The Age of Daenerys Targaryen

Part 64: Arrival in Braavos

A few months after the signing of the armistice, the delegations of the Six Kingdoms and the North arrived in Braavos. Queen Sansa arrived personally by ship with an armed retinue of fifty Northmen.

King Bran was represented by Tyrion Lannister, along with Samwell Tarly, Lord Bronn and Podrick Payne. The Hand had a guard of seventy Lannister soldiers with him.

Foreign ships were normally required to dock at Ragman's Harbor, but this time an exception was made and the delegations were allowed to dock at Purple Harbor.

There were already three Imperial ships at the quays, as well as one from the Iron Islands. So Asha Greyjoy had come too. There was nothing to be seen of the dragon Drogon, but that didn't mean much. As so often, thick fog hung over the lagoon city and the numerous tall buildings restricted the view anyway.

It was only a short walk from the Purple Harbor to the Sealord's Palace. The mighty towers and domes of the residence, built on a promontory and a few small islands connected by bridges on the northern edge of Braavos, rose into the misty sky. Sealord Belo Aenolis had chosen to house the negotiators and their entourage in his palace. There was enough space.

The newcomers were immediately led into the magnificent audience hall of the Sealord. Belo Aenolis and Daenerys Targaryen were talking in front of the painting of a long-dead hero of Braavos. The Empress was flanked by Kinvara, whom Tyrion had met years earlier in Meereen, and Illyrio Mopatis. Behind her stood four heavily armed warriors from the Imperial Guard, three men and one woman.

Aenolis spread his arms in greeting as soon as the visitors stepped through the door. "You are welcome, Your Grace, Lord Lannister." The Sealord was clad in black, as was the custom among the mighty of Braavos. "I hope you had a pleasant trip." He approached Sansa and kissed her hand.

"We did, thank you my lord", Tyrion replied, but his eyes were on Daenerys. The Empress wore a dress made of dark red brocade, and her braided silver hair hung over her shoulders.

"Lord Tyrion," she greeted him coolly and with an inscrutable expression.

"Your Imperial Majesty", replied the dwarf, trying to keep up a face as unmoved as Daenerys.

They had not parted on good terms. The last time they saw each other, Tyrion had demonstratively tossed his brooch, which marked him as the Queen's Hand, in the dust after Daenerys, riding Drogon, reduced King's Landing to rubble in a mad orgy of destruction. Besides hundreds of thousands of people, Tyrion's siblings were also killed.

Daenerys, for her part, had her Hand accused of treason and imprisoned for freeing Jaime. Tyrion's execution had been prevented only by Jon Snow's assassination of the Queen.

The little man cleared his throat and pointed to Bronn. "This is our Master of coin and Lord of Highgarden, Bronn of the Blackwater." Bronn gave the Empress a bold smile. Tyrion resisted the urge to kick his shin.

"You already know our Grand Maester, Samwell Tarly", he continued instead.

Sam's face couldn't quite hide what he thought of the woman who burned his father and brother in dragon fire. Daenerys, however, didn't show what she was thinking.

"And this is Ser Podrick Payne of the Kings Guard. He was there at the battle against the dead, maybe you remember him."

The Empress nodded barely perceptibly and introduced Illyrio (unnecessarily, since the Westerosi already knew him) and Kinvara.

"I suggest", said Belo Aenolis, "that we don't start negotiations until tomorrow. Take a rest, settle down in your rooms and explore the city if you like."

Sansa and Tyrion agreed. The negotiations would probably drag on for weeks, so one day more did not matter.

Just as the Westerosi were about to leave the room, Asha Greyjoy met them.

"Greetings", she said with a mocking smile. "So you made it across the Narrow Sea. My fleet captured or sunk so many of your ships that I wondered if there were any left."

"Lady Greyjoy", Tyrion replied, gritting his teeth.

"Queen, if you please", Asha replied. "Actually, you should kneel before me, Lord Tyrion, but you are small enough already."

"Guard your tongue, traitor", Sansa hissed. "My brother should never have trusted you. He made you the Lady of the Iron Islands and..."

"It was Daenerys Targaryen who helped me get the Seastone Chair", Asha replied. "You and your clan, however..."

Daenerys stepped up and put a hand on the Ironborn's shoulder. "We're not here to quarrel, Asha. Come on, the Sealord wanted to show us the Arsenal of Braavos."

So while Daenerys and Asha let Belo Aenolis show them the Arsenal, the Westerosi rested in the chambers that the Sealord had assigned them. Sansa's and Tyrion's guardsmen were quartered in the palace guard barracks. Asha and her modest entourage were wisely housed in the part of the palace farthest from the Westerosi apartments.

Empress Daenerys, however, lived in the Sealord's guest house, which was surrounded by a garden on the northernmost of the islets. From his window, Tyrion could see Drogon, who had made himself comfortable in front of the house. The dwarf had already noticed in King's Landing that the dragon had grown significantly larger in the past seven years.

From one of the low mountains south of Braavos, Kenzai Iemochi looked out over the mist-shrouded lagoon city. The outlines of the Titan and some large buildings stood out very faintly in the thick soup of mist. The view had been clearer yesterday and Kenzai had caught a glimpse of Drogon as he circled over the city. That would have been an opportunity to attack, but Hi-no-uroko had come a long way and his rider wanted him to recover before fighting.                           

It is true that Daenerys had returned to Volantis after she had concluded a truce with the Westerosi, whereupon Kenzai, upon learning of it, immediately set off for the Imperial Capital. But when the samurai got there, the Empress was no longer there. He found out that she was already on her way to Braavos. He decided to follow her there immediately.

Kenzai could have tried to take control of the young dragons that remained in Volantis, but he stuck to his original plan of first taking down Daenerys. The samurai felt sad at the thought of killing the Empress. He didn't hold a personal grudge against her. But he needed dragons for his retaliation on the Toyoda clan and she wouldn't give them to him willingly. In addition, he and Hi-no-uroko had been seen at Volantis. It would take some time for the sighting report to get to Braavos, but it meant there was no going back now.