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The Destroyer

Summary:

Cersei Lannister, Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, thought she was the most secretive person in the Red Keep. To her surprise, her husband has actually kept one of the best-kept secrets in the history of the Seven Kingdoms to his chest. The true reason as to why Robert's Rebellion went in his favor. The true reason the Dragons fell.
His name was Perseus, and he would serve the Storm King's until their final days.

Notes:

(See the end of the work for notes.)

Chapter 1: The Bane of the Dragons

Chapter Text

Cersei Lannister I: Queen of the Seven Kingdoms

Sixth Moon, 294 AC

In all of their years of marriage, Cersei had never seen Robert so…

Excited.

It was disturbing, truth be told.

She had heard many rumors of Robert Baratheon before the Rebellion, and it was to her dismay that she found out first-hand that almost all of them were true.

He had bastards aplenty, disregarded court etiquette, and leered at every women in sight, but he was also one of the most fearsome warriors that she had ever seen, perhaps even better than her other half, Jaime.

However, even within her mind, Cersei make sure to place particular emphasis on the use of the word was as she looked at her husband once more.

Once the Demon of the Trident that no man could bare blood from, even the greatest warriors could fall to something, and for him, it had been to drink and time.

Even still, it was unusual to say the least to see her husband complete sober. The only times she has seen such was when the Red Keep had received news that Lannisport had burned and that the Ironborn has rebelled, but he had been long since back to his usual ways after the Ironborn Rebellion had been crushed.

Had another kingdom rebelled?

Cersei didn’t think so.

The Westerlands, Stormlands, Vale, Riverlands, and the North were all firmly behind her husband and her as King and Queen, the Crownlands had long abided to her husband’s rule, the Reach were careful to maintain themselves after Robert’s Reblleion, the Iron Islands had been firmly crushed, and Dorne would never dare to strike from beyond their Kingdom.

Even if there had been a rebellion, it still wouldn’t explain why Robert was so… giddy.

For the first time in his life, he had even gone out of his way to have their children brought to him.

Perhaps that was why. It was nearing Joffrey’s two-and-ten nameday, but why now? To her dismay, Robert had not once shown even the slightest bit of interest in their son, so why would he do so now?

Why were they traversing the secret passages of the Red Keep as if they were servants? Why had he temporarily dismissed the members of the Kingsguard to leave their sides?

Where was he taking them?

Cersei felt her breath hitch.

Had he found out the truth?

Observing her husbands jolly stroll, Cersei slightly shook her head at the back of the line.

Her husband had never been able to control his emotions, and if he had truly found out that their children was in fact not his, no force on Planetos would be able to stop him.

What in the name of the Seven could excite her husband so much that he would voluntarily forego his drink and whores and talk with his children?

Had she been asked such a question the previous day, Cersei would have scoffed at the absurd question but nonetheless replied that there was nothing that could do such a thing, but evidently, she was wrong.

Seeing a light at the end of the passage they were in, Cersei squinted her eyes, the light being too bright for her eyes after spending several minutes in the dark underbelly of the Red Keep, and she heard her children softly muttering about the same.

As her eyes steadily began to adapt to the presence of the sun once more, she suddenly froze as she noticed an armored figure on the beach waiting for them, leading her to shout, “INTRUDER! GUARDS! GUARDS!” having temporarily forgotten that her husband had forgone his trusted Kingsguard, including her brother.

Robert spun, a stern look in his eyes, “Enough, woman! I summoned him here!”

Cersei reeled backwards, “Who in the Seven Hells is he, and why did you dismiss our Kingsguard from protecting us?”

Robert chuckled, his large stomach bouncing as he did so, “If they attacked, I didn’t want to find seven new members of my Kingsguard.”

As Robert turned back to the mysterious male figure who had since turned to look at them, Cersei could barely repress a scowl. Their Kingsguard not only had her other half, but it also had the Ser Barristan, who even she had to admit was still a formidable swordsman even in his old age, as well as five others that were among the best swords in the Seven Kingdoms, and her drunkard of a husband truly believed that one man could take them all?

“Perseus!” Her husband shouted at the figure mere feet away from him. “Meet my children.”

