All You Need Is Guts Chapter 7 (ASOIAF x Berserk)

Daemon

Daemon knew that his nephew had succeeded the moment he heard the roar of the Cannibal, it was an open secret that aside from the dragon keepers Daemon was the most knowledgeable about dragons in all the world, he had studied the way they ‘spoke’ and what it meant, it was that what allowed him to visit the dragons that were in the pit without fear, more than once Daemon had gone to see his grandsire’s dragon.

Daemon was also the only one who could get close to the Red Queen without her rider around and once upon a time he had touched even the Black Dread himself before he passed, it was a shame that the great dragon didn’t live long enough after that. Another roar came from outside the castle and it made Daemon smile, he now would have another dragon to study and meet.

Viserys still looked worried but Daemon grabbed his shoulder and started pushing him out of the stuffy room where they had their meeting with Otto, the look on his face when the grasping Hightower called him king would give Daemon the best dreams he could ever hope to have. In the distance the shape of the Cannibal started becoming bigger, the dragon was faster than he thought but the way it flew was without grace or nimbleness making Daemon think that the Cannibal would be better used like a siege weapon or a fixed tower that discouraged enemies rather than a fast striking weapon but then again the same could be said for Vhagar and Daemon knew that the old girl was faster than she appeared to be, size was an advantage that rarely went unused.

“He did!” Viserys let out a sigh of relief after speaking and Daemon was briefly angry on behalf of his nephew, sure he wasn’t exactly the perfect dragon rider(not until Daemon trained with him on how to properly care for a dragon) but any man that can kill a dragon should be capable of riding one not to mention that it showed an extremely large lack of faith on his son.

“Was there truly any doubt of it brother?”

“You’re not a father Daemon, you wouldn’t understand” Viserys spoke dismissively but Daemon was forced to acknowledge what he said, their father had said something similar once.

In less time than he thought possible the black shadow of the Cannibal had reached the castle, the green color on his back and at the edges of his wings gave the dragon a very sinister appearance, it was an eerily similar color to the one wildfire had. Slowly but surely the dragon started his descent and while Baelon looked uncomfortable he also seemed happy? It was difficult to tell.

“So how does it feel to be a dragon rider?”

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Baelon

“So how does it feel to be a dragon rider?” his uncle’s question was filled with mirth and despite not being one to express happiness Baelon couldn’t help but smile, he now knew why his uncle and half-sister had reacted so strongly to his refusal of the Cannibal. Baelon felt complete, as if his whole life before finally ascending to the skies had been lived with one eye closed (and wasn’t that ironic since now he really lacked an eye).

“It feels good” a rumbling sound came from the throat of his other half as he answered, it seemed that the Cannibal was in agreement. The connection they now shared was something that he never felt before, it was something beyond what normal people could perceive, it was magical, literally magical. Baelon descended form his partner’s back and joined his family on the battlements of the castle while Cannibal started flying around the castle roaring out a challenge to everyone who could hear it and Baleon wondered if one day he would find Cannibal fighting with the other dragons.

“Of course it does, so do you plan on changing his name?”

“Daemon!” the king reprimanded his brother who just laughed it off.

“What? It’s a good question”

“I don’t think I will give him a name just yet, I will think of it once he settles in…but he won’t be chained up” for a dragon like his being chained would be worse than attacking him with a sword “Cannibal would break out if I tried, there is no doubt in my mind about it”

“Many people won’t be happy about it, the lords of the realm don’t understand dragons as we do. All they would see is a loose dragon that could rampage across the city” the king always seemed to have something on his mind and privately Baelon wondered if he was always working to distract himself from thinking about what led to this day.

“Let them scream and shout all they want! We don’t need to listen to their stupidity, besides, what would they know about the needs of a dragon? Not to mention that having the Cannibal break out of the dragon pit would be more problematic than having him free around the capital”

Baelon nodded at his uncle’s words and after thinking about it for a minute the king nodded his head as well. After a moment of silence Baleon finally decided to speak to his father (even if he felt strange at calling him such even in the privacy of his mind)

“Would you like to fly with me?” the question took the king by surprise but after some sputtering, he smiled.

“Nothing would make me happier, it’s been a while since I’ve felt what is like to be in the air” the way his father smiled at him so contently made Baelon try to smile back, and if the snickering of his uncle was any indication he was still making a funny face instead of an actual smile.

“I will give you some privacy now to do that but I would like to start your training as a proper dragon rider soon, do ask my brother for some suggestions on how to fly too, while the Cannibal is smaller that the Black Dread he is larger than my Caraxes and there ware things that only experience can convey when it comes to handling such a large dragon” then Daemon let out a sigh as he looked to the distance, it was a look that Baelon had seen many times in his own face, it was the longing of better times.

