Author's note :
I am so sorry to all of you that it has taken this long for me to update this story. Life has been a mess for me and I have not had much motivation for writing anything. In an attempt to make it up to you I'm giving you a chapter of truly monstrous size, my biggest one for any story to date, 15.000 words.

This chapter has not been Beta'd.

The Chronicles of Valyria,

Book 1 Resurrection

Chapter 37

The city of Valyria, six months after the fall of Meereen.

"TAKE THAT," the twelve name days old silver blond girl yelled as she whacked her wooden maul against the heavy, Valyrian steel reinforced shield held by a forlorn soldier. "AND THAT," she added as she withdrew the maul and slammed it against the shield again. Next to her, the Braavosi commander Orus held a similar maul and demonstrated the strikes for her to follow.

Next to her, her twin was using two small wooden swords to hit the shield of a second forlorn. In contrast to her sister, Lissena was silent as she concentrated on hitting the shield on the places Syrio had marked with five different colors of paint. She had to hit them in the correct order as Syrio told them to her.

Besides the twins, others of the family were training as well. Yara was standing behind a small table that held a dozen small hand-axes which she was throwing at a series of rings painted on the bottom of a barrel. Sandor was sparring with a forlorn, holding a bastard sword in one hand and a shield in the other. Despite his only 14 name days, he was able to hold his own against a forlorn, though only barely.

Ygritte and Layla where seated in a corner of the inner courtyard, playing with little Elia who had just started to try walking. They were watched by Ashara and Willow, who were embroidering a pair of new dresses for the twins. Willow had been promoted from Ygritte's babysitter to Ashara's handmaiden, as the two jobs were easy to combine, and she was now learning to embroider the finer details on the neckline of a dress.

In the air above the palace of House Valaris, Duchess was teaching her little ones how to fly. The little griffins had grown rapidly in the nine months since they had hatched and now they had the body size of a large dog.

Saphirus and Violet had likewise grown at a steady pace, and now, at eighteen months of age and nearly thirty feet in length, they were nearly big enough to carry a rider, though only a small one. On advice from Ashara, the twins had decided to wait with trying to mount their dragons until Aurora and Gabrielle had returned. They all hoped it would be soon, as they dearly missed their parents.

The city had been preparing for their return for weeks, as everything was put in order to give them a jubilant welcome after the great victories they had won in the east.

For hours they hung around the courtyard, not really knowing what else to do, until a messenger arrived. He handed a small scroll to Ashara who quickly thanked the man before opening the message. A broad smile came across her face as she read it and she called for the others.

"Children," she called across the courtyard and all came towards her in a hurry, seeing the letter in her hands and the smile on her face. "They're here," was all she needed to say to make them understand. Aurora and Gabrielle had finally returned, their family was about to be whole again.

XXX

The good news that Slaver's Bay had fallen had come months ago, hundreds of thousands of new settlers had already arrived in the city and had been set to work. Under the leadership of the first generation of settlers, the people from Slaver's Bay were now working the fields outside the city, raising animals, rebuilding damaged buildings, or working in one of the many different industries that had been set up.

Valyria was thriving, under the guidance of the council, the city was bursting with life again and the field outside the city were nearly ready to yield their first harvests. The large forests echoed with the sounds of axes as trees were felled by the hundreds to supply the many building projects both within the city and the area around it.

Oak trees were carefully selected for size and height and then transported to one of Boltrock's' pet projects. The old shipyards along the river between the city and the smoking sea, which they had found was named the Crystal River, were once again echoing with sounds of hammers, saws and chisels. Shipwrights from the Iron Islands, Ibben, and the Summer Islands had joined hands to create a fishing fleet, and were working on designs for new ships for the Valyrian Fleet.

The forges of Valyria were also brimming with life again as they spewed out an almost continues stream of normal metal for buildings, ships, tools or anything else that was required to rebuild the city. The Valyrian Steel that was produced was being stockpiled in the armory on orders from Boltrock, to be processed and shaped later when it was needed.

Since the Valyrians had landed, four large convoys had arrived from Westeros, bringing tens of thousands of new settlers who had left their dwellings in Kings Landing, Oldtown, Lannisport, White Harbor or any of the smaller cities and villages, all in search of a better live in a legendary country. Braavos and The North had also send a massive fleet carrying ironwood from the North, iron ore from the mountains of Braavos and thousands of cows, aurochs, pigs, sheep and other useful animals.

Unknown to the family, Aurora and Gabrielle had returned several times since the fall of Meereen, but since they thought it too hard to see the girls only to leave them again soon after, they had decided against doing so, though the prolonged separation broke their hearts, it was necessary.

Now however, they were really coming home, they had returned to Meereen for one last time, to lay waist to the city and bring back the last of their army, the last new settlers, Drogo's little Khalasar, all of the horses, and the last valuables form the greatest city in Slaver's Bay.

Like Astapor and Yunkai, Meereen had been stripped bare of anything useful or valuable and once that was done, Aurora and Gabrielle had both taken to the skies to destroy this great monument to slavery. It took them hours to complete, as most of the pyramids had to be destroyed by force, since their walls were to thick to melt, even for dragonfire. Outside the demolished walls, they had left a warning for any who would seek to restore the city.

Acres upon acres of sun bleached bones were strewn across the valley. The nearly one-hundred-thousand dead from the Battle of Meereen were displayed there for all the world to see, as a testament to the power of the reborn Valyria. Like the deserts around Qarth, the bones of the fallen would warn any against taking up arms against their creators.

Looking in the distance they could see the ruin of the island fortress that once guarded the entrance to Valyria, one more thing they would rebuild in the coming years. As they approached, the last miles, they could hear the welcoming roar of Vermithrax, the golden dragon came flying through the storms, opening the way for them.

As the Chain Breaker entered the large tunnel through the stormy wall, Aurora and Gabrielle stood together on the bow of their flagship, looking forward to finally be reunited with their family, having missed them dearly for near nine months.

Far too slowly for their tastes they made their way to their new capital city, as they looked around at the lands surrounding the Crystal River. They saw the fields being worked by their people, the fishermen throwing their nets in the river and bringing them back up filled to bursting. They saw dozens of new buildings standing near the water or further inland, granaries, stables and dwellings, along with guard towers dotted the land.

Nearer to the city they saw the shipyards where hundreds upon hundreds labored to build the new Valyrian fleet, as their current one would be greatly diminished when they dismantled all those that were old or not functional enough for their tastes. Immense new dry-docks had been dug and build along the shores capable of holding up to half a dozen of the largest galleys at once.

As they had crossed the storms at dawn, it took until late afternoon for them to come into sight of the great city and the closer they came, the more people they saw. Despite the sheer size of the city, tens-of-thousands, most of which were soldiers, still lived in tent camps outside the walls. Their population being simply too large to fit into one city, but not being allowed to colonize any of the other cities until the Ladies returned.

XXX

Once they had heard the news, the children went into a flurry of activity to store away their training equipment and get cleaned up and dressed to meet their parents. Just as they were about to leave, Ivan and Francine arrived from their own palace next to that of House Valaris. Both were dressed simply in leather pants and woolen tunics, sitting astride Ironhide and a white mare respectively.

"Are you ready?" Francine asked with a smile after the extended family had all assembled outside the palace doors.

"Yes auntie," Silvana replied eagerly, the kids having begun calling them aunt and uncle for the surrogate parent-role they had taken in the absence of Aurora and Gabrielle.

"Good," Francine smiled brightly as horses where brought out for them. The twins, Yara, Sandor, and Ashara all mounted up on horses, while two forlorn lifted Ygritte up to Francine, Elia to Ashara and Layla to Sandor. The twelve Immortals surrounded them as they quickly made their way through the bustling city towards the gates.

When they exited the city, they could see the immense fleet already closing in to the harbor, with at the front, the familiar galley with a massive broken chain hanging from the bow. Flanking the Chain Breaker, as always, were the Sapphire and the Emerald, with the Titan's Pride, Spear of Dorne, and Kraken's Vengeance close behind them.

Urging their horses into a gallop, the group quickly made their way to the docks to get there before the ships docked, which they managed to do with only minutes to spare. Dismounting quickly, the children hurried to where the Chain Breaker was preparing to moor.

As they approached, they saw them. There, next to the railing where Aurora and Gabrielle, their mothers had finally returned home.

"Mom," the twins and Ygritte yelled as one and began waving wildly at them. On board Aurora and Gabrielle had seen them as well and were waving back just as enthusiastically, tears of happiness running over their cheeks as they saw their daughters and the other members of their family.