The figure obediently walked towards her husband, in the direction of her children, but before Cersei could do anything, the man that her oaf of a husband had identified to be ‘Perseus’ had kneeled before them with a gentle smile at her children.

After a moment of surveying them, Percy gave a questioning look at her husband, “These are your children?”

Cersei’s blood froze.

How could he know?

He had only looked at them with a single glance, and he had already determined the truth that had not only fooled her husband for over a decade, but also the Old Falcon, the Maesters, and even her very own father?

How?

Who was this man, and what would he do with such information now that he knew the truth?

To Cersei’s relief, Robert merely let out of boisterous laugh, “Of course! It’s nearing my Joffrey’s ten-and-two nameday, and it’s my turn to carry on the family tradition!”

Still shaken by the proclamation of the mysterious figure, Cersei confusedly enquired, “Family tradition?”

Gaining a serious look on his face, Robert nodded, “A tradition that comes not from the Baratheons as the Seven Kingdoms knows them today, but the Durrandons. The Storm Kings.” Robert turned to Perseus once more, a sheepish look on his face, “I can never remember the full picture, so if you would, my friend?”

Perseus nodded as he stood back to his feet, “Of course, my liege.” He turned to face her children.

“Centuries ago, I was found by a civilization called the Rhoynar with my face submerged underneath the water. Even with their water magic, they only had slight hope that I would survive after who knew how long being underwater, but to their surprise, I was breathing just fine. When I awakened, they curiously questioned how I had such magic, but I could not reply for I could not remember. My memory was lost, and the time before, who I was, is lost to the sands of time even now.”

Cersei couldn’t contain her scoff this time, “You mean you tell me your centuries old?” She glanced at Robert, “And you believed him?”

Robert gained a dangerous look on his face, one that had Cersei taking a few steps backwards out of fear, “I’m the King of the Seven Kingdoms, woman. If I told you that you were a Greyjoy, I expect you to be believe it. Understand?” Cersei scowled, but Robert ignored her. What a surprise that was.

“I was introduced to Perseus by my own father when I was just a boy of twelve, and he has changed not a bit in decades that have passed. It was my own father that told the story that Perseus has told every generation of Baratheon’s since the Conquest and will continue to into the future. Now, continue, Perseus.” He dismissively glanced at Cersei, “And no more interruption, wife. You’re lucky I allowed your presence here to begin with.”

Perseus tilted his head in acknowledgement. “The Rhoynar took me as their own, and I found peace with them. I lived with them on the shores of the Mother Rhoyne for decades before we learned the truth just as you had. I had not aged a single day in the years since I had been found, all the while the ones who took me in began to fade into dust and ash. Decade by decade, the new generations welcomed me as their own, as for most of them, I had been with them for their entire lives, and just as the Rhoynar had once taken me in, I took them in as a favor for those that had given me life. I was happy.”

Perseus gained a dark look in his eyes. “Everyone was happy, until the Valyrian’s came. While only a mere handful of the Rhoynar could manipulate water, it seemed as if almost every Valryian had their own dragons, and they were destroying everything. The Valyrians went after the major port city Sarhoy, and we in turn went after some of their colonies, and even conquered Volantis itself, not before they managed to get word to the Freehold. For most of our battles, there were only a handful of dragons in every raiding party, but when Valyria came to relieve their daughter… hundreds of dragons, each bigger than the castle up there,” He nodded his head in the direction of the Red Keep, “enough to block out the sun itself.”

He shook his head. “It was unlike any battle I had ever seen, and not a single one came close afterwards. I led the vanguard of our strongest forces, and we slaughtered them by the dozens, but for every ten we killed, three of us died, and we didn’t have any reinforcements. The battle seemed to last hours, corpses of dragons laid upon the ground large enough to build a mountain, but eventually, I was the only one that still stood. In my rage, I created a storm that decimated their dragons, but it was too much.”

“When I woke next, hundreds of years had passed, and the Rhoynar had been destroyed entirely, except those that had managed to flee to Westeros. I tried to follow, but in my dazed state, I found myself in the Stormlands, and I was taken in by Arthur Durrandon, and he had me something to live for. I swore myself to his service, and a mere hundred years later, the Dragons came once more. Aegon and his sister-wives had come, and they wanted the Seven Kingdoms.”

