Game of Thrones: Viserys the Three-Headed Dragon.

Chapter 145 The arrival of the mission
"Did the maester bring a messenger raven?"

Princess Arianne had not expected her uncle to ask such a question before he boarded the ship and summoned the representatives of the Dornish families.

After nearly a month of sailing at sea, the visiting delegation of Dorne finally arrived at the waters near Stoneyon Castle. Their journey was not an easy one. Thanks to the experienced command of the fleet, who always led the fleet along the coastline, controlled the sails, and insisted on paddling in most dangerous waters, no accidents occurred in the autumn when the Narrow Sea was prone to storms.

In the waters of Tasmania, they encountered a storm and some escort ships fell behind on the way. Fortunately, they were not sailing at full sail at the time, and the ships in the team were not blown to the center of the Narrow Sea by the storm.

No wonder when they heard that they were going to Dragonstone, some people even suggested that the delegation take the risk of traveling by land through the Stormlands, launching from the mouth of the Wend River at Cape Marseilles to find merchant ships to travel from Blackwater Bay to Dragonstone.

After this trip, Arianne truly understood that when they first left Dorne, many family leaders felt that the sea route was dangerous and insisted on using large ships with hundreds of oars and a huge fleet for escort.

At the time she thought it was to guard against pirates and Stannis's fleet, but after this experience she realized the importance of a fleet of large ships looking after each other when crossing a storm.

In the waters near Stoneyon Castle, Dragonstone sent a fleet to welcome the distinguished guests as a representative. Barristan, as the honorary knight representing Dragonstone, boarded the visitor's ship to greet the guests. Barristan was born in the borderland and was an old acquaintance of many knights in Dorne. Now this old knight has been taken to the cabin by many old friends in Dorne to reminisce about the past.

Of course, the reality is that everyone is eager to know information about the King of Dragonstone.

Also boarding the Dornish delegation's ship along with Barristan was Prince Oberyn Martell, who was theoretically the real leader of the Dornish delegation.

As an official visiting delegation, Oberyn will represent Dorne and the Targaryen King of Dragonstone in a formal meeting on the dock. This is a very formal occasion that requires the leader of the delegation to be present in person.

As soon as the official leader of the delegation separated himself from the others, he asked the ravens if they had ever met his mistress Ellaria and the Sand Snake sisters who were on the ship.

Arianne answered, “Yes, my father told me to do that. Uncle Oberyn, would you like me to send for the maester?”

Oberyn nodded. "Arianne, my dear niece, call the maester here. I need to send a secret letter back to your father. It is of great importance."

"Okay." She didn't ask what the content was. "I'll go call the bachelor over."

The prince nodded slightly. He heard that Arianne had a secret conversation with her brother Doran. No one knew what they talked about, but she had become much more stable since then.

Until the bachelor sent the letter away.

Oberyn then said, "Your father should not have allowed you to come, Arianne. You are the future Lord of Dorne. You should stay with your father."

It is said that when Oberyn saw the word "my child" instead of "my son" in the letter Doran wrote to Dragonstone, he knew that Arianne might be the one to lead the delegation on his behalf, but he never thought that it would be true.

“You say so, Uncle Oberyn,” Arianne asked. “Do I make it difficult for you?”

"Arianne, that's not what I meant." Oberyn looked at his niece, sighed inwardly, and asked her, "How did you convince your father?"

Arianne wore a gorgeous fawn and white dress, obviously carefully prepared. The dress had the characteristic Dornish pattern with the arms of House Martell, and the sleeves had delicate Myrish lace. The gems on her fingers, belt and hairnet set off her olive skin. Her large dark eyes sparkled and she looked radiant.

She was obviously aware of the advantages of her figure. The silk skirt was semi-transparent, and underneath was a normal and decent pure white silk dress. However, her figure was different from that of ordinary people, and a normal and decent dress could easily outline her plump curves.

She was about to have a formal meeting with the King of Dragonstone, and her attire was impeccable, decent and dignified, bright and beautiful, virtuous and innocent.
but.
Oberon knew what she was planning.

Arianne did not hide her words. "I told my father, 'I was not able to witness the signing of my secret engagement. Now I am breaking off the engagement. Let me witness it myself.'"

"It is indeed a reason that a father cannot refuse."

