-Chapter 110-
-POV Oberyn Martell-
"Let me through immediately."
"We have orders."
"Do I need to remind you that I am the Queen?" said Arianne.
A long silence ensued before I heard the doors open. Arianne entered in a long, elegant red and black dress and said, "My uncle."
"How are you?" I asked my niece, whose belly was beginning to swell, signaling her pregnant condition.
"It's not great," she said, hugging me.
She withdrew from my embrace and said bitterly, "Is he angry?"
"If only he wasn't angry, I think I've lost my usefulness in his eyes," she said, sad.
She placed a hand on her belly, then said, "My only hope of securing my position as queen is to give birth to a strong and healthy son."
I frowned, then said, "Be careful now that you're pregnant. The hunt is open; all the young women from noble houses will try to have a bastard they can legitimize."
She nodded, then said with a smile, "Whatever happens, it won't happen."
"How can you be so sure?" I said, intrigued.
"Aegon has got his hands on another dragon egg."
I felt my heart beat rapidly, then I asked, "Are you absolutely sure of what you just said?"
"I saw it with my own eyes," she said.
"Aegon cannot refuse a dragon egg to his first son, given that he managed to hatch a dragon egg for that fool Viserys. Dorne will have a dragon rider as sovereign for the first time."
"But there's one thing you seem not to be considering... What if it's not a son?" said Ellaria.
My expression stiffened, then I said, "Even if your initial arrangement was that the eldest son would sweep everything, he also promised that if the firstborn were a girl, she could lead Dorne as the reigning princess of Dorne. If we can make him bend to give the egg to his daughter and hatch it, it would be even better because Dorne and the crown would remain interdependent instead of just being absorbed by the crown."
"Yes, but in that case, he won't need Arianne anymore. What makes you think he won't repudiate her?"
'Anyway, we have no choice. We can only move forward and hope that fate is on our side,' I thought without responding to my everlasting love.
Arianne stood up and said, "I just came to tell you that I will try to convince him to release you and reintegrate you into your functions as quickly as possible."
I smiled softly and said, "I did nothing, and despite all his faults, we are dealing with a fairly just king."
Arianne rolled her eyes, clearly disagreeing, but said nothing and left.
"She's alone in the arena. Let's hope she can manage to defend herself," said Ellaria.
'For all our sakes, let's hope she can,' I thought.
---
-Red Keep Gardens-
-3rd POV-
When the king arrived at the banquet celebrating his victory, the party was already in full swing, and everyone immediately bowed their way.
He walked between the lines and stopped at the center of the crowd, then signaled to his squire, who brought him a cup of wine.
He raised his chalice in front of everyone and said, "Let's raise our glasses to the courageous and brave soldiers who will remain unknown but who have nonetheless given their lives so that we may continue to enjoy peace... TO THE SOLDIERS OF THE ROYAL ARMY."
"TO THE SOLDIERS OF THE ROYAL ARMY," all the nobles repeated in chorus.
"We were attacked by a coalition of cowardly snakes, and we defeated them. We lost many men but sank the iron fleet and massacred these pirates who have been ravaging for thousands of years. We have collectively ended millennia of suffering and saved future generations from the atrocities our ancestors had to live through. So, thank and applaud as it should the people who have greatly contributed to this crushing victory... MAKE A TORRENT OF APPLAUSE FOR THE CHIEF OF THE FIFTH LEGION, SER CORIAN."
The chief of the 5th legion stepped forward and kneeled while everyone applauded. The king smiled, then said, "SER CORIAN, PRESENT HERE, IS? IN ADDITION TO BEING ONE OF MY MOST LOYAL SOLDIERS? ONE OF THE VERY FEW FRIENDS I HAVE. TODAY, I THINK IT'S TIME I REWARD HIM AS HE DESERVES... What would you like as a reward, knight?"
Corian bowed his head, then said, "I need nothing more than to serve you. I never thought I could get to where I am today, and all this is solely thanks to your magnanimity, Your Majesty."
The king smiled mockingly and said to the crowd, "LISTEN TO THIS FLATTERER. I COULD ALMOST BELIEVE IT."
The crowd laughed in chorus, then the king said to his knight, "You have served me well, and I am not ungrateful. From now on, I elevate you to the title of enfeoffed knight. You will receive a fief in the Riverlands, fertile lands and serfs to provide for your needs. You will henceforth be known as Ser Corian Vicius."
"TO SER CORIAN VICIUS," the nobles repeated in chorus.