need to rest..." I mumble. Jorah nods in agreement. "I think so, too. A good rest might clear things up for you," he says. But I think he is not convinced himself.

"I will tell Irri to bring you some water. When you have... uhm... got things clear again. Come find me. We need to talk," Daenerys says and leaves the cabin. Jorah follows her. This is crazy. I am here in a world that is written by someone. That voice in the water, it must have brought me here. The reason for it is not really something I can figure out. I better figure out who and what I am here.