Cersei had enough as she snorted, “You said you slaughtered Dragons by the dozens, but you couldn’t kill three measly dragons?”

Perseus and Robert shared a look before the latter devolved in another round of boisterous laughter, leaving Cersei confused and angry once more, “What’s so funny?”

Perseus straightened, “The fact that you think the Targaryen’s only had Three Dragons for their conquest.”

Cersei reeled, “But the Maesters…”

Perseus let out the first sign of emotion as he himself snorted, “Those know-it-alls truly think they know it all, but everyone has secrets, and Aegon himself made sure that this one was kept. The Targaryen’s may have been among the least amongst the Forty, but almost everyone else still paled before them. The Freehold had thousands of Dragons, and the Targaryen’s only accounted for a hundred among them, and so they came to Dragonstone with a hundred, and only lost a handful during the Century of Blood. Aegon’s sister-wife Rhaenys came to Storm’s End with her half-brother Orys, but she fled at her first sight of me.”

He let out a chuckle, “I thought that was the end of it, but she came back a moon later with the entirety of their reserve force, each of whom had heard ghost tales of me when they were children, the time when the Freehold vanquished the Strom-Bringer, and they wanted revenge.” He shook his shoulders, “Unfortunately for them, they wouldn’t get it. At least, not how they wanted it.”

Perseus scowled, “While I assumed they had gathered their Dragons in an attempt to try to kill me once and for all, I was mistaken. The eldest Conqueror, Visenya, had also arrived, and she was the last to be trained in Valyrian Magicks. The Conqueror’s reserve force knowingly sacrificed themselves so that Visenya could cast her ritual, but it didn’t go as planned. She tried to bond me to her family, but she merely bonded me to the Durrandons. Upon realizing this, Visenya forced Orys to wed the Last Durrandon, all while the Conqeruors kept me occupied. By the time I realized something had happened, they were wed, and as the Last Durrandon, Argella commanded for me to step down, and I was forced to oblige. Moons later, Aegon appointed Orys and Argella as the Baratheons, and I’ve served ever since.”

Shocked by the tale herself, Cersei was still of mind to observe the other reactions, and was unsurprised to notice that both Myrcella and Tommen had been captivated by the story but was slightly surprised to notice that even Joffrey had been drawn in.

To make her even more surprised, Robert managed to get onto one knee as he gathered her children in his arms, “Perseus has faithfully served our family since the Conquest, and one day when I’ve passed on, he will yours to command. Perseus allowed me to drive those filthy Targaryen’s away, but they’re not finished yet. One day, they’ll be back, I can feel that much in my bones, and I’m not going to be here when they do. Commanding Perseus is a massive responsibility, and so I say to take close heed. For all of his power, it’s not why he’s so dangerous, but rather the fact that none alive know of him. Remember this, my children: a weapon is most dangerous when no one sees it coming.”

 

Chapter 2: The Beginning of the End

Chapter Text

Eighth Moon, 297 AC

Cersei let out a screech as she threw a fine, expensive piece of pottery against the walls of her private solar, the remains of which scattering around the place of impact before sliding down onto the ground, joining the remains of countless other victims of the Queen of the Seven Kingdom’s most recent temper tantrum.

The only other person to witness such behavior, Cersei’s very own brother Jaime Lannister, cracked a small smirk of amusement, “What has you riled up so much today, my Queen?”

“What do you think, Jaime?” Cersei snorted, her frustration palpable as she just barely resisted the urge to throw an object at her dearly beloved brother for asking such a stupid question. “Could it be the same point of matter that has angered me so for the past three years?”

Jaime suddenly sat upwards as if he had forgotten the only man besides him to know their secret, which Cersei didn’t believe for a second.

Her twin brother and her were two peas, although she was the brains and he was the brawn, but even he was as dim-witted as to forget the only person, besides the King himself, that Cersei had no power over, and unlike the King, she couldn’t even influence him!

Seven hells, they couldn’t even find him!

As soon as Robert had taken them back into the Red Keep on that fateful day, she had immediately ran to the safety of her brother’s arms and blurted out that someone knew their secret. Jaime had been shocked, having believed, just as she had, that they had been extremely careful with their actions to the point where the smartest men in the Seven Kingdoms had naught a clue.

Normally, they would have been right.

If it wasn’t for Perseus and his seven-damned Magicks!

Cersei had discretely hired a ragtag team of assassins to find and kill her husband’s most trusted servants, but they were unable to catch a single glimpse of him.

If only the Faceless Men had been willing to take out a contract for him, she was sure that the best assassins in the entirety of the world could have done the job, but they were even unwilling to meet with her, and because she needed to keep this a secret from her husband, she couldn’t even use her official powers as Queen of the Seven Kingdoms.

The only man that could find Perseus was her husband, and even he had sparingly met with him over the past several years. Cersei had once hoped that their meant that there was a wedge between the master and servant that she would be able to exploit, but no, Robert was actually smart for once.

He had meant what he had said to Joffrey; for all of Perseus’s power, the reason that he was such an asset to his cause was that no one even knew such a being of infallible power even existed.

While the Velaryon’s had begun gathering the largest fleet in all of Westeros to begin barricading the eastern coast, preventing any type of naval movement, an inexplicable storm, far beyond what most sailors had ever seen, had coincidentally smashed over 80% of the fleet in a single day, and as bizarre as it was, it was just seen as a very uncommon stroke of luck for the loyalists.

When the Reach had begun assembling their armies, the largest in all of the Seven Kingdoms that could face the combined armies of two, if not more, kingdoms at the same time, a rainstorm had come in the middle of dry season to let loose a torrential downpour that supposedly created more than a full foot of mud, slowly down their movement by such a degree that it was only Randyll Tarly and his well-trained calvary unit that was able to blitz her husband, and Tarly became the only man that was able to fight her husband, in his prime, to a draw, but even he wasn’t able to get a conclusive victory.

When Dorne had begun assembling their spearmen, the most infamous sell-sail company in all of Essos had been bought to provide them transport to King’s Landing because of the destruction of the Velaryon’s fleet, only for over three quarters of their navy, arguably one of the most well-trained navy units in the world, to be lost at sea, never to be seen again, and only providing her once-beloved silver price a force of 10,00 Dornish spears.

The High Septon, Leader of the Faith, had concluded after the Rebellion that the Seven had been showing them signs that the Targaryen’s time were over since the beginning to rebellion once being informed of what could only be divine intervention, but Cersei knew better now.

The Seven hadn’t shown their favor on Robert’s cause, but Robert had, and where Robert went, Perseus followed.

Robert hadn’t lied when he had proclaimed that Perseus was the reason that he won the war.

Her father hadn’t entered the fray until the last second, kept at bay by the sword dangling over her brother’s head by the Mad King, and Dorne, the Reach, and the Crownlands had all been comfortably under Targaryen rule.

Meanwhile, Robert’s own forces in the Stormlands were surrounded on all sides, the Vale and the North took moons to assemble a mere fraction of their total forces, and the Riverlands were divided at the best of time.

If the Velaryon’s had been able to set up their barricade, Robert never would have made it back to Storm’s End to call his banners. If the Reach had been able to summon their full muster under Randyll Tarly, her husband would been killed at Ashford. If Dorne had been able to send their full spears, Rhaegar would’ve outnumbered the Rebels at the Fork and likely been able to win the day.

But because of the intervention of Perseus, not a single one of those outcomes ended up occurring, where even one would’ve been the end of the Rebellion, and it was all thanks to him.

If only such powers had been bounded to the Lannisters instead of the Durrandons. Not only would they have the command of the most dangerous weapon to ever live at their beck and call, they probably been courted by the Targaryen’s as well since the days of the Conquest. If she had had command of Perseus, she would commanded Perseus to ride to her beloved Silver Prince’s aid, and with Perseus by his side, he would have won the won, and if would have all been because of her, and Rhaegar would know it.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case, and even more unfortunately, he was her enemy.

The most unfortunate circumstance of them all, Cersei couldn’t find him, Cersei couldn’t touch him, and even worst, she couldn’t even see him.

Cersei had barely been able to sleep most nights, knowing that there was a deity of supreme power out there that knew her darkest secret, and he could tell the King at any moment.

