Shadows of the Realm: Rhaegar's Resolve (ASOIAF) (Completed)

283 AC

Harrenhal, Riverlands

Harrenhal is huge, no wait that's not right, it's massive, no better yet it's colossal or any word that means big ass big. I mean the books did give an inkling of how large this place is but it was only after arriving here did I realize that this place is humongous. Sure I had Rhaegar's memories of the Tourney but that wasn't the same as experiencing it.

And this castle is THE finest example of the biggest white elephant that Westeros has to offer. It's so big and prestigious that holding it alone will make the person in charge the ability to be a major player in all of the Riverlands and if he plays his cards right, in all of Westeros, the best example of that would be Lyonel Strong.

But there is a huge downside, even though the lands belonging to Harrenhal are the most prosperous and fertile in Westeros and will generate massive incomes it still won't be enough to maintain the castle, it's so huge that it will end up bankrupting you.

And of course, maintaining an entire garrison is next to impossible for any house. And this is not even mentioning the fact that this place is a good-for-nothing ruin and for all you know might have a curse from the Old Gods based on the fact that Harren cut weirwood trees to build the rafters and beams for the castle.

This means that I should go to Godswood and pray to the Old Gods and ask for forgiveness and hope that the curse doesn't fall on me and my family.

Lord Whent was neutral during the war, but his sons weren't. Half of them sided with the Rebels and the other half sided with the Royalists and they all died either in the Trident or in the Stoney Sept, it was a very difficult choice for him and I don't blame him, on one hand, his brother was a Kingsguard and on the other hand, Hoster Tully was married to his aunt or something so either way, the family was bound to break up.

So in exchange for me allowing him to keep his head for not participating in the war, he agreed to start quarrying the stone from the castle and deliver it to me for free for any of my future construction plans. So that's a win because I have a lot of plans in mind.

Now, of course, the five towers will stay the same, after all the castle is a symbol of Targaryen's destruction so the Towers will stay the same way but the walls will be quarried of stone. I mean Harrenhal is a complete waste of stone and somebody really ought to use it.

The castle at this very moment is quite well garrisoned considering the fact the entire Royal Army is here. And of course, there are my brother-in-laws the Martells, 'my best friend' Jon Connington, Lord Tyrell, and finally Lord Lannister with all their retinue. This is just amazing.

It's been a month since I sent my summons after winning at the Trident for everyone to arrive at Harrenhal and now that they are all here, I am suddenly wishing that they weren't.

Everyone who is anyone is in the Hall of a Hundred Hearths and right now I have been presented with the decomposing head of Edmure Tully, Lysa's head was not exactly presentable, he would have brought the entire body with him if not for time constraints and the fact that too much decomposing body was bad, it wasn't freshly killed like how it was for Robert.

Why am I supposed to see this again? Oh Right, I am the King, forgot that part. And the asshole responsible for this looks like I should reward him for it.

After three whole weeks of relentless assault, the Lannister army finally managed to capture Riverrun and the reason why they managed to do so was that the garrison ran out of arrows and crossbow bolts.

By the end of the siege, Tywin had nearly twelve thousand soldiers but lost nearly five thousand and the man had to bring in more reinforcements from the West, the garrison of five hundred in Riverrun made the Lannisters pay dearly for every step they took.

Tywin made his men attack in waves to keep them rested but even then the Lannister army was hard-pressed.

He gave no offer to parlay when he arrived and attacked right away according to what Richard tells me, was super pissed at how long the garrison was holding out, and then finally after a week of attack he gave an offer of parlay to the garrison but the garrison knowing what he would have done during the parlay refused and bloodbath continued.

And in the end, everyone in the castle was killed except for Maester Luwin, the midwives, Catelyn Tully, and her son. She was lucky as the day the Lannisters managed to storm the castle, she went into labor.

As for Edmure, he was stabbed half a hundred times by Amory Lorch, and Lysa Tully was raped before having her head smashed in by the Mountain. Things are going way too similar to the OTL just different persons for my comfort.

The only reason why Catelyn survived was that the person to break into the birthing chambers was Tygett Lannister and he was not the type of person to kill a woman about to give birth. Said woman was in Eddard Starks arms weeping whilst holding her son.

And now I have to deal with this mess. This is why I hate being a self-insert.

After a long while of staring at both the head and at Tywin, I finally say "Were you expecting to be rewarded for such an act, Lord Tywin" I tell in a cold and emotionless voice.

