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☄. *. ⋆┊ chapter six

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The Khalasar led by Khal Drogo thundered forward, the sound of hooves pounding the earth like a relentless drumbeat. Riding at the head of the massive horde, Drogo's muscular frame and commanding presence were unmistakable.

Following close behind, his son, Rhaego riding on his own and Daenerys rode her pristine white horse, her daughter Rhaenys perched in front of her, their silver hair gleaming in the sunlight.

But amidst the thunderous charge, Daenerys noticed something amiss. Drogo, usually the embodiment of strength and vitality, was wobbling in his saddle. His features contorted as he spoke gibberish, his words incoherent.

Alarmed, Daenerys urged her horse forward, calling out to her husband in concern.

"My lord..."

"My sun and stars..."

"Drogo", again but still no response from the Khal.

Before her very eyes, Khal Drogo, the great warrior, tumbled from his horse and crashed to the ground. With fearless determination, Daenerys leaped from her horse and rushed to his side, her heart heavy with fear for her beloved husband.

Then one of his bloodriders also rushed to his side, taking the Khal's hand.

Rhaego and Rhaenys, watched in growing worry. Rhaego, his concern for his father clear in his eyes, didn't hesitate and jumped from his own horse, rushing to his father's side.

The bloodriders, warriors who had followed Drogo through countless battles and life on the Great Grass Sea, muttered amongst themselves, their expressions grave. One of them declared in a low, solemn tone, "He fell from his horse. A Khal who cannot ride is no Khal"

Daenerys, still holding Drogo and her resolve unwavering, spoke in her husband's defense. "He's tired, that's all. He needs to rest. We've ridden enough today. We'll camp here"

"This is no place to camp. A woman does not give us orders. Not even a Khaleesi" one of the bloodriders said,

"We'll camp here. Tell them Khal Drogo commanded it" Daenerys defended

"You do not command me Khaleesi."

Rhaego, sensing his mother's distress and understanding the gravity of the situation, decided to intervene. He addressed the bloodriders firmly, "I-I order you to make camp here. My father is tired, and my mother is right. We will rest now."

The bloodriders exchanged glances, unwilling to challenge the young Khalakka's authority. They nodded in reluctant agreement, and One of them left to order the others to camp.

"Find Mirri Maz Duur. Bring her to me." Daenerys ordered

"The witch? I'll bring you her head, Khaleesi" the bloodrider answered arrogantly

Daenerys, undeterred, threatened with authority, "Bring her to me unharmed or Khal Drogo will hear why you defied me."

Then after the bloodriders left, Daenerys look at her husband worriedly and would turn to look at her son, with thankfulness in her eyes.

Daenerys sat by Khal Drogo's side within the dimly lit tent, her eyes filled with worry. Her great warrior was now ailing, his strength drained, and a deep fever had taken hold. Khal Drogo, who was once invincible, lay there with dark circles under his eyes, muttering incomprehensibly in his weakened state.

Ser Jorah Mormont entered the tent quietly.

Daenerys, her voice fraught with frustration and fear, spoke to him, her words an almost furious lament for her husband. "He's very strong-No one understands how strong he is."

Ser Jorah, ever the realist, knelt to check Khal Drogo's wound. He examined the deep cut on Drogo's chest, which had been covered with herbs meant to heal it. His face was grave as he inspected the infection that had taken hold. After a moment, he looked up and met Daenerys's anxious gaze.

"He will die tonight, Khaleesi", his voice heavy with the weight of the truth.

Daenerys' heart sank at Ser Jorah's words, and she was adamant in her response, "He can't. He can't-I won't let him-I won't let my children grow up without a father."

Ser Jorah, his tone filled with sorrow, rose to his feet. He said, "Even a queen doesn't have that power."

Ser Jorah stood at the entrance of the tent, ready to leave, "We must go quickly, I've heard there's a good port at Asshai-"

"-I won't leave him" Daenerys cut him off with a determined declaration.

Ser Jorah, his eyes heavy with the burden of the truth, replied, "He's already gone, Khaleesi."

There was a silence in the tent, and Daenerys's voice wavered as she struggled to speak. "Even if-Even if he dies, why would we run?" She raised her voice slightly, "I am Khaleesi, and my son-my son Rhaego will be Khal after Drogo."

"This isn't Westeros, where men honor blood. Here, they only honor strength. There will be fighting after Drogo dies-They will see Rhaego as a threat and challenge him to a fight, even though he's still a child-They won't let him live, for they won't want any rivals. And they might even take your daughter for wife." Ser Jorah reasoned

Daenerys, her resolve unshaken but her voice unsteady, repeated her decision. "I won't leave him."

The tent's entrance flapped open, and Mirri Maz Durr entered, accompanied by two of Khal Drogo's bloodriders.

Mirri Maz Durr knelt to examine Khal Drogo's festering wound, her dark eyes assessing the damage, "The wound has festered"

"You did this, witch" He pulled a dagger from his belt, his intentions clear.

Daenerys, alarmed by the escalating tension, shouted, "Stop it!"

He pulled his dagger back to his belt.

"I don't want her hurt."

"No? No? You don't want her hurt?" he scoffed, "Pray that we don't hurt you too. You let this witch put her hands on our Khal." He lashed out, kicking Mirri Maz Durr to the ground.

Ser Jorah intervened, warning the bloodrider, "Rein in your tongue. She is still your Khaleesi"

But the bloodrider, his voice seething with anger, retorted, "Only while the blood of my blood lives!-And when he dies, she is nothing."

