GoT onexone

[Jenpai]

Varus couldn’t help but smile as he saw Celeste crawl up into the cart with the dragons. She looked pretty ridiculous. The cart was not properly sized for human beings and it had bars all around it like a cage. Yet she still sat snugly inside tending to the baby drakes. There was something motherly about her even though they did not come from her own womb. He could tell that she loved them dearly. Varus nodded at her request and told someone to pass the message on and call for the maester. Then a flash of light lit up the sky and a loud roar followed. The sound sent a shiver down Varus’s spine. He hated thunderstorms. Having grown up in the desert he always thought that there was something unnatural about water, sounds, and lights coming out of a darkened sky.

He looked to the dragons and they seemed to be spooked by the thunder as well. Some were trying to crawl under Celeste for cover while others were clinging onto her for dear life. They didn’t seem to enjoy being in the rain any more than he did. “We should bring them into our tent. The storm seems to be scaring them” He said, using the dragons as an excuse because he was too embarrassed to admit that it scared him too. He helped Celeste out of the cart and back into their tent. By the time they got back the Maester had arrived also, anxious to see the fabled creatures. “Oooooh! Interesting, very interesting” The old man said as he examined each one intently. He reached out a hand and tried to pet one but it snapped back at him and bit his finger. Magical creatures never seemed to like the old Maester. “Carnivorous for sure!” He laughed as he pulled back his hand. “I would just start by feeding them some raw meat. Live rodents once they’re ready for it. Always keep them warm too. The dragons aren’t used to cold weather” He said then looked at Jarvanti who was always close to them, radiating her heat. “But that shouldn’t be a problem” He smiled.

[.Sour .Skittles.]

"No, not raw." Celeste said quickly,"The God's gave them fire from their very breasts. I imagine they cook their foods as do we." She quietly chastised the little black drake for snapping so. After a long moment she smiled, "They are to be called as such.Uther the black, Volos the green, Cynima is the red female and Melusine is the golden one. Please treat them with every respect as you would Jarvanti." She told the master and anyone else who happened to be around. She then looked to varus with a large smile as their "children" curled together.

"Aren't they all amazing?" She asked, meaning all including Jarvanti. Celeste stood up then and hugged Varus tightly. Even though it rained and stormed she seemed not to notice. "Maester, please ask someone to bring some cooked meats for everyone here."

[Jenpai]

“They are” Varus argeed, grinning as she hugged him tightly. Varus still watched them in amazement. They were so small yet one day they would grow to be so big that they can wipe out entire cities with just one breath. He just hoped that he could remain on their good side until then. He sat down on the floor to play with the little dragons. Melusine instantly crawled up onto his lap and cuddled against his leg, Volos was off in the corner snoring away, Uther was chewing fiercely at Varus’s pants, while Cynima was just discovering how to run. Varus smiled and pet the golden dragon on his lap. “This one has a kind heart and such beautiful coloring.” He said as he admired the golden scales. A loud bang erupted inside the room. Varus turned around to see that the little red dragon had just ran head first into a candle stick and knocked it over. The flames fell onto some pillows and burst into flame. Varus quickly got up and gave the cuddler to Celeste. He then stomped out the pillow until the flames were gone. He them picked up the red dragon and laughed. “Cynima the Destroyer! Burning things down before you can even breathe fire!” He said as he threw the small dragon up in the air and caught it like one might do with a human baby. Cynima seemed to enjoy it and spread her wings as if pretending to fly in the temporary moment of weightlessness. That dragon was always getting ahead of itself, trying to do things that it didn’t know how to yet.

[.Sour .Skittles.]

Celeste grinned as she watched Varus sit with the Dragons. She leaned and sat down beside him and.moved Uther from varus' pant leg. She chided him as she sat him in her lap. Uther crooned and curled himself in her lap,snorting smoke from his nose. She took Melusine into her hands as Cynima knocked over a.candle. She had a feeling they would have to keep an eye on that trouble maker. She giggled and then jumped slightly, "careful please!" She jumped a bit then realised she was over reacting.