As for why he hadn’t, Cersei had no clue, and if only Cersei had been able to tell Robert that his most trusted servant was keeping such a large secret from him, Perseus would’ve been out of her hair in no time.

Regrettably, Robert would have demanded proof of such a secret, and she wasn’t about to give herself, her twin brother, and her children up on a silver platter just so Perseus would be exiled.

In any case, it did beg the question why he hadn’t acted.

Was it possible that the bond was loosening? If Joffrey had even been the product of Robert’s and her affair, a thought that made her gag in disgust, would Perseus had even listened to his commands once Robert passed? Or did he only listen to explicit commands on behalf of his masters?

Truthfully, Cersei wasn’t sure which would be the worst outcome, and she couldn’t even ask because of how tightly Robert held the secret to his chest.

Cersei would never know the true reason as to why Perseus had waited so long to tell her husband her secret, but it turned out that Perseus wouldn’t keep his mouth shut forever.

As Cersei was about to continue ranting to her brother, her blood turned to ice as she heard the largest man-made sound of her life ring out from inside the Red Keep.

The source?

Her husband.

The source of her anger?

Well…

“CERSEI!” A few moments went by before he shouted once more, “YOU DAMNED WENCH!”

Immediately, Cersei knew that her worst fears had come to life.

Her husband knew that she had cuckolded him, and he was coming to kill her.

Sneering at Jaime’s gobsmacked expression, she yelled, “Barricade the door, you imbecile!”

Jaime rushed into action, pushing the dresser, a handful of chairs, her desk, and whatever pieces of furniture he could move as Cersei nervously bit her fingernails, a reflex she hadn’t resorted to since she was a little girl, hoping that it was enough to stop her husband’s wrath.

As if the Gods had cursed her with misfortune this day, it wouldn’t.

The door shattered into pieces with a single blow, and through the furniture Jaime had been able to pile up, she saw him.

The Demon of the Trident.

Armed with his trusty Warhammer, the same that had killed her Silver Prince, and Robert was wielding it with the same fervor that Cersei had been he had done that fateful day.

Cersei let out a loud gulp of fear, unable to move as her husband’s furious gaze pinned her to her bed before proceeding to kick down the assembled furniture.

As her husband began to move in slow motion, Cersei closed her eyes, accepting her fate.

There was no way out of this for her.

She was going to die.

She heard a loud gasp before the loud clang of metal being dropped to the floor startled her, and Cersei wondered if that was it.

She tensed, but she didn’t feel any pain, leading to her cautiously opening a single eye, before opening the other in utter shock.

She may have entirely forgotten the presence of her brother, but it didn’t mean that he had disappeared.

It seemed as if, blinded by his rage, Robert had rushed right at her, his fury making him experience tunnel vision, and he didn’t even realize that her brother had been present, and he had taken fully advantage of that.

As Cersei opened her eyes, she saw Robert bleeding out on the floor, a pool of blood seeping out from underneath him, his trusty Warhammer laying on the floor just inches away from his hands, and her brother standing above her husband with a smirk, his sword pining Robert to the floor through his back.

Robert coughed, flecks of blood flying out of his mouth, as he looked up at her in rage, “I should’ve expected it, shouldn’t I have? I never cared for you, and you never cared for me. Of course you would never bear my children.”

Her heartbeat easing, Cersei stood up with a smirk of her own on her face, “Of course not, you bastard. The only name to whispered to me in our marriage bed was your fucking wolf bitch’s, even the day of our wedding!” She shook her in disgust. “Of course I would never bear your children?”

“Then who? Who could you have possibly convince that would have cuckolded the King?”

Cersei’s eyes darted to Jaime out of reflex, and Robert saw.

“The Kingslayer?” He bellowed, spitting a glob of blood onto the floor. “Out of all the men in the Seven Kingdoms, you had to choose the own man without any honor?”

Jaime kicked Robert while he was down, his smirk gaining a hint of satisfaction as Robert groaned out in pain, “Is it better to be a man alive without any honor, or a man dead with honor? I guess you’ll be finding out soon enough.”

“So will you.” Jaime’s eyes crinkled as Robert let out a dark laugh and closed his eyes. “Kill all the Lannister’s, Perseus.”

