HOTD: The Healer Prince SI Chapter 30 (Patreon)

Chapter 30

Nearly a year later!

GWAYNE HIGHTOWER

The explosion at his sister’s wedding had rocked his world, and the last half a year had been quite testing for him. Though it wasn’t really just him who had been tested, Alicent had been the person most affected by the whole ordeal. Especially given that she had been pregnant during this whole time, and had nearly lost the child due to the explosion.

Gwayne had decided to stay with her during this whole ordeal. The atmosphere in Bravos after the incident had been thawing, for the attack had nearly succeeded in killing the Sealord. The atmosphere had been even more tense for them, given that a certain group in Bravos thought them responsible for the attack and wished to prosecute them for treason.

Yet thankfully, due to Aenys’s efforts, the Sealord had survived and had woken up two days later, and had exonerated them, launching an investigation into the attack. An investigation would quickly reveal the man behind the whole plot, a person called Alissano Neysaris, a close friend and aide to the Sealord who had planned the whole assassination attempt to obtain the seat of the Sealord.

Despite the identification of the preparator, the tribulations hadn’t truly ended. Aenys had been bedridden since the incident and hadn’t woken up, and this had been truly taking a toll on his sister and had been the main reason for his decision to stay in Bravos. And Alicent had been catatonic with grief, and in those times of extreme turbulence, the Princess’s sudden arrival had been the anchor she had needed.

Princess Rahenyra’s sudden appearance had taken her by surprise, yet it had been exactly what Alicent had needed.

The princess had been able to provide a much-needed familiar shoulder to Alicent in her times of trouble taking care of her. Gwayne was extremely thankful to the Princess for all her support, and it was the reason that he was walking towards his sister’s room at that moment.

Aenys’s manse was still under construction and had yet to be repaired completely, and Sealord and his wife had forced them to move to Sealord’s palace, given that Aenys had saved Sealord’s life.

Yet it seems that fate wasn’t quite done with them. With Aenys still unconscious in a coma and all three of them still reeling from the effects of the first tragedy. The fates had struck again, bringing loss and tragedy with them, this time for the very Princess who had given his sister a shoulder to lean on in her times of trouble.

He walked through the corridor past the stationed guards as he made his way toward Alicent’s room. He gave a gentle knock and was immediately beckoned in, with a simple “Come in.”

He opened the door and entered Alicent’s room. Alicent had been given perhaps the best room in all of the palace, with a direct view of the Sealord’s mangery on one side and then a tantalizing view of Bravos on the other side.

He found Alicent in her usual place, sitting by the window staring outside as she lay on a specially made seat for pregnant women, with plates full of exotic fruits placed in front of her, yet remained untouched. Her face had thinned, and gone was the smile he had seen on her face on her wedding day, replaced by an everpresent sense of sadness and gloom, a feeling that had become accentuated ever since the Princess’s rapid departure.

“Are the preparations done?” she questioned, as her head snapped towards him, and he nodded as he walked towards the seat opposite to her.

“Yes, they are. The ships are ready and I plan to depart by tomorrow,” he continued his eyes glancing at her protruding belly once more as he slowly questioned once more.

“Are you sure that you will be fine without me?” he asked again, and she nodded again, her eyes dimming as she replied.

“Yes, I will be fine. Rhaenyra needs you more than me at this time. With everything she has done for me, it should be me who goes to Kingslanding….” And he cut her off before she could begin again.

“But that is impossible. Healer Grey has been very adamant that you should avoid traveling in your state, even the Princess forbade you from it,” and saw her lips turn up slightly as she nodded resignedly.

“I remember that is why it is imperative that you go to Kingslanding,” she said as her eyes turned towards her, and he nodded.

“Plus, I have enough people here to care for me. I feel so bad with you, Blair, and Rhaenyra fussing over me all this time,” she said with a shake of her head, and he shrugged.

“That just goes on to show just how loved you are,” he replied, and she nodded, her eyes moving toward the expanding city visible through the window, and he had a pretty good idea of what was going on through her mind.

“Aenys wouldn’t want you to worry so much about him. His injuries have healed, and the healers are optimistic that he will wake up soon,” he tried to reassure her and saw a pang of sadness and guilt pass over her face as silence reigned over the room, broken minutes later by her soft voice.

“I was going to tell him about the child that day. I should have told him abo….” And his heart twisted in agony as he watched tears well up in her eyes. Alicent broke out into sobs once more as he rushed towards her and knelt down by her side, trying to console her.

“It will all be fine. It will all be just fine. He will wake up soon. You shouldn’t worry so much like this,” he tried to console her as his sister broke down in his arms, crying out as he knelt there, gently patting her back.