“I miss our father too brother, but at least we know that part of his spirit will always live with us don’t let your mind wander to dark places” the king the started pulling Baelon aside or rather Baelon let himself be pulled aside by his father “Let’s leave Daemon alone for a while he hasn’t been in this castle in years now and I know it brings back many feelings we both deal with in different ways”

Baelon just nodded at his father’s words, he couldn’t really help with things like those, the usual answer to his problems was a swing of his sword (it usually worked too) but he doubted that Daemon would appreciate that kind of help.

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Viserys

Viserys never thought that he would see the day that he touched the sky again. After Balerion’s death the king refused to get another dragon, neither the people at court nor the other dragon riders understood why but it was a simple thing, something that everyone who bonded with a dragon knew. Once bound, no dragon will take another as a rider, the same applied to the rider once bound he would never command another dragon. Usually, it’s the human that dies leaving the dragon for another but Viserys had the bad luck to bond with the oldest dragon of Westeros and while the two years he spent with Balerion were great, however the cost of it was perhaps too high.

Stretching out his hand Viserys touched a cloud and enjoyed the way it dissipated between his fingers, Baelon was very concentrated in flying so he didn’t even notice when Viserys, still chained to the new saddle that had been prepared for the Cannibal, stood up and let the air strike against his face. It was dangerous, it was stupid but he felt freer than he had ever been since the day Aemma died.

Viserys winced as he thought about his late wife, she wouldn’t be happy with him if she were here, Baleon would have been a blow to her pride, to her duty as a wife and to her heart. Viserys never told her that there was another woman in his life someone that for many years he loved over Aemma until they had their daughter. It was only after they were a true family that Viserys let himself forget and even then in his weakest moments he had to contain himself from going to look for her.

And she died all the same, his dear Vaelerya had died at the hands of a dragon. If Viserys didn’t know the joys of having one of his own he would have done his beast to poison the dragons that remained alive, so encompassing and big was his fury that for a moment Viserys thought about dooming his house and with it, the world.

The prophecy of the prince that was promised was still in play, the generations to come will need dragons to protect the world and it will be one of his family who finally puts an end to the threat that has long plagued the world. A part of him would always be relieved at the fact that it wasn’t his responsibility to save the world, there was also a bit of shame mixed there too since he was the king, the oldest male Targaryen alive and he should be the one to face the dangers of the world instead of his descendants.

Viserys shook his head and concentrated on the now, Baelon was flying for the second time and the boy looked a bit nervous at Viserys antics (it did some good to know that despite his harsh words his son cared enough to worry about him).

“Baelon why don’t you try to order the Cannibal to release some fire? I’ve long heard about the majestic color of his flames and when commanding a dragon it’s best to start with something that they would normally do or that isn’t too hard to do”

“Right!...” Baelon had a look of centration on his face and Viserys realized what his son was trying to do.

“No, Baelon, you can’t command a dragon with your mind you have to speak…and you don’t know how to speak Valyrian” sighing at his blunder Viserys met the expectant look of his son “Just repeat after me Dracarys!”

“Dracarys” Baelon did as he was told but  Viserys was not ready for the torrent of sickly green flame that came out of the mouth of the Cannibal and neither was he expecting the heat that could be felt in the air. Despite his smaller size, Viserys would say that the Cannibal had a hotter flame than Vhagar.

After the dragon was finished blowing out his fire it let out a deafening roar that could probably be heard all over the island.

“That was very impressive.” The dragon rumbled as Baelon complimented him. It gave Viserys the impression that the Cannibal could actually understand his son in some way or maybe he had been listening too long to Daemon talk about how smart dragons were. “What else can you teach me?”

The naked curiosity and respect that his son had for him made Viserys puff out his chest even as he felt a pang of sadness at it too, how many years had he wasted with his son all because he didn’t know about Baelon, had Viserys just gone to visit- no, had he visited Vaelerya he might have done something drastic at finding her with his child, if he was honest with himself he didn’t know what he would have done but Viserys doubted that he could have just left them behind.

“Get closer to the water, there is a trick that very few dragons can do to impair the visibility of someone pursuing them with the wings, there is also a very daring maneuver that can put you just behind whoever is following you” Viserys knew the trick thanks to his father but hardly ever put it to the test as only a fool would try to pursue the largest dragon in the world.

“That sounds fun” his son gave him one of his strained smiles and despite the awkwardness on his face as his son expressed himself Viserys felt that it was a good look for him.