When the ship had finally docked and the gangplank was lowered, both ladies hurried of the ship and sank to their knees before the three girls, gripping them in a fierce hug as they relished the feeling of holding the children in their arms once more. Yara, Sandor and Layla soon joined them and the extended family was a mass of greetings and hugs and excited stories of the children about how much they had missed them and how much they had learned in the time they were gone.

That night celebration was the only thing happening in the palace as stories were told and skills were displayed. In the city around them, last minute preparations were made for the official return the next day. In the style of the legends of old heroes, the victorious conquerors would make their triumphant entrance at the head of their armies and make a victory procession through the city.

XXX

The next morning Aurora and Gabrielle left their palace before dawn to meet up with Ivan and Francine as they would all ride at the head of the armies. When they met them on the street, they quickly mounted their horses and galloped to the city gates. Everywhere they went, they could see the city being readied. Thousands were sweeping the streets clean while hundreds more hung garlands of flowers everywhere they could reach as the city awoke around them.

When they reached the massive military encampment outside the walls, the army was already up and assembling. Every shield and piece of armor had been polished to a shine. Spear tips, halberds, axe heads and swords were gleaming as well in the torchlight.

As they dismounted near the command tent, where the generals and other high officers were waiting for them, Ivan pulled them aside for a moment. "Come with me for a bit," he said under his breath as he and Francine led them away from the tent and about a hundred yards beyond to a large tent that was used as a stable.

Ivan led them inside and there they saw two horses, one a mare and the other a stallion, unlike any they had ever seen before. They were very heavily build, with strong thick legs, a massive neck, broad head and large slightly pointed ears. They stood at least a foot taller at the withers than any other horse they had seen so far in Westeros or Essos. Their black coats were thick and shiny and the dark manes were combed wide and soft, long hair covered the lower legs and hooves and thick tails hung long and soft, nearly reaching the ground. The mare had eyes that were dark brown, and the stallion had blue eyes.

What stood out immediately where the padded, but very thick shackles and chains binding the legs of the horses, which were in turn attached to thick wooden pegs that were driven deep into the hard-packed earth. Their halters were likewise attached to chains that held them secure against a large tree stump that stood in the middle of the tent.

"Wow," Aurora and Gabrielle said as one as they admired the two animals. "Where did you find them?" Gabrielle asked as she and her wife calmly approached the two horses.

"We caught them roaming the plains north of here." Francine replied, "The horses that the Valyrians of old bred were not normal, they were another product of the flesh-pits that also brought forth the hyenas, and the juggernauts. Their size, power and aggression are far greater than that of any other horse this world has ever seen. They are not as fast as a sand steed, but their endurance is more than equal to any other horse. They can gallop a full day in heavy armor, with an armored rider on their back and still have the strength to fight."

"Indeed," Ivan added when his wife was done. "We managed to capture a couple hundred of them, but be careful, as they have yet to be broken in, it cost me 18 forlorn who were trampled to death just to get them in a corral. Also, be careful not to leave them alone with other horses as they will kill them if they get the chance just to prove their dominance. As you can see we had to literally chain them up to be able to brush them and fit them for armor, so it might be best if you claim them as soon as possible to avoid any other trouble with them."

Aurora and Gabrielle nodded and both drew a knife from their boots before approaching the horses. Gabrielle chose the mare with the brown eyes and Aurora the stallion. When they lifted the knives, the horses began to fight against their restraints as soon as they saw the glint of metal. Quickly moving closer, as they could hear the groaning of the metal chains, they both made a small but deep cut on the shoulder of their chosen horse. Quickly drawing the knives across their own hand palms, they both pressed their hand against the wound allowing their blood to mix with that of the horses.

They stepped back as they watched the dragon blood do its work. The brown eyes of Gabrielle's horse turned a bright, almost burning red, while the blue of Aurora's turned a bit darker until they shone as sapphires. The ears of both became more pointed and they could see that the hair of both became thicker and sturdier as well.

Once the wounds were healed, which happened even faster than it had with Ironhide and Duchess indicating they might have given them a bit too much of their blood, both ladies moved to undo the chains holding the animals in place. Patting them on their necks, they both grabbed the halters and led the horses outside where they jumped on, holding themselves in place merely with the strength of their legs.

Digging their legs into the flanks, the ladies grinned as both stallions reared up before galloping away. They laughed as they felt the wind mess up their hair and had it stream behind them as they raced away in the growing light of dawn. They let them run until the sun had fully risen and then mentally ordered them to return to the camp.

Back at the camp they found Ivan and Francine in the middle of dressing Ironhide and Duchess in their armor. Both Ironhide and Duchess proudly carried the new sigil of their House, which they had named House Nocerys after the second-most powerful family of old Valyria. The sigil was a black heather shield with the front halves of Ironhide and Duchess coming from a line in the middle in blood-red.

Ivan looked up briefly from his task to point towards two piles of black armor plating that stood next to the tent. "Boltrock's latest pet-project, he said that if you wanted to act like conquering heroes, you might as well go all the way and look the part."

Seeing the horse helmets lying on top of the piles, both ladies grinned as they went to dress up their new animal companions. The sheer strength of the horses, which was aided even more by the dragon blood they had given them, meant that the horses could bear an immense load without it weighing them down much.

First was a full covering of thick linen padding, it was full of diamond-shaped holes for ventilation to keep the horses from getting to warm. Over that went an assortment of silvered mail which, when threaded together, covered everything besides the head and saddle area.

Next came a full coat of rune-engraved blackened plate steel, covering everything but the saddle area. The 'helmets' were identical, each having a large axe head attached to the long forehead and a pair of blades protruding from the sides below the eyes. The eyes themselves were shielded by a large ridge above them. The necks were covered with many plates in a lamellar style to offer both protection and flexibility. Each plate had a large spike on the top, to imitate the neck-spikes of a dragon.

The saddle was made with integrated armor plates for protection of the horses and had a raised ridge to protect the legs of the rider from lances that glanced away from the chest plate. The chest plate itself held a large sharpened ridge down the middle, to cut apart everything that smashed into the half-inch thick plate of Valyrian steel.

Last was a caparison that went over everything, it was made of thick black linen and embroidered with the golden dragon skull in a circle of chains on both sides of the front and hind quarters. The neck-spikes and the various blades on the chest and sides were left bare by holes and slits put in for that exact purpose, so it fit snuggly over the plates.

Once they were done with armoring the horses, a process that had taken nearly half an hour for each horse, they joined the rest of high command. Ivan, Francine, Argyle, Oberyn, Dagmer, Alys, Harry, Tatters, Yagathai and several dozen others all stood ready and waiting. Their armor, weapons, and mounts were all polished, shined and brushed to perfection.

All around them the army was ready as well, every soldier that had survived the Battle of Meereen had been assembled and they were standing in their own units, ready to march. The forlorn that had been recruited from Meereen, had been given a different task, they would stand along the route they would take as a barrier between the crowds and the road over which they would march.

As they sat on their mounts, the four high commanders looked out over the sea of armored bodies and couldn't help but feel content and proud of what they had assembled. Six thousand mounted forlorn would come first, followed by two thousand mounted knights and men-at-arms from the Golden Company and other former sellswords. They would then be followed by the forlorn that had survived the Battle of Meereen some eighteen thousand.

Next came the former sellsword infantry, numbering around thirteen thousand. They were then followed by twenty thousand Unsullied, who in turn were followed by the Ironborn, also some eighteen thousand, and the four-and-a-halve-thousand Dornish. Last came two thousand mounted amazons and two-and-a-halve-thousand pit fighters led by Yagathai. Totaling some eighty-six-thousand soldiers, the procession would take most of the day as all deserved their share of the glory and praise that would be heaped upon them. The wide streets of the city were ideal for such a parade as the cavalry could ride ten wide and the infantry would march twenty-five wide.

The entire army was divided by the companies in which they had fought, and by which they would now march in triumph. At the head of each infantry company strode the commander with their second- and third-in-command on either side. Exactly behind them were three banner bearers, each holding upright a large wooden spear with a crossbar just below the head, from the crossbar there hung black banners, each proudly bearing the sigil of House Valaris. On either side of them walked a drummer, a flutist, and a piper and at both ends of the first line were an additional two banner bearers. The men and women would march behind this first row, their faces stern, but their hearts filled with the pride and glory that would be bestowed upon them by a grateful people.