Cersei’s eyes widened as she shouted, “Kill him, Jaime! KILL HIM NOW!”

As Jaime pulled out his sword and moved to cut off Robert’s head, Robert was able to say, “The Queen, the Kingslayer, Tywin, the ch-”

Before Robert was able to complete his dying wish, his head became separated from his body, but it was too late.

His dying wish had been heard.

The King of the Seven Kingdoms, Head of the Baratheon’s, was dead.

May the Seven have mercy on their souls.

On the other side of Westeros in the heart of the Westerlands, Casterly Rock had stood for thousands of years. Despite numerous armies having besieged its wall, Casterly Rock had stood impenetrable.

Until today, that is.

At the very top of the rock, Perseus surveyed what seemed like the entirety of the Westerlands with a smile on his face, “It was only ever going to end badly, I do hope you know that, Tywin. It’s such a shame you won’t be alive to witness it all fall into place.” He turned to face the beheaded face of Tywin Lannister, an outcome that eerily reflected what had just occurred to Robert Baratheon, as what seemed like the first smirk in centuries appeared on his face as he rose to his feet.

“Unfortunately for you, I have a command, and I’ve never failed before.”

Chapter 3: The Stormbringer

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Eight Moon, 297 AC

Stoically observing the rough waters surrounding the island on all sides, Stannis Baratheon clasped his hands behind his back as he looked out from Dragonstone.

Infamously known around the Seven Kingdoms for being the dutiful younger Baratheon brother, Stannis had done nothing to suggest otherwise, although sometimes he wished that he had if this was what he was left with.

He had nothing against the castle itself, but rather what it represented.

The theft of his heritage.

Stannis had always been the second son, and it was he that had always been dutiful to his father’s command, because his opinions didn’t matter in this world where only the firstborn received anything.

Only Robert’s, the firstborn son of Steffon Baratheon, did.

Robert was to be the future Lord of Storm’s End.

Robert was to be the future Lord of the Stormlands.

Robert was to be the future Lord of the Destroyer.

Stannis unconsciously flexed his wrists at that thought.

The Destroyer.

Perseus.

Robert had never deserved him, because he was bound by the same thought process as their ancestors.

Stannis agreed with the philosophy that a weapon was most dangerous when no one saw it coming, but a weapon was still useless if it wasn’t used at all.

If Stannis had been in command of Perseus during the Rebellion, Rhaegar the Rapist would’ve never captured Lyanna Stark, and none of the Targaryen’s would have survived.

Instead, Robert had let his ego get in the way, just as it always did.

He had wanted to track down Rhaegar himself, bring back Lyanna himself, and personally execute the Mad King himself.

He had gotten his wish for the former, but by the time he let Eddard go out to search for his abducted sister, she had already passed, and the Kingslayer had gotten to the Mad King first.

When Robert became King, Stannis had allowed himself to feel a glimpse of hope that Storm’s End would be his, although even in his dreams, he knew Perseus never would be, but Robert had quickly doused those hopes by appointing him as the Lord of Dragonstone and the Narrow Sea, and a wedge had formed between the brothers ever since then.

Robert thought he was doing him a service by appointing him as the Heir to the Seven Kingdoms, but he couldn’t care less about Dragonstone.

He just wanted Storm’s End, but Robert had never listened.

At least, he had always wanted, and been content with, Storm’s End.

Now…

Now everything had changed.

Stannis had never liked Cersei Lannister, and partly that was no fault of her own.

Her father had waited until the Rebellion was won until he chose a side, and her brother had committed the ultimate act of betrayal, but Jon Arryn, the fool that he was, had convinced Robert that his dynasty needed the firm hand of the Westerlands, and Robert had obliged his foster father.

Even still, he had never thought that she would dare to cuckold his brother, producing three illegitimate children that were portrayed as Robert’s own.

He still had naught but his own suspicions though, both his and the Hand’s.

They had the support of ancient texts, but Robert, always the fighter and not a reader, would dismiss those without a second thought.

They had needed cold, hard proof, but the only way to get that was to get the confession of the Queen or her lover, and they didn’t even know who the latter was.

