[Chapter Size: 3000 Words.]
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Thrid Person POV
Westeros, 296 AC.
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It was morning while Jon was eating with his family when Arya approached the table, making him raise an eyebrow at her, as she was wearing a dress with her sword at her waist.
"We're eating, Arya... Why are you bringing that sword... with you?" Jon asked with a raised eyebrow, while the girl shrugged rebelliously.
Lyanna and little Jon at the table looked on curiously as Arya approached them, giving them a big kiss on their cheeks before picking up Lyanna while Jon just watched curiously. Lyanna immediately made excited sounds at Arya, receiving kisses from her.
Seryna and Ygritte continued their meals peacefully while Arya continued holding Lyanna to sit with her. Jon picked up his son, who was standing there watching, and placed him on his lap to eat something healthy at the table.
Little Jon looked at him with his green and purple eyes while his small hands clutched Jon's arm, holding him there. Jon then cut a piece of fruit and gave it to him to eat.
"Give her this, Arya," Ygritte said, handing a cup of milk to Lyanna to drink. The girl nodded as she fed the little girl with the cup little by little.
"Jon! Wind can come with us, right?" Arya suddenly asked about her old friend, the child of the forest.
"Yes... but you must behave..." Jon warned.
"Yes!" Arya exclaimed as Jon nodded to that.
Seryna smiled at this before placing her hand on her son's head, who was on her husband's lap. He looked at her while eating the piece of fruit Jon gave him and smiled back at her.
The family continued eating in peace for a while, interacting with each other, until Jon decided to leave first, as he had responsibilities as king that day.
"Take him, I'm going to the senate," Jon said, lifting little Jon and handing him to Seryna. He then stood up from the table and left the area with a few guards.
Today, there would be an important meeting with the entire senate, so he had to attend along with the ministers to decide on some laws and plans for the kingdom while the representatives would speak for the people, not placing all the power in the hands of the counselors.
After that, he went to the council to organize some more projects, mainly related to the courts and the crystals, while Jon went to the king's greenhouse to check on the tree that would produce the first crystals this year, with Seraphine and Leaf by his side to discuss the project.
Jon left the greenhouse while flying Eragon a bit over the sky of Artica before returning to the castle in the late afternoon. All the dragons were near Eragon's landing strip, as Jon watched with interest as they approached the massive dragon.
Eragon looked at the little ones with curiosity as they stared back at him, feeling the large dragon's beak touch them as they were sniffed. "I want you to take care of them, understand?" Jon asked, and the dragon just sighed in confirmation.
Jon nodded satisfied before touching the dragon's head. "I also want you to help me with that when they get near this kingdom, show no mercy." Jon requested, and the dragon just looked at him, understanding what he meant.
Leaving the dragons behind, Jon went to his room at the end of the day, enjoying the last hours of his time in Artica. He would leave the next day and made the most of his time with his children and wives as a family.
Then the day arrived, Jon woke up quickly, finding the city in great excitement. The army had already been preparing since before dawn, marching towards the port, guided by royal guards. Ducken, his military minister, would remain in Artica taking care of things if intervention with the Artica army was necessary.
This call was more than double the last, summoning over 20,000 men to join the expedition in Essos and the eastern lands.
Jon made sure to leave all plans for Brynden and the other ministers to execute while he finally headed to the port with his family. Most of the city gathered for his farewell, knowing that the king would be leaving for another and final continent.
Tons of goods filled the ships as men shouted orders here and there. Once again, Jon was heading to his main ship with Ygritte, Arya, Wind, and his guards.
"It looks like we have to say goodbye..." Jon murmured, looking at Seryna with their two children in her arms, as he approached to give them a final touch of farewell.
"Good luck... and come back soon..." Jon heard Seryna say as they paid attention to their two children staring at him.
"Yes... I will return soon and will be here to guide them as soon as possible..." Jon commented as he looked at his wife. "I probably won't be here when you give birth, but I'm sure everything will go as planned..." Jon commented, and Seryna nodded.
"Take as much time as you need so that you never have to leave this kingdom again, and I'll take care of our children until then." She spoke, and Jon nodded in farewell.
Ygritte and Arya also approached Seryna as they said their goodbyes, while Jon began to head towards the ship, giving orders. Almost everyone in Artica was watching as 500 ships were filled in the next few hours, wishing good luck to all who would travel south.
"Jon... I don't want to get pregnant on this trip, alright?" Ygritte said to him on a part of the deck as he watched the other ships being filled by other Articans. He nodded.
"Alright... we'll have more children when we return." Jon smiled, and she nodded, not refusing the idea of becoming a mother again.
ROOOOAAAARRRRR
Aragon flew over the port at this moment, roaring as he passed over the ships but with his sapphire eyes fixed on Jon. His gaze fell on the boat as Arya entered with her friend, Wind, proudly displaying the sword she had received.
