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

Chapter 109: Chapter 108 – Pre-War Council (I)

The next morning.

Maekar arrived at the Chamber of the Painted Table, and all the lords were already seated in their respective chairs. There were obviously four empty chairs; they belonged to exactly Duram Bar Emmon, whom Maekar had personally beheaded, and Lords Alyn Stokeworth, Jon Rosby, and Guncer Sunglass.

As soon as he entered, Maekar quickly noticed the tense atmosphere. He did not need to be a genius to know the traitors’ escape was already common knowledge. Which was normal, given that the lords of the Crownlands and Stormlands were close.

“Your Grace, Alyn, Jon, and Guncer have vanished; the ships also vanished last night.” The one who had spoken was Lord Kyle Connington, of House Connington of Griffin’s Roost. His hair was almost entirely white, but there were still a few red strands, a trait of House Connington.

This old man had taken part in the Golden Wedding, in which Queen Alyssa had married Rogar Baratheon.

The Golden Wedding was probably the most important event after the Conquest, since it lifted the shadows of Maegor’s reign and ushered in Jaehaerys’s Golden Age on the Iron Throne.

Lords and knights from all Seven Kingdoms, as well as envoys from Dorne and the Free Cities, had come to King’s Landing for the lavish wedding. Many nobles had used the occasion to meet the new king, who had taken the Iron Throne after the reign of Maegor I Targaryen.

Rogar had entertained the guests with drinks, feasts, games of chance, falconry, and hunting. According to an unconfirmed story spread among the smallfolk, Rogar and his relatives had celebrated with seven maidens and sixty other women from Lysene pleasure houses.

Kyle had also attended the wedding and was possibly the oldest and most experienced man present. Of course, that was when it came to land warfare; no one there surpassed Corlys in that regard.

“There was a storm the night before; they likely sank at sea.” Maekar sat down in Aegon’s chair and answered in a calm tone. “A fitting fate for traitors.”

Kyle looked deeply at Maekar; he had serious doubts about the truth of the young prince’s words, but, as an old man and an experienced politician, only a fool would ask whether Maekar had killed the three lords the night before.

The Lord of Griffin’s Roost merely shook his head and inwardly mocked the foolishness of the three lords. Had they stayed at Dragonstone, the prince might not have been able to kill them so easily. But, by fleeing Dragonstone, the prince had a valid reason to kill them, should the murder ever become public.

After all, if anyone were allowed to leave a war at any moment, that would not be an army, but a band of lawless, undisciplined bandits. Not even lords were allowed to leave a war without the permission of the commander in question.

It was basic discipline.

However, Kyle had already guessed the three lords’ plans, especially because of the previous day’s events. He could even imagine that the lords had died on their way to King’s Landing to seek the king’s protection, the only man on the continent who could truly stand against Maekar.

It was not only Kyle thinking this; everyone present had the same thought. After all, Maekar had killed Lord Duram Bar Emmon the day before; he could very well have killed three more in the small hours of the morning.

However, unlike the lords of House Sunglass, Rosby, and Stokeworth, they had at least enough sense to know they should not cross the prince over House Targaryen’s private matters, especially with the Great Council taking place in King’s Landing.

Who knew whether Maekar would become king? They did not want to leave an impression of insubordination in the mind of a possible future king. Although they resisted the Red Faith, with whom the prince had allied himself, the survival and continuation of their houses were the most important things.

“Corlys,” just as Maekar was about to begin the pre-war council, he heard a different roar from Bahamut and quickly hurried toward the window. Looking at the silver dragon soaring gracefully and elegantly through the sky, he smiled.

“The queen has arrived,” Maekar said with a smile. The storm had delayed Alysanne’s arrival, but the queen had still managed to get there as quickly as possible.

All the lords rose from their respective chairs; everyone had to greet the queen, perhaps the first or second most powerful woman of the present day.

Alysanne and Kinvara stood side by side when it came to status. One was queen of an entire continent; the other was the highest religious authority of the largest religion in the world.

Maekar, followed by all the lords present, walked quickly to the long staircase leading down to the castle.

Once there, Maekar saw Alysanne dismounting and quickly approached, helping the queen down safely. With the queen on the ground, Maekar showed a smile and looked at the elegant woman with her hair styled in an elegant bun.

“I hope the journey was pleasant.” Maekar said, looking at Silverwing. The dragon was truly beautiful and slender. However, along with Caraxes, she had the most demonic look among all the dragons.

“It was a fun trip.” Alysanne answered with a smile, but her smile vanished when she saw the state of Maekar’s hand and arm. Holding her grandson’s hand, she asked in a worried tone. “What happened to your hand and arm?”

Maekar looked around at everyone and answered in a calm tone. “Let’s talk about that another time.”

Alysanne furrowed her brow, but, seeing his look, she let out a sigh and nodded her head. She could not help but think that Maekar and Jaehaerys truly were grandson and grandfather. Both were so calm it was almost infuriating.

“It’s for the best, since I did not receive a single raven warning me you had been hurt.” Alysanne said in a displeased tone.

Maekar merely let out a helpless sigh. This was exactly why he had not said anything about his injuries. If Alysanne was already this worried, he did not want to know how anxious Gael would become once she learned the news.

Perhaps the woman would mount Dreamfyre and simply arrive at Dragonstone the very next day.

The queen looked at her dragon and spoke in High Valyrian. “Go find your cave, Silverwing.”

The silver dragon let out a sharp, piercing sound, as if answering, and took flight toward Dragonstone’s volcano.

“Come, we were about to begin the pre-war council.” Maekar said, offering his arm to Alysanne, who promptly linked her arm through his.

When Maekar arrived with Alysanne, the lords greeted the queen in respectful tones.

“My queen,”

“Good Queen Alysanne,”

“Queen Alysanne.”

Despite being nowhere near as powerful as her husband, Alysanne was still respected, especially among the older lords present. They still remembered well that she was the only person who could calm the king’s wrath. If not for Alysanne, perhaps a dozen heads would have ended up on spears in years past.

Alysanne greeted all the lords in return, but soon noticed the absence of four lords from the Crownlands. “Where are Lords Stokeworth, Rosby, Sunglass, and Bar Emmon?”

An uncomfortable silence followed the queen’s question. What were they supposed to say? That her grandson had cut off one man’s head and likely killed the other three?

Even if it were true, this news should be given by Maekar himself, since such an answer could be turned into an accusation, and with Duram’s example from the day before, no one wanted to be beheaded over a mere truth.

Alysanne noticed something was wrong and looked at her grandson with a deep gaze but did not press the matter further.

Seeing this, everyone sighed in relief. No one wanted to answer the queen’s question; it was truly dangerous to accuse Maekar, even indirectly.

Accompanied by Maekar and Alysanne, everyone returned to the Chamber of the Painted Table, where Maekar carried the queen up the long staircase.

Setting the queen down in the main chair, Maekar sat beside her and spoke in a calm tone.

“Let us begin the final pre-war council.”

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Note: Since I didn’t have time to write on Friday, there will be chapters on Sunday. There’s one day when I just don’t feel like writing. Damn corporate bureaucracy.

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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