Dorne, Sunspear
Vaegon Nylaeris
Vaegon turned on his heel and looked towards the entrance to the throne room. A tall man with golden skin and short silver hair, dressed in dark armour of extraordinary craftsmanship, stood in the doorway. He quickly noticed his characteristic features, namely pointed ears and dragon eyes.
Yes, dragon eyes, but as someone who spent his daily time among dragons, he could tell the difference. These eyes hid more and saw more, and he had only once met someone who had similar ones. Alduin.
However, the man, unlike the dragon, did not exude any extraordinary power, although his voice did have something in it that subconsciously paralysed. As if the world held its breath for a moment while he spoke.
However, the Archon of Valyria was not put off by this calm facade. He had seen with his own eyes what Dovahkiin was capable of, and it was enough that he had lost control of himself one too many times today, irritated by the arrogance of this princess of an insignificant principality in backwater Westeros.
If it weren't for Dovahkiin, her city and land would already be burning, and damn the prophecy about the Lannister gold; he wouldn't care. He himself thought that believing in stupid prophecies was pointless. Why should he believe in the doom foretold by the prophecy when the greatest threat to Freehold since its founding stood before him?
His gaze focused on the silhouette of Dovahkiin, who had moved from his place and was slowly walking towards them. When he was close, it dawned on him how tall the other one really was. If he didn't know better, he would have mistaken him for a member of the Lengii race from the Isle of Leng.
Vaegon thought that he wanted to greet them, but he passed them and, approaching the vacant throne, sat down on it casually, throwing one leg over the armrests. Then, taking the princess's hand, he kissed it gently, to which she only rolled her eyes, but Vaegon saw a trace of a smile on her lips.
He didn't know what they were playing at, but this freedom between Nymeria and this self-proclaimed god didn't bode well, at least for him. In general, the man's entire behaviour baffled him. He hadn't expected such... he didn't really know what to call it.
"Speak." Dovahkiin's voice rang out.
"I don't think I understand, Lord Neferion. Speak about what?" he asked, trying to calm his racing thoughts. The entire previous situation had unsettled him.
"You wanted to talk to me a moment ago. So speak."
"I think maybe we should postpone this conversation for later and discuss this in a smaller group." Tyris interjected, his voice as calm as ever, but Vaegon knew him well enough to sense a hint of nervousness in it.
"WE WILL TALK NOW!" Dovahkiin's voice and demeanour suddenly turned 180 degrees. An unusual aura suddenly fell upon his body, forcing him to fall to his knees and then to his face. Breathing heavily with effort, he raised his head, and what he saw filled him with fear.
The throne room disappeared; for a moment there were only them and a gigantic snow-white dragon the size of a mountain looking at them with contempt, golden eyes filling the endless void.
After a moment the powerful presence disappeared, and he could breathe again. Before his eyes was the throne room again, and the members of the court and guards were filling it.
Trying to control both his nerves and his breathing, he slowly got to his feet. He felt his entire body shaking. He had never felt so humiliated. He, the archon of the greatest empire in the world, was humiliated in front of the court of this insignificant principality.
"Are you ready to talk yet?" Lord Neferion asked, looking at him with a sneer. "I think you came here with the wrong attitude. You should understand one thing. The only reason we are even talking is that while I could destroy you Valyrians at any moment, I cannot do so without condemning millions of innocent human beings to death."
"But that does not mean I will not do so if you step on my toes enough," he added, the presence returning once more for a split second as a warning.
Despite everything, controlling himself and seeing the extremely pleased face of Princess Nymeria, probably because of their humiliation, he was unable to stop the words that left his mouth: "You may not know this, but our guardian and god is your old adversary, Lord Alduin. You should not underestimate the power of Valyria."
He expected anger, but the Dovahkiin only laughed at these words. After a moment, however, he replied, and his words froze Vaegon's heart.
"Ah, my rebellious older brother. But you have not wondered why he has not made a move yet. It is not arrogance or self-confidence. He has long since left those feelings behind. Now only fear remains, even if he himself does not admit it."
Neferion rose from the throne and, walking up to him, looked down directly into his eyes.
"What do you think? Did we end up in your world, Vaegon? Well, I'll tell you. We were fighting a duel, and I not only mortally wounded him by piercing his brain with my spear, but I also used a power that accidentally tore a hole in reality through which we ended up here. I suppose he must have ended up here before me, although I don't know when."
"I do know two things. As long as the gods of this world exist, it is as weakened as I am, so we only hold a fraction of our power, and besides, even at full strength, it will not be as strong as in our own world; do you know why?" asked Dovahkiin, and although he did not want to answer the question, overwhelmed by the other's words, he finally stammered in a weak voice.
"Why?"
