Dorne was the last of the Seven Kingdoms to swear fealty to the Iron Throne. Blood, custom, geography, and history all helped to set the Dornish men apart from the other kingdoms.
Whatever wars they fought Dorne took no part,but when Lady Visenna De Rivia Martell married Prince Viserys Targaryen, Sunspear declared it's support for King Jaehaerys.
The Martell banner is a red sun pierced by a golden spear.Their words are Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken.
Doran Nymeros Martell, Lord of Sunspear, Prince of Dorne, married his first wife Yvonne of Naath, who gave birth to their first daughter Yennefer.
When the little princess was seven, tragedy claimed her mother's life, Yvonne died of an incurable disease. Cancer.
Doran, remarried and took another wife
Mellario, of the Free City of Norvos, who gave him three children, two sons and one daughter: Prince Quentyn, Prince Trystane, and Princess Ellia Martell.
However Mellario, Yennefer's step mother pretended to be a doting mother to Yen but she envied her inheritance.
Scheming to have her husband wrapped around her fingers, Mellario persuades Doran to make their son Quentyn heir of Sunspear, but Doran refuses her avances.
"Yennefer is my first seed and she will inherit my seat, if you slander my daughter's name again Mellario, I will dissolve our marriage and cut out your tongue!" Doran threatened his wife to hid his warning.
Since then Mellario held her tongue, she feared Doran, although she never stopped her plans, she began plotting ways to cause a rift between the father and daughter but fate proved itself unlucky.
Visenna's death took a huge toll on Doran, she was his favourite cousin and friend, yet he blamed Viserys for her demise.
After a preposition was sent from King's Landing to broker an alliance again, Doran agreed to wed Yennefer to Geralt Targaryen.
It was a certainty for the Martells to gain a full ground at court and their blood will sit upon the Iron throne, unfortunately that was where Yennefer didn't play her cards right, instead the game of thrones played her dirty.
Despite being a virgin in disguise, Yennefer was deeply in love with the Witcher, but her heart belonged to someone else, unbeknownst of her household.
Mellario knew her stepdaughter had the upper hand of becoming the Queen consort of the Seven Kingdoms and heir to the Dornish seat, and yet fate worked in her favour and shot Yennefer right in the foot, to the advantage of Mellario.
One day, at the hour of the owl, it was eerie and dark, Mellario woke up parched and hungry, she rose up from her bed and decided to visit the kitchen to make herself some warm milk and omelette bread to satisfy her cravings.
After doing the needful and quenching her hunger, she set to return to her chambers but took another route in the palace.
As she walked in the deserted hallways, she suddenly hears sexual noises coming from the farthest end of an old secret chamber.
Weird, she tiptoed, thinking it was her servants having fun, but as she drew closer to the scene, gently opening the door to pip, she sees Yennefer naked in all fours, being banged from behind by Istred.
Startled, Mellario gently closed and door, still hearing the sounds, she rue the day Yennefer will ascend the seat but now, her son will rule Dorne. Gracefully she returned to her chambers smiling at her new found victory.
It came as a shocking news to everyone as Geralt Targaryen called off his wedding to Yennefer, but Mellario knew the truth.
Despite her step daughter's fake tears, lying to her father she didn't know why Geralt broke up with her,made Doran cut ties with Viserys Targaryen.
Nonetheless, the truth was out. Mellario told Prince Doran the truth three days before Yennefer's name day, at first he didn't believe her, pointing out her envy and ambitions, calling her a liar, but Mellario swore on her children's life, telling her husband to cut her tongue if she casted a lie.
Furious with wrath, Doran confirms the truth by three other witnesses in service to Yennefer, planted spiders of Mellario, they confessed they had seen the princess in sexual acts with Istred on different occasions.
"Maybe that's why Prince Geralt didn't want to tell me the reason why he annulled the engagement." Doran counters, pacing back and forth angrily in his study.
Mellario sat in a corner, lounged on a rich large cushion, sipping tea and eating butter cookies.
"Prince Geralt only did that to hide the shame of our house my lord husband, he respected you to seal the truth, who'd want a princess without her maidenhead?." She says cheekily her tone laced with pity and mockery.
Doran folds his knuckles, seething with anger. Mellario drops her tea cup on the saucer.
"Imagine what people will say when they learn a lowborn knight suilled our reputation, your standards and morals, Dorne should not be built on such atrocities my lord husband, Yennefer has broke my heart and betrayed your trust, after naming her heir she has brought shame on you as well as your council, and yet who knows, she might be even carrying that lowborn's bastard."
