-Chapter 147-
Knock… Knock… Knock
I turned towards the door, puzzled, as I had asked that no one disturb us during our conversation, but I still said, "Come in."
The door opened, and then I saw an old blind man enter, clinging to Tristan's arm.
I immediately understood who he was and stood up to greet him as a sign of respect.
"Great-great-uncle Aemon, it is an honor to finally meet you," I said.
The old man stepped forward and said, reaching out his hands into the air in front of him:
"Let me see you, dear nephew."
I smiled and stepped forward so he could touch my face and form a mental picture of my features.
After a few seconds of fumbling, he smiled and said, "You look like my brother."
'It's probably the effects of the ritual that have acted and slowly changed my face,' I thought, as throughout my life I bore a striking resemblance to my uncle Ned, which contributed to no one doubting my true identity.
I smiled and then he said, "I heard what happened to you and I am happy to see that you have managed to overcome the trials that the gods have placed on your path."
I nodded, then remembered he couldn't see me, so I said, "Thank you, great-uncle."
"I didn't want to interrupt you, but I also didn't want you to leave without seeing you, like last time."
"I'm sorry, it's entirely my fault, I was angry and left abruptly. I should have come to see you both sooner."
"Don't beat yourself up over so little," he said with a small peaceful smile.
"Join us, great-uncle. Your opinion on certain things could greatly help me improve my approach concerning many problems," I said, inviting my great-great-uncle to sit down.
He smiled, then joined our discussion and said, "What were you talking about?"
"We were discussing different ways to subdue the wildlings," I said, beginning to explain in detail everything that had happened since I had gone to see Mance Rayder to offer him surrender and become my subject.
He listened with interest to everything I said, then thought deeply before finally expressing himself, saying:
"If you really want to subdue them, in my humble opinion, you must show generosity towards them. You have already proven that you are much stronger than they are. Now what you need to do is give them a reason to swear loyalty to you."
"I need to earn their respect," I said, frowning, because I didn't want to engage in the same circus as the original Jon Snow, who had undergone immersion with the wildlings before being recognized as their 'king.'
'The conditions for that are not met and Mance Rayder is still alive and from what I've seen, he has no intention of stepping down,' I thought, ultimately rejecting my great-great-uncle's proposal internally.
Seeing that I didn't respond, he added, "Don't be in a hurry to reject my idea. The free folk are proud people and if you act too abruptly, you risk becoming their enemy."
"Then what am I supposed to do? Just let them pass the wall without recognizing my authority?"
"Be patient and wait for an opportunity. As long as you have strength and patience, there will be countless opportunities to seize," said my great-great-uncle with a smile filled with wisdom.
"Thank you for your advice, I will take it to heart," I said, looking at my now blind elder.
"There is nothing to thank. The greatest reward for me would be for you to live well and take care of your people," said the old blind maester, who was already over 100 years old.
'To think that not long ago I felt alone in the world, when in fact, I still have family members who care about me and can advise me properly,' I thought with relief, listening to the advice of my uncle Benjen and my great-great-uncle Aemon.
---
-3rd day of the 10th moon of the year 299 AC-
-POV Daenerys Targaryen-
Looking down from my horse at the perfectly coordinated formation of the Unsullied, waiting for Khal Kharro's Khalasar to charge, I couldn't help but feel a surge of power and pride, but this feeling quickly faded when I thought about the number of Unsullied who had died since the beginning of my campaign and the number of Unsullied I had abandoned when leaving Slaver's Bay.
Seeing that the legion of Unsullied under my command was now reduced to 2000 men, I couldn't help but feel my heart grow cold.
I couldn't help but think inwardly: 'It's all my fault, if I had simply accepted my fate and returned to my family, they would still be alive.'
But as soon as I thought that, another contradictory thought infiltrated my mind: 'Living a life of slavery is worse than dying.'
'In any case, now that I had decided to free all the slaves and given them hope, having made so many sacrifices, I could no longer turn back. If I turned back, I would spit on the memory of all the soldiers who died for me over the past year,' I thought, watching the powerful Khalasar of Khal Kharro charging towards our small but powerful troops.
"Unsullied, prepare for battle," said Ser Jorah, taking command of the Unsullied due to his vast combat experience accumulated over the years working as a mercenary and as the lord of Bear Island.
The Unsullied prepared for battle and established four lines of 500 men to prevent the Dothraki screamers from overwhelming us.
"SHIELD WALL," Ser Jorah shouted.
Following Ser Jorah's order, the first two lines of shields formed a wall, but gaps could still be seen.
I had seen the Unsullied wall many times before, and I could clearly feel that something was different this time.
Ser Jorah raised his hand and the last line of defense dropped their weapons to pick up some sort of ropes.
The closer the enemy formation got, the faster my heart raced, fearing that my dream of liberating the world would be permanently halted.
When there were still about a hundred meters separating us from the screamers, Ser Jorah lowered his hand, and a sight I would never forget occurred.
The soldiers gripping the ropes violently pulled them, and spiked wooden palisades rose from the ground, abruptly stopping the charge.
The Dothraki, being excellent horsemen, managed to slow down, but the riders behind them couldn't do the same, causing a chain reaction.
Some were thrown against the palisades, others managed to jump over only to be impaled by spears thrown from the third line of defense, while others were simply crushed under the hooves of their allies' mounts.
'Incredible, with this tactic we really have a chance to win this battle,' I thought, seeing the enemy formation completely disorganized.
I turned to Ser Jorah and noticed that his expression wasn't as confident as mine, so I wondered what was bothering him.
Observing the battlefield closely, I realized that the enemy formation was so vast that seeing the problems the vanguard faced, the rearguard decided to split into two to attack us from the flanks.
'Although we managed to lure and entangle most of the forces, if we continue down this path, we risk being surrounded and completely overwhelmed one by one,' I thought, feeling the breath of death creeping closer and closer to me.
I racked my brain for a solution until I saw in front of me the Khal, a few dozen meters away, and his bloodriders trying to break through our front formation.
I gathered all my courage and then advanced, shouting to Drogon who was flying in the skies:
"DROGON, DRACARYS."
I don't know if he really heard me or read my mind, but almost instantly, he dove and flew straight towards the Khal like a hawk.
He spread his wings while unleashing a breath of flames that completely enveloped the Khal and his bloodriders.
Seeing the Khal they respected so much die by Drogon's breath froze the battlefield, and I took the opportunity to shout:
"I am Daenerys Targaryen, Khaleesi of Khal Drogo, Mother of the Stallion Who Mounts the World. I grant you your lives if you surrender to me; otherwise, you will all burn under my dragon's fire."
Panic and murmurs spread through the Dothraki, then some began to move away as they saw Drogon fly over their army a second time and unleash another breath of fire into the air to scare them.
After a few moments, a Dothraki stepped forward and cut his braid before turning and leaving, then a second, a third, and finally the bloody battle that was supposed to end only with our eradication or theirs ended with a few hundred dead and wounded on their side and not a single casualty on ours.
I stood dazed for a few seconds, seeing that I had actually managed to frighten these proud warriors who usually fear nothing and no one. Once out of my trance, I said:
"You were perfect, my queen. I have no words to express the miracle you just produced."
I nodded, keeping a dignified look before turning to head to our camp once we were out of danger.
Despite our victory, I couldn't find the solution to the problem that tortured me every moment.
'How to defeat my nephew who seems to have everything planned and constantly opposes me, unlike him, I have only one dragon.'
---
-4th day of the 10th moon of the year 299 AC-
"What are they doing here?" I said, looking at the six men in front of me.
"They are here to swear loyalty to you and follow you and the Stallion Who Mounts the World," said Rakharo.
I frowned without understanding, then he looked at the sky and said:
"Your dragon."
I looked up at the sky and then asked, confused:
"They think Drogon is the Stallion Who Mounts the World?"
Rakharo nodded, and after thinking for a few seconds, I said:
"Tell them it is an honor for me to have such powerful and intrepid warriors under my command."
Rakharo said: "Khaleesi, they did not come as warriors but as Khals. Yesterday, after Khal Kharro's defeat, the Khalasar split into eight and the six new Khals here came to pledge their allegiance to you."
I slightly widened my eyes in surprise, then asked:
"How many people are under their command?"
Rakharo spoke for a few seconds with them, then he said to me:
"They say they have 10,000 screamers ready to fight for you, Khaleesi."
The corners of my mouth involuntarily curved, and I said:
"Thank these six Khals and assure them of my gratitude; I will never forget the faith they have placed in me."
Rakharo nodded and translated. A few moments later, the Khals took their leave and left my tent, leaving only me and Ser Jorah.
"Your Majesty, I believe I have just had an idea that could definitively end our problems," said Ser Jorah.
I noticed the mischievous and cunning glint in his eyes and instantly understood that we had the same idea.
"I believe we had the same idea," I said, unable to stop the deep smile emerging on my face.
'If I manage to unite all the Khalasars of the Dothraki Sea, I will never again have to fear my nephew's support for the slavers. I could completely eradicate slavery in Slaver's Bay,' I thought, imagining the expression of those damned slavers once I brought over 100,000 Dothraki screamers to destroy their armies composed of mercenaries of all kinds.