"You see, in our home world, there was an ancient prophecy, and it is a real deal, that Alduin was to devour our world and thus end its existence. Or at least the existence of mortals inhabiting it. This prophecy gave him a certain divine authority and power as a god of destruction. However, when we arrived here, the prophecy was broken and the power of the World Eater weakened, for that title no longer applies to him."
"As you can see, I am not afraid of fighting my brother; moreover, I look forward to it."
Thousands of thoughts filled Vaegon's head now, each one darker. With each word Dovahkiin spoke, he felt their situation getting worse. And he couldn't take these words as mere arrogance, not after experiencing his divine presence. He had to provide himself and the entire Freehold with time.
Maybe Taemon could find something in Gorgossos. But was there anything that could kill someone so powerful and whose powers broke all the laws that seemed to govern the world?
So bowing his head, he asked, "Lord Neferion. What do you expect in exchange for granting us unlimited flow through the Stepstones?"
The latter looked at him for a moment, as if considering the offer. Finally he said, or rather announced, an indisputable fact as the passage of time itself.
"You will give thirty million Valyrian gold dragons to Dorne. And I want thirty different weapons made of Valyrian steel... Or no, I don't. What fun is it if I don't take your corpses..." Sighing heavily, he continued, "My collection will have to wait."
"Hmh. What else? What else? Ah. Yes. Lots of preserved food. Grains, vegetables, meat, and fruits. I know you have spells to preserve food. Nymeria... a list, if you will."
"I will give it to Archon later." The princess replied, looking at him with obvious satisfaction, probably feeling the power she had over him.
"Anything else?" Vaegon said through gritted teeth. But when he looked into the golden eyes of the Dovahkiin, he immediately regretted it, seeing a glint of something inhuman.
"Just one thing. I don't need anything else for now, especially since I'll get it when I want. For this last thing, we have to go outside the city."
Approaching Nymeria, he offered her his arm, saying, "My dear. Will you allow me?"
The princess took his arm with a radiant smile. "Of course, Your Divine."
Then they both headed towards the exit, followed by the members of the court, the guards, and, of course, Vaegon and Tyris."
"I don't like this," said his companion, his face unreadable. "The rest of the lords won't like these terms."
Vaegon glared at him. "Well, you could have spoken up sooner... Or the mighty lords of Valyria could commit suicide themselves. I won't."
Tyris raised an eyebrow, his composure faltering for a brief moment. "You know as well as I do that their pride will not allow for such an outcome, Vaegon. We must tread carefully or risk igniting a conflict that could consume us all."
Vaegon's expression hardened at Tyris's words, the weight of their predicament settling heavily upon his shoulders. "Then let us find a way to negotiate once more, one that preserves their dignity while securing our future," he replied, a flicker of determination igniting in his eyes.
Following the small procession, he realised after a moment that they were heading for the southern gate of Sunspear, where they had left their dragons behind the walls.
And indeed, they soon passed through the gate, and behind it appeared the huge silhouettes of their mounts, a half mile from the walls, right by the waterfront. And it was in this direction that the Dovahkiin headed, leading them all.
Vaegon had a worsening feeling. As they drew nearer to the water's edge, a chill wind swept across the shore, ruffling their cloaks and raising the hairs on the back of his neck. He couldn't shake the sense that something bad will happen.
Neferion stopped about three hundred feet from the dragons and turned to him, asking, "What are their names?"
Vaegon, feeling the pressure building, replied, "The golden one is mine and is called Arax, and the emerald-scaled one is Caravex."
The Dovahkiin nodded slightly, then let go of Nymeria's arm and walked alone towards the dragons. Vaegon wanted to follow him, but an invisible force held him in place.
He was forced to watch as the man approached their dragons, who watched him closely, toddling nervously in place, each step causing a jolt. Even they could feel that they were in the presence of something extremely powerful. After a moment, the silence was broken by a powerful shout that shook both the air and the ground.
"GOL HAH DOV" (Earth, Mind, Dragon)
As soon as everything around him calmed down, Vaegon's eyes widened in surprise, and at the same time he felt fear and anger filling him, and at the same time he felt the broken bond with Arax, which left only a gaping void.
Both dragons, no longer nervous but extremely excited, approached the Dovahkiin and began to fawn on him like cats, which, if it were not so terrifying, would look comical, considering that their fangs alone were the size of a man.
A cry of anger escaped Tyris's lips, and if it weren't for the power holding them in place, he would have thrown himself at the Dovahkiin with fury. Vaegon also saw everything in red, but more than that, he felt terror.
What was this power? Had this being just severed the bond between them and their dragons? And somehow taken control of them?
Neferion began to scratch both dragons under the jaw before their eyes and then turned and looked at Vaegon. "They are called Arax and Caravex, but they no longer belong to you but to me. And the only thing that stops me from doing the same to you is the fact that maybe Alduin would be able to reverse it by probably destroying your minds, since he is not known for his subtlety."
"And above all... It would be boring... And I hate boredom."