Then she asked, "Uncle, I think you have helped me break off the engagement, right?"

"Yes." The prince's tone was heavy. It was obvious that he did not want to give such an answer to the person concerned in person, but that was the fact. He said, "His heir will marry a Dornish princess, your child."

"Of course," she replied tactfully. "It's a pity that I not only didn't see the secret engagement signed, but I also didn't see it cancelled."

"."

"Uncle, Ellaria is also on the ship. You should go meet her. She's been thinking about you every day these days. Tyene and Nymè are also here. They were supposed to come with me, but they are curious to see Barristan. After all, he is a living legend in the Seven Kingdoms."

"Oh, Ellaria." Ellaria Sand is Oberyn's mistress, the illegitimate daughter of the Dornish nobleman Earl Uller. Tyene and Nymeria are Oberyn's daughters of the Sand Snakes. "Arianne, let them accompany you as your female companions, and I will explain everything to them."

If this trip was to King's Landing, Oberyn would be happy to take them with him and introduce their origins to others on formal occasions. But now Dragonstone has already agreed in advance that Viserys and Daenerys will personally welcome the visiting delegation at the port, which is the ultimate sincerity of the Targaryens of Dragonstone.

Mistress and illegitimate daughter Even Oberon, who was fierce, informal and even dissolute in private, knew what not to do on such occasions.

“Uncle Oberyn,” Arianne said slowly. “This is the first time I have seen you take a visit so seriously. Is there really a dragon about him?”

"Yes, I saw it with my own eyes," Oberyn pointed to his hair, "See? It was burned by the dragon's hot breath. I saw with my own eyes a dragon as big as a castle, and each head was as big as an arrow tower. Its neck, which was emitting hot air, was sticking out from my head. Before, when Stonehenge was attacked, I saw with my own eyes on the warship of Dragonstone that it lit up a mountain, like lighting a candle." Then he said solemnly, "Believe me, Arianne, this visit we are making is related to the future of Dorne. Just do what an envoy should do, and I assure you that both the justice we seek and the long-term interests of Dorne will be obtained."

Arianne found this incredulous. She was curious: "Will the dragons come out to greet us?"

“Arianne,” Oberyn said. “You will see it, but not at the docks.”

-

When the fleet was able to see Dragonstone, all the Dornish nobles on the ships crowded onto the deck and looked towards Dragonstone.

"Wow!" A burst of noise was heard.

From afar, people saw a black shadow flying towards the fleet from Longshan.

"Dragon!"

The black shadow was flying very high, and was flying in the opposite direction of the fleet. The shadow was growing rapidly, and in the blink of an eye it had become terrifyingly huge, like a mountain flying in the sky.

Arianne looked towards the dragon through the telescope and couldn't help swallowing. From here, the dragon was even bigger than the ship they were on.

Seeing the huge creature, the princess of Dorne felt her legs go weak unconsciously. She felt her scalp tingling and was shocked beyond words. It was hard for her to imagine that the dragon on Dragonstone actually existed, and she could not imagine that there would be such a shocking beast in the world.

It had three heads, just as the rumors said, and the middle head was emitting terrifying flames. It did not come close, but even if it was flying in the sky, it was enough to intimidate the Dornish envoys' fleet. It flew above the fleet, and its huge wings blocked out the sun, as if a dark cloud was pressing down on them.

For the first time, Arianne felt how insignificant humans were in front of a dragon.

She was so shocked that she couldn't calm down for a long time even after the dragon turned around and flew back to Dragon Mountain on Dragonstone Island, and finally disappeared in the depths of Dragon Mountain.

She had heard that the skull of the dragon head in King's Landing was so big that a knight could ride through it on horseback, and that the Meraxes shot down by Dorne was larger than a castle.
Even if people take the rumors seriously and prepare themselves mentally before seeing it with their own eyes, they will still be shocked when they actually see such a huge beast.

Prince Oberyn had told her that the dragon was as big as a castle, but she had no idea what that meant until she saw it.
Frightened by the giant dragon of Dragonstone, the envoy fleet stopped moving and drifted on the sea.

It was not until the dragon disappeared deep into Dragon Mountain for a long time and the Dornish envoys had recovered from their shock that the fleet set out again.

The same is true at sea. Although Dragon Mountain was already visible to the naked eye, it still took the fleet nearly an hour to reach the port of Dragonstone.

