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CaveLeather
"I'll give it to you!"
The words hit Leo like a lightning bolt. His heart slammed against his ribs.
He hadn't expected to get his hands on a dragon egg this easily.
Leo forced himself to stay calm and played it cool. "Really? I couldn't possibly accept something so valuable for free. Tell me what you paid and I'll double it."
"What kind of talk is that?" Illyrio pretended to be offended. "Friends don't talk money. Unless you don't consider me a friend?"
He didn't give Leo a chance to argue. "Wait here. I'll be right back."
Illyrio left the room. A few minutes later he returned with a servant carrying a small wooden box.
The servant set it on the table in front of Leo and opened the lid.
Inside lay an oval egg, a little smaller than a football. Its surface was a pale milky white, covered in tiny, delicate scales that gleamed like fine ceramic or enamel.
Leo's pulse hammered. He stared at the egg, eyes locked on it, and reached out to run his fingers gently across its surface.
"This… this is beautiful," he breathed.
Illyrio looked pleased. "It comes from the Shadow Lands beyond Asshai. After thousands of years it turned to stone, yet it still shines. Right now it's nothing more than a pretty ornament."
Then something seemed to occur to him. "Wait… aren't you also from east of Asshai?"
Leo snapped out of it and answered smoothly, "Yes, but I had no idea there were dragon eggs in the Shadow Lands. If I'd known, I would have taken people there to search first."
"You're really giving me something this beautiful?"
Illyrio laughed. "We're friends. This egg is just a decorative piece to me. Take it."
"Then I won't be polite." Leo closed the box with care and handed it to Varyn, who had stayed at his side the whole time. He moved fast, half-afraid Illyrio might change his mind.
Dragons had been extinct in this world for over a century. Even the Targaryens had failed to hatch their eggs. To most people the thing was worthless now—just a fancy rock.
But Leo knew better. In the original story, Illyrio gave three dragon eggs to Daenerys as a wedding gift, and she hatched them into living dragons. She became the Mother of Dragons.
Leo was certain he could hatch this one too. With Onyxia—the Black Dragon Princess—right beside him, it was only a matter of time.
He also figured the early arrival of the red comet meant the magic tide was already rising. That was probably the key condition for hatching dragons.
The Targaryens had failed because the world had entered a long magic drought. Daenerys had simply been in the right place at the right time and stumbled onto the right method.
Leo kept his thoughts hidden and said gratefully, "Illyrio, you really are a true friend. I won't forget this. If you ever need anything, just say the word."
Illyrio's eyes brightened. That was exactly the promise he had been waiting for.
Varys had asked him to test Leo and pull him closer. So far everything was going perfectly. Still, Illyrio knew when to stop. Now wasn't the time to reveal their full hand.
Next step: get those two decoys in front of Leo.
Illyrio had just heard Leo mention he planned to visit the other Free Cities to look for the Targaryen children. He generously offered one of his own ships so Leo could travel more easily—and so they could keep an eye on him.
Leo accepted with a polite show of reluctance. He wasn't about to turn down free transportation.
Both men had gotten what they wanted. They spent the rest of the evening drinking, laughing, and acting like the best of friends.
When Leo finally left the villa, Illyrio's smile dropped the second the door closed.
He stroked his forked beard and muttered to himself, "This Neo is something else. He's been in Pentos for days and hasn't touched a single woman I put near him. Even tonight, with the mood set and two beautiful girls offered, he still refused. Is his will really that strong… or is something else wrong with him?"
…
"Achoo—! Achoo—!"
The moment Leo stepped out of Illyrio's mansion he sneezed twice for no reason.
"Damn it. Who's talking shit about me behind my back? Onyxia?"
He swung up onto his horse, then glanced back at Varyn carefully tying the box containing the dragon egg to another mount. A huge grin spread across Leo's face.
He had only gotten one egg, but it was the real thing.
Judging by the color and pattern, this had to be the one Daenerys later named Viserion—the white dragon.
In the show, Viserion died beyond the Wall and was turned into an ice dragon by the Night King. That undead beast helped the White Walkers smash a hole in the Wall and let the dead pour through.
Now the egg was in Leo's hands. He had no intention of letting that future happen.
The story had already changed.
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Author's Note
Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed the chapter, please consider leaving a review or vote for more. The story continues with Leo's plans for the egg and his next moves across the Narrow Sea.