Finally she settled herself back on the pillows. Finally the maester returned with cooked meats. She grabbed one. Piece and began to hand it to Melusine but the little fierce Uther decided to steal it. "Hey, enough of that." She tapped his head then gave another to the golden one. The smell of food seemed to attract volos who, with eyes only half open flopped with moth open beside the plate.

"Jarvanti, come here." Celeste made a bowl of food for the Phoenix and put it to the side for her. When she came Celeste kissed her head. "Bring Cynima here, proud father." She said.

Finally the dragons drifted to sleep for the night and Celeste did to. When the morning came she settled the babes with Jarvanti in the carriage with food and climbed at top her horse. She never strayed far from the carriage.

[Jenpai]

Varus’s ears perked up when she called him a father. He looked at her confused at first, but then realized what she meant. It was true, they were like an odd little family in a way. He smiled and handed Cynima over to her. She them fed them and put them to sleep and Varus did the same.

The next day they set out for Thunderforge again. The sun was high and the rain had ceased for the time being. The rode for the better half of the day. Narrow roads and rocky hills were all they saw for hours upon hours. Finally, they reached the top of the highest mountain and saw it, Thunderforge castle in all its glory. This castle was different than the others in Whitespell. It was build into the mountain with large statues carved into the face of it, worshiping the stern-looking storm gods. Up on the wall he saw a few people looking back at him. In their center, he saw a large looking man with a golden mane and full beard. Varus recognized him to be Lord Elmar Weldon of Thunderforge. The man looked troubled, seeing the large army at his doorstep. But he was not afraid. Even though Varus outnumbered him 3 to 1 Elmar had the higher ground and the army was funneled into a tight line by steep hills on one side and a vertical drop on the other. “Who goes there?!” Lord Elmar called out in a thunderous tone. “Lord Varus Laster of Candor and Lady Celeste Wylde of Dragonbourne! We wish you no harm. We seek your help in taking down the mad boy king!” Varus yelled back to the man. Elmar conversed with the people next to him, which Varus guessed to be his advisers. Lord Elmar finally yelled back. “We have no love for the king here. The king sits on his iron throne and bathes in gold while the Thunderforge remains poor and rots in the mountainside! But his armies are much greater than yours! Joining your cause would mean sending our men out to die. How can I know if you are worthy of supporting?”

[.Sour .Skittles.]

Celeste looked up to the mountain side. Thunderfordge was impressive despite their lack of wealth. They had managed at least a frightening if not impressive display with their mountainous home. Celeste felt her horse shift under her as she rode to the front of the lines. She held Uther upon her shoulder who stayed still, but wary of the people. He hissed and snapped his teeth at the soldiers about him until Celeste quickly hushed him. She took turns bonding with each of them in this manner.
However, her attention was placed on the man above. Even from the distance, her piercing blue eyes bore holes into them. "What do you suggest?“ she called up to them, awaiting the bearded man's reply. Celeste stood tall. Upon her horse as the people talked it over.

"Our champion against yours!" Came the reply from above. Celeste waited for him to continue but all she heard was cheering from above. Soon a large man emerged from the gates. She watched Varus talk it over with the banner men of whom they would send. As they spoke she looked over the moore. He had scars along his face, and he was huge. Finally Celeste dismounted. This was wrong sending another man out would accomplish nothing except maybe lose another life. And Celeste was not about to start a war with them. She handed Uther back into his carriage before walking forward.

"My lady? Uh- my Lord?" The man stuttered, getting Varus' attention. However Celeste was already half way out there. The champion laughed at the thought, but it would be easy or so he thought. She jogged towards him and he towards her. She dodged a spear he threw easily. Soon they both ran at one another, swords unsheathed. The man turned.suddenly, slamming his shield forward. At the last Moment she used the shield as a stair, flying above the colossal man. Her sword pierced his flesh, severing is brain stem. She landed and continued walking to the gates and the man fell where he stood.
"Your champion is dead. We have proven our worth. What say you?"