"Enough! Silence Mellario!"
"It is the truth! why do you think she left for Naath, a week before her name day, I am woman, I see things, Yennefer should be sharply questioned for her actions, except you want your reign and House Martell to be sprouted with seeds of abomination!" Mellario says with tears streaming down her cheeks, holding her chest as she broke down.
Doran raged and broke the mirror in his study.
"Rumors will soon start to spread of our daughter's purity, her legitimacy will be questioned, but even if bastards are accepted in Dorne, do you want to place one on your seat as well?" Mellario posed a rhetorical question.
Doran hissed, gazed at his wife with anger and storms out of his study. Mellario wipes her tears and smirks. "Let the game begin." She chuckles wickedly, adjusting her embroidered orange dress.
Instantly Doran summoned all his councils and immediately disinherited Yennefer, naming his first born son Quentyn affirming his legitimate claim as his true heir.
His cousin Lord Oberyn Martell tries to reason with him but Doran forbade him to speak no more and demanding Istred be brought to him.
The dark skinned knight, Istred, confessed his illicit affairs with the princess and also said he loves Yennefer, but out of spite Doran beheads Istred, before he could finish confessing, Doran took his head as blood splashed on his face and on Mellario's dress.
"Hotah!" He calls.
"Yes my lord." The knight strides forward and bows.
"Take my fastest ship to Naath, bring the princess back to me." Doran commanded as Hotah bows out of his presence.
Doran sent a convoy, bearing gifts to Naath, to his daughter on her name day, happily the princess went to meet the entourage that came to her mother land, bearing gifts her father had sent, obviously there were a lot of beautiful things befitting a royal princess, but greatest of them all was the last gift, a fine bronze with Dornish designs.
Elated, Yennefer didn't touch the other gifts but rushed to the chest, attracted by its beauty. As soon she opened the lid of the chest, horror ensued and consumed her body.
Lying inside the chest was the head, the heart and the cock of her lover Istred.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh." She screamed out her lungs, and falls to the ground, shuddering, shaking and weeping in agony with fear on her name day.
Captain Areo Hotah, delivers the message from the Prince, stating Yennefer is to return from Naath back to Dorne or remain in her mother's homeland banished forever.
Without any bargain, Areo Hotah ordered her servants to return home, gather the princess belongings for departure, else their heads will be on the spikes in the desert.
Doom, Yennefer was doomed, she knew it, her life has ended, at first she thought her father will believe Geralt casted her aside for some mere reason, but the truth is out and the only thing she should could is pray her Father doesn't kill her of do worse.
•••••••
Upon her arrival at Dorne, Yennefer wasn't taken to the palace. Mellario ordered the guards to escort her elsewhere, taken to a
gentle prison to await her punishment.
Yennefer took solace from that. Why would her father go to such great pains to provide for her comfort in captivity if he had marked her for a betrayal death?
A death for fuckin' Istred long before her wedding to Geralt Targaryen.
Her father cannot mean to kill me, she told herself a hundred times. He does not have it in him to be so cruel. I am his blood and seed, his heir, I'm still his first daughter.
If need be, she would throw herself beneath the dias of his royal seat, admit her fault, and beg him for his pardon. And she would weep. When he saw tears rolling down her face, he would forgive her.
She was less certain whether or not she would forgive herself.
"Help me escape Hotah, I'll reward you, give you anything you want......"
"What you meant does not matter anymore princess," Areo Hotah says dryly.
"Only what you did. You disgraced your house, soiled your father's reputation." His countenance was stony glaring at Yennefer.
"I am sorry, I cannot help you. It is for your father to command, and for me to obey."
Yennefer expected to be brought before her father's high seat beneath the dome of leaded glassin the Tower of the Sun.
Instead, Hotah delivered her to the Spear Tower, and the custody of her father's seneschal Ricasso and Ser Manfrey Martell, thecastellan.
"Welcome Princess," Ricasso said.
"You will forgive me, if i do not make the climb with you, the steps are long."
"A chamber has been prepared for you. Ser Manfrey shall escort you there, to await the Prince's pleasure." Ricasso informs her.
"My father's displeasure, you mean. Will my hand maids be confined here as well?" Yennefer demanded.
She had been parted from her trusted hand maids Ana, Drea and the others after capture, and Hotah had refused to say what would be done with them.