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ALESANDRO FEROSA

Alesandro sat in his private chambers, lost in thought, as he prepared himself for the trial that was set to happen later in the day. A trial for an attempt at his own life by his oldest and dearest friend.

He glanced back, and the absence of Syrio, the previous First Sword of bravos, felt even more devastating given that the man had lost his life in that fire trying to rescue him only to be burnt to a husk as the assassins overpowered him.

The fire, the great betrayal, or the infamous ‘burnt wedding’ as the populace had begun calling it, still occupied the minds of the people of the Bravos, especially since it was revealed that it had been one of their own upper echelons that had been involved in a plot to assassinate their Sealord, and the most popular man in the city the infamous Healer Prince.

The doors to his room opened, and there was only one person who could enter his private chambers without knocking, he looked up to find that very person entering the room. Blair walked in, clad in simple yet ceremonial purple garb, a gold tiara adorned fashionable on her hair, giving her a regal look.

“Has he left?” he questioned, and she nodded; there was no need to elaborate on the person he was asking about since there was truly only one person set to leave Bravos today.

“Yes, he has,” she replied, and he nodded as she walked and sat down in the chair opposite him.

“Is everything ready for the trial?” she questioned, and he nodded slowly, a part of him still reeling from the deep shock at being betrayed by such a close friend.

“It is, though there wasn’t much to prepare. Aenys’s contact from Qarth stepped forward and gave us copies of Alissano’s contract with the Sorrowful men. After that, he confessed to everything,” he replied. The trial today was to discuss the punishment for Alissano and to deal with the damages done, There was a general call to hand the man for his treason, yet Alessandro couldn’t imagine himself sentencing his oldest friend to such a fate.

“That is good. He should be hanged for what he did,” his wife cut in sharply. She had been especially distraught by the whole ordeal, especially since she had always had a soft spot for Aenys and now for his Lady wife.

Speaking of her, Lady Alicent was also to be present for the trial, given that the crime had been committed against her family, too.

“How is the Lady Alicent? I believe she would be feeling quite alone with both the princess and her brother gone now?” he questioned.

The Princess had been another surprise. Hearing about the tragedy at the wedding, Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen had flown on dragon back to see her uncle and her best friend and had decided to stay here to console Aenys’s wife.

It was a bold decision given the rising tensions between Bravos and Kingslanding, and there had been several people among his own court who had spoken against this. Yet he had quickly shut them down, after all, he owed Aenys that much.

Plus the Princess’s presence presented another opportunity to practice soft diplomacy, and given what had happened in the Stepstones, it was perhaps their only approach.

He saw Blair saddened at the mention of Alicent, and she nodded.

“Indeed, she was quite saddened, yet there was no other way. She wasn't feeling well so I asked her to only make a short appearance at the trial, and then leave quickly after. I hope that is fine,” she asked, and he nodded.

“It is. She only needs to show her presence. She can leave after that,” who would begrudge her for that, given that the lady in question was with child and was an honored guest of the Sealord himself.

A part of him still couldn’t fathom why Alissano would do something like this, the man had come from wealth, his family amongst the keyholders of the Bank of Bravos, and though they weren’t the richest, they still were amongst the wealthiest people in the city.

He sighed as he leaned back in his chair, voicing out his thoughts.

“I still cannot fathom why someone like Alissano would do something like this,” he whispered, though his wife was quick to cut in.

“I can,” she spoke; the quickness of her response startled him quite a bit, and he was reminded once more that Blair wasn’t a simple woman herself. She may have an air of innocence and childishness about her, but she was a member of one of the keyholder families herself, someone who had been raised amongst perhaps the most cunning men in the world.

“He always was a bit jealous of you, though I think he began to feel threatened by Aenys’s presence,” she began, and he became quiet as he listened to her analysis, it was rare for her to speak about the matters of ruling, despite being capable of it all.

Seeing his interest she continued with a raised brow, “Aenys’s rise to wealth and fame was quick, and all he achieved was done so by himself. He became close to you hence pushing Alissano further down, hence fueling his envy and greed,” she concluded and it was a logical analysis.

“Then, of course, there is his family’s obsession with dragons and their wish to obtain them for themselves,” she suddenly added, making his heart sink as his head snapped toward her.

“How do you know? I haven’t told anyone about this,” he questioned suddenly, and Blair just shrugged.

“It wasn’t that difficult to put together, and your reaction just now confirmed my suspicion,” she began, and he sighed as he shook his head. They had cleared out the debris from the burnt manse and, in the rubble, had found a half-burnt chest, a chest containing three dragon eggs. Thankfully, the men he had hired were quick and discrete enough to remove the eggs and bring them to him.

“You do know that you cannot mention this to anyone. If word about those eggs gets out, we will have a massive scandal on our hands. The relationship with Kingslanding is tense as it is, those eggs could further complicate matters,” he spoke sternly, and Blair turned her eyes as she nodded.

