Chapter XVI

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Act II of Devotion: Endurance

Chapter XVI: How Can You Flee From Your Own Self?

'There would always be times in one's life where one would question everything. Where one would look to the heavens and say, 'Why am I doing this? Is this what I have been born for? Is this destiny? Is this fate? Is this what my life is supposed to be wasted upon?' And I would point out that it had happened to me too. It makes me laugh at times, the irony of it all. With all the riches, privileges and the titles that came with my heritage and birth, I still felt lost. So undermined in purpose and truth. Perhaps that was the reason I joined the Citadel. All of us, even the richest of the rich and the poorest of the poor suffer the same thing. That would be the wonder of every inch of our life, if all our lives meant anything at all.

Thus we move into the beginning of an undeclared war. A war my father fueled and my grandfather lit. A war that made everyone wonder if there was any escape from all of it. If there was any way to determine a change of fate, a way to turn the commands of all gods upon outcomes and aftermaths. If they could flee from who they were, from their own shadows that were tightening its grip about their necks of the life within it. My mother, my father and everyone who played their parts all thought the same thing as the tension rose and rose: how can you flee from your own self?'

-Maester Maekar, Chapter V of the White Queen.






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T H E     W A T E R    G A R D E N S





D O R N E





DORAN MARTELL HAD NOT BEEN SURPRISED WHEN THE NEWS CAME THAT KING AERYS HAD SENTENCED A MANWOODY MAN TO DEATH. He was not surprised that in the paranoia of Aerys Targaryen that such an instance occurs, of course he was not surprised either when he had called Leila to answer for her husband's crimes. Doran had seen many people with disturbances to the mind in one of Leila's own facilities to house them all in Planky Town with trained women in such arts coming from Nimerod as Nicholas lended them from the healing centers there in his own principality. But none were as crazy as Aerys Targaryen himself.

Oberyn was not happy about it one bit.

The second son of Dorne had never been one to have a calm temper, he was Dorne more so than Doran was. That he could admit. His brother after all had fought a duel and killed a man for disrespecting the woman he loved with just words. But his brother would kill anyone and anything that distorts the memories and person of those whom he loved. Most especially for Leila Lannister. The news came a septon blessed the memory of the dead princess of Dorne. Rhaegar Targaryen had taken Lyanna Stark and disappeared in the dead of night, leaving his wife and children vulnerable and alone. Oberyn had just forgiven a mother for her misdeeds and soon he had started to hate again, to fuel his heart with burning anger towards a dragon and a wolf that hurt his dear lioness and her cubs.

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