He looks back just as hard and says "Your grace, The Tullys were rebels, and I have captured Riverrun to prove my loyalty to your cause and the Crown and to help put down the last holdouts of the Rebels".

There is a moment of uncomfortable silence with literally no one saying anything and everyone wanting to see me react to something like this.

Then I say to him "Capturing Riverrun was indeed service to the Crown and you have proven yourself loyal to my cause"

You can see the triumph in his eyes but I am not done yet "Alas, your victory in Riverrun is marred with such heinous acts done by your knights that are completely unchivalrous and it has sullied the Royal cause"

Now it's his turn to do damage control "Men at war commit all kinds of crimes without their superior's knowledge"

He tries to pass the blame on them, so I pounce on that "So you admit that your men were undisciplined, disobeyed orders, and went rogue and committed such horrific acts without your approval"

Now Normally, other lords would pounce on that and willingly throw their men under the bus but, this is different.

Because Tywin has long since boasted about how well-trained and disciplined his soldiers were, he claimed that they were the best in all of Westeros which they are and that is something that I will have to change.

So if he admits that his men went rogue then all of his boastings will fall flat and it will be an embarrassment for him and he is not just admitting it to me in private, No, he is admitting it to everyone in Westeros openly.

I mean if you bring in the Greyjoys for this and this might as well be a Great Council, and finally, the man admits "Yes, your grace they disobeyed orders and I shall see to it that they are punished"

Not going to let you get away that easy mister "That won't be needed Lord Tywin, as they were tarnishing the Royal cause claiming to do it for the Crown they shall be punished by the Crown and you shall have no problems with that since you are such a Leal vassal of the Crown, are you not"

I say it with a shit-eating grin and the Old Lion has started to grind his teeth but in the end, he approves.

I turn to Ser Barristan "Arrest Amory Lorch, Gregor Clegane, and the Mountain's men" He nods and rushes off to do as he is told,

But Tywin doesn't like that "Why are the Mountain's men being punished for the crimes of one man, your grace?" He still wants Mad Dogs in his army so I respond to that "When the weed grows in the garden, it should be ripped out root and stem and not just sheared."

I turn to Ser Gerold "Have Amory Lorch hung, drawn and quartered, the Mountain's men impaled, and as for Gregor Clegane"

I think for a while about a suitable punishment and decide "Throw him naked into the bear pit and give an offer to our soldiers, the ones who can get a spear through the man before he dies will be rewarded with five hundred gold dragons"

Everyone is shocked at the kind of punishment that I have decided and I have a feeling that this kind of offer is seen in the fighting pits of Meereen for the Pit fighters, but Ser Gerold follows through.

Nearly two hundred of my men attempted to drive a spear through him, he was already injured as he was caught unawares by Ser Barristan and Ser Barristan had the presence of mind to bring in more than a hundred men to arrest him and they managed to do it, although Ser Barristan was injured and a good number of the men were killed.

But even after being subdued and thrown into the pit, he was still deadly despite being unarmed and unarmored, and with each person coming in on his own into the pit it was a very dangerous prospect, out of the two hundred to attempts, only seventy-five succeeded and out of that seventy-five only twenty-two managed to live to tell the tale.

And just like that, I have gotten the first twenty-two officers of my new Royal Army. After all, those who survived used their brains as well not just their muscles, and included in that list of twenty-two was a certain man named Bronn. I had no idea that he fought on the side of the Royalists but then again he is a more than competent fighter.

Next in line after the Lannisters were the Tyrells.

I of course began by praising Lord Tyrell, and the man puffs up like a pufferfish and then I give him the honorific title 'Victor of the Stormlands'.

"Congratulations Lord Tyrell, you are the first man to capture Storm's End, not even my ancestors managed to do so"

The man's ego will be larger than that of Harrenhal by the end of the day. "Thank you, your grace, you are too kind" The man proudly preens.

Then finally he brings forth Renly Baratheon, the poor kid is shaking like a leaf, Don't worry kid this will all be over soon for you.

In front of everyone, I poured Arbor Gold into a goblet, and also in front of everyone the Maester Tothmure of Harrenhal gives me a vial of Essence of Nightshade and I promptly pour it into the goblet in front of everyone and I give it to the shaking kid and I tell him "Drink it child and you shall be with your father, mother, and brothers and no one shall ever hurt you"

I tell him in the most serene way I can, though I have a feeling that I may have creeped him out but he takes the cup and drinks it fully, and soon his eyes begin to drop and then they close for the last time. Before he falls I grab hold of him and have a few guards take him and tell them to bury him.