The Dornish envoys were eager to look towards the port.

The entire port dock was emptied, and a huge space was cleared on the platform on the dock. Countless onlookers were stopped outside that space.

In that open space, King Targaryen's team to welcome the envoys spread out a waiting array of colorful flags to welcome important guests, and the flags of the vassals and knights under Dragonstone fluttered in the wind.

The nobles who welcomed the guests all wore silk or satin robes with flowing sleeves and jeweled belts. The armor of the knights of various families was decorated or inlaid with polished copper, shining silver and soft red gold. The greeters all attended in their best clothes, with colorful flags flying.

And at the front of the cleared dock, two rows of soldiers were deployed there waiting.

In the middle of the welcoming procession, under a huge Targaryen flag with a red dragon on a black background, were two distinguished, slender, elegant, and dignified princes. Arianne could see the Targaryen king and princess welcoming the guests from afar at the bow.

They all had silver hair, wore luxurious purple robes, and had flowing purple silk hanging from their shoulders. They stood solemnly in the middle of the procession. They did not wear crowns, but they had the noble bearing of royal nobles, and were quite elegant.

The fleet docked, and as the ship's ladder was lowered, the delegation poured into the port terminal in a mighty procession.

As the second in command, Arianne traveled alongside the leader, Prince Oberyn, and the king's envoy, Jorah Mormont.

Arianne then realized that the king's envoy Jorah was walking in front holding the Targaryen banner high - that banner was the one he wore as a cloak to meet the Prince of Dorne. The tall knight's face was flushed, his breathing was rapid and his whole body was tense. He seemed more excited than anyone else, and was visibly nervous.

When they got closer, Arianne saw clearly that the king was not wearing a crown, but his silver hair was neatly combed and pierced with a shiny black dragon bone hairpin. The king looked just as handsome as the rumors said, with sharp features, tall and handsome, silver hair fluttering, shining purple eyes and a calm and confident smile.

She turned to look at the regent princess, the king's sister and fiancée, who was beside the king. The Targaryen princess was young and beautiful.

Even as a woman, she had to admit that Daenerys was extremely beautiful. She had silver-gold hair and eyes like amethysts. She was not taller than Arianne and her figure could be described as petite and slender. She had fair skin, a slender neck, a pretty face, slender fingers connected to lotus arms, and jade shoulders. She stood in the wind, and her slender feet in sandals stood tall and graceful. Her beauty was unquestionable.

In addition, she has a royal and noble demeanor and an elegant and calm bearing.

“She is beautiful.” Arianne found it difficult to take her eyes off her.

Prince Oberyn walked at the front of the procession, led by Jorah Mormont, and soon the guests and hosts met at the front of the procession.

The king's envoy solemnly returned the Targaryen king's black flag with a red dragon to the king: "Your Majesty King Viserys, Jorah Mormont has fulfilled his mission."

The Targaryen king took the banner solemnly and said, "Jorah, thank you for your hard work. I will never forget what you have done for me. Now, it is my turn to fulfill my promise to you. Kneel down."

Jorah Mormont knelt on one knee in excitement.

No one understood what was going on.

Viserys' voice was not loud, but it was heard by everyone present: "Exiled knight Jorah Mormont, King Robert exiled you for your crimes. And I promised you that when you return from my mission to Dorne - because you are the only noble of the Seven Kingdoms under my command at the time, I will publicly announce the pardon of your crimes and accept your oath of allegiance. So first of all, I, Viserys Targaryen, will formally declare in front of everyone on Dragonstone to pardon your crimes. But remember, never break the laws of the Seven Kingdoms again, forever."

The middle-aged man was so excited that tears came to his eyes. "Thank you for your generosity, Your Majesty. Jorah Mormont, the Pardoned, will remember your teachings."

"Now, pledge your allegiance to me."

"Jorah Mormont, son of Jeor Mormont, sworn to serve you. I swear my loyalty to his highness King Viserys Targaryen, your heir and successor, by the gods."

"I accept your allegiance."

The king held out his left hand and asked Jorah to kiss his ring. When this brief ceremony of allegiance was over, the king's envoy stood back at the end of the king's side in great excitement.

Until this moment, the people in the Dorne envoys knew that the envoys sent by Targaryen to Dorne were...
It's difficult to comment, but there is no doubt that people can see some of the king's methods from this scene.

