Chapter 6
“You’re amazing!” Lucerys rushed towards Baelon the moment Aegon and the queen had departed to see a maester.
“Thank you, Prince Lucerys,” said Baelon, feeling his cheeks go pink. Lucerys, Jacaerys, Joffrey, Baela, and Rheana had also gathered around him.
“Luke, we’re family, it’s Luke to family,” the young boy held out a hand, and Baelon shook it.
“So it’s true,” said Jacaerys curiously. “You can use magic.”
“What else can you do?” asked Rheana curiously.
“All kinds of things,” said Baelon shyly. Around them, the adults were staring at him, and his face got hot.
“Will you show us more magic?” begged Joffrey, bouncing on his heels, and Baelon turned to his father who nodded.
“Okay, here, Accio broom!” He held his hand high in the air, and everyone waited until people started yelling. Flying through the air was a long broom made of pale white wood. The broom floated through the air, and people scattered to get out of its way as it made its journey towards where Baelon stood.
“A broom,” said Jacaerys, confused as Baelon gripped the broom in his hand.
“Not just any broom. I made it myself. A magic broom.” Baelon ran towards the edge of the cliff, feeling eyes on him as he mounted the broom. He turned to his new friends with a cheeky smile that looked identical to Daemon’s when he was about to do something bad. “Now watch!”
Then he jumped.
***
Aemond watched as his cousin jumped off the edge of a cliff toward the jagged rocks below. Many onlookers let out panicked screams, but Aemond turned towards his uncle Daemon who watched with an amused grin. Seconds after, Aemond felt his eyes go wide as Baelon flew through the air sitting atop a broomstick.
“He’s flying! He’s flying without a dragon,” said Joffrey excitedly, and Aemond watched his cousin race through the air. He spun around with a smile on his face, and Aemond felt his stomach tighten. The bitter taste of jealousy filled his chest.
How was this possible? Why had the gods blessed him so? He was the son of the second son; Daemon had been living in exile for years yet he could do what none of the king's children could. It wasn’t fair.
***
Rhaenyra watched the smirk on Daemon’s face as he watched his son soar through the air. His chest was puffed with pride. She had heard that her cousin had been blessed by the gods but she never expected something like this.
She turned to her father who looked pale-faced at Baelon’s display of power. Daemon had been enraged when his son had been stripped of his inheritance and denied the chance to claim a dragon. But now, it looked like Daemon would be the one having the last laugh. His son could fly without a dragon, and he could move things without touching them. What else could he do?
She’d seen the look of shock on Otto Hightower’s face when Aegon had hung upside down in midair. What were the limits of his powers?
The gods had blessed her with three sons, but at that moment, she wished for a girl. If she had a daughter, she could have betrothed them to Baelon and brought them to his side.
Baelon landed gracefully from his broom with a smile on his face, and Jace, Luke, and Joffrey ran to him excitedly. People around them whispered and looked at the boy hungrily.
Daemon smiled proudly, and Rhaenyra felt a twisting in her stomach. Was his plan the whole time? To show her son’s powers before the nobility. Soon word would spread of his gift, and eventually someone might dare to defy the king and betroth their daughter to Baelon.
Rhaenyra couldn’t help but wonder. If Baelon faced a dragon, who would come out victorious.
She prayed she never found out.
***
Alicent watched as Daemon’s son flew through the air. Her knees had gone weak when she had spotted him flying through the air. He sat atop a broom and flew around Driftmark, spinning through the air, and she dug her nails into the palms of her hands.
“Sorcery,” said Criston Cole, her sworn shield, with disgust in his voice.
“Daughter,” she turned around, and her father approached as she stared up at Daemon’s son. Cole nodded, leaving them alone, and she turned to him angrily.
“You swore he would be no threat,” she snapped.
“He is only a boy,” dismissed Otto, staring up at the boy flying through the skies.
“He attacked Aegon, and Viserys refused to punish him.”
“A pertinent choice. We cannot act until we know the limits of the boy's powers. Moving uninformed could be disastrous.” Otto watched as the boy descended, and Rhaenyra’s bastards swarmed him excitedly. The gods were kind to not give Rhaenyra any daughters; the prize was still within their grasp.
“The king sees the boy for the danger he poses,” said Otto. “Now, more than ever, we must insist on removing him from Daemon’s grasp and bringing him to our side.”
“Do you still want him to marry Halaena?” Alicent had hoped her father might change his mind since the boy had been living across the narrow sea and away from court.
“Yes,” said Otto. “Helaena is the key. We must bind the boy to our will through marriage. But first, Daemon must be removed.”
The rest he left unsaid, and Alicent began picking at her nails nervously. Her father must succeed at all costs. Failure could mean the difference between life and death.