And that Tywin is how you kill children.

And just like that House Baratheon is extinct. There is a long and uncomfortable silence at that until finally I clear it out and say "Alright anything else"

Now it's time for all the rewards and honors I have to dole out that the war is officially over.

And then Jon Connington steps forward and kneels "Your Grace, I have arrived back to Westeros and I humbly beg for your forgiveness for my defeat at the Battle of the Stoney Sept and my failure in capturing the pretender Robert Baratheon"

And I, of course, being the magnanimous and forgiving King that I am welcome him back "Welcome back my friend, and no forgiveness is needed after all you tried your best in service of the Royal cause and that is what is important"

The man is overjoyed and then I add to his joy by "In light of your loyal service, and in hopes that you may continue your good work I do hereby name you as Hand of the King, may you serve ably throughout my reign" And then I hand him the pin but that's not the end of it.

"Lord Jon Connington, because you remained loyal to the Crown despite the fact your liege lord rose in rebellion, I do hereby reward you with the title of Lord of Storm's End and Lord Paramount of the Stormlands" And just like that House Connington is now a Great House and the man profusely thanks me and finally the drama is over.

Of course, this entire thing was planned, the real reuniting with Jon was a lot more emotional and dramatic, Damn the man really could have given Soap operas a serious run for their money.

And after that, it's the Martells, just the kind of people I don't want to ever see again, alas I am married to one so my chances of never seeing them are nonexistent.

Doran comes forward and kneels "Your Grace, Dorne your loyal vassal stands ready to follow your every command"

I doubt that "Prince Doran, you have been a great help for the Royal cause and as a reward, I do hereby name you to the Small Council as Master of Coin"

He bows low "I am honored your Grace and I live to serve, your Grace" Nobody believes that.

This was also planned. The real exchange was filled with a lot more threats and demands for concessions and with absolutely no humility whatsoever.

Then a red-eyed Catelyn Tully came forward renouncing all claims to Riverrun for her and her children and the Tully name and becoming Catelyn Stark. Thereby ensuring that the North will have no connection with the Riverlands like how Rickard wanted.

And that is the end of House Tully another Great House.

Tywin thinks that he is so amazing after destroying two of his vassals, well, in that case, look at me Tywin Fooking Lannister cause I have blown your thing completely out of the water, I have destroyed three Great Houses and brought a fourth to its knees.

Of course in the process, I gambled and risked my own House and family to the point of destruction, and unlike in his case mine was avoidable to a certain extent but that's not important right now.

And now for the not planned part of the day

"Lord Grafton, come forward" He is surprised but he does come

"Because House Grafton was one of the Houses of the Vale to stay loyal to the crown and to honor your father's sacrifice, I do name you to the Small Council as Master of Trade, a new position that has been made"

His duties are basically as his name suggests, taking care of the Trade and also expanding it in and out of the Crownlands. He is shocked at first but he quickly recovers and does the usual amount of thanks and promises.

Next in line is "Ser Baelor Hightower, step forward"

The man comes in front and kneels "Your Grace, How may I be of service to you? "

These Reachmen know their words. "Rise Ser Baelor" He does so "As a reward for your bravery in the field of battle Ser Baelor, I do name you to the Small Council as Master of Laws" He is shocked but quickly recovers and graciously accepts.

Following that, it was "Lord Redwyne, come forward" The man has an idea of what's going to happen now

"Your Grace, I am yours to command" He kneels as I bid him rise "In light of your success at Storm's End, I do name you Master of Ships in the Small Council" The man, of course, accepts because why won't he?

And now with that done, and along with Richard, Tarly, and Gerold, my Small Council is complete. Of course, the Grand Maester position is left, but last I heard the conclave was yet to choose a successor to Pycelle. Now whether they believed the 'fell over the steps as a drunkard' story or not, I do not know.

Then it was all about taking squires I took one of Lord Walder Frey's grandsons or maybe great-grandsons not sure which, whose name I haven't bothered to remember along with Garlan Tyrell.

Following that was giving Lord Frey his title Warden of the Green Fork, which he will now be preening out for everyone to know. A certain Lyonel Goodbrook was made Lord of Fairmarket and Warden of the Blue Fork and then the kid Rayum Darry was promised Riverrun and the title Warden of the Red Fork once he comes of age.