After finishing his internal affairs, the king turned his attention to the Dornish envoys.

"Greetings, my lords. Sorry to have kept you waiting. Viserys Targaryen, the Dragon King of Dragonstone, extends his warmest greetings and welcome to you. My fiancée, Princess Regent Daenerys Targaryen, also warmly welcomes you all." The King of Dragonstone laughed loudly, "Prince Oberyn, we finally meet again."

Oberyn had changed into formal visiting attire on the ship, with a pale pink silk robe fluttering on his shoulders and his shirt decorated with gold and silver silk patterns. The patterns embroidered with gold and silver threads were the Martell family emblem of a golden spear piercing the sun, which sparkled brightly in the sun.

"My brother, Prince Doran, is ill and cannot travel," they began to exchange pleasantries. "He has sent me here as a representative to attend your wedding and to extend his sincere blessings to you and your fiancée."

Prince Oberyn began to introduce the Dornish nobles who were accompanying him. "Allow me to introduce my companions, Lord Viserys. This is Arianne Martell, the daughter of Prince Doran, and this is Ser Denzel Dart of Lemongrove. This is Lord Tremond Garganus. These two are Lord Harman Uller and his brother Ser Ulric. These two are Ser Roger Arlion and his bastard son Ser Daemon Sand, who are from Godsgrace. These are Lord Dagoth Manwoody and his brother Ser Myles, and his sons Mors and Dickon. This is Ser Aaron Qogle. Oh, and the noble ladies, this is Lady Miria Jordain, heiress to Torrhen. These three are Lady Laura Blemont and her daughter Jornessa and her son Penrose."

The nine great families of Dorne were all present, and as each one was introduced, the king nodded and exchanged greetings.

Arianne saw that the king of Dragonstone was polite and responded calmly: "My lords, please allow me to introduce my team to you. This is Lord Gunther Sanglas of Fairhaven, and this is Lord Monterey Velaryon of Tidehead."

The king told them all their names. These people were not as famous as Prince Oberyn's companions. Compared with the nine major families of Dorne, the nobles of Dragonstone were actually not as good as them. Arianne even saw a six or seven-year-old boy earl in the king's earl team.
But at last, the king introduced another girl beside him who was dressed in a gorgeous outfit: "And this one is an important guest from Dragonstone, Shireen Baratheon of Storm's End."

Arianne looked at the girl, who looked nervous and forced to remain solemn. Arianne found Shireen Baratheon there, and her uncle was not surprised at all.

In any case, the Targaryen King's personal presence was undoubtedly an honor.

"You are all guests who have traveled a long way. The castle has prepared a welcoming banquet. Please allow me to lead the way. Please."

Following the king's order, the guards and knights who made up the main body of the honor guard took action, escorting the delegation of up to 300 people up the mountain road of the town and towards the castle on the high mountain of Dragonstone.

As the residence of a king, Dragonstone Castle is not a good place to welcome guests. The mountain road is long and winding, and it is quite tiring to climb up.

But the Targaryen king came in person to greet them and led the team up the mountain himself, so no one complained.

This visiting team, together with the greeters, a team of up to 500 people, was like a dazzling river made up of gold, silver, colorful flags and steel, rushing towards the castle on the mountain of Dragonstone.

According to the etiquette of Westeros, the host escorts the female relatives of the male guest of honor, and the hostess is responsible for leading the male guest of honor. Oberyn, the guest of honor, is led by Daenerys, but Oberyn is not married and his mistress is not suitable for such a stage, so Arianne is escorted into the city by the king as a female guest.

Being solemnly escorted by the king, Arianne inexplicably developed some strange feelings. After all, Viserys could have been her husband. She looked intently at the king who extended his hand to invite her politely, and said lightly: "Your Majesty, thank you for your help."

Viserys seemed unaffected by their original secret engagement. Arianne felt inexplicably disappointed, but she heard him say, "As far as I know, Princess Arianne is the heir to Dorne. I didn't expect you to come to my wedding in person. You took time out of your busy schedule to come. I am very grateful to Dorne for your attention."

The king's voice was gentle and calm, polite and restrained, and Arianne felt uncomfortable.

She suddenly felt that her father and uncle were right, and perhaps she should not have come.

(End of this chapter)