Queen of Ashes [ASOIAF]

―jalani.

          𝓐s her eyes took in the city of Meereen, Jalani wondered if her brother might be right. Perhaps Daenerys Stormborn was not so capable of holding these three cities. Word had reached her host on the road of war between Astapor and Yunkai. They had encountered a sellsword company making peace with the Lhazareen. Meanwhile Qartheen galleys barricaded the trading routes along the Skahazadhan.

          Jalani would need to send men to do something about the river. It was one of the Adakhakileki's most lucrative trading routes. Even with Slaver's Bay in the state that it was, Meereen was still the only port available to her people. If they had not been suffering before, they certainly would be when the food supply began to dry up.

          At the city gate, she was escorted to the pyramid by a freedman, while her army remained outside. Jalani did not order her men to set up camp, though they all knew they would be staying. Whether or not Daenerys agreed to help Jalani made no matter. They could not return to Adakhakileki empty handed, Lajo would put them all to the sword. He would force his shiro to do the killing, as punishment for her failing. No, Jalani thought, we cannot go home.

          The city was stunning in its desecration. It looked far more like Jalani's own hodge-podge city than the great shinning slaver metropolis she'd imagined. There were people sleeping in the streets. From their appearances, she couldn't tell if they were freed slaves or the slavers themselves.

          Unsullied patrolled the streets, particularly those closest to the Great Pyramid, home to the queen who had taken this city for her own. The queen which would hopefully be the Adakhakileki's saving grace.

          Jalani stood inside the great pyramid's reception hall in her finest armor. The gilded iron gleamed in the sunlight. It was not the sort of armor she would wear into battle. It was heavy and constricting. Then there was the mater of the sun. She had donned the plate amongst her army before walking into Meereen. In the short distance between the gate and the pyramid, Jalani felt as if she were cooking alive. Lajo spared no expense when it came to his image, and that of his sister's. Still, his decision making remained questionable.

          Jalani waited in the throne room as the queen heard petitions. They were repetitive and tiresome, but the dragon queen was devoted to ensuring each petitioner had her full attention. She cared about these people, far more than Lajo had ever cared about his own. Jalani had expected a conqueror to be distant and aloof, but even the lowest amongst the Mereenese was granted a chance to speak. Lajo barely even cared to listen to his own advisors.

          Finally, it was Jalani's turn to speak. A short, stocky man with greasy hair stepped forward to introduce her. He spoke in the bastard Valyrian of the slaver cities. "Your grace, this is Princess Jalani of the–" The man broke off, clearing his throat. "Of the cannibals."

          Jalani knelt before the dragon queen. She reached for the clips of her breastplate and let it clatter to the floor. The room was so quiet, she could hear the ringing stretch out into the silence for what felt like hours.

          "I do not come before you as a warrior." Jalani spoke in Dothraki, much to the discontent of the other nobility in the room. "I come to you as another woman who wishes the best for her people. Who wishes to fight back against the tyranny that has held them down for far too long."

          Jalani looked up at the queen, searching the girl's eyes for the savior she so desperately needed. "My brother has beaten our people into silence, forced them to cower from his wrath. But the Adakhakileki are strong, they only need the opportunity to show it."

          The queen watched Jalani, considering. She was so young, perhaps a decade Jalani's junior. But this girl had hatched dragons and freed so many from their chains. What did Jalani have to show for her years? A princess with no power, a monster's weapon.

          "What would you ask of me?" Daenerys asked.

          "I pledge myself and my men to fight by your side until this war is won. I hand selected each man for his loyalty and ability. Our number may seem small, but each is worth their weight in gold. We will not fail you." Jalani took a deep breath. "And when the war is won, I would ask for your assistance in overthrowing my brother and freeing my people from his cruel reign."

         Jalani expected the girl to consult with her advisors, to need time to think over the proposal. Instead, Daenerys stood, and walked down the steps. She offered Jalani a hand to rise. "I will help you, Jalani of Adakhakileki." Jalani felt a weight fall from her shoulders. She hadn't realized quite how much she feared the girl's answer. Daenerys clasped Jalani's hands in hers. "I promise you; your people will know a life without fear."

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          The court of Daenerys Stormborn took much getting used to. Despite the threat of war and the killings in the streets, the queen did her best to find a peaceful solution. Sometimes a bit too peaceful for Jalani's liking. There were ways that things should be done, and many of the other advisors agreed. But Daenerys refused to make violence her first instinct.

          But still the killings continued, taking more soldiers that they could not afford to lose. Jalani had forbidden her own men from stepping foot into the city, save for her personal guard. She would not let these faceless assassins take her people.

          "She should kill the hostages," Jalani muttered after the council meeting, when the room had all but cleared. "Why else hold them, if not to keep their families in check?"

          "They're children," Ser Barristan reminded her. "She won't kill them for the sins of their fathers."

          Jalani regarded the knight coolly. He tended to encourage the queen more often than not. Even as this path led them closer and closer to ruin. "They are people, and people die."

          "Would you kill them?" The knight asked. "In Adakakaleki."

          Yes, because Lajo would have commanded me to. She did not voice the thought aloud. She was no longer under her brother's thumb. Her choices were her own. Jalani sighed. "I hope one day we live in a world where the sharpness of our swords isn't the only thing that matters. But that world has not yet arrived."

          Barristan nodded. "That is Daenerys' dream as well."

          "Unfortunately, our dreams are not reality. My people will soon be starving if the river remains blocked." Jalani crossed her arms, leaning back into her chair.

          "You have the land routes."

          "The season is changing. The silk route through the mountains was nearly impassable when I left. The Dothraki in the west have always been challenging, and as of late, they have become even more erratic. The south takes us to Lhazar or Qarth, both of whom are tied up in this war of your Queen's."

          She leaned forward before repeating, "We need our river." Barristan did not offer any more suggestions. "A promise of freedom means nothing to a people dying of starvation."

          "I'll talk to the Queen," Selmy said finally. "Perhaps one of the sellsword companies could focus their attentions on the blockade. I've heard they've made good headway with the Lhazareen."

          "My cousins will be of little use in a fight." Though many Adakhakileki were of Lhazareen heritage, those that had integrated into the new society left behind their peaceful ways. "I would rather my own men get the job done. I trust them far more than men who trade their loyalty for gold."

          "Then send them," Semly said with a wave of his hand. "You're not trapped here. You can send your soldiers wherever you want."

          It hadn't even crossed her mind that queen might allow her to dictate her own terms to their agreement. Each day this court found ways to remind her that she was far from home, and far from Lajo. Jalani nodded once, hoping her face did not give her away. "Then I will."