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Expecting himself to be back at the wall, and half-hoping that no one would mistake him for a wight and set him on fire, Jon slowly opened his eyes. However, it seemed that once again, he was taken somewhere he wasn't expecting himself to be, as he was met with complete darkness when he opened his eyes.
He blinked a few times, trying to adjust to the lack of light, but it made no difference. Jon raised his hand in front of his face, and moved it but he couldn't even distinguish the outline of it. Panic began to set in his mind; the unfamiliarity of the place, combined with what had transpired in the Godswood made him believe that this was another one of the god's game.
Jon was a man of action, and feeling that he was trapped in some kind of nightmare made him want to do something, anything. So, he just started walking in a straight line aimlessly, until a faint glow appeared in the distance. Heart racing, Jon forced himself to walk quickly towards the source, thinking that perhaps that would provide answers as to why he had found himself in such a place.
The distance stretched endlessly before him, but he had no option but to keep walking. As Jon approached, the glow intensified, casting an otherworldly radiance that seemed to dance in the air. The glow seemed to be coming from fourteen different sources with varying intensities; Jon noticed that the three in the middle shined the brightest, compared to others.
Gradually he could make out the silhouette of chairs, the light seemingly being lit inside them. Anticipation bubbling inside of him, Jon walked faster, the intricate details about the chairs' design becoming clearer and clearer to him.
The chairs were made out of dragonglass, and the light that he had seen was molten lava bubbling below the surface. And though they differed greatly from the one Ned Stark used to sit in Winterfell, Jon registered that these were no ordinary chairs but thrones, fit for Kings and Queens.
In his wonder at seeing the alien looking thrones which radiated power, Jon failed to realise that a few of them were occupied, until a small cough from above made him look at the occupants.
Quickly scanning the room, he saw that only three thrones – the ones which had burned the brightest – in the center out of the fourteen were occupied. The men sitting on them appeared to be human, but not quite. Their skin was covered with scales of different colors, and had small horns protruding from the top of their heads. They had an aura of otherworldly power about them, and looking at them made the hairs on the back of Jon's neck stand up.
Realising who these people were, Jon hurriedly fell into a bow, not even lifting up his head. "Your Graces"
The man sitting in the largest throne in the middle spoke up, his voice reverberating throughout the entire room. "Rise, Aegon Targaryen"
Jon stood up hesitantly – not realising that the man was referring to him at first – and slowly moved his gaze upwards to properly look at the men sitting in the thrones. The one in the middle had grey-ish white scales, Jon figured this one must be the King as he had more of a dignified air about him compared to the other two. The one on the left had a wild appearance, and had blood-red scales. The last man had pitch black scales, and had a somber expression on his face.
"Welcome Aegon Targaryen. I am Arrax, to my right is Aegarax, and to my left, Balerion", the man sitting in the middle said, "And we're all that are left of the once mighty Valyrian pantheon"
Being proven right, Jon slightly bowed his in response to the greeting, and said. "I am honored to be in your presence, Your Graces."
"Bah! stop calling us 'Your Grace'. We're not pretentious like those stuck up Seven, who want everyone to grovel in their presence", the god with red scales interrupted, "Blood of Old Valyria and the First men runs through your veins, you can call us by name"
Jon just nodded in response to the god's words, a million thoughts running through his head. Why had the gods brought him here so soon after his meeting with the Old Gods. He hadn't even had time to properly reflect on his ancestry yet.
"You must be wondering why have we brought you here so soon after your conversation with the Old Gods", Arrax said wisely, almost as if he was reading Jon's mind. "I apologise for the rush, but we didn't have much time left"
"What- What do you mean?"
"What I mean, young Targaryen, is that humanity has failed in the fight against the Night King and his White Walkers."
Jon felt a pang of guilt, knowing that he had indeed failed in his mission. But he knew he couldn't give up now.
"Please, let me go back," he begged. "I'll do whatever it takes to fix this. I'll convince the nations to join forces and fight against the White Walkers."
The gods shook his head. "Even if you were to return, it would be too late. You humans have lost the most important part in the fight against the Walkers – dragons"
Jon's thoughts raced as he tried to come up with a solution. "But...but Daenerys Targaryen has three dragons. If we can convince her to come join us in this fight, then it would be very advantageous for us"
Aegarax snorted, frustration evident in his expression. "Ha those dragons wouldn't stand a chance against those bloody ice demons. There are only three of them, and they are still hatchlings. Oh how I want to bash the heads of your ancestors who brought the downfall of my beloved creatures"
Arrax leaned forward, his voice taking on a hint of urgency. "This is why we must send you back Aegon, send you to a time in which dragons still roamed the skies of Westeros. It will be up to you to prevent their extinction, for it is crucial for humanity's survival."
Jon staggered as he tried to wrap his head around what the Gods were asking of him. Go back in time? Prevent the extinction of dragons? How was that even possible?
But before he could voice his doubts, Balerion spoke up for the first time. "We know that this task will not be easy, but we have faith in you, child of ice and fire. To help you on your journey, you may choose two companions to accompany you back in time. But know that they must be alive in your current time to be able to do so."
"Can Ghost, my direwolf, go back with me?", Jon asked as soon as the god had stopped speaking. The direwolf had been his trusted companion from the day Jon had found him, and he almost felt like a part of Jon. He knew that the connection he shared with the wolf wasn't an ordinary one, and so his first instinct was to take him back.
"Yes, he may", the god replied, and Jon thought that he'd seen the god give him an approving nod.
Jon thought long and hard for his second choice. If his brother Robb was alive, he'd be the first person that Jon would take back with him. He thought about Arya, but his little sister was lost and no one knew if she was dead or alive, the same was the case with Bran. Rickon he knew was alive, but Jon wasn't sure if his youngest brother was grown up enough to be of help to him. The only ones of his siblings left was Sansa, and even though Jon and her weren't always on the best of terms in their childhood, she was the only family he had left.
The last he had heard of her, she had been married to the Bolton bastard, and given his reputation, Jon was sure that his sister would've been suffering. He wanted to save her from that fate, and hoped that their familial connection would be enough to erase the bad blood that had existed between them.
"The second person I want to take along with me is my sister, Sansa", he said, having made his choice.
Balerion nodded in response but added a warning, "We will send them on the journey with you, but remember Aegon. You may not find them immediately, and they may be in different forms from the ones you remember."
While Jon was happy that he may find some familiarity in an alien place. The thought of not finding them immediately did create a quiet dread in him. But knowing that this was the best that he was going to get out of this situation, he agreed.
"I believe we have spoken all that we needed to", Arrax said, with a sense of finality, "Are you ready to go on your journey, Aegon?"
Jon couldn't help but feel a sort of nervous excitement as this question. He knew that he had quite a task in front of him, but he was glad that he had gotten another opportunity to right his wrongs and save humanity. Feeling a little overwhelmed, and not trusting himself to speak, he looked towards the gods, and gave a resolute nod.
"Very well", said Arrax as all three gods held out their hand in front of them, with the palms facing towards Jon. "The fate of humanity rests on your shoulders, child. May you be successful in your journey."
As soon as he had finished speaking, a beam of energy shot out from their hands, enveloping Jon in a mixture of red, black, and white lights. He felt a strange sensation wash over him, as if he were being pulled apart and put back together again.
And for the second time in a day, Jon's world went all dark.