92 AC – Last Moon of the Year
Dragonstone fell into deep silence. The sea roared below the cliffs, as if mourning with the Targaryens. A letter arrived, sealed with blood: Prince Aemon was dead. He had died saving his brother Baelon in Tarth.
King Jaehaerys, stricken with grief, made a solemn decision. Aemon's funeral would be held at Dragonstone — not King's Landing — to allow Rhaenys, still recovering from childbirth, to attend. The ancestral home would now bear witness to another tragedy.
Aegon's Confusion
Aegon, almost five, couldn't understand how the future had changed. He had heard stories of Aemon's valor, but not of his death. Now, that path was broken. He stood at the cliffs, Aenarion by his side, sensing that his time to change the family's fate was approaching. "The Dance must be stopped," he whispered to himself.
Rhaenys' Grief
Still weak from childbirth, Rhaenys mourned her brother in silence. Holding Laena, she felt both the warmth of life and the ache of loss. Her dragon, Meleys, roared outside her chamber, sensing her pain — a creature mourning with its rider.
Jocelyn's Sorrow
Jocelyn Baratheon was shattered by the loss of her husband. Once proud and bright, she now wandered Dragonstone in silence, her eyes hollow with grief. Yet, in Laena, she found a fragile purpose. She devoted herself to caring for her granddaughter, watching over the child with both tenderness and sorrow. At the king's behest, a dragon egg was chosen for Laena's cradle — a pale, glimmering relic from Dreamfyre, once bonded to the late Rhaena Targaryen.
Baelon's Regret
Baelon returned a changed man. Though he lived, he carried the weight of Aemon's death. He often walked alone along the shore, eyes on the sea. The victory in Tarth felt hollow, and his brother's sacrifice haunted him.
A Time to Mourn
Preparations began. The funeral would be held on Dragonstone. The flames of war had taken a son, a brother, and a future. As the family gathered, the storm raged on — above and within.
Aegon watched from the tower with Aenarion. He was ready. The storm had come, and he would not run from it.