[Chapter Size: 2500 Words.]
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Thrid Person POV
Dorne, 295 AC.
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Jon followed the Artican group into the room where Doran Martell awaited them. As they entered, the richness of details filled the room, with Jon being quite amazed by the historical value surrounding him, highlighting the history of Dorne and the Martell family.
The hall was large and spacious. At the front, a man sat in the only chair on a small elevation, patiently waiting for them. He curiously examined them, with Oberyn also waiting by his side with his daughters, and on the other side, there were some youths whom Jon guessed to be legitimate children.
A Dornish herald announced their presence immediately, already gathering all information about them as they were on their way; "The eminent entourage from the North, under the leadership of Jon Artica, enters our glorious hall!" He announced, and there was more respect shown to them than at the port.
Jon approached as the group walked behind him, keeping his eye on the man who studied him the entire time while seated in his chair. Jon stopped a few meters below the elevated area and waited for the herald to announce the man so as not to break etiquette.
"You are in the presence of Doran Martell, head of House Martell and the protector of the south." The man briefly spoke his titles, and Jon looked at him before bowing his head slightly for a light salute, while the man did the same.
He looked at him for a while and broke the silence for the first time. "I must admit I was quite surprised by 200 ships passing through the Stepstones with an unknown flag unlike anything ever seen, I wondered who this force could be, apparently emerging from nowhere..." He commented and continued. "Now, receiving more information about it, I admit I was quite shocked that the little northern boy I heard about many years ago has grown to the point of having a great force under his command. You now call yourself, Jon Artica, king of that realm I heard about more than 3 years ago, but I still wonder how you were able to build all this... I always heard stories about you a few years ago, maybe because they reached this end of the continent, they seemed distorted and surreal, but everyone said you are blessed by the old gods... Would you mind if you answered this last statement." He said calmly while everyone looked at him with curiosity, especially Nyra Sand, who had heard the stories of little Jon but never believed those tales when younger, but now seeing him in person, maybe not everything could be said to be a fantasy.
Jon looked at him for a moment and finally decided to speak. "You may classify me as such, after all, I owe everything to my gods." Jon admitted, he was not religious like the children of the forest, the witches of the woods, or some in Artica, but certainly acknowledged that if it weren't for his gods, he would never be where he is now.
"I see, now let me introduce my family, you have already met my two daughters who are with you, I hope they have treated you well." He said while Arianne Martell and Nyra Sand remained close to Jon as they led them.
"I have nothing to complain about the ladies." Jon spoke calmly.
Doran looked to the side where his brother was, now silent. "I heard about your misunderstanding at the port, I hope you were not too offended, House Martell would not like an enmity with such an interesting group and we will compensate you for it." Doran declared while Oberyn still remained silent, knowing he had erred.
He continued, "Now let me introduce my other 2 sons, Quentyn Martell and Trystane Martell." He announced as the boys greeted with a small nod of the head as Jon and Doran had done.
"It's a pleasure, these are my wives, Ygritte Artica and Seryna Artica. On my other side, there's my sister, Arya Stark, and my officers, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Darius, and Minister of Commerce, Junly." Jon named all the most important ones.
"I did not know that lands beyond the wall could produce such beautiful women." He said with a kind of courtesy, yet still surprised by these women being more beautiful than any other he had seen, even in Lys, they would still be considered the most beautiful. However, there was also a dangerous look in them, indicating one should not mess with them. "You certainly are a lucky man, moreover..." He turned to Arya Stark. "I had never heard of the beauty of Eddard Stark's lost daughter..." Doran commented with a calculative look. Clearly, the information that Jon had kidnapped Arya Stark had reached the south with Catelyn spreading rumors, but certainly, that was not what happened and from what he could see, going beyond the wall did a lot for the girl, who might even become more beautiful than Nyra when she matures.
