Chapter Text
The water danced around him, enveloping him in an almost absolute silence. The pain caused by feeling his bond with Vermax break was no less agonizing than that of the arrows piercing his body; yet both paled in comparison to a much deeper and more devastating sensation: the disappointment he felt in himself.
He had failed to properly save his younger brothers.
The last time he had seen his mother had been during an argument. The last time he had seen his brother had been after a fight. And now, as he slowly sank deeper, he could not stop thinking that Aegon and Viserys would be left alone.
That thought hurt more than any wound.
He found a small measure of confort in remembering that Joffry, his mother, Corlys, and Daemon would protect tham. Thay would never allow his brothers to be left helpless. At least, that was what he wanted to believe.
Arrow after arrow.
Three in total.
Three had pierced his skin, sinking deep into his body and completely weakening his limbs. Every movement became heavier, more difficult. His muscles burned. His nerves seemed to tear with every attempt to move. His bones ached to the very depths of his being.
And yet, none of it, not even the disappointment and hatred he felt toward himself, could compare to what he felt in his chest.
The broken bond with Vermax hurt.
It hurt in a way no person could ever understand unless that had shared their soul with a dragon.
It was a though a part of hum had been ripped from within
And as the water continued to envelop him, Jacaerys realized that it was not the pain of death that frightened him the most.
It was knowing that he was leaving without having been able to protect his family.
The arrow lodged in his shoulder, the one that had pierced this chest, and above all, the one that had gone throungh his neck told him that would soon come to an end.
The air in his lungs was beginning to run out. Each attempt to breathe became more difficult than the alst, as thought the water around him had also entered his lungs and wanted to drag him permanently into the depths.
He tried to keep his tears from falling, but the hatred and disappointment he felt toward himself grew stronger with every passing moment. He regretted so many things.
He had failed as a son.
He had failed as a brother.
He has failed as a prince.
He has failed as an heir.
And now, as his body weakened and the little air remaining in his lungs began to disappear, he could not help but think that he had also failed at the one thing that mattered most.
Protecting his family.
The tears finally escaped his eyes alongside his final breath, disappearing into the water.
Jacaerys no longer knew whether he was crying become of the pain of his wounds, because of the loss of Vermax, or because of the fear that he woulf never see any of them again.
Perhaps he was crying because of all of it.
And, for the firt time, he was afraid to die.
But not for humself.
For all those he would leve behind.