“I know that, though, about the relationship with Kingslanding. Have you perhaps done something about it? The merchants and the populace grow worrisome about the state of affairs in the Stepstones,” and he winced at that.

The Stepstones had proven to be a disaster for him. Daemon Targaryen had burnt down a major portion of the mercenaries, making the rest retreat, and now had nearly full control over the islands. His dragon had been injured in one of the battles, giving the pirates much-needed relief but even without the aid of his dragon Kingslanding was making steady progress in the islands.

“I know, and I have done something. Hopefully, there will be positive news soon,” he replied, choosing not to reveal his attempt at soft diplomacy through eh heir to the seven Kingdoms, Blair narrowed her eyes though did not push and simply nodded along.

0000

OTTO HIGHTOWER

Sometimes it seemed like tragedy followed House Targaryen like a plague. The atmosphere in the clearing was somber. Only the voices of septas praying filled the reigning silence as the Kingdom mourned at the loss of its Queen.

After the assassination attempt on Prince Aenys and Alicent, the Princess had chosen to leave for Bravos without informing anyone. Though Otto was sure that it wasn’t the only reason and the King’s desire for her to marry Daemon had also been one of the reasons for her decision.

The King had been extremely angry and had been filled with rage, even deciding to change the line of succession once again to punish the princess for her disgression. yet the Queen had been able to stay his hand, using the news of her pregnancy to assuage Viserys’s rage.

In the end, it was declared that the Princess had departed with the King’s blessing to go and aid Aenys and his family in their time of trial. It had been a good move and had stopped a scandal from happening while boosting Viserys’s popularity, as he was seen to be making amends with his brother.

The news of the pregnancy had changed Viserys, and there were glimpses of the old agreeable, and amicable King once more. Though they were only just that, glimpses, and the King had ignored and somewhat even applauded the massacre Prince Daemon had carried out in the Stepstones.

Yet Gods had tested him once more, and the King’s desire for a son had finally cost him the life of his Queen. Despite all the precautions and actions of the Maesters, the Queen and the child hadn’t survived the birthing bed, and the news had truly broken Viserys.

The King had become frail and pale after the Queen’s death, and as he stood there beside the casket, he appeared a shell of the man who had ascended to the Iron throne nearly over a decade ago. He stood there, alone, filled with regret, both of his brothers absent from the funeral with Prince Aenys still unconscious and Daemon’s dragon too injured to fly back.

His only daughter and heir, stood away from him, sobbing slowly into the arms of Lady Laena, her dragon perched on the hill behind her, waiting for her command. The Queen had decided to keep the princess unaware of the news of the pregnancy for some reason, and the Princess had been shocked when she had heard of all of this, flying back on Syrax as soon as she got word of the tragedy.

The Princess had taken the loss hard and had blamed her father for the death of her mother, causing much strife to the King, who also blamed himself for the demise of his wife.

“Dracarys!” the Princess commanded, and her dragon rose at her commands growling as it stepped forward and looked at the Princess, who stared at her father with her tear-filled voice and spoke once more in a broken yet strong tone.

“Syrax! Dracarys!” The dragon followed her command, opened its winds, and gave a massive growl, shaking the ground before it opened its mouth and doused the casket in a massive torrent of fire.

CRACK! CRACK!

The wood burned, and cracked, and the dragon flapped its wings and began to fly up and began to circle around the clearing as they all mourned the loss of the Queen of the Seven Kingdoms.

0000

AENYS TARGARYEN

Consciousness returned to him in waves of pain and anxiety as he felt light surrounding him, taking him out of the cacoon of darkness that had been entrapping him for so long. The air in the room was heavy with the smell of herbs and flowers, as he struggled to open his eyes.

He heard a screeching noise of a door opening, as a shadowy figure entered the room, the form of the person too blurry for him to make out their identity.

“He is awake! Gods he is finally awake!” he heard them shout, and he frowned at those words, trying to recall his last memory. The door was opened once more as the person rushed out.

“Help him!” “Watch out!” “AENYS!!”

It turned to him in flashes, the explosion, the assassins, and the cave-in. It all came back quickly, and he tried to move, and suddenly felt as if his arms and legs weighed in the tons. His vision cleared up, and he began to look around the room, trying to figure out where he was. The room seemed somewhat familiar and as he was thinking about that the door to the room opened up once again, and he looked up to find a very familiar face looking at him.

“Alicent!” he tried to say, yet his parched throat couldn’t make a sound, and he saw tears well up in those brown eyes as she slowly walked towards him, her hands gently caressed over her protruding belly.

“Aenys!” she spoke in an affectionate tone, her arms wrapped themselves around him, as she broke down into sobs in his arms.

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