'Maybe we should reach out to the Starks... that would give a good alliance for Trystane,' Doran thought quickly and also noticed some glances between Jon and his hidden niece, being a bit surprised, since she had never shown interest in the opposite sex.
He just kept his thoughts to himself and turned his attention back to the group leader, "I hear you are looking to open a trade route and are seeking partners, I'm glad you chose Dorne as your first stop, but I am still curious why you chose our kingdom." He asked.
Jon replied, "Because there are resources here that we do not have in Artica, Dorne offers thousands of kilometers with a resource we need, so my choice is based on that aspect." Jon spoke, and Doran raised an eyebrow, what did Dorne have that no other kingdom did?
"Are you seeking sand?" Doran asked, still surprised.
"Yes, and not just a little, I want to take 50 carracks full of it to the north if we come to an agreement." Jon spoke.
"This is really interesting..." Doran admitted, after all, it was easy money, sand was an abundant resource in the kingdom. He turned his gaze to a huge box that the Artican soldiers brought and spoke again. "You have some interesting resources that I've heard rumors about a few years ago, did you bring some samples?" He asked.
"Yes, let me show them." Jon said, and his guards brought the box while Jon opened it. He began to take all the things organized in the place and brought out a bottle, starting to hand the products to Doran's men, who took them to him.
Jon turned his gaze to Junly, who took a step forward to present the products in as much detail as possible. "This is one of our special beers, produced by the skilled dwarves of Artica. We use a barley that only blooms under the Arctic moonlight, giving this beer a unique flavor you won't find anywhere else. It's refreshing, with a touch of natural sweetness and a slight bitterness at the end. Perfect for toasting to cold nights and shared achievements."
Jon's men then take the next bottle, filling glasses for Doran and those present, encouraging them to taste while continuing to unveil the other products.
Junly continues, "Now, allow me to introduce our Arctic Whisky. Distilled from selected grains and aged in special wooden barrels, it carries the spirit of winter in its essence. This whisky is a true representation of our land: strong, yet with a smoothness that surprises the palate."
He passes the bottle for Doran to examine, before bringing out the next piece.
"And this, is our Ice Vodka. Filtered through the volcanic rocks of our mountains and made with the purest water from our ancient glaciers. Its clarity and purity are unmatched, reflecting the unaltered beauty of Artica."
Junly offers a sample of the vodka, allowing the aroma and taste to speak for themselves.
Now, with the Artican men bringing out dresses, leaving Arianne and Nyra with a sparkle in their eyes, despite Arianne finding the dress too enclosed, more clothes were taken out of the box, "What we have here is fabric made from ice spider silk, a wonder of our land. This fabric is not only beautiful but incredibly durable and insulating. We have many ways of dyeing clothes in Artica, and you can see the quality and the pain in the fabric. This dress is ideal for the warm climate of Dorne with a cooler fabric giving a chilly sensation."
He displays the fabric, allowing the light to capture its subtle shine.
"These tools represent the innovation and skill of Artica," he said, showing new types of cutlery, knives with more than one function, even showing a new type of beer opener that was sealed with a metal mouth and removed at once instead of a cap.
Doran asks for a glass and tries the beer in this company, despite some protests from his guards, after all, he had to show some trust in the group after what happened. He immediately lets the taste of the Artican beer flood his mouth, leaving him quite surprised.
"This is really good!" He said while looking at the beer with an admiring glance. He turned to his brother. "Try this whisky." He wanted to see his brother's opinion before trying this strange beer.
The Prince of Dorne opened the bottle, served himself with a glass given to him, took a sip, and looked at the drink with some surprise, "It's really good... however, the taste doesn't match the climate of Dorne," he commented, and Jon decided to speak.
"That's because it lacks ice, this drink is better cold," he said.
"Unfortunately, we are in Dorne, not the north..." Oberyn retorted, and Jon wasn't offended but smiled.
"Good that you compared, since we brought something interesting for this hot land," he said, and his men took out a small box from the things they brought. It was a strange box with some runic emblems on it, making everyone look at it with curiosity.
