"You fool, what exactly are you trying to do!?"
As soon as the Muddy Dragon appeared, it was accompanied by a familiar scolding.
"Aemond?"
Alicent's eyes widened in shock and uncertainty as she searched for her son.
When Rhaegar executed Grand Maester Mellos, Aemond was nowhere to be seen.
She had assumed he was asleep in his chambers, but unexpectedly, he had ended up on the back of a wild dragon.
"Hisss-gah..."
The Sheep Thief let out a defiant screech, its dry and scrawny body twisting erratically in flight. It even spun midair without warning, punishing the noisy silver-haired boy clinging to its back.
On the cliffside, Rhaegar embraced the rushing Rhaenyra before they walked hand in hand toward their father.
"My son, I have you to thank for tonight," Viserys said with deep relief, looking at his eldest with pride.
If Rhaegar hadn't arrived on dragonback to disrupt the rampaging Vermithor, Viserys would have had a much harder time taming the great beast.
"Father, this is far from over," Rhaegar said meaningfully. Then, glancing up at the Sheep Thief in the sky, he smirked. "It seems our family will be gaining two new dragonriders at once."
"Aemond is a good boy—resilient and brave," Viserys said, smiling as he followed his son's gaze.
With Aemond included, all six of his children had now become dragonriders.
Look at the seeds he had sown—all of them true Targaryens, one and all.
Even during his grandfather Jaehaerys' reign, out of thirteen children, only three became dragonriders, and two of them were Viserys' own parents.
"Hisss-gah..."
The Sheep Thief playfully soared over the cliff's edge, its vertical pupils glancing around mischievously at the gluttonous Vermithor and Silverwing. It hovered for a while but did not immediately land.
Aemond clung helplessly to the dragon's back, his long hair covering his face. In sheer frustration, he shut his eyes and shouted, "You idiot, put me down!!"
After the rough ride, his stomach was completely empty—there was nothing left to vomit.
Hearing her son's cries, Alicent panicked and called out urgently, "Aemond! Are you all right?"
On the dragon's back, Aemond lifted his head at the sound of her voice, brushing aside his disheveled hair. He saw his father, mother, and siblings all watching from below.
With a loud smack, he covered his face, mortified beyond belief. "Damn it, just eat me already!"
From below, his mother's furious voice rang out: "Aemond! Who gave you permission to mount a dragon—let alone an untamed wild one!?"
The Queen was utterly beside herself.
Aemond said nothing and simply lay flat against the dragon's back, pretending to be dead.
"Hisss-gah..."
The Sheep Thief turned its head and cast him a disdainful glance, then let out a scornful hiss.
If you want to ride on its back, then act like it! Stop cowering in fear!
After confirming that the two full-grown dragons below posed no threat, the Muddy Dragon flapped its wings and descended, landing precisely in the space between the two great beasts.
"Roar..."
Vermithor cracked open one slitted eye, glanced briefly at the newcomer, and then turned its head away, utterly uninterested.
Nearby, Silverwing simply shifted into a more comfortable position and closed its eyes again, too lazy to even acknowledge the wild dragon's existence.
A scrawny, cattle-stealing Muddy Dragon? Not worth a second look.
"Hisss-gah..."
The Sheep Thief remained blissfully unaware of the others' dismissiveness. It spread its wings proudly, standing tall among the larger dragons as if showing off its own magnificence.
Having lived as a wild dragon, it had little experience interacting with others of its kind.
In its mind, its powerful physique was impressive—every inch of its body had grown to its full potential without waste.
"You idiot, put me down, or I'll have Silverwing eat you!"
As the Sheep Thief shuffled about, Aemond hung helplessly from its neck, both panicked and enraged.
He swore he was about to fall at any moment.
"Oh, gods..."
Viserys' expression changed slightly as he instinctively stepped forward to catch his son.
Rhaegar held him back, saying seriously, "Don't worry. Since the Sheep Thief let Aemond on its back, it won't let him come to harm."
Even though Aemond and the Sheep Thief's bond seemed... strange and somewhat dysfunctional, a dragon was still a dragon.
Once it had acknowledged a rider, it would do everything in its power to protect them.
"Hisss-gah..."
After strutting around for a while without receiving any attention, the Sheep Thief let out a sulky screech, folded its wings, and lay down.
"Ughhh..."
Aemond, his limbs weak, slid off the dragon's back, staggering forward and dry-heaving.
"Aemond!" Alicent rushed to his side, anxiously checking him over.
"I'm fine," Aemond muttered, spitting out some bitter saliva. Then, reconsidering, he corrected himself, "I should be fine."
Rhaegar approached with a grin. "Aemond, congratulations on taming a full-grown dragon."
He glanced at the unimpressed Sheep Thief but refrained from making any discouraging remarks.
Objectively speaking, the Sheep Thief was not the most attractive dragon, but it was still undeniably a full-grown beast.
And given its wild nature and survival experience, its potential was certainly no less than that of Bloodwyrm Caraxes or the Red Queen Meleys.
Of course, Rhaegar was only making this assessment from a fair perspective as someone knowledgeable about dragons.
Others would not be so kind.
"Aemond, you actually tamed a dragon!"
Aegon's eyes sparkled as he swaggered forward.
Aemond shot him a glance, then turned away in silence.
He didn't want to tame a hideous, mud-covered wild dragon. There had been no process of bonding or giving commands—he had simply been forced into this situation by the Sheep Thief.
Aegon shoved aside Alicent, who was still fussing over Aemond, and grabbed his younger brother's shoulders. He bent down and asked, "Dear brother, why do you look so unhappy?"
"Aegon, it's not my dragon. I had planned to tame Vermithor or Silverwing," Aemond muttered, clearly unwilling to accept his fate.
