The winds howled as the storm raged, the sea crashing violently against the rocks of Storm's End. The dark clouds overhead mirrored the turmoil that had engulfed the Seven Kingdoms, but amidst the chaos, a solitary figure lay motionless on the shore, battered by the elements.

Lucerys Velaryon was barely conscious, the pain in his body a distant throb compared to the confusion that clouded his mind. He had fallen—he remembered that much—but the details were lost in a haze. The last thing he recalled clearly was the sight of Vhagar, enormous and relentless, closing in on Arrax. His dragon… Arrax…

A sharp pang of sorrow pierced through him as fragments of memory surfaced. The bond they shared was severed, leaving an emptiness that he couldn’t fully comprehend. He tried to grasp onto the fleeting images in his mind, but they slipped away, leaving only shadows and half-formed thoughts.

The tide was beginning to rise, threatening to swallow him whole, when he felt a warm hand on his shoulder. The touch was gentle, yet insistent, pulling him back from the edge of unconsciousness. Lucerys struggled to open his eyes, his vision blurred and his thoughts disjointed.

"You're alive," a voice whispered, filled with disbelief and relief.

He blinked, trying to focus on the figure above him. A person—you—knelt beside him, face etched with concern. Lucerys opened his mouth to speak, but only a faint groan escaped.