[Jenpai]

Varus conversed with the heads of his bannermen about who they should send out to fight the Thunderforge champion. The man was much bigger than any one of his soldiers. They had trouble with deciding but before they could even come up with an answer Celeste had already walked out into the arena. Varus gasped as he saw her stand before the large brute. What on earth was she thinking? It wasn’t that Varus didn’t believe in her skills in combat but it was just that the risk was too great. And Thunderforge was not worth losing Celeste over. Varus dismounted his horse and pushed to the front of the crowd that had formed to watch the fight.

It was over as fast as it had begun. With one fell swoop of her sword, the champion from Thunderforge was on the ground. The crowd fell silent and both sides watched in awe, amazed by the display of skill yet disappointed that it was over so soon. Varus grinned proudly and walked out onto the clearing where the two had fought. He grabbed her by the waist and kissed her passionately. “A woman who can fight is so sexy” He grinned and whispered to her before turning up to the Lord of the mountain. “We have completed your challenge, now open the gates!” He demanded. But just as he said that a flash of lightening came from the sky. It struck one of the colossal statues of the storm god causing the stone to crumble and fall. It then started pouring almost instantly, raining much harder than it had the previous day. Varus was soaked within minutes. He hated the rain and wanted to seek shelter within the castle. “Open the gates!” He called again, still holding onto Celeste.

Elmar looked back down at them with frightful eyes. The people of Thunderforge were superstitious people. They read the weather as the will of the gods. “An omen from the Storm gods! Turn back now you shall receive no help from the forge!” Lord Elmar said and waved to some men that stood high above them on the steel hillside. Varus followed Elmar’s eyes and saw that these men stood beside large boulders, ready to unleash them on the army below if they attacked the gate.

[.Sour .Skittles.]

Celeste followed the gaze of the two men. She sighed and her eyes narrowed. Well Damn. She turned to the army, "Turn back! Seek shelter in the mountain caves!" She yelled above the rain. The army turned back for the moment buy Celeste released herself from varus' hold on her. She grabbed onto the large fallen man and dragged him through the rain and mud to the edge of the gates of the kingdom. She stopped then and pointed her sword up to Lord Elmar.

"You have until tomorrow's night fall to make your final decision. Think wisely, if your answer is no we will break down your gates and rain fire over your kingdom, and I will show you no mercy. Your storm gods will lay at my feet and I will drag them back to dragonbourne as nothing more than statues!" Celeste was very serious as she turned back with Varus and the army. She mounted her horse and followed them into a string of caves.

Finally out of the rain she ordered scouts up the mountain to locate a way up there so there would not be a repeat of earlier. If she could she would send a number of ten or twenty up there to put an end to that trickery. She had a map laid out at her feet and on her hands and knees she examined it furiously. Nobody dared neared the angry woman as she drew battlements furiously. Thunderforge had simply insulted them, and if they dared to do it again she would make them pay dearly for it.

[Jenpai]

Varus retreated with the army to the caves. He wasn’t too happy with how the meeting had went either. It was stupid to turn back on a deal just because of a little rain. But Varus had faith in Lord Elmar. He could tell that the mountainers hated the king as much as he did himself. He believed that by tomorrow Elmar would come to his senses and join them in rebellion. But Celeste didn’t seem to have the same faith in Lord Elmar as he did. He looked to her, on the ground intently studying the map, and sighed. There was no use approaching the angry woman now, he best let her cool down for a moment alone. He turned and ventured deep into the mysterious cave, taking Jarvanti with him to help light the way. He discovered that it lead to a pretty elaborate cave system.

He spent over an hour wondering through the caverns until he finally stumbled across a large room with a beautiful pool of water. Directly above the water was a large opening in the rock that let the hard rain and moon light through. The light reflected off the waves and lit up the cave in beautiful shades of blue. The water was crystal clear having been filtered through the rocks and warm to the touch from having soaked up the heat of the earth. Varus admired the rocky room until he saw something shine in the dirt. He went over to the corner of the room where there was a piece of metal sticking out behind come cobwebs. He brushed the webs away to reveal a beautiful sword but gaped when he realized that there was a skeleton clenching onto it. He pried the sword from the boney fingers carefully and examined it closely, running his fingers across the edge. He was surprised that it bit through his skin and caused him to bleed even though it was obviously very ancient. “Valyrian steel…” He said to himself as he tossed it from one hand to another feeling the weight of it. It was extremely well balanced and finely crafted. He clipped it onto his belt and decided to keep it.

After finding the gem within the rocks he headed back to Celeste excited to show her the treasures he found. “Are you done sulking yet?” He teased then excitedly pulled her up from the floor. “Look what I found!” He said, pulling out the sword from his belt. “It’s Valyrian steel. I found it back in this beautiful cavern! Come on I’ll show you!” He said excitedly then almost dragged her back to where the water was.

[.Sour .Skittles.]

Celeste sighed but could not help but smile at the excitement he had as he dragged her off towards the hidden cave he had found. Celeste chuckled and kept up with him. Finally they emerged and Celeste looked around in awe. "Wow. How did you manage to find this?"" She asked as she ran her hands over the walls. It was gorgeous with its pool of water. What more could she hope for? Well for the night she supposed she should enjoy it. As to be expected she explored the cavern to the best of her ability. She half turned to Varus and looked st the sword, "Valerian steel huh?" She asked quietly, "still sharp to the touch?"

From afar she examined the sword. It looked nice, beautiful even. For the remainder of the night the two remained in the cave, doing whatever they pleased but in the morning it was back to business. The scouts had found a way up to the pass so men were posted there as the army set back out for the gates. Lord Elmar was summoned then to the gates where they stood.

"Your time is up!" She called to him, "what is your verdict?"

[Jenpai]

Lord Elmar looked down at the two from the wall. He wanted to heed the warning of the Storm gods but at the same time he didn’t want to miss the opportunity to revolt against the king and restore Thunderforge to its former glory. There was also the fact that he had a very intimidating woman threatening to attack the castle. One that was able to take down his most powerful warrior in a matter of seconds. With no choice but to comply, Elmar signaled his men to open the gates.

Varus entered the castle with Celeste and a few other guards. Elmar had sent a rider to them that morning inviting them into the castle for negotiation. Varus saw that as a good sign but couldn’t be sure if Elmar could be trusted so he brought his best fighters and armed himself with the new sword he found. Once inside they were quickly ushered into the meeting hall. There was something desolate about Thunderforge Castle. It had been build very generously with proportions fit for giants but had very few people manning it. There were many statues of gods and leaders that were once cladded in gold but have now all but fell to ruin. Even the meeting hall was built spaciously. It was about the size of Candor’s entire mess hall. A large statue of a bearded man overlooked a table in the center of the room. Seated at the table was none other than Lord Elmar and a few of his advisors. “Please try and hear them out” He whispered to Celeste before he took a seat at the table. He knew that she was less than happy with them for going back on their deal. It was unexpected for both of them but starting a fight now inside their castle would not be a very good idea. Varus situated himself and waited for Elmar to speak.

But it was not Elmar who spoke first. It was a lady who sat at Elmar’s side. Varus had originally thought that to be Lady Weldon but upon taking a closer look he realized that she was wearing a priestly gown, probably the spiritual leader of Thunderforge. She had been eyeing him very intently ever since he entered the room. She spoke excitedly at the first chance she got, not even giving the chance for Lord Elmar to welcome them into the castle. “I beg your pardon my lord, but can I see your blade?” She asked. Varus was caught off guard by the question but complied. The old woman handled the blade carefully and ran her fingers along the strange letters in an ancient language that was welded into the blade “This is Stormbringer!” She finally concluded. Elmar gasped and whispers broke out among the advisors. “I’m sorry, what is Stormbringer?” Varus asked confusingly.

