The Bronze Dragon-A House of the Dragon fanfic

Chapter 38

My father had elected to go Dragonstone with the Princess Rhaenyra. By this time, Syrax had been too fat to fly, so it made sense for her to come by ship, and the short distances meant they had arrived by mid-morning, just as Rhaenys and Daeron were effecting their escape from King's Landing.

What happened over the next few hours would end up bringing the country to war over an iron chair. Strangely enough, my father maintains that he may have indeed been able to talk them out of war if he had just been given more time. Though I would contend this notion; war was inevitable at this point from what I can see.

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Dragonstone

Jace had taken Luke out to train on the beach behind the castle on Dragonstone earlier that morning, and it wasn't going as well as he had been expected. Luke was not a brilliant swordsman and was still young, but he wasn't even meeting Jace's standards. A few hard swings, and his younger brother's defences were already failing. It wasn't like Luke was even trying to parry him; he was simply holding his blade out and hoping for the best. It had the inevitable result when Jace knocked the sword from Luke's hand and then swung his blade into Luke's stomach. "What was that?!" He said, grabbing Luke by his doublet as the boy fell to the ground.

"I'm sorry!" Luke replied.

"You might go easier on your brother, My Prince." Ser Steffon Darklyn, who had been observing the sparring match, said. "That way he might more easily learn what you are trying to teach."

Jace looked down in shame. Truthfully, it had been more an attempt to release tension from the dinner with the Greens than to try and teach Luke anything. "I'm sorry, Luke." He said, helping his brother up. "We'll go and get Daevar to spar with us; he knows more than I do."

"I don't think he likes me very much." Luke said.

"We'll make him like both of us." Jace grinned.

"Your Lady Mother needs to see you." Rhaenys called out from one of the passageways that led back to the castle. "Both of you."

Well, they both knew better than to defy their mother's wishes. Handing the training swords to Ser Steffon, the two of them rushed into the passageway and hurried upstairs to their mother's chambers. She wasn;t in a good way, and both Jace and Luke both knew it had something to do with her pregnancy. "Mother?" Jace asked as they entered.

"Fuck . . ." Rhaenyra groaned in pain, steadying herself against one of the pillars. "Your grandsire, King Viserys has passed."

The words were like a dagger at Luke. He had never been close to his grandfather, but knew that the man had always felt affection for them. "Viserys?!" He exclaimed. Jace was more circumspect, silently working over calculations in his head. He was almost able to guess what his mother would say next before she had said it.

"The Greens have repudiated the succession and claimed the Iron Throne." She managed to say through her pain. "Aegon has been crowned King."

"And what is to be done about it?" Jace asked.

"Nothing yet." Rhaenyra replied. The last thing that needed now was rash action.

"And where's Daemon?" Jace asked, clenching his fists. He had never trusted the man. Yes, he was a fighter who would defend them, but if he was already preparing to attack . . .

"I don't know." Rhaenyra said through gritted teeth, mostly of pain but also slight anger at her husband likely acting without her word. "Gone to madness. Gone to plot his war."

His war. She made that distinction, Jace thought. It was an important one to make too; his mother had no desire to spark a war between King's Landing and Dragonstone. "Alright, leave Daemon with me. Luke, make sure Baela and Rhaena are well." He said before leaving. Affirming to his mother that nothing would be done without her order, he marched to the Chamber of the Painted Table, and could very clearly hear Daemon issuing orders.