Year 287 AC
Leagues away from Asshai, in the tricky mountain terrain, under the pitch dark sky and inside a forest, several horses were moving, not daring to stop even for a second.
Oberyn was someone who could say to people that he was not scared of anything, but here, he felt fear. True fear.
The cries of unknown creatures that rocked the mountains, the eerie whispers and sobs of people or ghosts, and the screams that the Shadowbinders told them were from the dead, chilled his heart.
He remembered how a day and a half ago, as soon as he set foot in Asshai with his niece and the most loyal men serving him, he was approached by two red-masked men, who only said a single sentence.
"The Dragonlord is waiting for you."
He had heard rumours about these people, these Shadowbinders, who were even feared within the city of Asshai, where no one was normal, and whom the entire world stayed wary of.
When he followed them, he found that their rides were waiting.
Five pitch black horses, and two more that the Shadowbinders climbed on the back of.
He had more than five people with him, but in the end, he decided to leave behind his Paramour and his daughters at the port, only taking Arianne and three of the Knights with him.
And ever since they climbed on the backs of their horses, they had not stopped even once.
He still recalled the day in the Chamber of Painted Table, when Azaerys had informed him where he planned on taking his family, and he remembered that the Young King had said that he would take them to a place where even the best of the assassins would not dare to come.
Indeed, only fools and these Shadowbinders would dare to come here.
What shocked the Dornishmen, other than the dead that screamed during the night, were the tunnels built inside the mountains, which did not seem to be the work of mortal men.
On walls were strange letters, in languages he could not understand, and images of creatures that they had never seen before except for some that he had come across during his time at the Citadel.
Dragons. He recognised them immediately, and only inside these tunnels could they rest, but the two masked men did not allow it.
"Spells. The work of Ancients." The Shadowbinder told him what these strange letters were. "They keep the dead and the wraiths away."
"Why don't we stop?"
"The Dragonlord is waiting."
It was the only answer they gave him.
Thankfully, his niece was strong-willed. Any other girl her age would have broken into tears or gone crazy on this journey.
Arianne, however, was just tired, scared, and curious.
Though the days were not bright in the Shadow Lands, with clouds always covering the sky, when the dawn came, it brought some light, and the strange glowing crystal on the chests of their horses dimmed before turning back into their obsidian colour.
The screams and calls of the dead and the unknown quietened as well, and when there was enough light to see things clearly, they arrived at a stream, whose water looked fresh, unlike the Ash that they had seen before.
There was a small wooden bridge, which again had some strange letters all over it, and the Shadowbinders stopped.
"Go, and keep on the path with the red dirt. You will reach Siren in two hours."
"You are not coming with us?" Oberyn frowned as he moved his horse forward, and both shook their heads.
"We are forbidden from crossing it." They answered and turned their horses around to return to Asshai. "Do not stay here. You will die." They warned before they disappeared into the woods.
"Let's go." The Dornish Prince moved his horse and stepped onto the bridge, and his companions followed right after him.
He was very tense and felt unsafe in this unknown land, but after travelling for a while, they heard the voices of the singing birds and even came across some animals, which relieved them a lot.
They were finally in the land of the living, and even the air here was fresh, not requiring them to cover their faces like they had to in Asshai and on their way here.
Tired as they were, the distance just did not seem to end. They were pretty sure that more than two hours had passed, but perhaps, they were just moving a little slow.
However, just when they started to frown and worry a little, they finally saw light in front of them, and then walls, which towered over the trees of the forest.
There was a massive black gate, but no guards were standing there.
As soon as they arrived, they looked at each other, and then Oberyn got off his horse and approached the wicket gate, which was meant for horses and pedestrians.
He knocked on it, and to his surprise, someone answered, but it was in a language that he could not understand.
"I am here to see the Dragonlord." The Prince of Dorne told him, hoping that he understood the Common Tongue, and thankfully the man did.
The spy hole opened, and he saw a man with a black mask, whose eyes could not be seen, peek at them, and then the hole closed and the wicket gate was opened.
The Dornishmen frowned when they saw four people standing inside, without any weapons in their hands, and they were wearing red cloaks and black masks over their faces.
They were dressed exactly like the Shadowbinders, but the colours of the masks and the cloaks were switched.
"The road to the left. Stay on it and you will reach your destination." The man said, speaking fluently in the Common Tongue, and Oberyn thanked him and climbed his horse again.
"Are weapons allowed in this place?" He smiled as he asked the question, even though it seemed like they were not concerned about anything they were carrying.
"They won't help you." He heard a very dark answer, which stiffened his smile, and he nodded before leading his companions inside the town.
Arianne, who was on the verge of exhaustion, found some strength as soon as her eyes beheld the beauty of the architecture and the tower-like buildings of the place.
There were some smaller buildings as well, and when they passed by a crossing, they saw a sight that stunned them to a stop.
A majestic temple, more magnificent than any that they had ever seen, even grander than the Sept of Baelor in the King's Landing, proudly stood in the centre of the town, far away from them down the street.
Oberyn immediately recognised the symbol and its familiar colours, the Heart of Fire.
"The Grand Temple of R'hllor..." He whispered, shocked at the discovery.
In the Free Cities and across Essos, he had heard rumours about a secret Grand Temple of R'hllor, but even to the people who spoke about it, the place was nothing more than a myth.
"You can not go there." A voice came from their side, catching them off-guard, and when they turned to it, they saw a man standing at the door of the building next to them.
Unlike the people he had seen so far, he was not wearing a mask, but he was wearing scarlet robes, had a shaven head, and a tattoo of flames on his face.
"Only the Followers of the Lord of Light or those whom are Lord allows can enter the Grand Temple." He said to them and then started walking in its direction."
"We are here to see the Dragonlord..."
Oberyn tried to speak to him but saw the priest stop and look towards the sky.
It was almost as if he was waiting for something, and their hearts jumped up their throats when they heard the roar of a beast that sent shivers up their spines.
Arianne's mouth dropped open in shock when the Beast flew right over them, at a speed that just seemed unreal, and before they even knew it, it was over the Temple and then rushing up into the sky.
"Dragon!" She exclaimed and kept staring at the clouds the crimson dragon had disappeared into.
Perhaps the others had not noticed it, but Oberyn had caught someone on its back when it rushed up into the sky.
"They really are alive." He smiled.
"Stay on the path you are on. You will reach your destination." The Priest told them as he continued walking, and the Prince urgently ushered his horse to move.
The Town was mostly deserted, with barely anyone on the streets, and most of the buildings were empty.
However, everything was clean, so clean that it was hard to believe it was possible, and the place was so beautiful that no one would get tired of walking or riding down these streets.
Finally, they reached the end of the road and arrived at the gate of a lavish manse, next to a tall tower that was part of the property, and behind it, they could see the forested hills, which painted a very beautiful picture.
They saw the Targaryen Sigil on the black gate, and they knew they had arrived at their destination.
"Ser Deziel..."
Before Oberyn could ask the Knight to get off his horse and knock on the gate, it opened, and the Prince rushed off his horse and ran up to the Lady who came to welcome them.
"Elia!" The siblings hugged each other, and Gods knew how relieved Oberyn was to see his sister safe and looking so radiant.
"You must be tired. Come, your rooms are already prepared." She told him and then opened her arms to her niece, who and grown up a lot in the last three and half years.
However, she was still young, almost twelve namedays old, and probably had not bled yet.
"How are you?" She gently asked as she cupped her face.
"Tired," answered Arianne with a smile. "We saw a Dragon!"
"Oh. Was it red or white?" She curiously asked.
"Red, blood red."
"That's Rhaelyx, a She-Drgaon. She belongs to Viserys." Elia informed her and then grabbed her hand to take her inside the Manse.
On their way, the Dornishmen saw several guards and Knights, bearing armours with the Targaryen coat of arms, and they were not Westerosi people.
It looked like they had been gathered from all over Essos, and almost everyone was young, not even thirty years old.
Oberyn's experienced eyes could tell at a glance that these people were very well-trained, and most were still training outside their quarters and the Tower.
"You can not touch any maid or female guards inside the Manse. There is a pleasure house near the Grand Temple where the Red Prostitutes serve people. You can visit it later." Elia, well aware of Oberyn's interests, informed him.
"Later. I need some food and wine in my body, and some good sleep." He chucked. "Where did you find these people?"
"They were slaves to the Temple. Now they serve Azaerys." She said as she stopped and spoke to a maid, who bowed to her and then rushed away to do what she had ordered.
Elia then led them inside a hall, where food was waiting for them at the table, and she sat down with them for the meal as they started devouring it.
"What wine is this?" The Prince asked as he poured himself another glass.
"Blood Wine," Elia said, and Arianne, who was about to reach for it, stopped. "The Priests at the Temple make it, and they mix in the blood of lambs that are used for sacrifice."
"Interesting." The Dornishmen did not care about the blood as they just loved its taste and the feel of it, but the young girl did not dare drink it.
"Where is everyone else?" She curiously asked her Aunt.
"Rhaenys, Aegon, Rhaemon, and Daenerys are in Azaerys' room. He's teaching them Languages and history today. You will see them at lunch, but I suppose you will be sleeping at that time."
"Allyria?" Asked Arianne about her friend whom she had not seen in years.
"She's with Viserys. You saw Rhaelyx flying, so, he must take taken her on a ride."
"Heh, are they already sleeping together too?" She grinned, and her aunt shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe, but I don't think so. After all, they are no older than you..." She stopped and then met her eyes, "You haven't been playing around, have you?"
"No, but I have seen people play around," The girl answered, grinning, and Elia was relieved in her heart.
Azaerys was not fond of the freedom of the Dornish Culture, and she always feared that her niece would be influenced by it and would end up doing something he would always hold against her.
"And you better not. Your Intended does not like girls who fool around." She warned her niece, eliciting giggles from her.
"Then he better fool around with me." She mischievously said, and Oberyn chuckled at her words.
"Doran and I have been keeping an eye on her. Don't worry." He told his sister, who nodded to his words.
"Oh, where's Ashara? And the Stark?" The girl asked.
"They went out to hunt. Should be back by supper."
After their meal, Elia led them to their room, and on their way, they passed through the gallery, overlooking the vast grass field behind the Manse, and there they saw a sight that froze them.
Under the light of the day, on the soft ground, was a beast sound asleep, whose sight captivated Oberyn and Arianne, even making them forget to breathe.
It was white, silvery white, with scales sparkling in the daylight, and it was massive, almost twice the size of the dragon they had seen flying earlier.
Its long horns, which were nearly as long as a fully grown man, slightly curved upwards towards the end, and it seemed to have a crown made out of them over its head.
Majestic, indeed, but it was so beautiful that it just looked unreal. Had it not been for its body moving slightly as it breathed, they would have mistaken it for a sculpture.
Oberyn finally noticed a peculiar thing about it, and he raised his brow.
He had gone through the books on dragons in the Citadel, and there no were records of such a dragon in them.
"It has six limbs," He said, and Elia nodded her head.
"Azaerys told us that it is an Ancient Dragon, which not even the people of Valyria had under their Command. These Dragons are deadlier, bigger, stronger, and surprisingly fast for their size," She informed them. "Oh, and remember to not look into its eyes for too long. They are beautiful, but whoever stares into them for long, gets charmed by them. They attract their prey to them with their eyes. I am sure you don't want to end in its stomach."
"Has it..." Her niece hesitated to ask the question.
"Eaten someone? Yes." Elia darkly said, and both her brother and niece tensed up. "Azaerys named it Aerylyx, after his Grandfather and a Valyrian God. It has quite a temper and only allows the Dragon Blood to approach him. Don't go near it."
"How old is it?" Oberyn curiously asked.
"Aerylyx's Egg hatched on Dragonstone, a few days before we left the Island. So, it's two moons and three years old."
"It's a young dragon?" Oberyn looked at her in disbelief, and she giggled at his reaction.
"Yes. Rhaelyx is the same age."