Lords Mooton and Mallister were given City Charters for their respective towns, giving Mallister the City Charter irked Tywin as now Lannisport has another contender on the Western Coast in addition to Oldtown.

Ned Stark, Tytos Blackwood, and Yohn Royce bent the knee and are welcomed back into the fold along with their vassals.

Now for the part that no one knew was coming,

"My Lords, let me introduce you all to a new Edict that I am proclaiming today" My resolve was hardened on seeing the way Tywin looked at Jon and I knew exactly what was on his mind and I decided to nip it in the bud.

"This is Edict will be called the Edict of Harrenhal for the name of the castle from where it is proclaimed and it shall go as follows"

"I, RHAEGAR OF THE HOUSE OF TARGARYEN, FIRST OF MY NAME, KING OF THE ANDALS, THE FIRST MEN AND THE RHOYNAR, LORD OF THE SEVEN KINGDOMS AND PROTECTOR OF THE REALM

DO HEREBY DECLARE THAT

WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISSION OF THE KING, NO GREAT HOUSE IS ALLOWED TO MARRY INTO THE OTHER. IF ANY VIOLATE THIS EDICT THEN IT SHALL BE CONSIDERED AS TREASON AND REBELLION AGAINST THE CROWN AND BOTH HOUSES SHALL SEE THEIR TITLES FORFEIT.

IF THE MARRIAGE IS TO HAPPEN WITHOUT THE CONSENT OF THE HEADS OF THE HOUSES, THEN THE OFFENDING MALE WILL BE DISOWNED AND SENT TO THE WALL AND THE OFFENDING FEMALE WILL BE SENT TO THE SILENT SISTERS

FAILURE TO COMPLY WILL BE TREATED AS A DECLARATION OF REBELLION AGAINST THE CROWN AND WILL BE TREATED AS SEVERELY AS NEEDED

THESE ARE THE WORDS OF RHAEGAR OF THE HOUSE OF TARGARYEN, FIRST OF HIS NAME"

The main scribe writes this down to be cataloged while the other scribes begin to make copies for each Great House and the Citadel to receive.

At first, none of them understood what this meant but then it finally clicked on them.

Stark, Royce, and Blackwood were more than happy with this Edict as it now meant that they would no longer be dragged into any more wars as they have just fought, while Jon will follow me to Hell and back so I am good on that but it's the Lannister, Tyrell, and Martell who have kicked up a fuss over this.

But I quickly put that down saying "This recent rebellion has clearly shown us all the reason why no Great House should be allowed to marry into each other and even if you shall remain loyal forevermore it is a risk that I will not and shall not take" I put on a hard tone to get my message through.

And just like that Tywin's plans have gone up in smoke, if I have my way Lannister you will have no presence in my court whatsoever.

And then of course there was a great feast held for everyone after we watched the impromptu gladiatorial games that I arranged with the Mountain. They certainly seemed to enjoy it. After all, in the end, the formula for keeping the peace is always 'Bread and Circuses'

By the end of the feast however I got a message from a raven that made me numb, it was a raven from Starfall, Lyanna went into labor early, and she gave birth to a healthy boy but she did not survive.

I seclude myself in my chambers and I think about this girl whose life I ruined. I may have shown up after everything happened but in the end, the guilt is all mine, her loss is all in my head, the girl was barely seventeen or maybe she was sixteen.

Either way, I had lured her away after the skirmish with my sweet words and I was the one who seduced her even if it wasn't technically me. While the girl was genuinely in love with him that douchebag Rhaegar was only using her for the prophecy.

I ensured to never make any mention whatsoever of the prophecy after I came and I destroyed all my tomes and scrolls in the hopes that I would never have to go through them again but it looks like the prophecy still managed to ruin my life even though I tried to remove it out for good.

After a while, I wept for the first time since coming to this wretched world. Ned Stark is going to be even more pissed at me but at this point, I could care less.

I think about my first conversation with Ser Gerold, somethings are stitched in the fabric of fate and cannot be changed no matter what and some things may not necessarily be the same but will be eerily similar to what has happened before, and then some things are in our hands and we can change them.

The death of Lyanna is something I tried to change but couldn't. In the OTL Elia and our kids were horrifically murdered but now it's Edmure and Lysa. In another world, the Warhammer of Robert Baratheon was supposed to cave in my ruby-chested armor but now I still stand alive while Robert lies dead, his face smashed in with my morningstar.

Looks like my conversation with Ser Gerold was supposed to be a foreshadowing.

THE NEXT DAY

The next day morning I am greeted by the Martell brothers who want another audience with me. Just what I needed to start my day. Thankfully Ned hasn't said anything, I believe that he is in mourning with his wife for everyone that they have lost. All thanks to my amazing family and some of it is on Tywin's head.

They have also received the news from Starfall and they want to know what it means for Elia, which I don't understand.

"How many times do I have to tell you that Elia will still be the Queen?" I am getting pissed at telling Dornishmen the same thing again and again.

"It has less to do with the fact that now Elia is Queen and more with the fact that you might take another paramour now that Lyanna Stark is dead" Oberyn growls all the while Doran watches the entire conversation like a hawk.

"I won't be taking any other paramours" I sigh

"Can you move on to something more pertinent"

And then Doran finally speaks "What about the boy?" Now that is a reasonable question. I wait for a while before I say "He will be legitimized and will be made the Prince of Summerhall"

Before Oberyn could hotly protest "House Targaryen needs more heirs and besides Aegon is the crown prince so why are you complaining" I grouse.

"Why won't we complain?" Oberyn snarls at me "You humiliate our sister and dishonor her and then you legitimize your bastard and put it on equal standing with her children and you ask why we complain"

Now that is something I can't refute, Dammit Rhaegar what is it with you and your bloody prophecy and WHY DID I HAVE TO COME AFTER THIS MESS? All of this is happening because that douchebag couldn't keep it in his pants.

"Right" I drawl out "Didn't we already go through with this already"

Please a new topic of discussion, talking about your extramarital affairs with your brothers-in-law is so awkward, especially when one of them has a reputation for poisoning people. This is so not fair, I showed up after the entire mess, and yet I have to deal with the fallout.

This is the main tactic that the Martell brothers use not just on me but on literally everyone else. Oberyn will do something rash that will provoke me while Doran will wait until the right time and pounce on any openings.

"I will have you know that Blackfyres are not born, they are made and how you treat the child will decide the future of the country" I warn those two,

Then Doran says "We are well aware of that and we know that it is in everyone's best interest that the boys grow up as brothers to ensure the unity of the House, and we in Dorne do not blame children for the faults of their parents …or their siblings" Now that was an obvious dig at me.

"But at the same time we would ask of you that you make Rhaenys second in line to the throne," Oberyn says to me and I flat-out reject it "There is no way in hell that I will allow my daughter anywhere near that cursed chair"

Rhaenys was the one person who Rhaegar genuinely loved and going through his memories of a bubbly and happy girl it wasn't so hard not to see why Rhaegar loved her more than anything, and this love went beyond the prophecy.

My referencing of the throne as a cursed chair gives the men a pause and then after a while, Doran says "If you won't make Rhaenys the second in line then can you at least have either Rhaenys or my daughter Arianne betrothed to your Northern son" Northern son, he was born in Starfall.

"Can we decide on that later when they come of age?" I ask Doran and surprisingly he agrees but then again this is Doran so he will be playing the long game.

Then Doran asks "What will you name him?" Now, this is something that I have to tread carefully around because a name is sometimes everything. And I cannot mess this up because I need a name that will mollify the Dornish and not make them feel threatened.

"His name will be Maekar," I tell them both and thankfully they are satisfied with the name, after all, he was the son of a Martell who married a Dayne, so he is about as Dornish as Dornish gets in House Targaryen, and a very dutiful person.

Sure he may have accidentally killed his brother but that was mostly the fault of Aerion's madness and Baelor's stupid sense of honor.

"Now to something that I have been meaning to ask" Doran takes the initiative to ask "What about this Edict?"

I know exactly what he means but I decide to play "What about the Edict?"

Oberyn then says "How long was this edict planned and what does it mean for Dorne?"

I take a moment before answering "This Edict has been on my head since the moment I sat on that cursed chair and it was finalized when I saw Tywin looking at Jon like a piece of meat"

Doran nods at that, he too doesn't want the Lannisters anywhere near the throne.

"And as far as Dorne is concerned" I continue "As long as whoever you intend on marrying your children to if the marriage alliance between your houses doesn't end up as a threat towards House Targaryen, I don't think you have anything to worry about," I say with a smarmy smile on my face and though they don't like it,

They accept it since it would be hypocritical of them as their sister and her children were nearly killed by such an alliance between the Great Houses.

