Chapter 27: The Tattered Path
109 AC, Driftmark
Laenor Velaryon stood in his solar at the top of Castle Driftmark, smiling as he looked at the town of Hull and what it was quickly growing into, as he could see rows and rows of ships, his ships, anchored beneath his castle, all built from his own efforts.
It had been moons since he had returned to Driftmark after the eventful trip to Braavos, but he could not bring himself to regret the journey in any way. After all, it was a great success for Castle Driftmark, for House Velaryon, but also for the Seven Kingdoms as a whole, not that most even knew the extent of what he had accomplished.
With his new riches, courtesy of the porcelain trade with the Sealord of Braavos, he had begun his projects regarding Castle Driftmark by focusing on the town of Hull, of all places. It had been very expensive to turn the town into what he saw today, paving stone roads, setting up robust constructions, at least for critical buildings that he would rather not have fall to storms, while ensuring that the frequent floods would drain accurately.
Laenor’s plan was to turn Hull into something of an industrial district for Driftmark, as opposed to Spicetown, which was mostly concentrated around the trade of foreign goods. After all, it would have been foolish to turn the towns into some kind of informal rivalry instead of working together. The goal he was striving towards, at least for the moment, was that Hull would become a place where Laenor’s products would be made and then would be sold in the markets of Spicetown.
This would spread the strain that was concentrated on Spicetown, where every single Smallfolk was seeing it as a place of opportunity, while letting Hull grow at a measured pace as Driftmark’s production capacity grew according to Laenor’s plans, which would protect them in case of further conflict in the Stepstones.
That did not mean that he did not change Castle Driftmark. He expanded his forges greatly, especially the ones involving the manufacturing of glass. With his recipe being widespread, they could now use glass publicly without Myr targeting them. He knew that there would be questions regarding how advanced they were, but it could easily be explained by claiming that the Sealord of Braavos had shared the recipe with them earlier in exchange for a trade agreement.
However, given the extent of his plans for the castle itself, Laenor thought that it would have been more prudent to first have a secure foundation in terms of Hull, ensuring that it would remain attractive enough to the smallfolk and, with them, builders and workers. That meant that work on the fortress would be stable, without too many issues, as his productions would not be paused.
Of course, his investment in Hull and Castle Driftmark had not gone unnoticed. One did not spend a fortune without anyone noticing, let alone the Lord of Driftmark. This also meant that Laenor had to explain how he had gotten the gold with the porcelain sale and the arrangement with the Sealord of Braavos. Of course, his father had not been happy, thinking that Laenor had been swindled by pledging not to sell the porcelain anywhere else for so long, as well as the fact that he could have asked for more political influence over Braavos, but honestly, Laenor had not particularly cared. The goal was to guarantee a steady source of gold that he could use to transform Driftmark, and he had achieved this with this deal.
However, Laenor could see the pride in his father’s eyes at what he had accomplished, though it was tainted with disappointment at the fact that he had not consulted him about it. He did not regret that, of course. His father would have taken over the enterprise, trying to increase his influence, and that of House Velaryon; they were different people with different goals and who prioritised different things. However, what the young Velaryon had accomplished remained extremely impressive, enough that it was obvious that his father seemed more inclined to give him more freedom, taking it as proof that House Velaryon would be safe in his hands.
A knock broke him from his thoughts, and he spoke up, “Come in!”
He smiled widely as he saw Laena enter his solar, “Ah, Laena. I didn’t expect to see you today.”
His sister pouted at that answer, though her eyes held a teasing glint, “Does my presence cause you discomfort, Ser Laenor?”
The heir to Driftmark snorted at that, and they both smiled at one another after a pause. His sister continued, “Still watching your little town, brother?”
He turned towards the town in question and commented, “It will not stay little for long.”
Laena gave him a soft smile at that, “I suppose you were too distracted to know the news.”
“What news?”
“The war between Tyrosh, Myr, and Lys has officially begun. The Triarchy is officially no more. Your plan succeeded, and Father is planning to host a feast for tonight.”
