WILOW-Ch.414: Prince Doran Martell
Water Gardens, Dorne
POV of Doran Martell
Doran sat in his wheelchair, watching the kids play in the Water Gardens.
Sitting here, watching the kids play among themselves, was very relaxing for someone like him, burdened with ruling Dorne with no support from his brother, his wife, or his children.
Which was why he made it a habit of coming here and relaxing every single day, or the burden of ruling Dorne would have crushed him a long time ago.
Today, however, his time for relaxation was cut short when he saw two giant figures flying on the horizon, coming toward them at a rapid pace.
"Areo." He said to his most trusted sworn shield, "Remove the children from the Water gardens. Make sure they don't panic and that no one is hurt."
"But my prince…"
"I'll be fine, Areo." He said softly, "We've already discussed this. We knew he would be coming when we heard about the report of his wyverns being sighted near Lemonwood. There's no need to worry about me."
Areo nodded and left to escort the children out of the Water Gardens.
Meanwhile, he waited with a few guards as the silhouettes of the two giant, winged beasts grew larger and larger until they were finally atop the Water Gardens, and he could see them clearly.
They flew above the Water Gardens for a few minutes. Probably showing their arial superiority over him and his people.
An understandable and useful tactic.
Anyone else would have started to doubt if Domeric Bolton would drop his infamous wildfire bombs on them.
But he was not anyone else.
He had learned enough about Domeric Bolton to know that the boy was a very shrewd and cunning man. Not to mention ambitious. Very ambitious.
Until recently, many people doubted this. And if he told them Domeric Bolton was an ambitious man, they probably would have laughed at him.
Given how Domeric Bolton supported the Starks and the fair relationship they had, many people believed he wasn't ambitious.
After all, if it were any other Bolton Lord who had gathered so much power, then he would definitely tried to remove the Starks from the seat of the Lord Paramount of the North and would have taken that position for himself.
But that's where the genius of Domeric Bolton shone most brightly.
Instead of trying to take over the whole North and gathering as much power for himself as possible, Domeric Bolton used all his time and effort in the betterment of his own fiefdom to the point where House Bolton now has the 2nd largest Fleet, an army of over 20,000 men, and generates more revenue than both Dorne and North combined.
And if the rumors about Bolton's Fleet destroying Astapor and taking the Unsullied were true, then Domeric Bolton has just become more powerful than even the Kingdom of Reach.
Truly and utterly marvelous.
Domeric Bolton skillfully concealed his ambitions and waited for his time. And when he revealed them, his target was not the North, but all of Westeros.
The Emperor of Westeros.
And when he made this claim, it seemed as if he had already achieved his goal. Domeric Bolton won the game on the first move.
Because even if all of Westeros rose against Domeric Bolton, he didn't think they could defeat him. Against Wyverns, wildfire bombs, giants, direwolves, and an army of unsullied, it seemed highly unlikely.
If his son Quentyn or Trystane had been half as wise as Domeric Bolton, then he would have gladly given up his seat as the Prince of Dorne and would then have spent his last few years relaxing in the Water Gardens before passing on with a smile on his face.
The wyverns flew into the air for a few more minutes before both of them lowered to the ground and landed a hundred meters ahead of him.
On one of the Wyverns, he could see Domeric Bolton with an unconscious man whose hands were tied behind his back, along with a sack around his head.
On the other Wyvern, there was an unknown woman of Northern origin, with a large man in a position similar to the one held by Domeric Bolton.
He would have been confused if it were not for the fact that there were very few people in the world who were of such large height and who Domeric Bolton would bring to Dorne.
The Lannister armor both men wore was also pretty damning evidence.
Tears almost came out of his eyes as he realized that he would finally get revenge for his dear sister Elia.
He must also call Oberyn as soon as possible, or his brother would never forgive him.
Domeric Bolton climbed down the wyvern and pulled the unconscious man down with him before he went and helped the woman with the large man, who could be none other than Mountain.
He glanced at his guards and gestured for them to give a hand to Domeric Bolton.
They did, and a minute later, he had two bound and unconscious men in front of him, along with Domeric Bolton, who was looking curiously at the Water Garden.
There was silence in the yard, and no one spoke as Domeric Bolton observed his surroundings before his eyes fell on him, "Prince Doran." Lord Bolton said with a nod of his head, "I've heard so much about you. It is hard to think of another man in Westeros who has sacrificed as much as you for the prosperity of your kingdom and has received so little in return. For that, you're a man worthy of my respect."
He didn't know what to say to that.
True, he had sacrificed just about everything for the Kingdom.
He didn't declare war on the Lannisters when his sister was raped and murdered because they were too weak, and such a war would have destroyed his kingdom.
He exiled his brother for the stability of the Kingdom when his brother killed another man in a duel to the first blood.
He sent his son into foster care, away from home, for the Kingdom's stability. An action that cost him the love and presence of his wife, who never forgave him for it.
Over the years, he has sacrificed so much for the Kingdom. And has received so little. And yet, very few spoke of his sacrifices, and fewer still appreciated them.
To know that someone not even from his own kingdom respected him for that was…
He was getting emotional now. So, he could only blink a few times and smiled.
"I… thank you for your praise… Lord Bolton. How about we take this talk inside?" He said, and Domeric Bolton nodded.
According to Domeric Bolton's claim, he should have addressed him as Emperor Domeric or Your Majesty.
The newspaper published by Domeric Bolton had already explained how the emperor and members of the imperial family should be addressed.
But Doran couldn't do that. Not yet.
Domeric Bolton was trying to place a Targaryen on the Iron Throne. Accepting his claim to the Empire and showing allegiance meant accepting the Targaryen rule he would impose on the Iron Throne.
Doran couldn't accept that. After all the harm the Targaryens had inflicted on his family, it was impossible.
"Before that. I bring gifts for you."
"Gifts?" he asked, feigning slight confusion.
Domeric Bolton indulgently smiled at him. "Ser Amory Lorch died with the other 5000 Lannister Cavalry in a trap of my making, so I don't have his body. But I have the other two culprits who were the cause of your sister and her children's death."
With that, Domeric Bolton took off the sacks from the heads of the two men, and Doran smiled as he saw the sight of Tywin Lannister and Gregor Clegane lying helplessly in front of him.
He took a few moments to calm his racing heart before he looked at Domeric Bolton, his throat a little dry, and he smiled.
"For bringing justice to the murderers of Princess Elia of House Martell, we will always be grateful to you, Lord Bolton." He said, "Let it be known that a member of House Bolton will always be welcome in my Dorne."
Domeric Bolton just gave him an understanding nod as he told Area Hotah to take the two men to the deepest of their dungeons in Sunspear and then send a letter to Oberyn, telling him that his exile was suspended for the moment and that he was being summoned home.
--------------
Author's Note: You folks can also read up to +65 chapters on my P@treon Page as an early access privilege.
You can also read "+3 Free Chapters" and see some pictures as aFree Member.
www.patreon.com/vanguard_v
P@treon Page Name: V For Vanguard
Next Chapters' Name:
Ch.415: I Intend to Make Dorne a Kingdom
Ch.416: Sand Snakes
Ch.417: Giving Her Some Hints