The cavalry rode in similar formations, but instead of the three different musicians, they only had a pair of mounted drummers. All held lances or spears that carried a triangular banner with the same sigil, and the knights and commanders had decorated their horses with caparisons that were similar to those now worn by the mounts of the Ladies.

As the various commanders took their places before their men, Aurora gave the signal for the musicians to begin. Hundreds of drummers, flutists and pipers had been placed amongst the companies to help them keep the pace and to provide a cheery music. As the music began, Aurora and Gabrielle moved their new mounts to the head of the army, with Ivan and Francine directly behind them. The thirty amazons which had acted as their guard followed directly behind Ivan and Francine, all of them mounted on white mares.

As the triumph began, the large city gates were thrown open and the army marched into the city to the thunderous applause and cheers of its inhabitants. The people were ecstatic as they watched their victorious soldiers march proudly through their city's streets, and they showered them with flowers and well wishes.

For hours the soldiers marched through the city until at last they reached a massive open area that lay before the hill which housed the Forges. This area, which was named the Field of Glory, had been used for the exact same purpose by the Valyrians for centuries. The army assembled on the field in close formation, with all of the Unsullied purposefully placed closest to the stage, and tens-of-thousands of citizens crowded around it to watch the main event.

A large stage with two black wooden thrones had been built on the flank of the hill and it was there that the family had awaited the arrival of the army. As Aurora and Gabrielle and the highest officers dismounted and made their way towards the stage, they were met by the twins and Ygritte, all three wearing beautifully embroidered dresses in black and gold and their hair braided elegantly.

Behind them stood the others, Ashara and Elia in matching dresses of purple and silver, Yara in her black dress with the golden Kraken holding the hand of Layla who wore a yellow dress, decorated with small black dogs around the edges. Sandor stood before the stage, dressed in black armor with a single golden dog's head on the breastplate, and with six Immortals on either side of him.

Behind the stage, laying shining in the bright sun, was Vermithrax, his golden scales nearly blinding those who looked at him directly. Besides his massive bulk, Saphirus and Violet looked but small where they lay on each side of the stage. The young griffons lay, stood or sat proudly near to their humans. Darkness, sat on his hind legs before Sandor, Death claw, Lily, and Stormwing lay before the chairs of Ygritte, Layla and Yara, and Bloodwing stood beside Valaya where she stood amongst her fellow Winged Guards on the side of the podium.

Duchess had laid a second clutch of eggs six weeks prior and they had hatched a fortnight ago, so five more of the Winged Guard had received a hatchling which were laying at the feet of their new humans, under the watchful eyes of Duchess. It had been decided that all of the eggs to be used for the guard would be the ones laid by Duchess, because it was deemed too dangerous to go and retrieve eggs from the wild for each new member of the guard. With roughly one nest every ten to twelve months, it would take a few years for all to receive one, but since they could be raised in safety, the griffons would not suffer the high hatchling-mortality they did in the wild.

The three girls hugged their mothers and joined them on the stage as the officers took their places before it whilst Ivan and Francine joined them on the stage, but standing on either side of it. Once everyone had taken their place, Ivan walked to the center of the stage and proclaimed loudly, his words being repeated by many men with large copper speaking trumpets so that all could hear them.

"People of Valyria, today we celebrate the great victories our army has achieved against the filth that called themselves the 'Masters of Slaver's Bay'. Many tens-of-thousands of slavers have been killed and the people suffering beneath their lash and chain have been liberated and are now you fellow citizens."

Cheers echoed across the field at these words and Ivan waited a minute until it had calmed down again.

"Now that our great nation has been strongly established, the time has come to officially appoint our leaders. The Ladies Aurora and Gabrielle of House Valaris have led us wisely and ably in both the settling of our great country and the wars against the Triarchy in western Essos and the war against Slaver's Bay, is it your wish that they continue to do so, but now as our Queens?"

A massive roar of, "AYE," echoed across the field as the people cheered their agreement and the soldiers slammed their weapons against their shields.

"THEN LET IT BE SO," Ivan roared across the field as he spread his arms to either side. Behind him, Vermithrax rose from his spot and hovered his head above the stage. Extending his left front paw forwards, he opened it to reveal a rectangular chest of gem-studded Valyrian steel. Aurora and Gabrielle turned to the dragon and went to their knees before him, a move that was immediately followed by everyone else.

Using a single claw from his right paw, he flipped open the lid of the chest and revealed two crowns of Valyrian Steel. Both had three large gems on either side, and in the center was a single, triangular, golden dragon scale. The left crown had rubies and the right crown had sapphires, the gems representing each of the six other cities of Valyria, with the golden scale representing the city of Valyria itself.

Vermithrax carefully picked the ruby crown between two of his claws and placed it on Aurora's head, next he took the sapphire crown and placed it on Gabrielle's head. Bending his head towards them, he breathed a small golden flame towards both crowns, hitting the small scales and setting them alight with golden fire.

As he pulled his head back, the two newly crowned Queens stood back up and turning to their people they sat themselves down in the two wooden thrones. As soon as they had sat down, Ivan was the only one to stand up and proclaimed, "People of Valyria, I give you Aurora and Gabrielle of the House Valaris, First of Their Names, Protectors of All Free People, Guardians of the Realm, and Queens of Valyria. Long may they reign!"

"LONG MAY THEY REIGN!" The people roared and as one they rose up and began cheering and applauding. The jubilations went on for a few minutes until Aurora stood up from her throne and raised her right hand to silence the crowd. When they had quieted down a bit she spoke,

"People of Valyria, my wife and I thank you for the trust you have placed in us, and now I would like to fulfill a promise I have made at the beginning of this journey." At this point she switched to the bastard Valyrian almost everyone in Essos understood.

"Lord General Argyll," Argyll immediately stepped forward and went to one knee, "Please inform your troops of what I have told you when I send you to Astapor."

"Yes my Queen," Argyll nodded before rising up and turning to the Unsullied. "Unsullied, when I was send to Astapor, I was given a very clear mission. I was to oversee the purchase and equipping of as many Unsullied soldiers as possible and when the transfer was complete, to take command of them. I have led you through this campaign and I must say that I am as impressed by your bravery and skill as everyone else.

We would all like you to stay with us in our future endeavors, but if you do so, then you shall do it as free men, for all those who cross into Valyrian territory will be free." He then raised the Harpy's Fingers that Aurora had received in Astapor and threw in into the air, drawing his sword he cut it apart as it fell down, the razor edge cutting through the dragon bone with little problem.

For about two minutes, not a single sound was heard as the entire city seamed to hold its breath in anticipation.

Eventually it started with a single soldier in the third rank of the assembled Unsullied. Tightening his grip on his spear, the Unsullied known as Red Snake lifted his hand a few inches and then dropped it again, bringing the bud of the weapon down hard on the smooth black stone they stood on. Two more times he brought it down as the only one, then those besides him joined in and then those besides them again, and so on, and so on. Eventually all the Unsullied joined in and the stamping of the spears echoed around the field as the sound of a thunderstorm rolling over distant hills.

With a proud smile Argyll looked up towards the still seated Queens and got two identical satisfied grins along with a small nod of the crowned heads. As Argyll retook his place amongst the commanders, Aurora stood up and raised her hands to quiet the noise of the Unsullied who were still stomping their spears.

"We thank you all for you loyalty and your confidence in us and I give you my word that we shall do everything we can to live up to your expectations." Another round of cheers went through the crowds until Aurora raised her hands again to quiet them.

Gabrielle joined her wife and motioned for the girls to join them as Boltrock walked up to them with a similar box as the one that had held the crowns Vermithrax had crowned them with. As the girls stood before them, Boltrock opened the box and revealed three tiara's. Each one was handmade by Boltrock himself, and was shaped like a dragon in flight with the wings forming the arms that wound around the head. One was made of Valyrian Steel, one of gold, and one of silver while the eyes were purple diamonds.

As she took out the Valyrian Steel one, Silvana stepped forward and knelt before Aurora. Placing the tiara gently on her daughter's head, Aurora turned back to the people and said, "Behold, our eldest child and heir, Crown Princess Silvana of House Valaris, heir to the throne of Valyria."

Next Gabrielle took the golden one and placed it on Lissena's head, proclaiming, "Behold, our second eldest child, Lissena of House Valaris, Princess of Valyria."

Lastly Aurora took the silver tiara and placed it on Ygritte's head, "Behold our youngest child, Ygritte of House Valaris, Princess of Valyria." After a minute of cheering, all three girls stood before their mothers. When it was silent again, Aurora urged the girls forward and proclaimed loudly, "Behold, the Dragon's Daughters.

