The Age of Daenerys Targaryen

Part 55: A guest in the Imperial Palace

Sansa was housed in a lavishly furnished apartment in the Imperial Palace. Half a dozen servants were at her disposal, and a small army of guards kept an eye on her.

The Queen of the North was not allowed to leave the palace grounds. Even within, she was only allowed to move to a limited extent. For her own safety, she was told.

There was no godswood in Volantis, of course, but a temporary sept had been set up in an empty vault of the palace and a septon had been found to meet Sansa's spiritual needs. Most of the time, however, she stayed in a shady courtyard, in the middle of which there was a pool with ornamental fish, surrounded by bushes where songbirds nest. The heat from Volantis was easier to bear there.

While she was held captive by Cersei in King's Landing, Sansa's maids were regularly exchanged and were not allowed to talk to her. At least it was like that in the beginning. Then Shae, a young woman from Lorath, was assigned to her. She had been able to trust her. Sansa wondered what had happened to her. Perhaps she was one of the victims of the massacre Daenerys had wrought in King's Landing.

The servants in the Imperial Palace, however, were very communicative to Sansa. They regularly told the queen news about the course of the war.

Accordingly, after the Battle of Ar Noy and the loss of its two leaders, the League of Free Cities had collapsed like a house of cards. The Imperial troops had easily captured Qohor and Norvos, and Pentos followed a few months later. In view of the hopeless situation, Yohn Royce had withdrawn across the Narrow Sea to Westeros.

Then the Dragon Empress turned her gaze to Braavos. The residents of the lagoon city welcomed Daenerys as a liberator. The old Sealord, Belo Aenolis, was reinstated and declared war on the Six Kingdoms and the North, which Lord Manderly now ruled as Sansa's governor. Lorath, the League's last bastion, surrendered soon after.

Daenerys' victory in Essos was complete.

Meanwhile, Grand Admiral Salladhor Saan had rebuilt the Imperial Navy and assumed supremacy in the Narrow Sea, with the Braavos fleet helping him. With the Ironborn still in control of the Sunset Sea, Westeros was now in the stranglehold of the Empire and its allies.

Of course, Sansa couldn't rule out that the stories she was told might not be entirely true. But it had been a year since she was captured and the Queen knew how to assess the mood in the Imperial Palace by now. So it looked great for the Empire.

Sansa had asked to see Arya, but she was only put off with assurances that her sister was fine and that Sansa could speak to her at a later date. For "security reasons" this is not yet possible.

"Your Grace", someone interrupted her thoughts. Sansa looked up.

Tota, one of her servants, was standing at the entrance to the courtyard. The girl had the dark brown skin of the Summer Islanders and a tattooed tear under her right eye identified her as a former pleasure slave.

"Yes, Tota?", said the queen.

"Her Majesty the Empress has returned from her campaign, Your Grace. She wishes to speak to you tomorrow morning."