Ah, that.
He hadn’t quite forgotten about the Triarchy, not truly, but he had to admit that they became less of a priority the moment that the Sealord of Braavos sent his letter to every seat of power in the Known World. Tensions between the Three Daughters of Valyria had threatened to spill over, and that had ended the War in the Stepstones. That was what he had cared about, ensuring that the Stepstones would be safe to navigate, and with most of the mercenaries being called to the Free Cities and the Rogue Prince burning those who tried to remain, trade began to bloom once more.
What the former Triarchy tried to do afterwards was not something he cared about, since it did not impact him in any significant way, but Laenor supposed that his father would focus on the destruction of those whom he considered to be his enemies and relish in their final defeat.
He smiled at his sister’s unspoken invitation, “I’ll be there.”
After all, it had been some time since he had been to High Tide, with most of his focus having been drawn to his work in Castle Driftmark.
Laena scoffed at his answer, “You better, or do you think that Father would not wish to display his greatest pride to the world to see?” As Laenor opened his mouth to answer, she continued with a teasing glint in her eyes, “I am talking about the Valyrian Steel sword, of course.”
His sister snickered at his expression, especially as she looked at the sword that he left on his table. He had changed the pommel to have a small carved trident on it, mostly as proof that this sword was now his own.
His father had been overjoyed that a Valyrian Steel sword had finally made its way to House Velaryon. A lot of the Sea Snake’s ambitions centred around making House Velaryon rise in status to stand alongside House Targaryen. It was why he wished for his blood on the throne, wanted his children to be Dragonriders, and had discreetly searched for anyone who would sell him a Valyrian Steel weapon, though he had always been rebuffed.
But now, he rejoiced at the existence of Riptide, a blade that had been conquered, not bought, and he had already spread songs of Laenor’s defeat of Sargoso Saan, though most of it was either exaggerated or simply false.
And to Laenor, the sword was, without a doubt, one of his greatest possessions, not because of its value or legacy, but because of the magic within it, the magic that he was trying to unravel and understand, though his efforts failed completely. Nothing damaged the blade, not in any way, and he had even convinced his sister to order Vhagar to burn it, and yet, the Valyrian Steel held. Not even a single one of Maester Gerardys’s books had any hints as to the magic being used, which was extremely frustrating.
Memories of the magic that he had called that day still haunted Laenor in his dreams, and his and Gerardys’s investigations had achieved very little in terms of progress in understanding what happened that fateful day.
Alas, the search for more knowledge pertaining to magic was not going well. Gerardys had only ever had a passing curiosity in the Higher Mysteries, a field that he claimed was frowned upon by the Citadel. There was little, if any, books available anywhere, regarding the subject, aside from tales and endless ruins. Laenor would have been more disappointed, had he not been constantly busy with his work on his fortress, which had distracted him, but the quest for understanding magic still remained in the back of his mind, always plaguing his thoughts.
Still, Gerardys was a great addition to Castle Driftmark. The intelligence that he thought he had glimpsed during their conversation on Dragonstone paled compared to what he was capable of with enough motivation and good equipment. The man had been completely taken away with the completion of the Small-Eye, which allowed him to see glimpses of the world hidden within the human body, and it seemed that Laenor’s instincts were correct in that matter.
The man had also been extremely helpful for Joffrey’s recovery. His friend was already walking around, though he was not allowed to run or spar. It was obvious that he needed something to preoccupy himself, and Laenor had charged him to train the guards, now that he had been knighted by Laenor’s father for his bravery fighting the pirates that attacked them. He had been quite silent recently, which worried Laenor slightly, but that would go away when he returned to fighting form.
His thoughts were interrupted by his sister coughing and looking at him with a raised eyebrow.
Laenor blushed as he realised that he had been staring at the weapon, completely ignoring her. He quickly decided to change the subject, grabbing a piece of parchment that he gave her, “Oh, I forgot to give you this.”
