Chapter 2: Growing up
104 AC
— Hurry, Gaemon, we have more sparring ahead of us, — said a tall, handsome man with Valyrian features. The named boy named Gaemon had the same Valyrian appearance as the male, apart from two differences in the form of indigo eyes and a streak of black hair. The boy looked about eight years old, which clearly did not correspond to his real age.
— Father...hah ...how many...times...haah ...say...my name is.. Aiden, — Gaemon, whose real name was Aiden, retorted.
— Instead of talking, you could have already finished the exercise, — the man replied calmly.
— Are you sure these exercises are appropriate for my age? I'm only six, — the boy pointed to the chain mail under his clothes.
— You don't look like a boy of six birthdays, — the man protested.
— But I am!
Daemon just chuckled at his son's words. His son said logical things. Gaemon was smarter and bigger than children of his age. He started talking and walking earlier, which was not normal, but he did not see anything wrong with that. Although he was sometimes annoyed that his son had the same sharp tongue as the "bronze bitch". But despite this, as a father, he was proud of his son. He covered everything quickly, whether it was science or swordsmanship. Gaemon was especially talented with the sword, sometimes correcting his mistakes on his own without the help of instructors. he even used dirty tricks to defeat his opponent. Daemon was sure that when his son grew up a formidable warrior, even more formidable than him. Therefore, he trained his son intensively to unlock his full potential.
— So what? You're tougher than the rest of the kids, so you need more exercise.
— Good, — Gaemon continued, unable to find any arguments to object. Now it was morning and the castle was only just waking up, which meant that the courtyard would be empty. And the empty yard meant Daemon could train his son without distractions. He especially didn't want to see the "bronze bitch". Despite seven years of marriage, they still do not get along, constantly quarreling and insulting each other. Their relationship was not even affected by the birth of their son, and that said a lot. Although Daemon and Rhea agreed not to quarrel next to their son. They could not be an exemplary couple, but they could become exemplary parents. in this their thoughts coincided.
— I'm done, — the voice of his son brought the Targaryen prince out of his thoughts, holding a wooden short sword in his hands.
— Well, let's get started then, — Daemon chuckled in his stand-up manner. His son repeated the same movements, although his stance was different from his.
* * *
— Well done, Aiden, — Rhea praised her son when he wrote another rune without errors.
Aiden smiled at his mother's praise, though he didn't see anything special in what he was doing. Rumors swirled around the castle that he was a young genius who had been blessed by the gods. Aiden thought it was stupid, and he didn't think he was a genius either. Was he just more reasonable than other kids his age? Besides, Aiden had one secret. A secret he didn't tell anyone, not even his parents. The thing was, Aiden remembered everything from the moment he was born. At the time of his birth, he knew nothing about life, like any other baby who has just been born. But somehow he could be aware of what he saw or heard. At first, young Royce believed that all children were like him, but quickly became convinced that this was not the case. So the future Lord of the Runestone decided not to talk about it, knowing with some sixth sense that it would not lead to anything good.
Likewise, Aiden, when practicing, whether it was with a Maester or a sword, quickly grasped everything, listening to a feeling that was similar to the one that warned him not to tell others about his peculiarity. In addition, this feeling prompted him to new ways of training, whether it be to improve leg function, like jumping over a rope, which he called "rope". At first, people thought he was just playing, which was no surprise for a kid his age. But his father and the castle's weapons master understood what the exercise was all about. His father praised him for his determination and told him to continue in the same spirit. In addition, Aiden also hit with his bare hands, feet, elbows and knees on a wooden pole that was placed in the training yard at his request. So he strengthened various parts of his body, which was by no means painless. Those parts on which he hit the pole often turned out to be erased to the blood, which his mother did not really like, because of which he asked to stop doing this, and when she realized that she would not achieve his refusal, she asked at least to wear protection . But this request was also ignored. Aiden was ashamed that he made his mother worry, because she was afraid that he might hurt himself in this way. And to be honest, she was not far from the truth. Aiden would have already hurt himself several times if it weren't for the same feeling that pulled him back from the point of no return. But despite all this, Aiden knew that in the future, all this would bear fruit. In future.
What's wrong, Aiden, Rhea asked, noticing her son's thoughtful expression.
— Nothing, — her son said, to which Rhea sighed.
— I'm just lonely.
— Like this, and why?
— I have no one to play with!
— And what about your cousin?
— Mom, are you kidding me? He is three times older than me.
— What about children, servants?
— They are boring, they always play along with me, — the child grumbled offendedly. Rhea sighed at her son's words. No matter how smart her son was, he was still a child. She felt a pang of guilt for putting so much stress on her son lately.
—Okay, then ask whatever you want.
— I want a brother or sister! Aiden exclaimed, causing the Lady of the Runestone to choke on air.
— Aiden, I don't know how to say this, but it's impossible, — she tried to explain to her son as gently as possible the impossibility of the appearance of a younger brother or sister, Rhea.
— I know, — young Royce sighed sadly.
— And where did it come from? the older Royce asked suspiciously.
— I asked my dad how children are born. — For the second time that day, Rhea choked on air again. Rhea could not even imagine what kind of perversions the "scaly bastard" could tell her son.
— And what did he say? —Aiden's mother smiled stiffly.
— He said that children appear when parents love each other very much.
Hearing her son's answer, Rhea breathed a sigh of relief and thanked Daemon (!) for having the decency not to dedicate their little son to how babies actually come about.
— That's how.
— Yes, but you don't love each other anymore, — the little boy answered sadly. Seeing her sad son, Rhea decided to cheer him up, even though he did not like this idea. — Do you want to go to King's Landing?
— Will Rhaenyra be there? - the owner of indigo eyes was inspired.
— Yes, — Rhea smiled.
— Hooray! I can see another dragon's!
Dragons. Rhea didn't like those giant lizards, especially her husband's dragon. Firstly, it was Daemon's dragon, and secondly, it brought a lot of problems, frightening the inhabitants and stealing cattle. But Reya recognized their power and understood the privilege they gave. She doubted that her son would get a dragon, given that his last name is Royce, and the Royces are not known to be of the Valyrian home. Even if her son manages to get the dragon, it may not please the Arrens, whose vassals her house is. Why are there Arryns, the rest of the houses of the Valley would also be dissatisfied with this, putting the Royce house in a precarious position, especially her son. She could see how these vultures clung to her son to get his dragon. No, she did not want such a fate for her son. She was little satisfied with her marriage and fed up with trying to grab what was rightfully hers from an early age. This was not the fate she wanted for her son.
— Only after you finish your classes.
- Good!
* * *
Being invisible and intangible to ordinary people, a tall figure above two meters walked around the halls of the Runestone. His face was disfigured due to numerous scars. The right eye of the "ghost" was completely white, indicating the dysfunction of this organ. The lower eyelid under the right eye was burned, hinting at exactly how the man lost his eye. But the most unpleasant scar was the stitches that connected the once torn left side of the mouth, creating a semblance of a smile. In addition, the man's face was also covered with several small scars, the brightest of which passed through his temple. As for clothes, the giant was dressed in very strange clothes for this era, like a turtleneck and trousers with many military-colored pockets.
Whoever said that children grow up quickly, he is damn wrong. The figure muttered with boredom on its face.
His name was Crane, more precisely, that was the name of its creator, in the likeness of which it was created. He was a mixture of spirit, mind and a part of the creator's consciousness, with all the necessary knowledge and memories to fulfill his mission. Ask why it was created? Everything is simple. his master was a Hunter, a man from a planet called Earth who fought monsters that came out of a rift called "Gate" that required killing the dungeon boss to close. The place where the Gate led. Being the very first hunter in the world and before the massive monster invasion in 2021, Crane managed to develop enough to prevent humanity from being destroyed. Soon more "awakened" people began to appear in the world - people who possessed magical abilities, who later began to be called Hunters. His master reached great heights, being the strongest Hunter on Earth, having managed to become a Titan after a while - a divine being. It was the fact that his creator was a Titan that prevented him from being erased from the soul of a man who in this life was called Aiden Royce or Gaemon Targaryen.
He had two goals.
The first is to find out what happens to souls after death and whether the concept of rebirth is possible. This goal was fulfilled exactly at the moment when the carrier was conceived.
The second purpose is to look after and help the development of the host. Why exactly him? Because Aiden/Gaemon in a past life was the same Hunter as his creator, hitting the top ten strongest in the world. In addition, he was also a very close friend and second-in-command to the Creator, who at one time agreed to participate in Crane's project until his death.
