House of The Dragon:The Rise of the Emperor of the Seven Kingdoms

Inside the future chambers of Maekar and Gael.

Gael lay in bed, surrounded by people: Roderick, Darnold, Benedict, and David, along with her four ladies-in-waiting.

Beside Gael sat an old man dressed in a grey tunic and a chain of many-colored links. He looked as though he might drop dead any second, so advanced was his age, yet his hands were surprisingly steady and barely trembled.

He was Harrenhal’s maester, Victorio.

After a long list of questions, the Maester looked at Gael with a gentle expression and asked calmly. "May I ask when the nausea first began?"

"About a month ago? Perhaps less. I thought it was the wine from the banquets, and since I stopped drinking, the nausea went away. Only today, when I had a little, did it come back." Gael answered with an uncertain tone.

Victorio nodded and asked a question that changed the expression on every face in the room.

"When was the last time the princess shared a bed with her future husband?"

Gael’s expression shifted; she was no fool, and she immediately understood what the Maester’s question implied. She touched her stomach and looked up with an emotional gaze.

"About a month ago, the day Maekar left for Dorne." Gael answered, gently cradling her belly with a look full of tenderness.

"The princess is with child. Avoid wine, avoid flying on Dreamfyre, and do not overexert yourself." Victorio said in a gentle tone. "I am not saying the princess needs to be on complete bed rest; walking is good for both her and the baby."

Perhaps next to Gael herself, Roderick was the most elated; he let out a laugh and felt more determined than ever in what he was doing.

"Princess, you must marry Prince Maekar." Darnold was the calmest one in the room at that moment. He understood the implications of an unwed woman falling pregnant before marriage, especially a princess.

Gael’s expression shifted slightly and she nodded. Naturally, she had no wish for her son or daughter to be considered a bastard.

"I’ll write a letter to Maekar, so he can come and wed you and then return swiftly to Dorne." Roderick said with a smile. At the same time, he looked around at everyone in the room and spoke in a tone that was calm yet sent a chill through the air.

"Not a word about the pregnancy leaves this room. If I hear so much as a rumor about Gael’s condition, heads will roll."

These words were directed at Gael’s four ladies-in-waiting and Maester Victorio. If rumors were to leak, others might use the child in Gael’s womb against Maekar, something he could not allow.

Everyone nodded; only Victorio remained calm and smiling. As someone who had lived a very long time, he had learned that what killed people most often was their own mouths. The number of those who had died simply for speaking could not be written down even if every book in the world were gathered together.

"I place my health and my child’s in your hands, Maester Victorio." Gael looked at the old Maester and spoke in a gentle tone.

"It will be an honor, Princess." Victorio smiled and felt that the princess had accepted him. Now, he no longer needed to worry about dying in some unfortunate accident on a staircase, as some of his fellow maesters in other castles had.

Gael nodded and caressed her belly with a look full of tenderness; there was a joyful light in her expression. The thought of seeing a tiny version of Maekar running through Harrenhal filled her with happiness.

"Benedict." Roderick spoke up at that moment. He looked at his son and said in a calm tone. "Leave ten servants to attend Princess Gael."

Benedict, still in shock at the news that Maekar was going to be a father, simply nodded and understood his father’s meaning. Ten Blood children were to guard Gael at all times.

Looking at Princess Gael, Benedict merely sighed and felt that fate was truly cruel. His cousin didn’t just have a massive dragon, he now had a beautiful wife and a beautiful child on the way. Compared to everyone else, having to measure yourself against someone like that was the worst thing a young man could do to himself.

Having a famously brilliant cousin while being a complete nobody yourself was one of the worst feelings a teenager could experience.

Despite the envy, Benedict also felt a wave of relief and pride that Maekar was doing so well.

"Don’t worry, Princess." Benedict spoke with a solemn tone. "Not even a fly will come within two meters of you."

Gael smiled and looked at Benedict with a grateful expression. "Thank you, dear cousin."

Benedict felt his blood run hot at the sight of the trust in the princess’s eyes. He puffed out his chest and rested his hand on the hilt of his sword. He was no monster like Maekar, but he was still a skilled knight; he would protect Gael with his life, if it came to that.

Four days later, a raven arrived at Sunspear.

Maekar, who had been stroking the scales along Bahamut’s face, looked at the dragon and felt that he had grown larger. It wasn’t explosive growth, but he could genuinely see that the dragon was developing at a much better pace than the other Targaryen dragons.

Was freedom truly that important to a dragon’s growth? Maekar had doubted it at first, but after so much time with Bahamut, he felt it was true. A dragon was meant to be free in the sky; only when free could it hunt, train itself through the hunt, and grow by devouring its prey.

It was a process no different from training and growing stronger over time.

Though at levels no human could ever hope to reach, at least not in this world.

"No matter how many times I see him, he is still magnificent." Hearing the familiar female voice behind him, Maekar looked back and saw Mara accompanied by Dornish knights and ladies, all of noble birth.

The meaning behind this gesture was not lost on Maekar. The lords were acknowledging Mara, sending their children as a show of goodwill and as a sincere display of loyalty, pledging hostages to the Lady of Sunspear.

At that moment, all of them were staring at Bahamut with a mixture of fear and awe. They had been born long after any war against House Targaryen and had never truly seen a dragon. Seeing one this close, and this large, filled them with wonder.

They also carried a certain pride in being the only kingdom to have ever slain a dragon, though the consequences of that act had burned themselves into the world’s memory through the Roinares War. Had Nymeria been alive to face the attacks of Aegon and Balerion, she likely would have fled even further, all the way to Sothoryos.

Bahamut, who had become the object of everyone’s admiration, opened his golden eyes and seemed to wear quite a human expression of self-satisfaction, which made Maekar roll his own golden eyes. As he had said before, his dragon was a narcissist of the highest order.

"I take it you didn’t come all this way just to praise Bahamut?" Maekar asked with an amused smile.

Mara tore her gaze away from the magnificent platinum dragon and placed a scroll in Maekar’s hands.

Seeing the wax seal, a tree encircled by ravens, Maekar knew it was a letter from his uncle. Breaking the seal, he untied the black silk ribbon and unrolled the parchment.

Maekar’s smile went rigid. His eyes went wide and he felt his hands begin to tremble.

Mara couldn’t help but feel curious watching the usually composed Maekar react so strongly. Yet when she looked into his eyes and saw them brighter than she had ever seen them, she knew it was good news.

"HAHAHAHAA!!!" After the shock of learning he was going to be a father, Maekar burst into laughter.

And at the same time, a weight that had not existed before settled over his shoulders.

He would not only have to be a good husband and a good king, he now had to be a good father as well.

Drawing close to Mara, Maekar, still smiling, leaned in and whispered in her ear.

"Gael is pregnant. I’m going to be a father."

Mara’s eyes went wide and she looked at Maekar with an amused, teasing expression. She laughed and said in a playful tone. "What a wicked dragon you are, you seduced a beautiful princess and got her pregnant before the wedding."

Maekar felt nothing but pride.

"Even so, I must return to Harrenhal and marry Gael." Maekar’s smile faded and he spoke in a solemn tone.

Mara’s expression changed. She was only safe because of Maekar. If Maekar left, she had no doubt she would be dead by the next morning. Her uncle would never pass up a chance like that.

"Don’t worry, you’re coming with me." Maekar looked at Mara’s face and said with a smile. "I hope you’re ready to fly on a dragon, just as you once wished."

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Note: I bought a motorcycle!!!! It’s a beginner’s bike, a Honda CB300F. However, I’m happy with it, and I plan to upgrade to a more powerful one later on, once I gain more experience.

Even though it isn’t very powerful, it’s really beautiful, red with chrome and black accents.

Read the advanced Chapters on my Patreon!

/GOTSW

Read my other books:

House of The Dragon:The Rise of the Emperor of the Seven Kingdoms

Game Of Thrones: The God-Emperor of Planetos

Percy Jackson: Godwyn the Golden.

Game Of Thrones: The King’s Court Wizard