The Age of Daenerys Targaryen

Part 3: The wisdom of a dragon

Wrapped in a red hooded robe that hid her telltale silver hair, Daenerys was able to move undetected in Pentos. For a moment she considered visiting Illyrio Mopatis, but he had been friends with Varys. After exposing and executing the eunuch as a traitor, she could no longer rely on Illyrio's support, even if the magister had probably not yet learned of Varys' death.

Since Drogon was probably in the hills outside the city, she went straight to the gates. The guards paid no attention to her; Daenerys was believed to be a temple novice. The scar on her chest burned slightly, reminding her incessantly of what Jon had done.

She remembered how years ago she had set out from Pentos on a journey that had taken her halfway around the world. And now, after all the deeds she had done and the losses she had suffered, she was back here. With empty hands.

Daenerys roamed the surrounding area for a few hours but found no sign of Drogon's presence. Finally she came to the place on the coast where she had married Khal Drogo and had been given three dragon eggs. Lost in memories, she lingered there in the shadow of the sandstone cliffs until suddenly a group of almost twenty men appeared. They wore colorfully mixed pieces of armor and weapons of all kinds.

"Well, who do we have there?", said the unwashed guy, who was apparently the leader of the group, grinning. His brown teeth were crooked, some were missing or chipped. "My beauty, you have to pay a tax if you want to enjoy the view here."

"You are welcome to pay in another way if you don't have coins with you", one of the other men interjected. "I've never fucked a Red Priestess."

"Make you disappear", Daenerys growled, "or I swear I'll watch you die screaming!" She had wiped out armies, conquered cities, and had risen from the dead, so she wouldn't be scared by these scraps here.

The pack burst out laughing. "I can see", said the leader, "we will have a lot of fun together. I like it when women are a bit stubborn, so ..."

A bloodcurdling roar interrupted him. The sound of huge leather wings filled the air and Drogon emerged from behind one of the sandstone formations. The men turned to flee.

"Dracarys!", Daenerys called.

There was no escape. Within a few heartbeats, Drogon's fiery breath enveloped all the bandits. The scoundrels rolled on the floor, screaming, trying in vain to smother the flames. Daenerys watched them die with an emotionless look, as she had promised.

When nothing more moved and only the sound of the surf could be heard, Drogon bowed his mighty head down to Daenerys. She reached out and stroked the dragon's chin. He opened his mouth to a grin and let out a happy growl.

"Yes, I'm back", said the Dragon Queen. "And I owe that to you too." She wondered how the dragon could have known where to take her body. Drogon had never been to Pentos and probably had no idea what a Red Temple was.

She got on Drogon's back and told the dragon to take to the skies. The charred remains of the twenty bandits were left behind. Daenerys enjoyed the flight and the accompanying feeling of limitless freedom to the full. After a few laps over the Bay of Pentos, she said goodbye to Drogon with a heavy heart and returned to town. Although she had had an extensive breakfast that morning, her stomach was growling now and she could stuff herself like a dragon again.

After a few days a ship from Westeros came into the harbor and the news of the destruction of King's Landing and the assassination of Daenery spread. Jon Snow was subsequently imprisoned by the Unsullieds and he and the traitor Tyrion were now waiting for their trial. And the Iron Throne ... had been melted down by Drogon.

"There you see it," said Kinvara, while they were sitting at the lunch table. "The throne you wanted all along no longer exists."

"Why would Drogon do that?", Daenerys asked, taking another bite of the delicious roast. She wondered why she's had such a big appetite lately.

"Maybe he realized that your pursuit of the Iron Throne has destroyed you", the priestess replied quietly. "Dragons really may be wiser than humans. What good would it have done to bring you here for resurrection if you threw yourself headlong into perdition afterwards? Don't look at me like that and face the truth, Your Grace. After the destruction of King's Landing, you may now be the most hated person in Westeros. Nobody there wants you anymore."

"Let them hate me as long as they fear me," Daenerys replied briskly. "And when I have collected the swords of my defeated enemies ..." She was overcome by a sudden wave of nausea. Kinvara raised an eyebrow.

"Are you not well? Sorry, but I have to ask ... when was the last time you had your monthly bleed?"

"I ..." Daenerys paused. "I don't think so since ... oh no. That can not be."

"Yes", said the Red Priestess. "You are pregnant. I've had this suspicion since I examined you after your resurrection."

"I thought I can't have any more children", Daenerys whispered. "Mirri Maz Duur said ..." She told Kinvara what the witch had once prophesied.

"Such predictions are ambiguous, Your Grace", Kinvara said. "The fact that you will see Khal Drogo again when your womb bears fruit could have been an indication of your death."

"I don't remember seeing Drogo after I died. There was nothing there."

"Just because you can't remember anything doesn't mean that there wasn't anything. Either way, you are definitely pregnant. Do you still want to go back to Westeros and risk the life of your unborn child for a throne that no longer exists?"

"What else should I do?"

"Come to Volantis with me," Kinvara implored. "You can stay in the Red Temple there until your child is born. Then return to Meereen and continue your mission to free the slaves. Maybe ... maybe that's why R'hllor brought you back."

"Correct me if I'm wrong", said Daenerys, "but aren't there more slaves than free in Volantis? And aren't countless slaves in the service of the Red God? So are you the right person to encourage me to end slavery?"

Kinvara laughed softly. "You are as astute as you are quick-witted. Remember, however, that our faith also thrives in places like Braavos, where slavery is prohibited. The slaves in R'hllor's service are better off than most of the free in Volantis. I myself was sold as a slave to the temple and see where I am now. Should slavery one day be abolished, I will not worry about the supply of new servants for the Lord of Light."

Daenerys thought in silence for a while while Kinvara waited patiently. "Perhaps you are right," said the Dragon Queen at last. "At least I should send a message to Grey Worm."

"I think nobody should find out about your resurrection for now," Kinvara countered. "As long as you are pregnant you are vulnerable, and when you finally reveal yourself to the world, the miracle will seem all the greater to people. Your troops, however, will sooner or later return to Essos, but you shouldn't find it difficult to gather them around you again if you need them."

Daenerys wanted to contradict at first, but the desire to protect her unborn prevailed.

After sunset, Daenerys and Kinvara left town. It didn't take long this time to find Drogon. The two women climbed onto the dragon's back - he seemed to tolerate Kinvara easily - and soared into the sky. It was the first flight for the priestess. It was frightening to be so high above the ground, but she trusted in the Lord of Light and after a while she enjoyed the sight of the night landscape, illuminated by the moon and stars, passing beneath them.

Although they only flew at night, Drogon did not go completely unnoticed on the way to Volantis, even if the riders were not seen at high altitude. The sighting reports reached Westeros, albeit with a delay of many weeks. When Grandmaester Samwell Tarly reported this to the new King Bran, of course he could not have known that Drogon had been ridden by a resurrected Daenerys Targaryen ...