The cheering began again and continued until Gabrielle gave the girls a soft urging and they took their former places again. Once Aurora had calmed the masses she started with the next round of introductions. "Many of you will already know them, but we would still like to introduce and officially appoint the members of our military council, and the members of our Civilian Council who will handle the day-to-day running of our new kingdom."

As they stepped forward one by one, either Aurora or Gabrielle gave them each a seal of office, a golden brooch in the shape of Vermithrax in flight for the Civilian Council, and a Valyrian steel chain with the same symbol for the Military Council, as the other introduced them, with Gabrielle going first.

"The Civilian Council will have the following members. For the office of High Steward of Valyria, Lady Ashara Dayne. For the office of the Lord of Law, Lord Rodrik Harlaw. For the office of Lord of Coin, Tychel Nestoris. For the office of the Lord of Trade, Moredo Prestayn. And for the office of Lord of Guards, Commander-General Orus."

Each name was met with cheers and applause from the civilians as these had already performed the function since their arrival in Valyria and the people knew they were able to do them. For the others they switched functions and now Aurora introduced the Military Council.

"As commander of all Valyrian Armed Forces, Lord Marshal Ivan Nocerys. As commander of the Land Forces, Lord General Ser Argyll Rivers. As Commander-General of Auxiliaries, Ser Harry Strickland. As Lord Admiral of the Fleet, Admiral Uthero. As Lord Admiral of Raiders, Admiral Dagmer Cleftjaw. And finally as Commander-General of the Winged Guard, our new royal Guard, General Valaya."

As Valaya stepped forward to receive her Chain of Office, she was accompanied by Bloodwing, who now stood the size of a medium sized dog. She was dressed in, what Boltrock had dubbed, the finalized version of the battle armor of the Winged guard. There had been a lot of complaints from amongst the ranks of both the Guard and the regular amazons, about the restrictions placed on their range of movement by the chest armor they had been given. The result of this was that their armor had been radically changed to better fit their origins of fighting bare-chested.

It now consisted of tight-fitting, pine green dragon hide pants, and a series of hardened plates, made from sapphire-blue dragon hide covering the legs from ankle to thigh and from shoulders to the wrists. A tough, yet flexible partial skirt of blue dragon hide was wrapped around the lower back and both thighs, held together by a thick belt of brown dragon hide. A separate piece of dragon hide hung down in the front to cover the groin area, and was attached to the belt buckle, which was shaped like a golden griffon's head.

Over that where blued plates of Valyrian Steel with gilded edges and detailing, covering the legs from ankle to over the knee and the lower arms to over the elbow. Gauntlets that were shaped as griffon claws and boots that looked like the rear paws of a griffon covered the hands and feet.

A tough, blue, dragon hide chaperon covered the head and was draped over the shoulders and the back of the neck. The hood of the chaperon extended a bit down over the face in the shape of a beak to offer shade to the eyes. A set of shoulder guards made similarly to the other armor plates went over that on both shoulders and segmented plates went down the upper arm. A set of gilded Valyrian Steel wings went from the front on both sides past the neck and joined on the back, locking the separate shoulders into one piece.

A plain, gilded Valyrian steel band went around the head, with a clasp to attach a face plate. A few other clasps were located at the edge of the hood, to attach to the faceplate and keep the hood in place when flying or on horseback. The face plate itself was plain Valyrian steel with the face of a griffon engraved on it and inlaid with gold.

The chest and back were left bare as they preferred it, but a hardened dragon hide gorget was attached to the shoulder guards which hung before the breasts and was inlaid with the crest of House Valaris in gold, not to protect their modesty as the women cared little about that, but to keep visitors from being distracted too much.

Francine had discovered many more runes when pouring though ancient tomes, ones who would not only protect against the environment but with many other uses as well. Most of them required the wearer to have dragon blood to work, but there were still a few that would be useful to those without the blood. Each of the Valyrian Steel plates had been carefully inscribed with magical runes to shield the wearer from weather and temperature influences, just like those inscribed on the regular armors. Additional runes had been added that strengthened the armor and its performance in battle and runes had been added to their weapons to enhance their effectiveness.

Bodily there had also been a few changes to Valaya and the others. To symbolize their new rank, the rubies in their cheeks had been replaced by sapphires inlaid in gold, and their iron nipple rings had been replaced by ones made from Valyrian Steel. Each ring had been inscribed with runes which would toughen their skin and enhance their healing.

These Runic Rings where not simple to make as magic had to be forged into them during the creation process, meaning Aurora was the only one who could make them. Each ring was drenched in dragon blood during the entire forging and inscribing process and dragon blood was used to temper them.

Aurora and Gabrielle had come up with the name Valkyries, for their Royal Guard and when speaking about an individual guard they were addressed as Valkyries. The official name of 'Winged Guard' though, had been given after Valaya had asked Francine to tattoo the Wings of her griffon on her back, in honor of the wings the Queens themselves wore when in human shape, so they were clearly visible while wearing their new armor. Francine had been experimenting with different ways of tattooing, as she wanted to pick up her old profession again as a hobby.

She had tried a variety of the traditional methods, but the bamboo-needle technique fit her the best, though the process was admittedly excruciatingly painful, especially with such large pieces of art. The other five Guards with a griffon hatchling had undergone the same process, or where still undergoing it, as one full tattoo took six, 5 hour sessions to complete, with three days in between each session to let the skin heal. The warrior women had made the tattooing an official ritual to mark the acceptance of a new warrior amongst the ranks of the Winged Guard, and to show they could endure any suffering in the pursuit of their duty and each wore the tattoo with pride.

Once the Guard had been introduced, the soldiers were dismissed and the people withdrew from the field as the population left for the many areas where the celebratory feast had been prepared. The new Royal Family and their closest friends and advisors, and both Councils, headed back towards the grand palace of House Valaris where a separate banquet had been prepared, and where they would greet the many embassies that had come to meet with them from all over the known world.

XXX

The banquet hall was immense, easily twice the size of the throne room in the Red Keep. Four long tables stood lengthwise in the hall, with the many officers and administrators seated on the two outer tables whilst the two middle tables were reserved for the soon to arrive embassies. One much shorter table stood on a raised dais opposite the double entrance door and at it were seated the entire extended Royal Family. Aurora and Gabrielle were sat together on a cushioned bench, with the twins and Ygritte on their right hand, and Ivan and Francine on their left, the others were seated beyond them.

Both women had finally, and after a lot of badgering from Ashara and Francine, decided to change out of their armor and for once dress like Queens should. They wore identical, black silk, floor-length dresses, with cap sleeves, leaving the shoulders bare and with a deep plunging V-line ending just below the breast, showing an almost scandalous amount of cleavage by Westerosi standards. Extremely fine golden embroidery covered the skirt in a scale-like pattern and the corset was embroidered with their coat of arms. Out of sheer stubbornness and as a small act of rebellion though, both wore a series of hairpin daggers in their braids, under the excuse of just wanting to have a weapon on hand.

Both were wearing their crowns and an assortment of jewelry that would make even a Lannister green with envy. Besides their crowns, each wore a similar set of jewelry consisting of a white-gold choker with a clear blue diamond the size of a small pigeon egg, half a dozen diamond studded bracelets on each arm, a triple chain of pearls below the chokers, and rings with sapphires or rubies on their fingers.

This assortment of jewelry had been acquired after gathering all the treasures they could find in the city, they had divided it more or less equally. Most of the coin and bullion gold and silver had been set apart and would be used to maintain and feed their armies and navy, after they had paid back their loan from the Iron Bank.

The vast riches in gold and silver that they had plundered from Slaver's Bay were divided equally between the soldiers who had survived the campaign, and the families of those that had fallen. To the Westerosi amongst them this was a nice surprise, as they were used to having almost all of the spoils go to the nobles and they themselves being lucky if they were even given a small pittance if they were injured or maimed in service to their lords.

The jewelry, artwork and Spell-Forged Valyrian Steel that had been secured, both form Valyria and Slaver's Bay, had been moved to their personal vaults beneath the palace, which had been massively expanded once the true scale of the riches had become clear.

The three new princesses still wore the dresses they had worn all day, but now with the addition of their tiara's and some other assorted jewelry. Both twins, and especially Ygritte were getting more and more annoyed as the day wore on and all three girls were fidgeting with the bracelets they had been given to wear, eager for all the ceremony to be over with so they could stop with having to dress and behave exemplary.