"My king... the ships are almost ready," the captain of the main ship came up to him.
"Great... start sailing with the first ships. The channel can't accommodate everything at once, so we'll begin to gather at sea outside the channel." Jon gave the order, and the captain quickly nodded, shouting orders as his ship would depart first.
"My king... I'm sure this journey will be a success." Gavron approached; there were only two ministers on his ship, this one and Junly, who would accompany him to Braavos.
Meanwhile, Darius was heading straight to Dorne to negotiate with the Martell family, or at least that was the plan. After all, Jon was ready to sever ties with Dorne if he could retrieve Rhaenys from them.
The ship then departed as others began to follow, and the channel quickly began to fill as they left the kingdom, with people shouting words of good luck to them.
"We've taken the first step... now we have the basics. It's time to establish our position in this world's economy," Jon declared. After all, he would finally open up the economy and allow Articans to create their own businesses, even the ice supply would be shared with the people, as long as the royal family retained 51% of the shares.
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This, among other businesses, would give people the freedom to create their own companies. With the trade channel, it would be very easy for them to open their own businesses along these routes while using the ships.
The statue of Artica was soon left behind as they continued along the miles of the channel, encountering some free folk walking along the shore watching them. But no one attacked them, as the entire channel was filled with ships as they headed for the sea.
It was after hours that the frozen sea finally came into view, and they began to navigate around the icebergs, finding a place to wait for the other ships to join them. It was a long process, so much so that it wasn't until nightfall that all 500 ships were finally gathered. Jon used this time to summon Serume, who was near the sea, trembling, as the people followed to stay below the ships and follow them to the end of their journey.
Then the ships began to head south during the night, passing along the coast for the next few days. In Hardhome, more and more people continued to gather there, and Jon ordered the route to go outside Skagos to avoid alerting the North.
One night, while Jon was sleeping with Ygritte, he took the opportunity to guide a raven to the Wall and go to Castle Black to see how things were there. He found a camp in front of it on this side of the Wall, where it seemed that the first kingdoms had sent their groups, bearing the banners of the Vale Arryn and the West, while others were expected to arrive the following week. Jon was not worried about them; after all, Eragon had been instructed to deal with all of them, and he could eliminate thousands of men whenever he wanted.
After Skagos, they continued heading south for a week until they finally began to see Essos on the horizon. The first stop would be Braavos, where they would see how they would be treated after their reputation for what they had done in Westeros.
Meanwhile, a group of 50 ships split off from the 500, heading south, heavily armed to face any force at sea. However, they doubted that Westeros could attack them after what had happened, as they headed towards Dorne and hoped to meet the fleet to the south before moving to the southern cities of the continent and then to the Jade Sea.
In another place further south, in one of the coastal cities, Pentos, as the sun rose, the city began to bustle with the movement of merchants and inhabitants. In one of the city's most luxurious houses, a young woman with silver hair watched the horizon with a calm expression. She was Daenerys Targaryen and knew she was a pureblood Targaryen, with her violet eyes reflecting the sea.
As she thought about her life and how she ended up here after all the misfortune, she and her brother managed to get to Braavos while she was just a baby and lived with Ser Willem Darry, who cared for her and Viserys until his death. Since then, the two siblings found themselves at the mercy of the generosity of the lords of Essos, moving from city to city in search of support to reclaim the Iron Throne. Today, their patron was Magister Illyrio, who had provided his house for them to live in Pentos until it was time for her brother to act and claim the crown.
As Daenerys continued to gaze at the horizon, a sense of unease grew within her. News had been arriving from the west—surprising news of a new kingdom establishing itself beyond the Wall, launching an attack on Westeros, and defeating Robert Baratheon at sea. She had been shocked when she heard about it at dinner while her brother and Illyrio conversed.
Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted as she looked to the side, seeing her brother appearing in another corridor, talking with Illyrio as they walked.
"Are you saying we can't get involved with them?!" Viserys shouted.
"My prince... you've heard the rumors... we cannot contact that group... they are extremely dangerous... There are many rumors that their king is a sorcerer," Illyrio commented, which did not seem to satisfy Viserys, while Daenerys listened from the side without them noticing.
"They defeated the stag king!! They are my chance to claim the throne of my family and what is rightfully mine!" he exclaimed angrily.
"But that doesn't mean they are trustworthy... you might even take advantage of the chaos they are creating in the Seven Kingdoms... but trusting them... I wouldn't recommend that..." Illyrio said firmly, insisting that the Articans should not be trusted.
Daenerys listened in silence. "You underestimate me, Illyrio..." she heard her brother begin to laugh. "I have something that northern savage might be interested in," he said firmly.
"My prince... you can't be thinking..." Illyrio seemed worried.
"These savages might be a better opportunity than your suggestion to talk to the desert savages. I'm just trading one savage for another... who will be my future subjects, and I will gladly give my sister to them, as I would to those desert horses," Viserys said firmly, while Daenerys became more concerned about her future and her brother's plans. She would be lying if she said she wasn't afraid of these Articans and what they could do to her.
Viserys and Illyrio walked through the corridor, continuing their conversation until they came upon Daenerys, who quickly looked at the ground, not wanting to offend them and awaken her brother's dragon, who would hit her when that happened.
"Dany... My dear sister..." Viserys smiled, seeing Daenerys as a valuable bargaining chip.
"I'll be attending to some matters now, my prince..." Illyrio said as he withdrew, leaving Viserys talking to Daenerys, who looked at him with fear.
Illyrio continued his way through his mansion, heading to his solar. He spotted a raven perched with something tied to its leg, waiting for him. He nodded in satisfaction, recognizing the owner of the scroll, someone he was about to send a message to. Approaching the bird, he took the message tied to its leg and sat down to read it. It was from Varys in King's Landing.
Varys spoke of how the realm was unstable at that moment. The council seemed to be quarreling over various matters, trying to find a way to deal with Jon Artica and his powerful kingdom. They began by sending men to their deaths in the north, while Tywin Lannister wanted to make a bold move by marrying Princess Myrcella to the king beyond the Wall. Varys also mentioned that council members were being attacked by the sorcerer, while Baelish and Cersei seemed to be seeking a direct and brutal alternative, trying to have the Artican killed by a Faceless Man.
But Tywin saw an opportunity, believing he could access Artican resources despite what had happened. He seemed to see much to gain by allying with the group. Illyrio didn't know what was worse: the Targaryens forming an alliance with the Articans or even the Lannisters. He knew this would complicate all his plans, and he and Varys were working to ensure the people of the north did not enter into an alliance with anyone else, aiming to isolate them and deal with them in the future.
He quickly grabbed a quill and began writing a report to his trusted friend in Westeros. '...We must destroy any alliance they may form. After all, our best candidate for the Iron Throne is in the Golden Company. In a few years, he will be ready to claim that seat and rule Westeros... as is his right.' Illyrio wrote as he finished, placing it back on the raven and sending it westward.
Illyrio wondered what the next moves of the Articans would be after what had happened with Westeros. After all, Varys's little birds spoke of rumors about the Articans planning to come to Essos as well, seeking trade.
But he didn't know if this move would happen soon... after all, their reputation wasn't the best, and he was sure that other cities besides Braavos would be afraid to open their ports to them.
If they came to Pentos in the future, would he allow their entry? His city could be sacked, or he could even allow them to have contact with the Targaryens. He should do everything to prevent that. After all, Illyrio needed to accelerate his plans against the two siblings, wanting to remove them from the game for the next player to enter the game of thrones.
Illyrio didn't yet know that the Articans already had a fleet approaching Braavos. Only a few ships had spotted them, but none could match the speed of those ships, which were passing other boats as they headed to Braavos at that very moment.
In another part of Essos, where a mountain full of volcanoes continued to erupt from time to time, with rivers of lava flowing across the land filled with smoke and heat, deep within some of these mountains, a beast had remained dormant for thousands of years, sleeping silently, waiting to be awakened.
Horses ran across the desert as large groups of men shouted, heading toward Vaes Dothrak to face their gods.
In Meereen and other slaver cities, the slave owners continued their luxurious lives, keeping many slaves to serve them.
Farther east, the culture was very different from Westeros or even Essos. Rice fields stretched for thousands of square kilometers, with people wearing bamboo hats working to harvest and place the grains in straw baskets on their backs, continuing this practice for hours.
A group of horses suddenly passed by them, heading toward a large city in the distance. They wore strange armor with military helmets very different from what was used by soldiers in Westeros, and their swords were curved. They rode into the city, passing through the gates where spearmen stood guard, allowing them entry.
They rode through the city until they spotted a large castle in the center. They quickly entered and proceeded inside. They were greeted by a person who came to meet them.
The three samurai quickly bowed to this person, a woman covered in many scarves to keep her body concealed. "Princess Kozuki Hiyori!" they said as the woman nodded.
"Come, my father is waiting for you," she said as they followed her into the Japanese-style castle. There, a man sat on the floor in a room, watching them attentively as they bowed once more.
"Lord Shimura..." the man said.
"Shogun-sama," the samurai greeted.
"Sit, let's talk," the Shogun of Yi Ti said calmly.
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Raccoon Here:
Yi-Ti is originally represented as China, but I don't know much about them, so I will refer to it as Japan or even a mix of both, though I am leaning more towards the game Ghost of Tsushima. The names of One Piece characters are limited to just the names. I liked using those names as a reference, so you won't see anything related to One Piece here.
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🦝 Raccoon here: 🦝
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