Daenerys, her fiery spirit undeterred, stood up to face the bloodrider with an edge of anger in her voice. "I have never been nothing," she declared defiantly, "I am the blood of the dragon."

He scoffed at her words, his dismissive response heavy with cynicism. "The dragons are all dead, Khaleesi" he retorted before huffing and leaving the tent.

Daenerys turned her attention to her ailing husband, Khal Drogo. "I think you should wear your armor tonight, Ser"

"I think you're right" Ser Jorah said and left the tent to prepare for the uncertain night that lay ahead.

"You saved me once more," Mirri Maz Durr said softly.

But Daenerys, her thoughts consumed by her ailing husband, replied with urgency, "Now you must save him."

"He's beyond a healer's skill," she explained. "All I can do is ease his path."

Daenerys, unwilling to accept this fate for Khal Drogo, "Save him and I will free you-I swear it."

Desperation welled up in Daenerys as she pleaded for any possible solution. "You must know a way," she said, "some... some magic."

Mirri Maz Durr's silence hung heavily in the air, and then she spoke with a solemn and ominous tone. "There is a spell," she revealed, "and some would say death is cleaner."

Daenerys knelt closer to her husband, her eyes locked on his suffering form. "Do it. Save him"

Mirri Maz Durr's voice held a note of gravity as she attempted to convey the heavy cost of the spell. "There is a price-"

"-You'll have gold-whatever you want," Daenerys, driven by her desire to save Khal Drogo, cut her off with a promise.

The healer's response was solemn and revealed the grim nature of the magic she intended to employ. "It's not the matter of gold," she explained. "This is blood magic. Only death pays for life."

Daenerys took a moment to process the implication and then hesitantly asked, "My death?"

Mirri Maz Durr's response was reassuring. "No-not your death, Khaleesi."

After a brief silence, Mirri Maz Durr issued an unusual request. "Bring me his horse,"

Daenerys signaled her Dothraki handmaiden, who had been silently observing from the corner of the tent, to fetch Khal Drogo's horse. She turned her attention back to her husband, caressing his chest with a mixture of hope and desperation.

As three Dothraki men brought Khal Drogo's horse into the tent, the animal struggled. Two of the men tried to calm the horse by pulling its reins, while the flames in the fire pit flickered, casting eerie shadows across the tent.

Rakharo, one of the Dothraki men, couldn't bear the unfolding events and spoke to Daenerys urgently, "Khaleesi, do not do this thing. Let me kill this witch."

Mirri Maz Durr held a dagger aloft, brushing her fingers against it as if to emphasize the seriousness of the bloodmagic she was about to perform. She seemed unperturbed by Rakharo's threat.

Daenerys responded to Rakharo's plea, "Kill her, and you kill your Khal."

Rakharo, deeply concerned, explained, "This is bloodmagic. It is forbidden."

"I am your Khaleesi. I tell you what is forbidden." Daenerys said

Mirri Maz Durr began chanting as she approached the horse, preparing to enact her bloodmagic.

She then turned to Daenerys and ordered, "Go now."

Both Rakharo and Irri'a quickly left the tent, leaving Mirri Maz Durr alone with the horse.

Mirri Maz Durr then turned to Daenerys and told her to go as well, warning, "Once I begin to sing, no one must enter the tent. The dead will dance here tonight."

Daenerys approached Khal Drogo, caressing his cheek gently, and replied, "No one will enter."

Mirri Maz Durr, sliced the horse's neck in front of Daenerys, causing blood to splatter across her face. Daenerys, her voice full of desperation, pleaded, "Bring him back to me."

Daenerys emerged from the tent, her face still splattered with blood, to find a crowd of curious Dothraki gathered outside. They were all waiting to see the outcome of the strange rituals performed within the tent. As the eerie singing continued from inside, Daenerys felt a shiver run down her spine.

Ser Jorah, fully armored, approached her, his voice laced with concern, "What have you done?"

Gasping for breath and wide-eyed, Daenerys replied, "I had to save him."

Suddenly, a loud, almost demonic shriek erupted from within the tent, causing everyone to direct their gaze toward the source of the unsettling noise.

Doreah, one of Daenerys's handmaidens who had been entrusted with watching over the twins, rushed toward Daenerys in a state of distress. She was clearly upset and almost panicked. Breathless, she informed Daenerys, "Khaleesi-it's the twins...they are not well."

Dread washed over Daenerys as she demanded, "What happened?"

She began to sprint toward the twins' tent, with Doreah and Ser Jorah following close behind.

Upon entering the tent, Daenerys saw her twins, Rhaego and Rhaenys, lying in their beds. They were tossing and turning, whimpering as if in great pain, their faces contorted in agony.

Falling to her knees between the two beds, Daenerys, her eyes filled with tears.

She touched their foreheads to check if it was merely a fever. Before she made contact, Doreah warned "Khaleesi no!-they're extremely hot, like touching freshly cooked food"

However, Daenerys paid little heed to the warning and touched the twins. "Rhaenys! Rhaego!..."

She called out their names repeatedly in a desperate attempt to wake them. The air was charged with tension as she implored, her voice quivering, "Rhaego... Rhaenys... wake up." The twins remained unresponsive, lost in their suffering.

She continued to call out to them, her voice filled with despair, as Ser Jorah and Doreah watched helplessly.

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