It was precisely because this sentient was once close to the Creator that led him to look after the boy twenty-four by seven, instead of only reacting when necessary. It also helped development, as a result of which the boy already at the time of birth had the consciousness of an adult, although he was deprived of any knowledge. He also made it so that Aiden developed physically faster than the rest of his peers, which explained why he looks older. He also helped him during training, preventing the boy from injuring himself. It was his idea to beat the pole with his bare hands in order to teach the wearer Thai boxing in the future, in which the wearer was an unsurpassed master before his rebirth.
Unfortunately, interactions with the Host ended there. Full-fledged interaction Crane now considered inappropriate. Despite the fact that Aiden had a remarkable mind, he was still a child who did not understand many things. What is worth only the case when the Carrier almost blabbed about the "features" of his birth. Considering that this world was stuck in the medieval era for ten thousand years or more, which meant extreme piety, idiocy and prejudice of the locals, as well as a few relatives who wanted to become Lord of the Runestone, this would hardly have led to something good. At best, the Carrier would be considered crazy or possessed by some kind of demon.
So Crane waited until the host was at least ten years old to appear before him. And by that time, he could only wait and see that young Royce did not ruin himself.
And now Crane, standing on the balcony, watched as the parents of his bearer in this life quarreled with each other about whether he would ride the dragon or not. Crane agreed. It was not safe for Reya Royce, a boy of six, to ride the so-called dragon, which were actually Wyverns, given that this creature had four limbs, while a dragon, at least flying, always has six. Yes, and here the "Dragons" were just animals, and not a separate race. So Rhea Royce was not mistaken in calling these creatures "overgrown lizards." But despite all their shortcomings, these creatures were intelligent. Not at the level of an adult, of course, but some intelligence was present. So, if some kind of life mage or even a druid of the rank of Master or higher worked on these creatures, then after a few generations they could become quite a full-fledged race. But the question remains, was it worth it? He doubted that at the current level of technological development, humanity was unlikely to survive against the dragons. And he did not want to talk about magic at all, knowing what kind of world he fell into.
Crane was surprised when he realized exactly what world his bearer had been reborn into. This world was the embodiment of fantasy. George's .R.R. Martin titled A Song of Ice and Fire. And Crane considered the magicians of this just mediocrity. After all, how else to call magicians who, in order to achieve any significant success in magic, did the devil knows what, such as frequent sacrifices, transfer of mana through sexual intercourse, cannibalism, confining their body in a fucking tree in order to see the past, the future , as well as through the eyes of several dozen ravens. It was just absurd. On Earth, even the most mediocre magician could easily create fireballs, create small craters, accelerate, strengthen, and so on. He was especially amused by local enemies, who were either under-druids, or under-shamans. In order to control the fucking Rat's actions completely, Varg had to take over his mind! It was just ridiculous. In his world, be it a shaman or a druid, he did it for no reason, not out of necessity. Only for beings that were stronger than the magician, it was necessary to take over the body of the creature in order to fully tame it. And about the local demonologists, who are known here as the Shadowcallers, he did not want to talk even more so. He had never heard a more perverted way of a summoning demon. Of course, there have been incidents on Earth when demons were summoned in this way, but it was a specially prepared victim, not a damn magician! Only a psycho or a possessed person would do such a thing.
So Crane promised himself to teach Aiden the true ways of magic. As soon as the opportunity arises.
— Come on, woman. I assure you that everything will be all right, — Daemon said, slapping a hand on Caraxes' side.
— I say no, he only has six birthdays! — Rhea protested loudly.
— I said yes! He is my son! — IPrince the Exile frowned, having received yet another refusal. His dragon growled behind him, sensing the rider's indignation menacingly.
— He's also my son! I carried him for nine months in my womb! I struggled for hours bringing it into the world while you were fucking another slut in Gulltown! You can spawn as many bastards from all kinds of whores and ride them on your damn dragon, but don't you dare risk Aiden's life! — Ignoring the reaction of the dragon, the mistress of the castle said, turning around inside the castle. Frowning, Daemon viciously jumped onto the back of the dragon and soared into the heavens.
— The journey to King's Landing promises to be fun, — Crane chuckled, sensing the change.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone