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Game of Thrones: The Giant Crab of the Narrow Sea
Game of Thrones: The Sword King
Game of Thrones: From Bastard to Emperor
81 AC, Fifth Moon
Daemon's birth made King Jaehaerys even more determined to settle the marriages of his grown children—especially his daughter Daella Targaryen, who had turned seventeen the year before.
In the original timeline, Jaehaerys had given Queen Alysanne an ultimatum: Daella would marry by the end of 80 AC, even if it meant wedding a swineherd, or she would be packed off to join the Silent Sisters—because the timid princess still could not remember the proper funeral rites.
Thanks to Gaemon's gentle influence over the years, Daella had grown far braver than before, but she still froze at the thought of speaking in front of crowds.
When Gaemon learned of his father's threat, he went straight to the King and made a simple offer: "After I come of age, I will marry Daella."
Jaehaerys withdrew the ultimatum at once.
It was not a love match, but Gaemon knew it was the only way to save his sister from the fate that had once claimed her at eighteen.
The King and Queen had originally hoped Daella might marry her brother Vaegon, but the cold, bookish prince would only have wounded her fragile heart even more. Without Gaemon's intervention, the seventeen-year-old Daella would have been married off last year to the plump, balding, twice-widowed Lord Rodrik Arryn of the Vale. Two years later she would have died in childbirth, leaving behind a daughter named Aemma.
To change that future, Gaemon had chosen the only path he could.
Daella had adored her younger brother since childhood—the boy who always protected her like an older sibling despite being smaller. When she learned Gaemon was willing to marry her after he came of age, she agreed at once, eyes shining with quiet joy.
The age gap—eleven full years—was large, and neither Jaehaerys nor Alysanne was entirely pleased. But they also knew the truth: while Daella might not have been the ideal wife for Gaemon, Gaemon was unquestionably the ideal husband for Daella. He had shielded her all her life, and they trusted their son would continue to protect their gentle, fearful daughter.
So, with heavy but relieved hearts, they gave their blessing.
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Next on the King's list was Vaegon Targaryen.
The third son, born in 63 AC, had now spent three full years at the Citadel in Oldtown and showed no intention of returning. At eighteen, he was already older than both Aemon and Baelon had been when they married and began fathering the third generation.
Jaehaerys was ready to send armed men to drag his stubborn son home.
Gaemon stopped him.
"Father, if you force Vaegon back to King's Landing, you will only drive him farther away from this family. Let him choose his own path. Time will take care of the rest."
After long thought, Jaehaerys relented. He knew his son's unyielding nature all too well. Forcing the issue would only make things worse. Perhaps, as Gaemon said, time would soften the boy's heart.
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With the pressure of marriages eased for the moment, Jaehaerys looked over his growing family and felt a deep, quiet pride.
The dynasty stood at a golden turning point.
Aemon, Prince of Dragonstone and heir to the Iron Throne, was already married with children.
Baelon was carving out his own domain and would soon bear the title Prince of Hero's Domain—Hēroī in High Valyrian, perfectly matching the warrior spirit of both the man and the land.
Gaemon needed no guidance; the boy had been shaping his own future since he could walk. With his dragon dreams, his blood magic, and his boundless ambition, he had become the quiet glue holding the family together.
In Westeros there was an old saying: Only a Targaryen can defeat a Targaryen.
As long as the family remained united, the rest of the world would continue to tremble before the dragon's shadow.
Gaemon stayed in King's Landing for the weeks following Daemon's birth, helping Alyssa recover. In the evenings he often sat with Baelon, discussing the development of Hero's Domain.
Unlike Gaemon's city-focused vision, Baelon had chosen a different path.
Hero's Domain sat at a vital crossroads between Tumbleton and the Kingswood. Both the Roseroad and the Kingsroad passed straight through it. Tolls from those two great highways already filled Baelon's coffers faster than he could count.
But the flat, open land had no natural defenses.
Baelon's solution was to raise a high hill, fortify it further, and build a formidable castle atop it. He had already named it Knight's Keep.
After three years of work—with Bahamut's occasional help hauling stone—the foundations and lower walls were complete. The curtain wall and towers were still rising; even with dragonfire to speed the work, it would take several more years to finish.
Gaemon had advised his brother to center the economic heart of the domain around the new castle. Use the construction to reshape the surrounding land, build a proper town at the castle's feet, lower road tolls to attract merchants, and offer safe rest and markets for travelers. At the same time, encourage manorial estates to boost grain and livestock production.
If Baelon followed that plan, Hero's Domain would soon become the closest and richest granary to King's Landing.
The brothers talked late into the night, two young dragonlords dreaming of the empires they would raise from the soil and the sky.
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