Oddly enough that is the end of the conversation, I honestly expected them to go on and demand more concessions but I guess that for now, they are willing to drag it out. Now that they have a Martell queen, and a seat on the Small Council with a Half Martell heir they seem satisfied, and a legitimized half-northern Targaryen Bastard who will be a Prince of a castle in the Dornish Marches is the least of their concerns.

So that is good, I guess, not sure really but I hope that it means that things are finally turning for the better.

After that, I finally get to have my breakfast, and while my breakfast seems better than what most others will be eating I miss my normal Earth food. I wonder how hard it might be to make a few tacos or burritos or maybe a few burgers or anything worth eating or maybe a whisky. Maybe I should make a still or something.

Most of the food that I eat might come from the Tudor era of food which is pretty alright, to be honest, especially in such conditions but I still miss my regular food and then, of course, there is the internet and most importantly the toilets, I have underestimated how useful modern plumbing and toilets are. You only know what you need until you don't have it.

But I quickly eat my breakfast and head to Godswood, I have to pray and I have a certain man to meet.

Upon entering the Godswood, I have my Kingsguard stand outside and tell them that under no circumstances is anyone allowed to enter the Godswood while I am inside.

After a long walk I finally reach the heart tree, the Godswood is a bloody twenty acres large and it is really easy to get lost in here.

Harren the Black was a famously impious man, he did not believe in the Old Gods the only reason why he made such a large Godswood was just so that he could boast of having the largest Godswood in Westeros.

I mean this Godswood has a stream flowing through it thereby giving the inhabitants a constant supply of freshwater.

I finally reach the Heart Tree, it has a terrible visage full of hate, a twisted mouth, and flaring eyes and it doesn't give you the peaceful feeling that most Heart Trees are supposed to give you.

But then again what horrible sights this tree has seen. It must have suffered seeing Harren cut down other weirwoods to build his castle when he built it on the corpses of thousands of innocent people enslaved in this construction. No wonder this tree is filled with hatred, no one has given it peace.

And then the most recent addition to the Heart Tree, the thirteen marks on it done by Daemon Targaryen with Dark Sister, while he waited for Aemond to arrive after sending out his challenge, they bleed each spring, and right now being spring they do bleed.

I kneel before the Heart Tree and beg for forgiveness for all the crimes my kin may have committed on the castle and pray that the Old Gods don't judge me unworthy because literally, everyone who holds the damn castle faces a horrible end.

I gingerly place a finger on one of the marks that are bleeding and the sap falls on it and then I place it in my mouth. I feel like a vampire drinking blood.

The second the sap touches my tongue my eyes roll back and I am transported across Westeros' different times and timelines in a haphazard and non-linear way.

I see three dragons descending upon the army of the Green Hand and the Golden Lion and bringing the army to its knees and burning the Green Hand to ash.

I see two dragons, one red and the other bronze fight each other to death and during the fight, I saw a man jump from the red dragon and land on the bronze, and kill the other rider.

I see longbowmen standing on a ridge draw their longbows and release their payload of death and hell as they landed on the army below.

I see a huge black dragon rip a much smaller silver dragon to shreds.

I see three dragons, one huge bronze and two smaller ones, one white and the other blue fight each other till all three end up dead.

I see the same huge black dragon descend upon one of the largest castles in the world and bring hell upon it and show the world the might of a dragon.

And then I see a man in a Baratheon surcoat wielding a Warhammer against a man in night-black armor which had rubies on the breastplate. The Warhammer caved in his breastplate and the rubies fell like drops of blood.

Then finally, I escape the realm of visions, and I come back to the Godswood, the Godswood is eerily quiet, with no crows cawing, no breeze, it's just still, nothing is moving and not a leaf out of place, and when I look at the Heart Tree and the bleeding has reduced and the Face is less angry.

I believe that is good, which means that I won't be heading down the path of Tywin Lannister, Roose Bolton, Vargo Hoat, Amory Lorch, and others who have held this castle in the OTL.

I am breathing heavily, and I am not sure what to do, because going through the visions was not my intention, I intended to meet Bloodraven not go through Targaryen history no matter how awesome it was from a third person's view.