While everyone just watched, Jon took the initiative to open the box after removing a lock and lifted the lid, where he took something from the box and removed it. "Do you know what this is?" Jon raised his hand with solid water, and those who had never seen such a thing in their life were shocked.
"Is this what I think it is?!" Doran almost stood up, astonished.
"That's right, ice, brought from the north. You may have sand in abundance, but we have ice," he said with a small smile.
"How is this possible?" Doran asked, curious, it would be moons until reaching the north, no thermal equipment could withstand this.
"Artica is a special kingdom, and we have our own methods. This is a magical device that can only be recharged in Artica," he said, pointing to the box.
Jon managed to develop a runic combination to maintain and even lower the temperature. However, he couldn't keep using his magic to recharge the energy in the runes, so he started using the GrandWeirwood, as it had an inexhaustible amount of magic now, and Jon only made it more powerful. All the ice boxes are recharged in its roots that are in the city.
"I don't quite understand... but I can't say my eyes are lying... This would certainly be beneficial for this kingdom," Doran admitted.
"I'm glad you see the benefits in this," Jon spoke calmly, another reason he had chosen Dorne was that this item would have a much bigger impact in this kingdom, after all, Dorne always suffered with high temperatures. Seeing ice for the first time and refreshing their drinks and their own lives would be something never seen before. "This is our main business, we will be sending ice from Artica to the southern kingdoms, something no one has been able to do before," Jon concluded his intentions.
Doran Martell pondered Jon's words, his mind bustling with the implications of this new commodity. "Are you telling me, Jon Artica, that you could even make our hottest summers more bearable? This would change everything for Dorne; it would be like a fever among all the nobles of this kingdom."
"Not just the nobles, our ice is quite affordable even for a large part of the common folk, being able to be sold in taverns and inns," Jon said, nodding confidently. "Imagine your outdoor parties, your banquets, and even the day-to-day life of your people, all benefiting from the coolness that ice can provide against your heat. I tried it before coming here, and the taste of drinks is magnificent in the heat. Not to mention the commercial applications and food preservation."
Oberyn, who had until then maintained a courteous skepticism, now showed genuine interest too, since his life was driven by pleasure and comfort. "This could really revolutionize the way we live. House Martell would be seen as a pioneer in this business in Dorne."
Oberyn's daughters, Arianne and Nyra, exchanged looks, clearly fascinated by the idea of cold drinks and parties cooled by ice, an unimaginable novelty until now in Dorne.
Doran finally spoke, "I'm starting to see the vast possibilities of this agreement, Jon Artica. Dorne has always been known for its resilience and its ability to thrive under the scorching sun. With this partnership, we could not only improve the lives of our people. I'm very interested in this."
Jon smiled, pleased with the receptiveness to his proposal. "I'm glad you see the potential. Beyond ice, our Artican products, such as beer, whisky, vodka, and ice spider silk fabrics, are just the beginning of what we can offer. I believe a robust commercial partnership between Artica and Dorne would bring mutual and lasting benefits."
Doran nodded, thoughtful. "We need to discuss the terms of this agreement, of course. I'd like to see your logistics proposal and your plans, as you will need to maintain a large stock here, but you must be tired from your journey. How about you stay here for the next few days, settle in now, and we meet tonight at a banquet?" Doran suggested.
"That would be good. Can I showcase my products at the banquet? You must have more guests in your house; it would be good for the nobility of Dorne to appreciate our ice before we negotiate our deal. What do you think?" Jon asked.
"Great, we'll do it your way. I will invite some nobles who are staying in Sunspear, and we will gather together to celebrate this potential commercial alliance," Doran spoke with satisfaction, and Jon nodded.
"I will ask my daughters to show you to your new quarters, and my steward will speak with you to collect your stock before we present it to our guests," he said, and Jon and his group left the room, led by the girls.
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