When everyone was seated, Aurora gave a nod to the man she and Gabrielle had appointed their official Master of Ceremonies, Ser Rolf Royce, the elder twin brother of Lord Yohn Royce. The man had been raised as heir to Runestone but by a young age it had already become apparent that he had other interests than inheriting his family's seat. His parties had become notorious in the Vale until his father had seen no other choice but to have him 'die' in a hunting accident so that his brother Yohn could inherit.

After the 'accident' he had been hidden away in a tower of Runestone for years as his parents couldn't bring themselves to kill him, but as long as he was alive, he would be a threat to his younger brother's position, as the new heir of Runestone. After ten years of confinement he had finally had enough, he had spent years with Maester Helliweg learning the arts of healing and economics, as these were the only fields of learning available that really interested him.

When his father had given a feast to celebrate the birth of Yohn's first child, a boy named Andar, Rolf had boldly stepped into the feast hall. Dressed in a rich purple robe, decorated with gaudy golden embroidery, and walking on soft leather slippers, he skipped up to the dais where his family was seated with a wide grin on his face and said. "If this is what passes for a party these days, then I'm very glad to not be a part of it. Back when I was 'alive', I would have been ashamed to be found dead at such a dull affair".

He stopped before his father, ignoring the whispers and looks from the various lords and vassals that had come to celebrate and who, until then, had thought him to have died. Raising his hand he dropped a small silk pouch on the table before his father and brother and said, "Here, this is my gift to you. Now I will never be a threat to your position and hopefully I can now finally live my own life as I want to live it."

His mother and father looked fearfully at the little pouch and what his words could have meant. "What have you done?" his mother asked softly as his father had opened the pouch and recoiled in shock at the contents.

With a bold grin Rolf had ignored his parents and turned to the assembled people in the hall, "I made sure I can never have children so now I'll never be able to take Yohn's place. I'm sick of being locked away as the great shame of our family and I'll never hide who I am again. I'm leaving for Gulltown where I'll take a ship to Braavos and you will never see me again. Goodbye."

He had done as he had said and once in Braavos he had come into the employ of the Sealord where he, amongst other things, had organized the banquet the Sealord had given in honor of Aurora and Gabrielle. After meeting them and seeing that they were so comfortable in who they were and in their relationship, he had the hope that he might find the same happiness in their employ, so he had offered them his services, which they had gladly accepted.

Now dressed in a rich golden robe with small jewels covering the seams and wearing thick golden necklaces. Broad golden armbands covered his lower arms and bejeweled rings covered his fingers. In his hand he held a long staff which hid a deadly secret. He had brought his sword from Runestone but had it altered in Braavos. The cross guard had been removed and the blade had been thinned a bit. The sheath had been replaced by rare Goldenheart and the sword had been locked into it by a twist-lock. The handle was wrapped by goldthread and the pummel had been replaced by a large round golden bell that made a high-pitched tinkle when he shook it.

When he saw Aurora nod, Rolf struck his staff on the ground and the bell echoed through the hall, signaling the guards outside the doors to open them. When they did, the first embassy entered and approached the raised dais whilst the doors closed again behind them.

Now approaching the dais was a well-known figure as Queen mother Rhaella Targaryen approached the dais followed by three knights surrounding a lady in waiting who held a small babe clutched to her breast. As they stopped before the dais, Rhaella made a perfect curtsy, followed by the knights who went down on one knee and the handmaiden who made a partial curtsy due to the babe she was holding.

With a knowing grin on her face, Rhaella looked up at the two Queens and said, "I have been sent by my son Rhaegar, King of The Seven Kingdoms, to congratulate you on your victories in Slaver's Bay and with your ascension to Queens of Valyria."

With an equal grin, Aurora and Gabrielle stood up and opened their arms in a sign of welcome and Gabrielle said, "We thank you and we welcome you in our city and in our home. Who are the companions you have brought with you?"

Rhaella turned partially towards her companions and introduced them one-by-one as they went to their knees again, "This is Ser Monford Velaryon, the Heir of Driftmark. Next to him is Ser Bonifer Hasty, a dear friend from my childhood. Last of my protectors is Ser Alliser Thorne, a commander of the garrison of the Red Keep who fought bravely on the walls as the Lannisters tried to take them."

Turning to the young woman, she took the small babe in her arms and while the woman made a curtsy, she said, "This is my Lady in Waiting, lady Alarra Velaryon, youngest sister of Ser Monford Velaryon. And finally this little sweetheart is my youngest child and only daughter, Daenerys Stormborn." The little girl opened her eyes and gave a glorious smile to the people on the dais with bright violet eyes, and toothless gums. Her pale skin and short, silver-gold hair indicated that she had inherited the traditional Valyrian looks.

"You are all very welcome here," Gabrielle said as she and Aurora took their seats again. Motioning to the nearest places on the table to their right she added, "Please take a seat and we look forward to talking more once we have the time for it."

Rhaella nodded in reply and led her companions towards the table where they sat down and waited for the next delegation to enter.

Aurora motioned towards Ser Rolf again and he rang his bell once again, signaling the next delegation to enter.

When the doors opened they revealed another familiar face in the form of Tycho Nestoris, flanked by two heavily armored guards carrying an iron-bound chest between them. Tycho approached the high table with a quick and efficient pace, his guards keeping up with large strides as they struggled to keep the heavy chest level.

"Your Graces," Tycho said while making a stiff yet respectful bow, "It gives me great pleasure to convey to you the congratulations and the gratitude of both the Iron Bank of Braavos and the Sealord Ferrego Antaryon. You have done what you have promised and struck a mighty blow at the very heart of the abomination that is slavery.

I am here to officially negotiate the formation of a treaty of mutual assistance and an alliance to ensure the safety and prosperity of both our great nations."

Aurora stood up and with a respectful nod of her head she replied, "We thank you for your kind words. Please be seated and we shall discuss your mission further in the weeks to come." Tycho nodded but did not move to take his seat, instead he motioned his guards forwards who placed the heavy chest on the table before the two queens.

"A Small token of the Sealord's esteem." He opened the lid and carefully removed a golden model of a beautifully made barge in the style of those used by the wealthy and powerful in the canals of Braavos. The prow was shaped as the head of a dragon with the neck and body as the keel and the tail tapering into a graceful stern. The wings curved over the sides of the ship and joined above the deck, creating a shaded area where people could lounge and relax if the ship had been of proper size.

Tycho handed the model over to Gabrielle who carefully accepted it and together with her wife she studied the incredible details of the little boat. "It's a beautiful piece, I think I'll have our shipwrights look into creating one in a proper size for us to enjoy ourselves when time permits it."

With a small grin Tycho replied, "That will not be necessary Your Grace, this is merely a model of the real gift, the Sealord has given you a full sized version of 65-foot which is being assembled by our finest shipwrights in one of your smaller dry docks as we speak."

"Thank you," Gabrielle said honestly, "We would like to invite you for a trip once it is done so that you can see for yourself what we have used your funds for. Furthermore, it gives me great pleasure to inform you that we are now able to repay our debt in full. We would also like to offer you the chance to open a branch of the Iron Bank right here in Valyria, so that both our great peoples might prosper from our combined efforts and future endeavors."

Tycho nodded in acceptance and said, "It would be my great pleasure to do so Your Grace, and I shall look forward to discussing your future plans." After those words, he and his guards took a seat at the table next to Rhaella's delegation.

Again Ser Rolf rung his bell and this time the doors opened to allow entrance to a far less welcome sight, four men dressed in silver mail shirts with polished helmets and tiger masks. They wielded spears and steel claws protruded from their gauntlets. They surrounded a thick-set man with a bold head and an extremely uncomfortable look on his face, as if he would rather be anywhere but there if given the chance.

As soon as the armor of the Tiger Cloaks was recognized by the occupants of the hall, dozens upon dozens of swords were drawn and guards pointed a thicket of spears and halberds towards the small group. With a thunderous expression Aurora rose up from her seat and as she briskly walked around the table, she snatched the axe from an Immortal who stood guard on the end of the table. Marching up to the group the people surrounding them stepped aside for her.

"You have some nerve coming here, slaver scum." Aurora spat as she pointed the axe at the bald man, ignoring the spears the two nearest tiger cloaks pointed at her.

The man quickly held out his hands, palms facing forward in a sign of peace and said quickly, "Please allow me to explain, we do not want conflict with you."

