"We are leaving?" Arianne asked, her voice laced with violent shock. "But why? I have not even met Rhaenys Targaryen."
It was the day after Oberyn had returned from his meeting with Rhaenys.
Initially, he had revealed almost nothing about what had transpired between them at the meeting. Arianne had not pushed for answers, assuming that Oberyn might have been too tired to talk or that nothing of significant importance had occurred.
It was only this morning, when she asked when she would finally be able to meet Rhaenys, that her uncle informed her they would be leaving Qohor. There would be no meeting.
Oberyn did not respond to Arianne's question immediately. He took a deep breath, taking his time to frame his response.
"I have already inquired and discovered whatever we were meant to discover here," he said. "We will not find anything new."
"Not that Rhaenys would be meeting with us anymore," he added after a small pause. "We had one chance, and we have exhausted it."
Arianne did not respond. If Rhaenys did not wish to meet them again, there was nothing she could do. She could not exactly force her at the tip of her sword. Rhaenys had five living dragons.
"And what did you learn, Uncle?" Arianne asked, a little sarcastically.
"That she is indeed Rhaenys," Oberyn said. "Elia and Rhaegar's daughter."
A flash of surprise appeared on Arianne's face, though it was not entirely unexpected.
"She was able to convince you?" She asked.
Oberyn sighed. She had not really convinced him. She was nonchalant whether he believed her to be Rhaenys or not. She had just told him a fact that cleared all doubts regarding her identity. Oberyn nodded his head in response.
"And did she tell you how she, and she alone, was able to escape the Red Keep and King's Landing when the whole world thought her to be dead?" Arianned asked. "And did you question her on where she was hiding all these years, and why she did not contact us? The Martells? Her only family left alive?"
"She was not willing to speak about her escape. I have no idea regarding this matter," Oberyn answered. "As for contacting us, she did not wish to be used in the politics that your father plays."
"Did you even learn anything important?" Arianne questioned. "How did she get the dragons? What is she planning? Will she attack Westeros? Does she plan to take her throne? Does she plan to take revenge?"
"Is she maintaining any contact with Viserys? Anything important?" she pressed.
Oberyn nodded.
"What?" she questioned impatiently.
Oberyn's nonchalance was irritating and frustrating her.
"She has her own plans for revenge," Oberyn answered. "Her own methods. What they are, I do not know in specific."
"Nothing else?" she asked.
Oberyn shook his head.
"Great!" she said, frustrated. "We came here all the way from Dorne only to learn things we already suspected were true."
"If you had met her," Oberyn remarked. "You too would have been pleased to at least this much. She is not someone you can make her disclose things to."
Arianne raised her eyebrows in response wondering what had even happened in the meeting for Oberyn to be talking in this manner.
"How is she?" Arianne asked. "Her personality? Based on what you say, she appears quite arrogant."
"She is arrogant or maybe prideful would be more accurate," Oberyn responded. "But she has every right to be arrogant."
Arianne raised her eyebrows.
"There is something you are not telling me, Uncle," Arianne remarked.
She was gazing intently at him and an expression filled with questions was plastered on her face. Oberyn remained silent for a few moments.
"She defeated me in a spear duel," he admitted.
A look of pure shock passed over Arianne's face. Defeating Oberyn in a spear duel? Not even she could do something like that. Not that she was foolish enough to think Rhaenys was not a capable warrior or better than her, but defeating Oberyn was an incredibly difficult task.
"How?" she asked. "How were you bested?"
"Bested?" Oberyn scoffed. "I was not bested. I was toyed with. Dealing with me was child's play to her. She defeated me eight times in a few moments. I had no answers for her attacks."
Arianne's eyes widened in disbelief. Her uncle admitting defeat and giving such high praise to another spear-wielder was not something you would ever expect to witness. And did he really lose eight times? Was he making things up?
"Are you telling the truth?" she asked.
"Why would I lie and insult myself?" Oberyn said. "She is something else."
Arianne remained silent. She could not fathom what Oberyn was revealing.
"Enough of this," Oberyn said. "We will depart at the first light tomorrow. We will go to Pentos where you will meet and judge your fiance Viserys. And then we will leave for Dorne."
Arianne could only nod her head in response. She did not push Oberyn any further. Maybe in a few days, he might be in the mood to talk in detail about everything that had happened in the meeting.
.
.
.
Meanwhile Varys, after spending a few days at Illyrio's manor, was ready to leave for King's Landing. But on the eve before he left for Westeros, he encountered, fortunately or unfortunately, coincidental or not, a very curious character. A man he had not really been expecting to see.
"Ser Jorah Mormont," he grinned. "To be honest, I was not expecting to see you here in the city of Pentos."
"And I was not expecting that while having breakfast in an inn, three men would invite me, almost forcefully, out of my seat and bring me here," Jorah grumbled. "Neither was I expecting that the person they brought me to see would be Master of Whisperers of Robert Baratheon's small council."
"Haha!" Varys chuckled. "I do quite like to surprise people."
"And," he continued, "I apologize for the behavior of my men."
"What do you want, Spider?" Jorah growled threateningly. "I do not think you would go through all this effort just to do what Ned Stark could not."
"Kill you?" Varys chuckled again. "No."
"A man like you is far more useful alive than dead," he said. "Why don't you take a seat?"
Jorah did not move for a few moments. But thinking that there was no harm in hearing whatever Varys had to say he sighed deeply and sat across from him.
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