Eagle Hunt, Hunting Eagles

"Alright, go get ready. Wait." Lonzell frowned and looked Valar over from head to toe.

"Wh-what is it?" Valar looked down at himself in confusion. Nothing seemed wrong. Why did Lonzell look like he wanted to eat him alive?

"What are we going to do?" Lonzell lightly tapped the smooth breastplate of "Silver Shield" twice. He stared gravely at Valar while Jacaerys beside them hurriedly pricked up his ears, wiping away specks of dust with a cloth as he listened to what this elder brother, whom he had come to admire after only a few days, had to say.

"Fight the Vulture King—ah, no." Seeing his brother's expression darken at once, he hurriedly corrected himself. "Eagle hunting. We're going eagle hunting in the mountains."

"Why are you wearing armor to hunt eagles?" Lonzell raised an eyebrow. "Just bring it along. If you ride out in armor, your horse will collapse from exhaustion before you even spot any prey."

"Got it." Valar muttered as he went out to take off his armor, leaving only Lonzell and Jacaerys in the room again.

The two princes had arrived in Blackhaven in secret. Their dragons were not yet strong enough to carry them from Dragonstone to Blackhaven, so they could only travel by ship first, then reach their destination under the protection of the Silver Blood Army. The two children had followed Lonzell's former attendants, Lynn and Hofa, for several days of instruction before officially becoming Lonzell and Valar's attendants. As princes who had received a complete noble education, they were naturally familiar with an attendant's duties. Before coming here, Prince Jacaerys had served Princess Rhaenyra and Prince Daemon as cupbearer, while Prince Lucerys had served Lord Corlys Velaryon as cupbearer as well.

"My lord, please do not be too harsh on Great-Uncle Valar. He was probably just too eager, so he had Luke help him put on the armor. It was Luke's first time seeing true Valyrian steel armor too." Seeing that Lonzell did not object, Jacaerys spoke up.

"Aren't you the same, Jace? You've been staring at Dragonrider for ages." Lonzell smiled. He took the armor Jacaerys handed him and placed it in the pack for protective gear. Jacaerys scratched his head awkwardly. "After all, the royal family only has one set of leather armor said to be decorated with Valyrian steel." The brown-haired boy fastened Silver Blood at Lonzell's waist and straightened his collar and cuffs. "We were curious what real Valyrian steel armor looked like too."

"Now that you've seen it, what do you think?"

"It's strange. Beautiful. It gives me a feeling I can't quite describe." Jacaerys honestly voiced his thoughts. "Sometimes, looking at it feels like looking at Vermax."

Vermax was Jacaerys's dragon, a dark green young dragon the same age as him and growing rapidly. It was currently living in the Dragonpit of King's Landing.

After hasty construction, the main tower of King's Landing, Silver Blood Tower, and the two subsidiary towers connected by corridors, the Twin Towers, had been fully renovated. If not for the urgency of the military operation, Lonzell would have moved in first with his family and close retainers.

"Anything else?" Lonzell helped Jacaerys tie the straps of his leather armor and continued asking.

Jacaerys shook his head. "That's all I saw."

Lonzell smiled and nodded without saying anything further, instead changing the subject. "Jace, Prince Daemon asked me to teach you boys a few things. Well, that's only natural. As attendants, learning from the knights they follow is an established tradition."

"I have already learned a great deal from you." Jacaerys buckled on his own longsword. "I must also thank you for your gentleness and patience."

Lonzell smiled and motioned for Jacaerys to follow. The two youths walked out through Blackhaven's gates together. Outside the city, the three hundred heavy cavalry gathered by the Dondarrion family were already in position. These Borderlands heavy cavalrymen generally wore chainmail covered by surcoats. Most had no horse blankets or barding, and the patterns on their surcoats revealed their family affiliations or origins. A small number wore handsome plate armor and heavy horse blankets. Lonzell knew they were either household knights directly sworn to the Dondarrion family or wealthy landed knights. Many among the less affluent heavy cavalry were their attendants. Lord Edric had additionally called up eight hundred longbowmen, which was already the limit of what the Dondarrion family could provide.

They flew banners bearing purple lightning. Another force carrying brown banners had also gathered beneath the city walls, their standards displaying three bundles of yellow wheat.

"Your Highness, Prince, this is Lord Jello Selmy of Harvest Hall, and this is his eldest grandson and heir, Ser Harlow Selmy." Lord Edric introduced the two noble knights beside him, both dressed in brown surcoats. Jello Selmy was an old man weathered by the years, with a great beard covering his face. Harlow Selmy was a short, sturdy young man, his flail tucked into his belt as his bright eyes tried to see something behind Lonzell.

"Ser Harlow, my dragon needs to see prey before it can hunt." Seeing what Harlow was looking for, Lonzell said with a smile. Harlow hurriedly withdrew his gaze and looked awkwardly at his grandfather.

"Harlow is still too young. I fear he has made a spectacle of himself before Your Highness and the prince." Jello smiled and pulled his grandson behind him. "Your Highness, I have brought fifty cavalrymen and three hundred armed infantry. My apologies, but the Selmy family is only a small house. This is the limit of what we can provide."

"It's alright." Lonzell patted the old lord's shoulder. "Tell the cavalry to travel light. We're going eagle hunting. Leave some men behind with the equipment. They can set out once they see the signal."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Brother, the Silver Blood Army is ready too." Valar rode over slowly from the side with Prince Lucerys, accompanied by the fully armed Sebastian Calamityflame and Aslan Longdell.

"So it's you two this time." Lonzell smiled as he walked over and gave Sebastian and Aslan, who had swung down from their horses, a punch each.

"The others are repairing the city, so it's just the two of us this time." Sebastian took over. "As ordered, we brought four hundred cavalrymen and twelve hundred Silver Blood Army soldiers equipped with longbows and crossbows. The cavalry are all equipped with horse bows."

"Good. Have Stonehelm, Grandview, and Nightsong replied?"

Jacaerys answered through gritted teeth, "Lord Swann of Stonehelm and Lord Caron of Nightsong said they had no eagle-hunting plans recently, and without the approval of the Baratheon duke, they could not answer another lord's summons. Lord Grandison of Grandview did not reply at all. They are all parasites of the realm. They should have responded eagerly to something like wiping out the Vulture King. How dare they refuse?"

Lonzell rested a hand on Jacaerys's shoulder and shook his head. "Their absence was part of the plan from the beginning. Jace, sometimes even parasites of the realm have their uses. Valar, tell everyone to prepare to depart."

"Yes."

"What did you say?"

The Vulture King sprang to his feet. His army was marching toward Wyl, hoping to receive Wyl's support as soon as possible.

"Your Majesty, a force of silk-clad Stormlands cowards is eagle hunting nearby. Three to five hundred men, roughly. I saw them clearly." The Dornish scout answered with absolute confidence. "They're carrying plenty of supplies, and wine too!"

"Really?"

"Absolutely."

"Good!" The Vulture King mounted his beloved sand steed and shouted at his men, "Eaglets, the hunt begins!"