This surprised Aurora for a moment before she lowered the axe, though the suspicion was still clearly visible on her face. "Then speak quickly and truly."

The man nodded and said, "At once, Your Grace," turning to his men he opened a pouch from his belt and withdrew a handful of objects from within. "Volantis recognizes, Valyrian Law in its own domain and in accordance with that law, you are now free men." The four Tiger Cloaks froze in shock before removing their masks as the bald man handed them each one of the small objects in his hand. As the men held them up to see, Aurora could inspect them as well. Each object was a silver hanger in the shape of a tiger's head on a simple leather string.

Upon seeing Aurora's interest in the hangers, the man said, "These pendants are given to members of the Tiger Cloaks when they are given their freedom. It is Volantene Law that once a man is given a pendant, he is no longer a slave, and cannot be enslaved again as long as he has the pendant on his person."

Aurora still looked suspicious but now it was mixed with a hint of curiosity. "Who are you?" she asked as she motioned for the others to lower their weapons.

The man made a deep bow and said, "My name is Doniphos Paenymion, Triach of Volantis, of the Elephant Party."

"Why are you here, Doniphos Paenymion? If Volantis does not wish war, than why have you come, have the Triarchs decided to abolish slavery?" That last part was said with a hint of humor in her voice and several in the hall laughed softly at the jest, as that was most unlikely to ever happen, until…

"Yes we have," Triarch Paenymion said with a bit of pride in his voice and to the utter astonishment of the entire population of the hall.

"Why," Was all Aurora could say as her mind went three-hundred-miles-an-hour to figure out the underlying motive for this move, and what the snake in the grass would be with this decision.

Folding his hands before his corpulent belly, Paenymion took a deep breath before he began his explanation. "The Triarchs have kept a watchful eye on your progress since the Westerosi civil war. From Myr and Tyrosh, and now to Slaver's Bay, the Valyrian army has conquered everything that stood against it, and we do not wish to be the next notch on your sword belt. Volantis is now isolated between Valyria and Westeros, and this position cannot be held for long. If we wish our city to see the next winter, we will have to change and we will have to do it quickly.

In order to accomplish this change, Volantis has a proposal that will hopefully serve your demands and be beneficial to both of our peoples."

"And what would this proposal be?" Aurora questioned when Paenymion took a short break to breath and take a small swig from a wine bag from his belt.

"Volantis is a city built on a long tradition of slavery, and the sudden abolishment of the practice, as well as the freeing of all slaves would utterly destroy our society and our economy." This caused several scowls to appear, amongst them was the deepening of the one on Aurora's face, so Paenymion quickly went on.

"So we wish to propose a more structured decline in the number of slaves and a gradual transition to a society that is not depended upon slavery. Currently the slave population within the influence of Volantis stands at just under eight-hundred-thousand, with fifty-thousands of those being the Tiger cloaks, and an equal number forming the crews for the ships of our war fleet. All of the slaves forming our army and manning our fleet will be set free before the end of this year in five months. Over the next fifteen years, we shall free thirty-thousand slaves every year, with the remainder being set free at the end of those fifteen years.

In the meantime, all corporeal punishment and mistreatment of slaves will be forbidden and you are free to send people to inspect this if you so wish. The elderly and weak will be given priority in being freed and no new slaves shall be imported or made by any Volantene.

In addition to this, we would open our harbor for any ships travelling between Valyria and Westeros, giving them a safe birth and place to resupply on their journey's."

As he finally fell silent, Aurora was thoughtful and debating with Gabrielle about this offer.

After a few minutes, Aurora asked, "And what would you be demanding in return for this?"

Paenymion cleared his throat before answering, "All we ask in return is that you keep your armies and war fleets away from our borders and allow us to remain free and govern ourselves as we want, within the boundaries of any agreements made between us of course."

After another short silence, Aurora finally nodded and said, "We will have to discuss this at far greater length to get to any definite agreements, but for now, take a seat and be welcome."

Paenymion nodded gratefully and turning to his former guards he said, "If you should wish so, I'd like to hire you for the time I'm here, I could even arrange to have your families brought here if you'd like to settle in Valyria."

All three readily agreed to this and the four men sat down on a bench on the other side of the central aisle from Rhaella and the others.

Next came several less important delegations, most of whom represented small cities or groups of villages, seeking either trade or protection from Valyria. Trade was easily agreed to and protection was offered, but under the requirement that all slavery was abolished in the communities that received the protection.

The next interesting delegation was from the slaver city of Tolos. A trio of men, all dressed in simple brown linen tunics, with each a large pouch and a number of leather slings on their belts, stepped into the hall and walked a little nervously towards the high table.

All three made a deep bow towards the Queens and the middle did a small step forwards, showing him as the spokesperson of their little group. "Greetings Your Graces, my name is Aurion, I am a great- great- great- great-grandson of the dragon rider Aurion, who declared himself emperor of Valyria. My ancestor lost his entire army and his dragon in his attempt to cross the storms, and washed up on the shores of Tolos more dead than alive."

With a small nod of her head Aurora acknowledged his claim, as she had learned about Aurion's attempt from Vermithrax, and motioned for him to continue, which he promptly did.

"As you will probably know, Tolos has had a long tradition of slavery." Both Aurora and Gabrielle nodded, they did indeed know that, though neither Aurion, nor his two companions looked the part of slavers. This was a bit odd, though it became clear when he went on. "What you might not know is that, that is no longer the case since the uprising happened."

Unable to suppress her confusion, Gabrielle muttered a bit louder than intended, "What uprising?"

Aurion got a small grin on his face and replied, "The uprising that happened when news of your victories in Slaver's Bay reached the ears of the downtrodden in Tolos and they rose up to follow your example. The slaves and lowborn of Tolos have taken up arms and now the slavers have been brought low and killed, and the Dragon Banners of Valyria fly over our walls."

A deafening silence fell over the hall at that declaration until Aurora and Gabrielle stood up in unison and started applauding, which caused a storm of applause and cheering in turn at this unexpected but very welcome news.

When some measure of silence had returned to the hall, Gabrielle addressed Aurion and said, "This is most welcome news that you have brought us, Aurion, but is there anything your people need from us, now that you are a part of our kingdom?"

At this Aurion turned serious and replied, "There is to be honest." Taking a deep breath Aurion continued, "During the uprising, large parts of the city were set afire by the former Masters, which destroyed most of the city's food supplies and injured many of our people. Our slingers hold the walls against bandits and pirate plunderers intent for revenge, but we are desperate for help in the form of food supplies, help in rebuilding our city, and military help to clear our coastline of marauders."

Nodding in understanding, Gabrielle stood up and turned the table next to the one Rhaella was seated on, "Lord Admiral Dagmer Cleftjaw,"

Dagmer stood up and made a small bow towards the high table and said, "Your Grace,"

"Dagmer, on the morrow I need you to gather three score longships, two score transports, and a score of carracks. I'll see to it that the granaries get word to stock the carracks with food, and I'll have three regiments of forlorn ready to board the transports at nightfall tomorrow. I want them underway at first light, day after tomorrow."

Dagmer nodded and replied, "It shall be done My Queen." Before sitting down again.

Turning back to Aurion, who looked a little gob smacked by the immediacy, and the scale of the response to his request, Gabrielle smiled and said, "Rest assured Aurion, your people and your city are now under our protection, and we take care of our own. For now you and your fellows are our guests, I'd like to invite you to take a seat and be glad in the knowledge that you shall have all the help you require to bring Tolos back up to strength."

Both Aurion and his two companions made a deep bow and Aurion said with a voice thick with emotion, "You have our deepest thanks for this enormous generosity Your Grace, and I assure you that Tolos would be more than happy to supply slingers for your armies, as our slingers are world-renowned and deadly at ranged combat.

"That would be most appreciated," Aurora replied with a gracious smile, "Though there is no need for that at the moment, as we first need to get your city back up on its feet and able to look after itself again. In the future we might turn Tolos into a stronghold as its location on the mainland allows for it to be a refuge for escaped slaves looking for freedom and safety."

Aurion nodded again and he and his fellows took a seat on the same table as Rhaella.

When Rolf rang his bell again, the doors opened to allow entrance to five dark-skinned people, two men and three women, all standing tall and proud, with large, richly colored feathered cloaks and headpieces. The two men wore loose breezy clothing, with the one in the middle being much more richly dressed in silk whilst the other wore linen. The three women were apparently supposed to be looking like guards, as they wore golden-colored scale armor in the form of a hauberk and upper arm and leg guards and they were each armed with a bow slung on their backs which seemed to be too large for them to wield.