"That is for your father to decide," was all the captain had to say upon the subject.
"Don't lie to me Hotah, where did they take them, they're innocent!"
Ser Manfrey proved a bit more forthcoming.
"I'm afraid princess they were taken to the Planky Town and will be conveyed by ship to Ghaston Grey, until such time as your father decides their fate."
Ghaston Grey was a crumbling old castle perched on a rock in the Sea of Dorne, a dreadful prison where the vilest of criminals were sent to rot and die.
"Does my father mean to kill them?" Yennefer could not believe it.
"All they did was to follow my orders! If my father must have blood, it should be mine."
"As you say,princess." Hotah nods.
I want to speak with him. I want to see my father now!" Yennefer tries to struggle past them but they stopped her.
"Let me go, I command you to step aside, let me go! I am the heir! You will obey me! Get out of my way!"
Ser Manfrey sniggered. "Heir? Prince Quentyn is now heir!"
Yennefer widened her orbs. "Wh-what?"
Ser Manfrey laughed in her face.
Hotah's face remain stone cold, disappointed.
"Prince Quentyn was named, days before your name day, he now sits on your father's right hand in his council, all houses, higher and lesser supports his legitimacy and claim.." Ser Manfrey says satisfaction.
Yennefer grits her teeth "Mellario." She says in a low tone, angry.
"You think no one will find out, ha! Rumours tell the tales of your datardly deeds, a princess spreading her legs for a noble knight, a peasant! Lusting over a pleabian's cock!" Ser Manfrey scowls.
Yennefer slaps him, hard and hot.
Ser Manfrey took her arm forcefully marching her up the steps without mercy, up and up until her breath grew short.
The Spear Tower stood a hundred and a half feet high, and her cell was nearly at the top. Yennefer eyed every door they passed, wondering if one of the Sand Snakes might be locked within.
Hotah opens the door as Ser Manfred forced her in. Yennefer turns and slaps him again.
When her own door had been closed and barred, Yennefer's heart was racing while explored her new home. Her prison.
Her cell was large and airy, and did not lack for comforts. There were Myrish carpets on the floor, red wine to drink, books to read. In one corner stood anornate cyvasse table with pieces carved of ivory and onyx, though she had no one to play with even if she had been so inclined.
She had a feather bed to sleep in, and a privy with a marble seat, sweetened by a basketful of herbs. This high up the views were splendid. One window opened to the east, so she could watch the sunrise above the sea.
The Sea, a reminisce of Geralt and Nilfgaard when they left.
The other allowed her to look down upon the Tower of the Sun, and the Winding Walls and Three fold Gate beyond.
The exploration took less time than it would have taken her to lace a pair of sandals, but at least it served to keep the tears at bay for a time while she figured how to beg her father for forgiveness.
Yennefer found a basin and a flagon of cool water and washed her hand sand face, but no amount of scrubbing could cleanse her of her grief.
Istred, she thought,my noble knight. Tears filled her eyes, and suddenly she was weeping, blaming herself for his death and doom she brought upon herself, her whole body wracked by sobs.
She remembered Hotah telling her how her father stripped Istred naked, used a heavy sharp Valyrian axe to behead him, the steel cleaving through his flesh and bone, the way his head had gone spinning through the air as his blood spilled the royal floors, and then slicing off his cock.
"Why did you do it father?" Yennefer sobs.
"Why did you kill Istred?"
"I never wanted Istred to die, he was a good man, a noble dark knight, no one knew of our affair, except Geralt, i never wanted that, I only wanted... I wanted...I wanted.......to do what I want, free as a bird."
That night she cried herself to sleep... for the first time, if not the last. Even in her dreams she found no peace. She dreams of Istred caressing her, smiling ather,telling her that he loved her...but it ended up a nightmare.
The next morning Hotah woke her up to bath eat and dress up.
"This is all your step mother's doings, she told your father." Hotah had come back to confess the next day, he even blamed her for being too careless.
Yennefer raged and cursed her step mother, The memory still made her angry. She clung to that, feeding the flame within her heart.
Anger was better than tears, better than grief, better than guilt or sin. Mellario betrayed her.
A woman whom she trusted, a woman she called her mother, when she wasn't truly her birth mother.Istred had died because of her carelessness and because of Mellario's ambitions.
Istred was slain by the evil witch stepmother, as much as by her father's axe. The blood that had streamed down Istred face, that was the betrayer's work as well, the evil doings of her step mother.
******
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