A crack of thunder rumbled in the distance, but as Stannis raised his gaze, he didn’t see a single streak of lightning.

Stiffening as he heard the sound of footsteps behind him, Stannis whirled around to face the unauthorized figure that had dared to face him, only to freeze as soon as he recognized the figure.

It was Perseus!

Raising an eyebrow, Stannis scowled, “What does my brother want with me now?”

As he turned back to the ocean, he froze once more as he heard Perseus’s stoic reply, “Robert has died.”

“What!?” Stannis whirled once more, a dumbfounded look on his face. “How is that possible? He was hale and healthy just moons ago!”

“He was murdered.” Perseus dipped his head. “By the Queen and her brother.” Perseus lowered himself to a knee. “My liege.”

Desperately hoping that his brother would not be as cruel to him in the afterlife, he cautiously ventured, “And the children?”

Perseus shook his head, “Not Robert’s. I had enquired with Robert if he had wanted to formerly name the children as Baratheon’s, but it seemed as if he was unaware that they were never his. Robert believed he had been manipulated all along by Tywin Lannister and ordered me to take his head while he personally dealt with the Queen.”

Stannis’s mind raced; of course Perseus would have been able to tell if the children were or weren’t Roberts. If the stories passed down by his ancestors were true, Visenya Targaryen, eldest of the Conqueror’s, had bound him to the Durrandon bloodline, which had resulted in Robert, himself, and Renly. If Robert was not actually the father of the children, the children weren’t apart of the bloodline, he became the next illegible in line to command the Destoryer.

By all laws to man, he was the rightful Heir to the Iron Throne, and with Perseus by his side, nobody would be able to stop him.

--

After receiving the news directly from Perseus regarding his brother’s death, Stannis had immediately gathered his council on Dragonstone: his wife, Selyse Florent, the Red Priestess, Melisandre, the Maester, and his faithful servant, Ser Davos Seasworth.

Once they were all assembled in the chamber of the painted chamber, Stannis reported, “My brother, the King of the Seven Kingdoms, has been murdered.”

Everyone in the room, even the Red Priestess herself, froze in shock at that, the implications of such a statement making them extremely focused.

Gaining Stannis’s attention, the Maester tentatively asked, “Not that I would dare to say that is a lie, my lord, but we’ve received no ravens caring such news to the best of my knowledge.”

Stannis stoically nodded his head, “Of course not. The Queen is currently enacting a coup, and it wouldn’t do for her plans if the rightful heir interrupted them.”

“The rightful heir?”

Stannis steadied himself, “Me. I am my brother’s heir, and I am the rightful King of the Seven Kingdoms after his murder.”

“But how? He has three children with the Queen?”

“As a matter of fact, no he does not.” Stannis shook his head. “The Queen’s children were fathered by the Kingslayer.”

The master dumbstruck by the words, Ser Davos tentatively interjected, “A thousand apologies my lord, but if there are no ravens, how could you know for certain?”

Finally reaching the main point of the conversation, Stannis subconsciously straightened as he lectured, “The Baratheon’s have kept a secret since the formation of the Seven Kingdoms, but the time for secrets is over. Perseus, come to me!”

A gust of wind suddenly began whirling inside the Chamber of the Painted Table, much of the surprise of all of its inhabitants except for Stannis himself, and when the gust cleared, a man had suddenly appeared before them out of thin air.

Gesturing with his right arm, Stannis proclaimed, “This is Perseus-”

“The Dragon-Slayer?” Melisandre let out a gasp as she suddenly sat up in her chair, her gaze entirely focused on the armored figure. “He’s real?”

Despite his shock over the news of the King, the master couldn’t stop himself from snorted, “The myths of the Dragon-Slayer are only that, Red Priestess. Myths.”

Perseus let out a booming laugh as he replied, his own gaze never shifting from the Red Priestess, “History is written by the victors, Maester, and there were none that defeated the Targaryen’s, much less the Freehold.”

Melisandre raised an eyebrow, “Except for you.”

Perseus let a small smirk cross his face before it vanished, “Indeed, except for me.”

Seeing the room calming down, Stannis continued, “Perseus was bound to the Baratheon’s during the Conquest, and he has served the eldest heir in every generation since. My grandfather, my father, Robert, and now, me.”