The walk towards the high table was spend in silence as all were studying the colorful regalia of the newly arrived. The silence was only broken when a sudden voice from amongst the ranks of the former Golden Company cried out, "Nephew? What are you doing here?"

Looking towards the voice the richly dressed man addressed Black Balaq and said with equal surprise in his voice as the former had and not a small bit of dread to, "Uncle Balaq, last I heard from you were in Tyrosh."

With a small huff, Balaq answered, "Well last time I heard from you, you were still sitting comfortably on your ass at my late brother's seat in the Red Flower Vale."

At those words the faces of all five fell and a hint of a blush appeared on the richly dressed man's face. On a darker tone with a hint of anger in it, Balaq demanded, "Don't tell me you lost the seat our family has held for near 500 years."

Almost cowering beneath his uncle's stare as the imposing captain of archers stood from his seat and marched over to him, the man stammered, "I… I… I'm… s… sor… sorry, uncle.

'SLAP', with a single strike from his calloused hand, Balaq sent his nephew to the ground after which he spat on the ground before his face and snarled, "You are a disgrace to our family. When my elder brother took the throne upon our father's death, he was a strong and respected leader, that was three decades ago. What has happened in the nine years since his death?"

When the young men didn't answer but remained whimpering on the ground, Balaq kicked him once in the ribs before demanding again, "WHAT HAS HAPPENED?"

It was one of the women who answered instead as she threw herself on the ground before Balaq and cried, "MERCY LORD, he is not to blame."

With a look that could freeze the blood in one's veins, Balaq turned to the woman and snarled, "Then let him explain that. He is a Prince of our people, and he should not have to rely on a dressed up servant to speak for him. Turning back to his nephew, Balaq grabbed him by the neck of his shirt and pulled him to his feet.

Before he could continue his interrogation, Balaq was interrupted by the voice of Aurora, "Balaq, perhaps you could introduce your nephew to us, and us to him, before you beat him black and blue, and since he's obviously terrified by you, he might be more willing to talk to us."

It was obvious Balaq wanted nothing more than to ignore the suggestion but when he looked her in the eye he saw it was really an order, just not stated as such. He nodded once to her in recognition and grabbing his nephew by the arm, he dragged him forward towards the head table as the other four followed them.

Upon arriving, Balaq made a respectful bow to the queens and forced his nephew to do the same, as the other four followed his example on their own accord. "Your Graces, this is my brother's only son, Jalabhar, the Prince of Xho and rightful ruler of the Red Flower Vale, home of the largest Goldenheart woods in all the world." Turning to his nephew he added, "Nephew, these are Their Royal Highnesses, Aurora and Gabrielle, of the House Valaris, Queens of Valyria."

Jalabhar bowed again and after swallowing twice he said, "It is an honor to meet you Your Graces, I am Jalabhar Xho rightful ruler of the Red Flower Vale on the island of Jhala. I have come here to petition for your help in regaining my seat, as it has been taken from me in unlawful and treasonous ways."

Aurora nodded slowly in acknowledgement as Gabrielle spoke, "We welcome you and your companions to Valyria, prince Jalabhar, but before we decide whether or not to help you, please explain further."

"Of course, Your Grace," Jalabhar replied with a bow of his head, "If I might ask, are you familiar with the way in which war is waged on the Summer Islands?"

"We are," Gabrielle nodded and he went on.

"That is good, so as you know our way of war is more civilized that that of all other countries in the world. When one party declares war, both parties go to the priests and the holy men and women then choose a day and location for the battle that will decide the conflict. It is a clean and honorably way of fighting in which no civilians are hurt and no villages destroyed."

Both ladies nodded in response, Balaq had told them about the way in which his people wage their wars.

"About two months ago, a challenge was made upon my leadership by the prince of Silver Mountain Vale, Manyay Qhoqua. All required steps were followed and all procedure was followed but on the day of the battle, all of my warriors were sick and barely able to stand. The battle was not a battle but a massacre, all of my warriors were routed within an hour and nearly a quarter were killed, the rest were banished as is tradition. A few dozen have come with me, the others have spread out.

We have managed to secure some of the food that was given to us by the priests the day before the battle and every time one of us ate from it, the results were the same, they became sick, weak on their legs and barely able to fight. That miserable worm of a Qhoqua has somehow bribed the priests to poison our food, whilst it is their holy duty to oversee the food supply expressly so something like this does not happen."

"That's a most interesting story prince Jalabhar, approach and give me your hand." Not really understanding Aurora's command but unwilling to disobey it, Jalabhar looked at his uncle who motioned with his head to, 'get on with it'. All those of higher command, the ones who knew the true meaning of the order, looked with breaths held as Jalabhar approached the table and reached halfway over it to, after a moment of hesitation, grasp Aurora's hand.

As soon as their hands joined, Aurora brought her immense mental powers to bear and broke open the prince's mind. Looking for the relevant information she checked it for accuracy and whilst she was there, also looked for proof of his efficiency as a leader. Whilst she was pleased with her confirming his tale as true, she was less pleased by his competency as a leader. He was rather lazy and more than content to leave the ruling of his princedom to others, whilst he enjoyed himself with the priestesses of the god and goddess of love.

After releasing his hand, Aurora sat back down and took up her goblet of strong red wine. As she drank she and Gabrielle thought on how to proceed with Jalabhar. One the one hand, he'd be an ideal candidate to unite the Summer Islands in their name, and thus give them access to their fabled archers, but on the other hand if his behavior stayed the same then there was little hope of that reign being either long or peaceful. If they were to support him, he would need a strong steward to keep him in line and to rule in his name should it be necessary.

Having reached a conclusion, Gabrielle took the word and said, "Prince Jalabhar Xho, commander Balaq, we shall help you in retaking your domain, and in unifying the Summer Islands." A wide grin spread on Jalabhar's face at these word but it was quickly removed as his uncle elbowed him in the ribs and Gabrielle continued.

We shall help you, but only if certain terms are met."

"What terms," Balaq asked as Gabrielle paused a bit to take a drink of wine.

"The terms are as followed," Aurora continued in her wife's stead, "Your nephew enlists in the army as an archer, under your personal command. As we ready our armies for war, for the duration of this winter, he will learn, and you will teach him everything that you think he should know to be a good ruler. When winter is over, Gabrielle and I will test him, if he passes, we will take and unify the Summer Islands under his leadership. If he fails, we will take and unify the summer Islands and put someone else in command, perhaps even you Balaq."

As both Balaq and Jalabhar were digesting this news, Aurora delivered the final term. "And lastly, when we are successful, and regardless of who will be the ruler, then a force of twenty-five-thousand archers will be raised from the Summer Islands and join our armies, each of them equipped with a Goldenheart bow and 5 sheaths of 24 arrows. The rest of their equipment we shall provide."

The silence that followed this proclamation was filled with suspense, as the potential military value of such a force was considerable.

"Agreed," Balaq said after a few minutes and after poking his nephew, Jalabhar repeated it.

"Excellent," Aurora said with a wide grin and motioned for Jalabhar and his companions to take a seat as Balaq rejoined his companions.

When all were seated again, Aurora nodded to Ser Rolf and he shook his staff for the next embassy to enter. The next three embassies were of little consequence, just two small settlements asking for help and one sellsail captain offering the services of his ship.

When Rolf shook his bell for the last embassy, and when they entered, a collective gasp went through most of the Westerosi occupants of the hall. The first two were an elderly man and a young woman who were visibly related and shared the classic Valyrian looks of silver hair and amethyst colored eyes. The third was a tall man with golden-blond hair, sparkling green eyes and a face that was made for laughing. The woman held the hand of a small girl of about two name days who walked between her and the golden haired man, behind the silver haired man. Both the woman and the little girl wore the same dress, one of soft red silk with a golden lion stitched on the bodice.

The gasp that had gone through the hall was caused by the appearance of these dresses but even more by the golden-haired man, as he was recognized by those who had known him as someone who had been thought dead for several years now.

"Gerion Lannister, you got some nerve coming here you golden haired bastard." Oberyn snarled as he prepared to stand up from his seat, spear already within his hand. Only a small hand that gently grasped his own and held him seated stopped him from doing more. Turning around to the person next to him he saw Ellaria looking at him with a concerned look on her face.

"Please don't, my love, don't do anything you will regret..

"Regret," Oberyn nearly snarled at her, "Regret, that man's brother ordered the murder of my sister."

"And is that his fault." Ellaria whispered back. "When he wasn't even in Westeros when that happened."

"Well… I… he… but….I… I don't care."

"Then care about this," Ellaria added as she pulled his hand down below the table and pressed it against her belly, as she looked him in the eye. "Don't do something rash that will get you send back to Dorne in shame. Don't leave me here to raise our child alone."

Those words shocked him enough to forget about everyone else and he just stared between Ellaria's face and his hand that was still on her belly, until he was tapped on the shoulder by one of the amazons. As he looked up at her she pointed towards the head table were Francine was staring at him with a big frown on her face as she held up her left ring finger and moved her own wedding ring up and down on it."

Swallowing loudly, Oberyn nodded at Francine whilst he unconsciously brought his right hand to a protective place over his crotch. Francine nodded once at him before moving her right index- and middle finger between her eyes and him. As he nodded again, a bit more panicky now, Francine smiled as she turned back to the trio of adults and the little girl that had now arrived before the Royal table.

XXX

"Greetings, Your Graces," the silver-haired man said as he and the others made a bow before the table. "My name is Ayrmidon Hyaredon, Hierarch of the former Valyrian colony of Elyria." Motioning to the people behind him he continued, "These are my daughter Myrmadora, her daughter Joy, and her husband Gerion Lannister."

Gabrielle stood up and spreading her arms she said, "Welcome to Valyria, Hierarch Hyaredon you and your family are welcome in our city, though I have to admit to a bit of curiosity about how Gerion Lannister came to be your son-in-law, seeing as he is thought to be dead in Westeros."

As Hyaredon made to answer, he was stopped by Gerion who placed his hand on his shoulder and stepped forward. "Please allow me to explain this." Gabrielle nodded as she sat back down and motioned for him to continue.

"As you probably know, I was sent to Essos by my brother Tywin to search for our ancestral Valyrian greatsword Brightroar." As he received several nods in reply, he quickly turned aside towards prince Oberyn and added on a compassionate tone, " On the matter of Tywin though, I would like to give you my sincerest apologies for the actions of my family and I wish to assure you that Tywin is also the reason why I am not in Westeros right now."

Oberyn was surprised by the honesty in Gerion's voice and nodded stiffly before turning back to Ellaria and Gerion turned back to the royal table. "When I left, it was not on the best terms with my brother, as my leaving was not a choice, but a punishment. My brother wanted me to marry some Marbrand girl, but since I refused and I knew Tygett had a crush on her I refused to do so. Eventually Tygett and I managed to convince Tywin to allow Tygett to marry the Marbrand girl, but in turn he send me on a hopeless quest to get rid of me.

He gave me a ship, The Laughing Lion, and a crew, and made me leave before Tygett was even engaged. I made it to Volantis without problems, but when the crew found out that I intended to cross the storms and enter Valyria, half of them deserted me there. I had no choice but to refill my crew with slaves," He ignored the angry murmuring and went on,

"We managed to reach Valyria, without further interruptions, but the storms were even more frightening in person that the stories told. We sailed all around Valyria trying to find a place where we could cross, but we never found one. Eventually, I gave up and we headed for Elyria to resupply and think about my further options, as returning to Casterly Rock was not one of them.

When the island showed up in the distance we saw a large smoke cloud hanging over the harbor and a pirate ship sailing away from it at full speed. Seeing as both myself and my crew were bored and frustrated with our inability to cross the storms, I decided to take action and I ordered the chase. Luckily the wind was on our side and we managed to catch them soon.

As it turned out we were badly outnumbered, but luckily for me, the part of my crew that stayed with me were professional marines from the Lannisport Fleet, so we managed to cut our way through the pirates. When the last was dead, we searched the ship and in the captain's cabin I found the most beautiful girl I had ever seen." Taking his wife's free hand, he brought her and their daughter forward to stand next to him.

"Myrmadora, or Myra as we call her, had been abducted during a raid on Elyria in order to put pressure on her father and have him hand over control of the island so they could turn it into a pirate base.

When we returned to Elyria, her father welcomed us with open arms in thanks for his daughter's safe return and offered us to stay for as long as we wanted. In the end, to make a long story short, Myra and I fell in love, we got married and had this wonderful little bundle of sunshine here, our daughter Joy.

I am now the garrison commander of Elyria and I have never been more happy in my life. When word began coming in about Tywin's actions in Westeros and then later about your actions in the Stepstones, we began to think about what to do if you came our way. And then, when news about Astapor began trickling in, followed by Yunkai and Meereen, the choice was clear." At this point, Gerion stepped back with his wife and daughter and Hyaredon spoke again.

"Indeed, and seeing as Elyria was founded as a Valyrian colony, our choice was indeed clear. We would like to rejoin the fold and become a part of Valyria again."

"And we would like to welcome you to be a part of our new empire. You joining us is a big step on the way to create a save place for runaway slaves. With Tolos also on our side, it could be a land bound place for slaves to flee to and find safety, and Elyria could be a naval outpost for protecting it and the convoys that will bring the people from Tolos to Valyria."

"It would be our privilege," Hyaredon replied with a smile and a small bow.

"Excellent," Gabrielle clapped her hands as she also wore a bright smile, "we will get to the details later but for now, please take a seat."

Hyaredon nodded and moved to a table, but Gerion and his family stayed standing as he picked his daughter up, and hugged his wife to him with his other arm. "What will be happening to us, seeing as you are in open war with the rest of my family?"

The smile left Gabrielle's face, but Aurora gently patted her wife's hand and stood up. "Gerion, you, your wife, and your daughter will stay here, as our personal guests, if you want to. If you want to leave and return to Westeros, you are free to do so. If you wish to return to Elyria and stay with governor Hyaredon, you are free to do so.

In other words, Gerion, you are totally free to do whatever you want. You are in no way, shape, or form, responsible for the actions of your brother. And no one here is blaming you for anything." At this she quickly looked towards Oberyn but was glad to see he was still touching Ellaria's belly and not paying attention to anything around him.

"But I would like to give you an offer. If you want to stay here, we will give you a command position in our army, help us defeat the slavers and in doing so, let the world know that not all Lannisters are without honor. And just between us, if you prove yourself, your word might just be able to influence any decision we will have to make about the fate of your siblings and their families once this war is over."

Gerion looked up in surprise at this and after shaking his head he replied, "I… I would be honored to accept a position in your army."

"Great, we'll talk more at a later time, please join your father-in-law so we can finally get to the feast."

"Of course." Gerion smiled and led his family to were Ayrmidon sat next to Aurion and his company.

As soon as they sat, Aurora looked at Rolf and asked, "Are there anymore?"

Rolf shook his head and replied, "No Your Grace, these were all of them."

"Very well Ser Rolf, please bring in the food and let's eat."

With a wide smile on his face, Ser Rolf nodded and walked across the hall to a side door that led to the palace kitchens.

At the royal table, Aurora and Gabrielle looked at each other with a content and loving smile and Gabrielle said softly, "This feels good doesn't it love,"

Aurora nodded and replied, "It does indeed, sweetie. It finally feels like we have things on the right path." They smiled lovingly at each other and shared a loving kiss.

"Eeeuuww." The twins whined at their parents behavior and when they separated again with a frown at the girls, they were met with two angelic faces wearing an identical and sanctimonious smile.

"You two little rascals really need to stop doing this." Gabrielle said whilst looking at the girls over the tip of her nose. "Why does it bother you so much if your mother and I can kiss in public?"

"We don't mind?" the twins said in unison, and Silvana added, "We just like to mess with you about it."

The two adults couldn't help but burst out in laughter and shake their heads. Life couldn't get much better than it was right now.

Author's note :

Once again, I'm so sorry for keeping you all waiting so long for this chapter. I want to thank all of you for the many messages I received from you in my absence from posting, it means a great deal for me.

Also I am in need of a new Beta reader.

What I need in an beta reader is,

Someone who will help me to correct the grammar by marking and correcting my mistakes.

Someone who will act as a test reader to pick out any mistakes and/or points that could be improved upon.

And finally someone who encourages me to keep writing, as some motivation now and then helps a lot.

If anyone is interested in becoming my Beta, please send me a PM and we can look into it further.

As a last request to you all, if you have the time, please leave a review, as they were the things that brought me back to writing.

I hope to see you all again soon.

P.S. this was the official last chapter of the first book, there will be one more chapter after this which will be a bonus one from another perspective. This one should come a lot sooner as it is around 70% done.