His sister frowned for a moment, her eyes widening as he read its content, “What is this, Laenor?”
“The profits from the sale of mirrors in Spicetown since it all began, well, your profits.”
“I don’t understand,” Laena said while stammering.
Laenor turned towards her and spoke up, “You have been responsible for the production of mirrors for years. I have barely involved myself in any way after its creation. You were the one who made arrangements with the merchants in Spicetown, and who ensured that the quality was high enough to rival Myr's work. You have proven to me, to Father, to Mother, to everyone that you are worthy of it. And now, with the war in the Stepstones being over, it is only right that it all be yours. I have set aside the profits from the venture. They are yours to do what you wish.”
His sister froze at this, obviously taken aback by it. He wasn’t really surprised. Women rarely held this opportunity to hold such wealth and the power that came with it, and Laena, as free as she might be, especially as the rider to Vhagar, still fell amongst these lines.
What Laenor was giving her was something in the world that would be her own instead of House Velaryon’s, and the freedom that this allowed her to have. He was not truly required to do this, but it felt like it was the right thing to do.
She must have realised what this meant, as she ran towards him and embraced him tightly, in a way that she hadn’t since he went to Braavos. He knew that she likely blamed him for not taking her with him, but that had been the correct choice at the time.
She broke their embrace with tears in her eyes, and whispered, “Thank you, Laenor.”
His only answer was a soft smile. Laena blushed, likely given her reaction, and looked around his solar, speaking up, “It is wonderful what you have built here.”
“And it is but the beginning. I still haven’t started with my plans for the castle itself.”
Laena smiled at that, “If it is like any of your paintings, then it would certainly be beautiful. I do look forward to seeing them.”
She then walked around and stopped before one of his paintings, this time, one he had made depicting the Titan of Braavos and the city from the distance, “I do wish that I came with you, brother. But I suppose that looking at one of your paintings would be enough. For now.”
“I hardly think that any painting would ever resemble the wonder of the sight.”
“Perhaps not any painting, but yours… I can almost feel it, the beauty, the smells, the sea, the wonder. You have a way to put truths and feelings in your canvas in a way that I never thought possible.”
His sister continued looking at the painting, but Laenor, himself, froze completely, the words ringing inside his mind, alongside others, ones that were spoken by the Faceless Man that he had met, to find his questions and peer into their truths.
He had always put the truth into canvas before. He had painted dreams, stories, scenes, and so much more, but now… Now, he understood what the Faceless Man meant; he understood what he must do.
He must paint. After all, it was what was most natural to him. It was where he showed how he saw the world, its truth in a beautiful, wonderful, and yet, terrible way.
It was staring him in the face, for this was how he perceived the truth of the world, from dreams to stories; this was what he did: he put them on a canvas for everything to see. And now, he must do the same.
For he would find his answers in a painting, likely the most important painting in his life, because this time, his subject would be one that he had avoided all of his life, one that he had always instinctively refused to paint.
For this time, he would paint himself.
AN: This story is still relatively new, so if you'd like me to continue it, please let me know in the comments what you think of the rewrite so far.
As for this chapter, I know that it was a bit of a slow one, but I think I needed to show a bit of Laenor after returning to Braavos, instead of jumping right into things, while also displaying what he had done so far. I thought that his focusing on improving Hull before fully renovating the castle itself would be something that was logical for the long-term, but I'm not sure how it holds up, so I wanted your opinion on that part.
Also, the ending is kinda important. A big part of the story since the beginning was that Laenor put the truth into his painting, and now, he realised that he could use that to have a lot of his questions answered, with a bit of a callback to the interaction with the Faceless Men. I'm pretty excited for the next chapter, to be honest.
As I said before, I am planning on uploading more of this story (outside of normal uploads). I have a bit of a backlog of chapter drafts for this story that I’ll try to go through when I can. As usual, I don’t mind rewriting this chapter depending on your feedback, so please let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions.