Rhaegor felt that the emotion he experienced the most today was undoubtedly helplessness. This sense of helplessness peaked when he saw his children.
Little Igon was cunning, a trait he displayed from a very young age. He would slyly prank his sister, whom he adored, but always within a range that they both found acceptable.
Thus, the two children were quick to reconcile.
"Igon, it was your foolish idea again, wasn't it?" Rhaegor rubbed his head in frustration, and when little Igon saw his father's displeased expression, he nervously hid behind his sister.
"Father, I was wrong too, I shouldn't have taken my brother's wooden sword," Daenerys immediately stepped forward, assuming the role of a responsible sister.
"Enough, enough. Do you think I don't understand your little tricks?" Rhaegor paused to think for a moment. "Go find your mother. She's free right now."
"Father!" Daenerys and Igon's eyes lit up at the same time. It seemed that their father wasn't going to punish them after all.
"Go on, quickly." Rhaegor suddenly smiled. "Before I change my mind."
"Understood, Father. You go ahead, we'll take care of it." Daenerys quickly grabbed Igon and ran out, leaving their father smiling.
The siblings quickly found their mother, who was taking a stroll after dinner.
"You want to go see Uncle RhRhaegon tame dragons? No, it's too dangerous," Daenyra firmly rejected the children's request. "Uncle RhRhaegon is choosing which dragons to tame this time. Those wild dragons are fierce. Only Aunt Valenna, Uncle Rey, and Aunt Rhaena can subdue them. Are you planning to cause trouble?"
"Father already agreed! Please, Mom, let us just watch," Daenerys pleaded as she held her mother's hand, shaking it.
"Mom, we'll tame dragons in the future too. We need to gain some experience," Igon added, holding her other hand and looking up at her with puppy-dog eyes.
"Alright, alright," Daenyra relented, knowing she couldn't resist her children's persistence.
Dragon's Nest, Dragon Cavern.
"Come out in order, don't be messy!"
The aging Princess Rhaena rode atop Morning, shouting commands in High Valyrian. Shadomare and Silverwing kept a vigilant watch on either side of the Dragon Cavern entrance, staring deep into the cavern.
The snoring of Vermithor still echoed throughout the cavern.
"RhRhaegon, go ahead," Rey said, standing behind his young nephew with a gentle tone. "Choose your future companion and speak its name in Old Valyrian. If it's willing to listen to you, you will sense it. The next time you come, you'll be able to tame it."
Sixteen-year-old RhRhaegon swallowed nervously.
As the youngest son of Draezell, he had received extra love from his parents due to his frail health in his early years. He was the leader among the third generation of children. This lean, clean-cut boy with short silver-gold hair was not as imposing as his brothers, and compared to becoming a knight or a lord, RhRhaegon seemed more like a Maester.
If he wanted to, he could already forge a necklace in medicine, history, ravenry, mathematics, military science, and mysticism.
But RhRhaegon couldn't be bothered with exams, so he let it go.
"Uncle, according to your theory, shouldn't I choose the dragon whose birth time is closest to mine?" he asked uncertainly.
"Straighten your tongue and speak properly," Rey frowned. "If you're still this nervous, even if you're taming a companion dragon, it won't easily submit to you."
"Oh," RhRhaegon straightened his tongue and lowered his head in disappointment.
"Rey, don't be so harsh on the child," came a voice from above. It was Princess Rhaena. She had few children of her own, so she was especially indulgent with other children. However, the children were raised by Draezell and Diana, so her doting had little impact.
"No, no, it's my fault, Aunt Rhaena," RhRhaegon said, looking up toward the depths of the Dragon Cavern, still muttering something to himself.
Rey had decent hearing, but could only make out a few words in High Valyrian.
Some of the words were commands, and others were muttered phrases like "The Blood Princess likes lamb, the Golden King likes shiny things, the Velaryons like gemstones, Sererys dislikes Rheyarys, likes the Golden King's nest, Rheyarys likes Violetwing" and other rambling statements.
The Blood Princess was the first to crawl out. This red dragon, hatched from a silver-winged egg, had now grown up. Though she could lay eggs, the number was small, and their quality was not particularly high.
"Blood Princess, come." Rhaegon began summoning the dragon according to Rey's instructions.
The Blood Princess heard Rhaegon's call. She glanced at him, then turned her head away, scanning the area before settling her gaze on the silver dragon Morning, with its towering spiked crown.
Watching the Blood Princess crawl back into her nest, Daenerys tugged her mother's hand unhappily. "Mother, did the Blood Princess just reject Uncle Rhaegon?"
Daenyra smiled and shook her head. "No. Our family's blood allows us to ride any dragon. As long as we bond with them atop their backs, we can conquer them."
"But Mother, that's not how Sebastian told it in his stories," Igon said.
"True. Your father didn't want us to treat dragons like beasts or tools. They are our honor, our kin. So we respect their will more. Your Uncle Dan is the same—Sendros answered his birth cry. In theory, he could have easily claimed Sendros by simply mounting him. But Uncle Dan didn't do that. He chose the traditional way of taming, risking life and death before finally earning Sendros' recognition."
Daenyra watched the scene below tenderly. "And that's exactly what your Uncle Rhaegon is doing now."
The purple-winged dragon sniffed at Rhaegon but did not accept his summons.
Rheyarys and Sererys had been fighting before departure, and Rhaegon's call didn't even interrupt the brawl between the green dragon and the deep-red Sererys—it was Silverwing's roar that stopped them.
Valarion lingered near Rhaegon for a while but ultimately shook his head and left.
"ROAR!"
The Golden King, radiant as pure gold, proudly flew out of his nest, followed by the promising young dragons that had hatched in recent years.
Rhaegon saw them too.
"Golden King, Valarion, Violetwing, come." Rhaegon called their names precisely.
The first to land was Valarion, a strangely beautiful pure-white dragon with a tail disproportionately large for its body. The elongated tail stretched far behind, ending in a massive fin. It lacked grand horns, instead sporting rows of short, sharp spikes above its eyes and along its skull, giving its scaled face a regal dignity. Under the faint light of the dragonpit, Valarion' white scales shimmered like Hovendes' wing membranes, refracting dazzling colors.
Most peculiar were the silken strands running from its spine to its cheeks, making Valarion resemble a lion. When this dragon first hatched, Rey had tested these "hairs".
Like Zarafax's whiskers, Hovendes' tendrils, and Candlelight's tentacles, they were not true fur.
These "manes" seemed highly resistant to flame and could withstand bites from fangs and claws.
Next came Violetwing, a deep rouge-purple dragon. Its most unusual feature was its head and neck—compared to normal dragons, Violetwing's skull was even stranger than Candlelight's. Thick armored scales encased its head, making it resemble the helmeted jawless fish of ancient times. Its massive horns seemed almost mismatched, but the most striking detail was the huge fin-like membranes extending from either side of its skull. When viewed alongside its equally large wings, it almost looked like Violetwing had two pairs.
The Golden King landed behind Valarion and Violetwing, eyeing Rhaegon curiously.
"Valarion and Violetwing seem to have rejected Uncle Rhaegon," Daenerys observed keenly, quickly noticing the two younger dragons turning away, leaving only the Golden King behind.
"The Golden King suits Rhaegon better," Daenyra mused. "It's large enough and gentle enough."
Igon stared blankly as the Golden King slowly approached Rhaegon, lowering its head and allowing him to place his hand between its horns.
No one knew what the five-year-old was thinking.