"Don't say that—I think it cares about you."
Aegon draped an arm around Aemond's shoulders, forcibly turning him to face the Sheep Thief. Then, as if suddenly struck by inspiration, he smirked and said, "Look, now we all have dragons."
Waving toward the distance, he called out teasingly, "Sunfire, come over here and show my dear brother what a real dragon looks like!"
"Aegon, what are you doing?!" Alicent's expression darkened.
Aegon remained unfazed, tightening his grip on Aemond and answering nonchalantly, "We're all dragonriders now—it's only natural to compare our dragons."
"Screech…"
Sunfyre let out a sharp cry. Seeing that the Muddy Thief was comfortably lingering in the middle of the area, he flapped his wings and flew to his rider's side.
Aegon tilted his head back, pointing at the golden dragon that had landed, and exaggeratedly asked, "Aemond, do you see these dazzling golden scales and the pale pink wing membranes?"
"Mhm, very beautiful," Aemond replied weakly.
He already had a feeling about what Aegon was going to do.
"That's right! A magnificent golden dragon. The maesters at the Citadel say that Sunfyre is the most majestic and beautiful dragon in history!"
Aegon's voice was filled with pride. Then he turned his head toward the tail-swaying Sheepstealer and, with mock admiration, commented, "Aemond, you truly are my brother—your approach to dragon riding is to pursue the complete opposite extreme, choosing this…"
"Oh no, wait. I should say this pile of muck dragon!"
Speaking his true thoughts, Aegon could no longer hold back his laughter.
He laughed so hard he was gasping for air, slapping Aemond on the shoulder without restraint.
"Hahaha! A Muddy Dragon!"
Tears almost streamed from Aegon's eyes as he laughed, completely disregarding his brother's dignity.
"Aegon, put away your useless mockery. The fact that your brother has returned safely is already a blessing!"
Their mother, Alicent, could no longer tolerate it. She shoved the unruly Aegon aside and sternly reprimanded him, her face full of anger.
"Mother, it's just a little joke between brothers," Aegon said carelessly, trying to defend himself.
"You!…" Alicent was furious.
"Mother, forget it," Aemond interrupted, his voice low. "I will find a true dragon and prove myself to everyone."
"Don't be stupid. You should be grateful that even a Muddy Dragon took a liking to you," Aegon snickered, twisting the knife deeper.
He had originally wanted to say something comforting, but the words naturally turned into mockery.
"Screech…"
Sunfyre lifted his head arrogantly upon seeing the ugly Sheepstealer and spread his wings wide, flapping them as if to show off.
One man and one dragon, both ridiculing him at the same time—Aemond's fragile heart could take no more.
His face instantly darkened. He shoved Aegon aside and roared, "Aegon! That is not my dragon! I will tame one worthy of my status!"
The conflict erupted so quickly that no one had time to react.
While Rhaegar and the others were still watching, the two brothers had already come to blows.
"You little brat, how dare you push me?!"
Aegon nearly lost his balance. He grabbed Aemond's collar in return and glared at him. "You rode that Muddy Dragon back here. That makes it your dragon."
"So what? That doesn't give you the right to mock me endlessly!" Aemond shot back, refusing to back down.
"There's no such thing as something that can't be said," Aegon sneered.
"Aegon, let go of your brother," Alicent ordered, her tone sharp.
"Let go of Aemond…"
Nearby, Helaena and little Daeron were the first to rush over. One shielded Aemond while the other tried to push against Aegon's legs. The argument escalated in an instant.
"Screech…"
Sensing his rider was surrounded, Sunfyre's eyes gleamed with hostility. Slowly, he bared his fangs.
"Aegon, you keep mocking me. You owe me an apology!"
"I'm just telling the truth. It's you, coward, who keeps running from it."
"..."
The chaos continued. Aegon and Aemond hurled insults at each other, shoving back and forth.
"Aegon, Aemond, release each other at once!" Viserys hurried over, scolding his two sons.
Unfortunately, the brothers were too caught up in their fight to listen.
"Screech…"
The commotion finally caught Sheepstealer's attention. The Muddy Dragon tilted his head, glancing around in confusion.
Had the silver-haired boy been taken hostage?
"Roar…"
Sunfyre crouched low to the ground, his vertical pupils gleaming coldly as he let out a warning growl.
Sheepstealer turned his head and saw another dragon—one with an arrogant, threatening stance.
"Aegon, you're nothing but a bully, always picking on the weak."
Aemond's eyes were red with anger as he cursed through gritted teeth.
"So what? The one with the bigger fists makes the rules," Aegon said deliberately to provoke him.
"You'll regret this!" Aemond spat.
"Screech…"
Just as his words fell, a sharp dragon's cry rang out, followed by a gust of swirling dust.
In the blink of an eye, Sheepstealer lunged at Sunfyre without warning, ruthlessly clamping his jaws around the golden dragon's throat.
"Screech…"
Caught off guard and pinned to the ground, Sunfyre's vicious nature was instantly triggered. He struggled, biting fiercely at Sheepstealer's mud-streaked, blocky-scaled collarbone.
Crunch!
A large chunk of muddy keratin was torn off, revealing a layer of solid brown scales underneath.
Splat!
Sheepstealer's counterattack was even more ruthless—his fangs clamped down and ripped away a small piece of flesh. His thick brown wings struck Sunfyre's head with force, before he lunged again, aiming at his opponent's lower ribs.
Within seconds, the golden and brown dragons became entangled in a frenzied battle.
Sheepstealer was much older and significantly larger in size.
With his entire bulk pressing down on Sunfyre, the difference in size between them was more than double.