“Truthfully, I’ve had my suspicions that the children were not Robert’s, but I never had any proof. Now, I know for certain what I must do.” Stannis tightened his fist. “The Lannister pulled one over my brother, they cuckolded him, they murdered him, and for that, they will pay. With Tywin out of the way and Perseus by my side, there will be none that will stand in my way.” Shifting his gaze, he barked, “Maester, send out the ravens to the Great Lords. My brother, the King, has been murdered in a coup by the Lannister to put the bastard son of Cersei and Jaime Lannister on the throne, and I, his rightful heir, will have justice. Ser Davos, ready the ships. Wife, look after Shireen. Priestess, Perseus, stay behind.”

Ser Davos, to his credit, instantly complied, with the Maester and Selyse hesitantly following behind, neither trusting the Red Priestess nor the so-called Dragon-Slayer to be alone with their liege lord, but still had no other choice but to oblige.

As the door slammed shut, Melisandre silently rose to her feet, her eyes locked on Perseus as she began to slink towards him. Curious, Stannis furled his arms, “What do you know of Perseus, Priestess? The one you call Dragon-Slayer?”

“Essentially just that, my liege.” Melisandre replied as she stopped mere feet away from Perseus, her eyes surveyed him from head to toe. “In all of recorded history that I learned at all of the Red Temples, there were many who fought against the Freehold. The Ghiscari. The Rhoynar. Their enemies were immeasurable, and yet, they decimated them all the same. Until… they were once pushed back farther than ever before. The Rhoynar would not fall easily, and they were led by a warrior unlike any that the Freehold had ever seen before. Even the First Daughter, the most populated and powerful amongst them, fell to their might. Infuriated, Valyria had sent almost every available dragon in its arsenal that it could spare, and yet, they were still almost defeated. Everything was thought to be lost until a storm unlike any other arose, and by the time it vanished moons later, the Storm-Bringer was gone.” Melisandre smirked as she paused, “And yet, here he is, among the living once more.”

Stannis looked at Perseus with an emotion akin to pride, “Here he is indeed, and with him by side, none shall not be able to see the light that my reign shall bring.”

Twisting her head to look at Stannis, Melisandre suddenly whispered, “Could it be?”

Stannis grunted, “What could be, Witch?” After a few moments of silence, he bellowed, “Answer me!”

Shaking her head, Melisandre now cautiously observed Stannis, “it’s just… there’s an ancient legend passed down through the Priests of R’Hilor, one regarding the most powerful of all his servants. Azor Azai.”

Stannis snorted, well aware of the ancient hero through stories told to Shireen, “I’ve heard of him. What about him?”

“After the Long Night that had befallen humanity was banished back into the darkness, Azor Azai supposedly left a warning that the Long Night shall happen once more, but a new Azor Azai would rise to fight and finish the Great War once and for all. This Azor Azai would be born amidst Salt and Smoke, and with the aid of the mighty Lightbringer, he would emerge victorious.”

Stannis froze for a moment before turning to face the Red Priestess, “What are you saying, Melisandre?”

Melisandre reverently fell to her knees, “The Ancient Prophecy has revealed itself right in front of me! Your reign has already begun, my king, born amidst Salt and Smoke upon Dragonstone. My fellow priests had once believed that the Lightbringer was a sword lost to time, but no! The mythical Dragon-Slayer, bringer of Storms and Lightning, shall help you banish the darkness once and for all!” Melisandre raised her head to lock eyes with Stannis, “You are Azor Azai, my king!”

Notes:

Sup guys!
It's been a while since I last updated, I know I know, but kind of just lost enthusiasm for a lot of my projects. Rather, I still have a lot of enthusiasm for thinking of different ideas for stories and such, but I have utterly no motivation to write a fully fleshed out story. That's something that I've always done with this story, with these chapters being so short (and I know, not my best work), but this story has always been about the destination for me, not the journey. I really want to get to that destination, but like I said, I have a lot of trouble with these filler chapters, so if there's any advice or contributions to what you may want to see, I would be open to hearing them.

Notes:

Hearth of the Spartan: https://discord.gg/VFXQbSFVae