Then I hear a serene voice in Valyrian "Come to the Isle of Faces and you shall have your answers" I look around but see no one. Looks like I can understand and speak Valyrian.

Isle of Faces, that's another headache. I wonder if the Green Men will allow me to enter.

Isle of Faces, God's Eye

An hour later I am on a boat with my Kingsguard sans Ser Barristan who is still recovering, heading to the Isle of Faces.

And it takes another three hours to finally reach the damn island. I seriously underestimated how large the lake would be. Because we have lost sight of the shore and we cannot even see the towers of Harrenhal which are supposed to be massive in their own right.

Normally when people are heading for the island they will find themselves covered in mist but today it is clear which is surprising because the Isle of Faces is notoriously difficult to find.

We finally reach the Island and the Green Men are already waiting for us or better yet me. The Green Men don't look very green except for the worn green clothes.

"We have been waiting for you, Last Dragon, you may enter the Isle but your companions must wait," The leader tells me

Ser Gerold and Jaime are quick to dispute that but I calm them down "It's alright, and I will be fine just wait for me here, I will return once I have received what I have come to take"

The two don't know what I am talking about but they obediently listen and stay back on the boat along with the boatmen.

Then I am led into the Isle. The Green Men don't talk much and so we walk in silence to wherever they are taking me before I finally break the silence "I never knew that you would allow Valyrians to enter, you lot have never even allowed the First Men to enter much"

They don't reply for a while but then one says "We were given a vision of a man from a different world coming to ours, For better or For worse, we don't know" So it looks like the Green Men know that I am supposed to be someone else.

"And you are not the first Valyrian to enter this Isle," One of them tells me, Really who might be the first then?

Then finally we arrive at a grove and then the Green Men leave me without saying a word, so I take a look around, there are thirteen weirwoods, and all of them have either sad or stern faces on them.

And then I see them, it's their silhouettes at first and then they come into view.

The first person is tall and lean, with flowing silver hair, he has plate armor on with a surcoat of House Targaryen and a Golden Cloak, a long and thin sword from legend hangs by his side, and his face is a deadly, handsome, and dashing face which is prone to both mirth and rage - Daemon Targaryen

The second person was a shade under six feet, with bone-white hair and equally white skin, he was an albino, he has the same sword hanging by his hip and along with that he has a weirwood longbow, a sinister face with only one red-eye and the tabard he wears has a single white dragon on a black field - Brynden 'Bloodraven' Rivers

"What the hell are you two doing here?" I blurt out and then continue before they can speak although they both look amused

"I can understand him" I point towards Bloodraven "He is stuck in a bloody tree beyond the wall but you" pointing towards the Rogue Prince.

"You think that this is real? Time does not flow in a straight line in this Isle" Daemon said to me.

He speaks to me in Valyrian, back in the day when we used to have dragons we used to speak in Valyrian amongst ourselves to keep us above the other nobles but then the dragons died and by the time of Daeron II, Valyrian was just a language taught to the kids but never spoken in conversations.

But in recent times my father mandated that our family should only speak in Valyrian amongst ourselves in an attempt to go back to the glory days, that is how Viserys knows fluent Valyrian at just age seven.

"I would still prefer to have a little back story on why the hell I have been brought to this world," I ask them both,

They both shrug "We don't know why you were sent, but you were and now you must help House Targaryen to rise to heights unseen, and with your otherworldly knowledge it should be easy enough for you," Brynden says to me.

"You both are overestimating me" Too much confidence in me is not nice especially when I don't have much confidence in myself.

"You are the only one who knows about the real threat and right now you might be the only one who will save the rest of Westeros and the world no matter how unworthy it is from the destruction and mayhem going to be committed by the White Walkers" Brynden tries to convince me but it doesn't.

"Yeah, I am not exactly interested in saving Westeros, most of them are all good for nothing and I mean isn't that why the White Walkers are coming, to purge the world of all evil, and then hopefully they will go and leave the remainder to pick up what's left" I protest back but,

Daemon goes into emotional blackmailing "Can you say the same for your children, you may not have had a long time with them but you already have a soft spot for them, and the very fact that you refused to allow Rhaenys anywhere near the throne to protect her and made Maekar legitimate instead of raising him as a bastard is a fine example of how you are warming up to your kids," He says this with a smirk that I want to smack away, maybe this is how Otto felt about him.

"And besides who knows if the White Walkers will leave after they are done" Brynden points out.