The high priestess handed the blade back and got up from her seat. She walked back to the statue at the head of the room and said some prayers before turning back to Varus. “Stormbringer is the fabled sword that belonged to the mountain king, Hrothgar. He ruled the Godsreach Mountains in ancient times when we were still an independent kingdom. One day King Hrothgar ventured deep into the Blackwind Caverns and was never seen again. As soon as he was gone the gold mines dried up and Thunderforge slowly fell into poverty. Prophecy says that one day a hero will bring his sword back to us. He shall be the one to lead us to salvation and restore Thunderforge to it’s former glory” Varus was shocked to learn of their prophecy. He was no hero. He simply found a sword in a cave. But these were superstitious people, and the prophecy worked in his favor. Varus needed to take advantage of the situation. “The way to your salvation lays in King’s Lawn. There he has vaults filled to the roof with gold. Help me take the throne and you can restore your kingdom with the gold” Varus proposed. Elmar seemed to like the idea. A large smile formed on the lord’s face. “Then it is decided! You shall be the new king. Let us seal the deal by joining our houses. I have no sons and my wife has passed. Marry my daughter and you shall become the next Lord of Thunderforge, hero".

[.Sour .Skittles.]

Celeste seemed to brighten, of course until the final moments of suggestion. Her fingers tapped slowly on the table. One could sense the anger rolling off of her in waves.

"That will happen over my lifeless body." She said plainly without any sort of amusement in her voice. "That is my fiance you are intending to marry off to your daughter, I won't have it." Celeste had been rather moody lately and she was beginning to feel Ill. Celeste stood up, chair scraping on the floor. "You are getting far ahead of.yourself my Lord, if you think I am any less dangerous to cross you he made a huge mistake." Celeste leaned over the table with her palms flat. She watched the men at the table cower silently. She couldn't deal with it.

Finally she just turned in the opposite direction, "Deal with this Varus!" She hissed over her shoulder. She was trying to make it outside but it wasn't.going to work. She was still feeling sick and promptly threw up in the hallway. Nobody dared touched her. Clearly they were all too afraid. As for the dragons, one could hear them.screaming from outside for their mother's discomfort.

When Celeste finally managed to stand herself up she had a small crowed staring at her curiously.

[Jenpai]

Celeste had been so moody lately that the mere mention of Varus wedding Elmar’s daughter set her off. He sat uncomfortably as she told the mountainers off and stormed out of the room, telling Varus to handle the situation. But how was he supposed to handle this? “Uhh….” He said awkwardly as the room filled with silence. “It is true. I am betrothed to another, I cannot wed your daughter. But if you support me in this war you shall still get your gold once I am king.” Varus proposed. Elmar did not look pleased. He even looked offended. The large man shifted in his seat and narrowed his eyes at Varus. “We’ve heard such lies before. Whats keeping you from just forgetting about us once you take the throne? We are nothing to you. Thunderforge needs an heir. Join houses or you shall receive no help from us” Elmar gave him the ultimatum. Varus sighed and thought for a moment. Lord Elmar was a stubborn man. It didn’t seem like he was going to let up any time soon. But at the same time Varus could not marry his daughter. His heart belonged to Celeste.

Of course, there was another way. He really didn’t want to retort to that because he was against arranged marriages. But now it seemed the only option. “You will have your heir and we will join our houses. Have your daughter wed my brother Donnovan. He is a trueborn Laster of Candor.” Elmar reached for his whiskers and thought for a moment. Sure it was not what he had originally intended but it served its purpose. Finally, Lord Elmar agreed. “But we shall have the wedding here, and before you march for Kings Lawn.” Elmar said, adding his own conditions to the deal. Varus nodded and the smile instantly returned on Elmar’s face. “Great! Welcome to the family hero. Have your men seek refuge inside the castle and tell your lady that we are deeply sorry for the previous misunderstandings. To make up for them having to spend a night out in the rain we will forge them fresh steel. It is the only thing that Thunderforge seems to have an abundance of these days.” Elmar laughed in his booming voice.

Varud thanked the lord and exited the meeting room. He was surprised to see that Celeste was still outside and that she had gotten sick yet again. He was beginning to get really worried now since it has been going on for several days. He rushed to her side and barked at the crowd to disperse. “Are you okay? What happened? Come on, were getting you some help. This has been happening for long enough.

[.Sour .Skittles.]

Celeste brushed Varus off at first but finally accepted his help. She sighed and leaned into him wearily."what did they say?" She asked, voice scratchy, "I'm fine, it's just a bug of some sort. I wouldn't worry about it." She tried to defend herself from his worries. She wished he wouldn't worry so much. Finally she succumbed and allowed him to drag her off in the direction of their medical professionals which happened to include the woman from earlier. She must have been a spiritual leader of some sort as she dressed differently from the rest.of the people.

The woman turned to them and smiled, folding back her sleeve. "What ails the mighty dragoness?" She asked quietly. Celeste sighed and proudly kept her lips shut. She didn't know the lady, why would she put her faith in someone she did not know? Of course the priestess instructed her to sit none the less. She lighted some sage and said a small prayer to an alter before turning to Celeste and examining her. She felt her face for a temperature and frowned slightly. She murmured, took a step back and examined her some more. Finally she rested her hand on Celeste's belly. Alarmed, she slapped the hand away."what in the seven hells are you doing?" She asked.

Geraldine took no offense of course, she simply turned and began to grind some ginger. "You, my dear have two.energies, one masculine residing right here." She tapped her own belly and smiled, "I would say your boy should be with you both by beginning of the next year. In the mean time ginger should help with the sickness." Celeste stared wide eyed at the woman.

"What?"

[Jenpai]

Thunderforge castle was one of the only kingdoms in Whitespell who didn’t have a Maester. Instead, the high priestess acted was in charge of the maester’s duties of tending to the sick. Varus watched closely as the woman examines Celeste. She had very odd ways of doing her job, praying to the storm gods and feeling for energies. Varus’s eyes went wide when she said that Celeste had a second energy growing inside her. He didn’t believe it at first. How can she possibly know this just by placing her hand on Celeste’s stomach? “How can you be so sure about this?’’ Varus asked. “The storm gods work in mysterious ways. I was gifted with the vision. But if you must have your proof…” The woman then leaned back into her chair and cupped her hands in front of herself. Her eyes began to roll back into her head and her body went limp. Varus didn’t know what was happening. Had the priestess just passed out? She stayed like that for a few minutes before resuming consciousness. When she returned her expression turned grim although Varus did not know why. She began to share secrets that there was no way she’d know, including the child was conceived at an oasis in the desert about 2 weeks ago. She even knew the location of the oasis, which no one knew but Tasha.

Having heard enough proof Varus’s face lit up. He was excited to be a father. “We’re going to have a son…” He said quietly, still shocked at the fact. “Haha I cant believe it! We’re going to have a son!” He said, so excited that he could hardly even contain himself. He got up from his seat and ran to the door. He shouted to the people outside; “We’re going to have a son!” Of course the Thunderforge men in the hallway looked at him like he was completely crazy, having no idea what he was talking about. But that did little to ruin his mood as he returned into the room and pulled Celeste into a tight embrace. “I love you so much, this is great!” He exclaimed then thought of all the things that she shouldn’t be doing—such as riding through harsh terrains for hours and fighting trained killers. “You have to be much more careful about what you do now” He said more seriously. “I don’t know what id do if I lost you, both of you”