Nihilus Filius Et Sacerdos Chapter 9 Preview

From Dragons, Blood and Magic: A History of the Arcane in Westeros, by Archmaester Monterys

This history contains excerpts from the journals of Archmaester Monterys, during his tenure as the Maester of High Tide, the seat of House Velaryon and its Lord, Corlys the Sea Snake, such as this:

When Lord Corlys returned to High Tide with his strange guests, many questions were raised, if only due to their peculiar attributes. But after the Humbling of the Dragon, as the incident in the yard would come to be known by some, whispers soon spread through all of Driftmark. Two sorcerors in the service of House Velaryon, runaways from Volantis. I confess that even my curiosity was piqued, despite my skepticism. I may not have attained a Valyrian steel link until later years, but even I knew that the magics of the world were confined solely to the Targaryens and their dragons after the Doom. 

So it was to my surprise that I was summoned to the solar of the Sea Snake with scribes and was greeted by my Lord, his two foreign guests and a third: One Maqarro Talerys, youngest scion of a member of the Elephants’ Guild of Volantis. Lord Corlys offered him to serve as a teacher and interpreter of Volantene for both the Lord and his twin charges. We were introduced, and I am proud to say that it forged a friendship that lasted until our dying days. 

Albaz and Ecclesia - those were their names, and by that alone I had never before seen such an odd pair. Both seemed to have stepped out of legends, especially the boy Albaz with his queer, inhuman appearance. The girl, Ecclesia, was just as striking, with her blonde hair and regal aura. For a moment I’d considered her a noble lady of the Westerlands.

Lord Corlys had summoned me to transcribe their accounts of their native lands, with goodman Talerys acting as the translator. Naturally, I was excited; how often does a maester have the chance to record such wonders, records of lands unknown?

And what wonders they were!

The lady Ecclesia hails from a faraway kingdom called ‘Dogmatika’. She was unable to point it out on Lord Corlys’ maps, even when shown Volantis, but I believe her lands to exist even further than Asshai-by-the-shadow, for her full descriptions match none of the Free Cities. A great city, surrounded by ruins and deserts, with every building cast in pure-white stone. When inquired about their ruler, the Lady Ecclesia stated that they were ruled not by a king, an emperor, or magisters, but by a high priest! 

I professed my confusion and the Lady further elaborated: their faith, whose name she did not state but will be referred to as ‘the Dogmatika Faith’, held final authority over all affairs of the land. Even the nobility was not exempt, with firstborn sons often called to serve in the church as administrators or warriors. Even the Faith Militant did not have such power over their leal nobility during the reign of Maegor the Cruel. Nor would the Volantene Triarchs allow the Red Priests such sway over them. 

The Dogmatika Faith states that their nation is an oasis of balance amidst a sea of chaos. All outsiders are considered dangerous heretics who would attempt to wipe them out, with great beasts and fearsome monsters emerging from the sands and attacking their borders every day. As such, the church must train warriors and use them to destroy those who would threaten the nation. Those warriors are then ‘blessed’ by the High Priest, which in turn grants them great strength. Lady Ecclesia was one such warrior, and she mentioned to several other women warriors whom she knew. 

My brothers at the Citadel and many would scoff and decry this, yet how can I doubt what I see before my eyes? Lord and Lady Velaryon had both witnessed her fight with the Rogue Prince and did not dispute her accounts. What creatures could be so fearsome, so monstrous that such warriors are needed?