"You are acting as if you are a great example of a father" I snark back at Daemon

He bites back "I wasn't perfect, but in the end everything I did, I did it for my family"

And on hearing that I snort in derision "As if, you are a person who has famously been loyal to no one but himself"

Before he can refute that "Can you honestly tell me that if Rhaenyra had fallen before you did, you would have fought for one of her Velaryon son's rights" The silence is telling,

He tries to justify himself "They weren't Velaryon, now were they" God his apathy is something

"And you" I turn to Bloodraven "You are a person who has some serious Blackfyre hatred issues, you need therapy on that"

Now whether they know what therapy is I don't know. "And this is not to include the fact that as far as I know might be responsible for the death of so many Targaryens during the early third century"

He looks pained at that but I continue "It's really hard to believe that Aelora happened to be attacked by the Rat, Hawk, and the Pig especially back when you were the main spymaster and the man who sees it all with his thousand and one eyes"

That hits home "What happened to Aelora will always be my biggest regret, I should have known that the second that Aelora was made the heiress those Blackfyre bastards would do something" He says morosely.

But I am still skeptical "Oh, yeah what about the others who died allowing a certain Egg to the throne" He looks at me with an unreadable expression.

"Rhaegel choking on lamprey pie was not something I could control, Aelor falling down the steps of the Red Keep after being accidentally pushed by Aelora was also not controllable, didn't you kill Pycelle that way" Okay, this man might have reasoning for everything that has happened to House Targaryen.

Then Daemon butts in "It's true, the steps of the Red Keep are a lot more dangerous than what one would consider" That's true, those serpentine steps are dangerous, one misstep and you might break your neck and this is not talking about the equally dangerous politics that goes on in the Red Keep.

"As for Daeron's death, it's not my fault that he slept with anything that moved in Dragonstone, he was bound to get the pox and as for Aerion, he was drunk when he decided to drink wildfire"

Okay, he might not be responsible for everything. but then again his father the illustrious Aegon IV slept with anything that moved in all of Westeros and yet he didn't die of the pox though he did contract it.

"And as for Maekar, he was nearly sixty years old, he had no business leading the attack, I warned him not to do something like that and send his son instead, but he didn't listen"

"What about your ridiculous obsession with killing Blackfyres? how many have you killed?" I ask him

He promptly says "Directly I have killed three, Daemon and his twins, and then along with that I was responsible for Daemon the younger's death by starvation, Aerion and I were responsible for killing Haegon after he surrendered and Aenys' execution, and I am proud of killing every Blackfyre that I have" Wow that must be quite a hobby, Killing Blackfyres. He needs help.

"You never asked for this cup and I don't blame you, but the cup has come to you and you must drink from it, whether you like it or not you must do your duty and especially because you are the only one who knows the real threat along with the other minor threats for our House," Daemon tells me, trying to convince me not to leave Westeros to its fate like how I intended to.

The real threat is the White Walkers while the minor threats are everyone else. Ranging from the Lannisters to the Tyrells to a certain Greyjoy that I must kill to a bloody Blackfyre.

"Besides you have a son who will be a very powerful warg and warging is an ability that in the right hands is a very powerful weapon," Brynden tells me about Jon's abilities and I have every intention of helping the boy unlock his greatest gift.

"If I had known that warging was an actual gift and not some midwives tale I would have gone after Stark girls as well, there were a few good-looking ones during my time" Daemon chuckles thinking about the Stark women of his time, and God what is it with this man, he has to think with his cock for everything. And also I don't think that Rhaegar went after Lyanna hoping for a warg as a child.

After thinking about my new family for a while I finally decided to save Westeros' ungrateful ass, not for the bloody continent or any moral reason but just for my family.

"Alright I will accept my unwanted burden of saving this world but first I want to know if he is still around," I ask them, and if he isn't then why bother living?

No offense to Dany, but her little hatchlings are quite useless in fighting an army of a hundred thousand dead men, sure they will be infused with magical steroids to increase their growth, but the man I have in mind is the real deal when it comes to Army Killers.

Daemon has a wicked smile when he says "Yes, he is still around, he is asleep but he is alive and you know exactly where he is" Brynden then says "His name should be a hint to where he is after all" He has loop sided grin and after looking that them I feel a grin come on my face as well.

We are talking about the one dragon that never bonded with any rider. The dragon that managed to survive was the Dance of the Dragons. The dragon that disappeared.

We are talking about the Cannibal.