Fire and Blood (Book One)

Chapter Thirteen

On a different part of the beach, a young Aemond Targaryen had snuck out of the castle and had found Laena's dragon Vhagar asleep in the dunes, all the while Alyssa Targaryen was trailing behind him. Nearly the size of a sand dune herself, Vhagar was the oldest and largest living dragon, twice the size of Caraxes and last of the original three dragons from the Targaryen Conquest. Alyssa watched as Aemond cautiously approached and put a hand on the rope netting to her saddle, but this awoke Vhagar who sensed that he was a prince of Targaryen and backed down. Alyssa continued to watch as Aemond once again put his hand on the rope again and started to actually try to mount Vhagar however, at which she growled and started building up fire in the back of her throat to immolate him with as she had done to her previous ride Lady Laena. However just as Aemond bravely stood his ground, Alyssa fled back to the castle and awoke Laena's daughter: Baela and Rhaena and together the three woke up Jace and Luke. Soon the five children intercepted Aemond just as he was returning to the castle through the tunnel that led to the beach. "Vhagar was my mother's dragon." "Your mother is dead. And Vhagar has a new rider now." "She was not yours to claim." As the two children began to argue, Alyssa was growing even more concerned and she hoped that a fight was not about to break out as she knew that if a fight did break out then one if not all the children would be injured.

Suddenly Rhaena charged Aemond but he easily shoved her aside causing her to hit her head and for Baela to punch him in the face and he quickly punched her back. This caused a brawl to break out between all five of the children; Aemond then punched Luke so hard that he broke his nose. Soon the other three children joined in and all five managed to pin Aemond to the ground and began to hit him. Aemond then used his large size into play and broke free of the five, but like the other children he was bloodied, as the others were on the ground he stood up and grabbed Luke by the throat with one hand while holding a large rock in the other to strike him with. "You will die screaming in flames just as your father did! Bastards." Alyssa being old enough to understand looked to Jace and watched as Luke tried to argue the fact but like Alyssa, Jace was old enough to understood while Luke wasn't. While Alyssa tended to her half-sisters, she looked to Aemond and pleaded with him not to say anymore but Aemond did, "He doesn't know, does he, Lord Strong?" Alyssa watched as Jace suddenly drew the knife he had brought with him and charged Aemond with it, but he managed to knock the blade out of his hand and knocked Jace to the ground.

Alyssa watched as Aemond turned his attention to the older boy and advanced on him with rock in hand, none of the children noticed Luke circling around to recover the discarded knife. Just before Aemond could base Jace's head in with the rock, he revealed that he was also carrying a knife and while trying to kill Jace, he accidentally slashed Alyssa, leaving her on the ground screaming in pain. Suddenly Aemond was distracted him by flinging sand into his face, just as Luke charged from the side to use the knife on Aemond.

Alyssa and Aemond was left screaming on the ground; just as Ser Harrold and the other Kingsguards arrived; Jace stood up with the other children and gathered the three behind him, shielding them from the sight of Aemond and Alyssa bleeding from their eyes. He watched as Ser Harrold knelt beside the bleeding Aemond and Alyssa said, "My Prince, my Princess. Let me see." The children watched as Aemond and Alyssa were turned slightly to the side and even though Jace couldn't see Ser Harrold's face, he knew that by his actions Aemond and Alyssa most likely had lost his eye thanks to Aemond and Luke. "Gods be good." In the Hall of Nine, the adults of House Targaryen and the remainder of Valaena's children were roused to the Hall in the aftermath of the fight between the children. Alysanne watched as her grandfather arrived and was furious with the Kingsguard for not protecting the princes and princesses of the royal blood, to which Ser Criston protested they weren't expected to defend the princes from each other. While Maester Kelvyn was stitching up the horrific slash across Aemond's face as he had already stitched up Alyssa's face, Alysanne stayed by her cousins and siblings side.