Beginning of the End | House Of The Dragon

2.1

AURELIUS POV

"Ser Ryam, strong Lord Commander of the Kings Guard, but he was ill for some time. He passed in peace I hope."

I quietly thanked Rhaenyra as she filled my cup, "This will be my only one, no matter what I might say, understood?"

She nodded with a smirk and I rejoined the conversation about the now dead Lord Commander.

"The succeeding Lord Commander, Sir Harrold, would like to make haste in finding Ser Ryam's replacement on the Kingsguard." Mellos informed us.

"Your Grace, my Lords..." That's all it took for me to start tuning him out and instead focusing on the way the wine swirled around my cup.

I had been true to my word. I was drinking less, Jonquil woke up to me in her bed every morning, and the only whore I had been seeing for months was Faune. The girl I had been with the night Daemon passed his own sentence. She was a pretty little thing, a bit older than Jonquil with flowing silk curls of red hair, crystal blue eyes, pale creamy skin, tits that fit perfectly in my hands, not much meat on her bones but she was easy to talk to, and that's what we did half the nights I saw her. We just talked. I mean we fucked too but still.

I was brought back to the present as the doors burst open and Corlys Valaryon stormed in. "Four ships have now been lost, the last one was flying my banner. The stepstones have now grown into a conflagration, yet you sit here and dither about court business."

Oh. My face was one of shock, my mouth making that very O shape that wanted to escape past my lips so desperately. It was very bold of him to burst in here and talk to the King as if he were an equal, or God's forbid lower than him. I took a deep gulp of my wine and prepared for the drama.

Corly cut Otto off as he began to reprimand him and instead demanded to know what was to be done about his ships and men.

"The Crown will compensate you for your ship and crew and make an offering to the men's family." Otto told him.

"And, what about after that? These families rely on their men folk everyday for their whole lives, an offering will only go so far and then what. Also, what's to stop the Triarchy from doing this again and putting us more in dept to Lord Corlys and the families on Driftmark." Corlys spoke over my last few words grinding out how he didn't want compensation, "I want to seize the stepstones by force and burn out this Crabfeeder."

I looked to Viserys, war would be costly but it would be less than if we did nothing and continued to have our ships attacked and its crews killed. I said as much.

He looked at me as if I were a child, as if I were a green boy eager to prove myself in battle. "I am not prepared to start a war with the Free Cities." I know when he looked at me he saw Daemon and it made me go for another big swallow of wine.

"These pirates are not the Free Cities." Corlys shot back, but Viserys was already prepared.

"Who do you think provides them with their ships and tender." I knew he was right but I still felt it was the wrong move to just ignore it.

Lord Beesbury pointed out that Westeros had never been at war with the Free Cities, he said the losses would be incalculable.

"Yes, but there's a first time for everything. The losses and the cost would be greater if we did nothing and this continued to happen time and time again. You cannot tell me you do not know that they would only grow bolder in due course."

Corlys stalked slowly up to Beesbury. "What reason does the Crabfeeder have to fear us." The answer was none. "The Kings own brother has been allowed to seize Dragonstone and fortify it with an army of his Goldcloaks." Daemon had quartered there for a little over half a year with no consequences, even though he was ordered to return to Runestone and his Lady Wife.