Chapter 036 – Decision

[289 AC]

An excited light shined in Daenerys' eyes for a moment, before an adorable frown appeared on her face. Looking at the old knight for a moment, she turned towards Phenex and asked hesitantly: "W-what about the S-Ser?"

Brushing his thumb over the backside of her small hand, Phenex replied with a reassuring tone: "Of course, Ser Darry will come too. Though he will travel with a ship, while you and I won't. Come."

Relieved, even though she didn't quite understand what he meant, Daenerys followed Phenex through the corridors of the ship, while holding onto his hand. Her blood practically singing with every moment she spent in his presence and felt his warmth.

As a Targaryen with the ability to bond with dragons and even ride them, Daenerys had the magical blood of her ancestors flowing in her veins. Blood that made her feel safe and at peace when around fire, no matter its form.

Dragons were one such example, with them being existences born from fire and magic.

Phenex, as the Phoenix and Aspect of Fire, naturally felt incredibly familiar to the small girl, even more so than any dragon ever could. The purity and sheer power of his existence, leaving a deep impression on her young heart. It was something that would only grow stronger with time, when her inherent powers awakened fully and bloomed into existence.

Leading her onto the shore, Si La and the others followed closely behind, as many believers and servants of the temple had already gathered in front of the boat, prompting Phenex to use a spark of magic to gently push the crowd back and create a bit of space for himself and Deanerys.

Once again crouching down before the little princess, Phenex gently craddled her cheek in his free hand and smiled gently.

The next moment flesh turned immaterial, as his entire being returned to its most natural form. A blazing storm of fire enveloping Daenerys and lifting her into the air, as the symbol of rebirth manifested beneath her.

A long neck, flawless white plumage and deep violet eyes. A phoenix, whose entire form was cloaked with bright gentle flames.

The next moment it gave off a hauntingly beautiful cry, causing everyone that heard it to fall into a daze. The mystical creature pushed off the cobblestones with its strong, clawed and graceful feet the next moment, rising into the sky as its majestic wings brought up a powerful wind.

Snuggly sitting at the base of the magical being's neck, Daenerys laughed in innocent joy, her heart beating in exhileration.

Forgotten was the pain of her brother's death, along with his voice in her mind accusing her of their mother's death. Tender joy and an overwhelming sense of safety and freedom breaking the veil of sorrow and pain, her heart had been surrounded by.

Magical flames shielding her from the cold and most of the winds, she looked down at the slowly shrinking city without fear, the sensation of flying through the sky feeling all too natural for the royal descendant of dragonlords.

It was a long flight to Volantis, but the silver-haired girl didn't even notice the time passing, as she soon fell into a deep and peaceful sleep, with soft feathers and gentle flames as her bedding.

…

Several days later, Phenex found himself laying in the Heart Chamber in his phoenix form, looking at the floating and burning heart-shaped artifact absentmindedly, his mind in deep contemplation.

In the few days Daenerys had now been in Volantis, she had already become fast friends with Sapphire and Jade thanks to her Targaryen heritage and Phenex' help. And while she would never be able to ride on either of them, as Phenex could sense them simply having no affinity with each other, she could touch them without fear on several occasions.

They were still dragons though and had their own will, so Phenex of course didn't force them in situations that went against their wishes and instincts. His only rule being that they must not harm the innocent, they were free to fly off on a hunt and reject any kind of physical contact with others beside himself.

Still, Daenerys basically spent every free second around them or Phenex. Though he had also arranged for her to be taught by a teacher from the Guiding Torch branch about different subjects, including history, geography and different languages.

She was afterall the heir of House Targaryen and as such she couldn't be uneducated, adding to the fact that she definitely yearned to be a dragonrider. Phenex also planned to let Willem Darry instruct her in the art of combat, as soon as he arrived in Volantis.

The old knight was currently sailing together with Bellegere and Belio, his Feather, towards Volantis, though they would still need a few days until they arrived.

And as the former master-at-arms of the Red Keep and Daenerys' guardian, Phenex had no doubt that the man would be a suitable teacher for her.

Daenerys had also met Obara and Nymeria, and while her shy personality had made it difficult for her to really connect with them for now, she was starting to get more comfortable around them.

Oberyn had also met her and seemed very fond of the girl, which was not surprising, as the Red Viper may be many things, but he would never hurt an innocent child like her, no matter his distaste for the late Rhaegar Targaryen.

The Dornish Prince had even sought out Phenex and told him off his and Doran's ploy to marry Viserys to Arianne, Doran's eldest daughter. Something that was obviously not going to happen now with Viserys having met an early death.

Oberyn had also proposed a new marriage agreement between Daenerys and Doran's only other child, his son Trystane, who was even at the same age as the girl.

Phenex though declined, as he told the Dornish Prince that the choice of Daenery's future husband was hers alone, and that he would not stand for anyone interfering in these matters.

And while that had the intended effect in making Oberyn back off, Phenex could see that his obvious care for Daenerys, made the man all the more determined to forge a marriage amongst the two children in the future. Phenex being a foster parent, i.e. guardian to Daenerys, made her an incredibly desireable match afterall.

Though that all wasn't what made him come to this place for some peace and quiet.

Phenex had come to the Heart Chamber, as he was plagued by indecision when it came to the question of reviving Rhaella Targaryen, Daenerys' mother and former Queen to the Iron Throne.

Until now he had never done so, because he knew that death was a natural part of life and fiddling with such was something that none of his ancestors dared to do lightly. It wasn't that they would receive a backlash or face danger when doing so, but they were just opposed to breaking the natural order.

Bringing someone back to life, was wholly different than extending the lifespan of a living person, which was something the most compassionate of his ancestors had to learn the hard way.

Seeing that death was a source of great pain for mortals in the world he came into being, this ancestor of his had violated the natural order of that world and 'erased' death, effectively immortalising the intelligent races of that planet.

His actions however had driven the world into an abyss of chaos and evil. Without death being something to fear for the beings on that planet and a natural equalizer for all life, their inner demons had turned that world into a literal hell.

Apocalyptical wars, crimes of unimaginable atrocity and the enslavement of whole races were just a few of the things his ancestor's actions had caused. At the end the Phoenix of that time had restored the natural order and turned the whole world to ashes, purging it of the demons he had created.

Since then, no other Phoenix had used their powers to revive other beings without great caution, as this wasn't something to be done lightly and without reason.

At the end though, Phenex' decision had been made the moment little girl had fallen asleep on his back on their flight towards Volantis. Her trust and the fragile hope hidden inside her heart that she may have finally found a place she belonged to, making him unable to deny her, her mother's care and love any longer.

His blazing form gave off a small sigh, as his mind reached out and locked onto the marks of Rhaella's existence that were etched into the origin of this world.

Focusing and replaying the tragic and gentle Queen's life before his inner eye, Phenex knew that she too, deserved to see her daughter grow up and gain a second chance to live her own life freely and safely.

The next moment Phenex bent the laws of creation to his will, gave life to what had been dead. He violated the natural order, as he forced vitality back into the existence of Rhaella Targaryen.