AFFC Prologue
AFFC, Chapter 1. Pate steals a key that opens all the doors in the Citadel for a mysterious man who then kills him. Page Numbers UK HC  Voyager (2005) 1 US HC  Spectra (2005) 1 AFFC Page Table	A group of novices and acolytes from the Citadel, Mollander, Alleras, Roone, and Armen, discuss rumors of dragons outside the Quill and Tankard in Oldtown. Pate is with them too, but he is thinking of Rosey, the woman he loves. Her mother, Emma, the oldest serving wench at the Quill and Tankard, has decreed that Rosey's maidenhead will cost him a golden dragon, which he has no hope of ever saving up. Pate is waiting for a man he calls "the alchemist." His friends are there because Alleras is celebrating earning his copper link. The alchemist is a man Rosey introduced to Pate who has promised Pate the gold coin he needs to win Rosey in exchange for Pate stealing something for him. Pate told the man he was not a thief, and the man said he would return to the Quill and Tankard in three days in case Pate changed his mind. Mollander is convinced the stories of dragons are real. They have heard four different stories from sailors from four different ships, and while the details are different in each one, they all mention dragons and a beautiful young queen. Alleras says the dragon must have three heads and that the stories must refer to Daenerys. Leo Tyrell joins the group, much to their dismay since none of them like him. Leo tells them that the rumors do indeed refer to Daenerys and that she has hatched three dragons. Every sailor that has been near Qarth is talking about them, and Archmaester Marwyn believes the stories. Armen says that is no proof, but Leo tells him a glass candle is burning in the maester's chambers. Armen and the others still have doubts save Alleras. It is getting late, so everyone departs save Leo and Pate, who still hopes the alchemist will appear. When dawn breaks, Pate leaves to return to the Citadel. As he walks, the alchemist hails him. He did not come earlier because he did not want to approach Pate while he was with his friends. Pate has stolen a key from Archmaester Walgrave for him, one that opens every door in the Citadel. The alchemist leads him into an alley, where he hands over the gold dragon in exchange for the key. Pate asks who he is and what he wants, but the alchemist just says he is no one. Pate turns to leave, but suddenly finds himself on the ground. He does not understand what is going on, and the alchemist says he never will. Pate dies thinking of Rosey. GO TO: AFFC Index AFFC Chapter List Previous Chapter    (ASOS 82: EPILOGUE) Next Chapter    (THE PROPHET)
CHARACTERS	POV: Pate,   1st in AFFC, 1st overall ACTIVE CHARACTERS The Alchemist - He is young with full cheeks, a shadow of a beard, a hooked nose, and a mat of dense black curls. He has a faint scar on his right cheek. Alleras - Called the Sphinx. An acolyte of the Citadel. He is handsome with a pointed chin, widow's peak, and dense mat of close-cropped jet-black curls. His father is Dornish, while his mother is from the Summer Isles and gave him his dark skin and onyx eyes. He has been at the Citadel for a year and already earned three links of his chain. Armen - Called Armen the Acolyte. An acolyte of the Citadel. He has forged four links, pewter, tin, lead, and copper. He has a long pointed nose. Benedict - An archmaester of the Citadel. Ebrose - The archmaester of the Citadel for healing. Gormon Tyrell - Gormon has assumed Archmaester Walgrave's duties due to the man's mental infirmnities. Leo Tyrell - Called Lazy Leo. A novice of the Citadel. He has ash-blond hair and hazel eyes. Leyton Hightower - Lord Leyton has not descended from the heights of the Hightower in more than a decade. Marwyn - Called Marwyn the Mage. An archmaester of the Citadel. Most of the other maesters consider Marwyn unsound, as he is rumored to sacrifice to queer gods and wander around the undercity of Oldtown consorting with unsavory individuals. He spent eight years travelling the east mapping distant lands, searching for lost books, and learning magic. Mollander - A novice of the Citadel. He has thick arms, broad shoulders, and a clubfoot. He is the son of a knight who died on the Blackwater. Mollos - An archmaester of the Citadel. Pate - A novice of the Citadel. He helps Archmaester Walgrave tend the ravens. He has been a novice for five years, failing in his only two attempts to forge a link. Perestan - An archmaester of the Citadel. Roone - A novice of the Citadel. He is fourteen and chunky. Rosey - She has hazel eyes. Ryam - An archmaester of the Citadel. Vaellyn - Called Vinegar Vaelyn. The archmaester of the Citadel for astronomy. Walgrave - The archmaester of the Citadel for ravencraft. He remains an archmaester only as a courtesy, as his wits are nearly gone.
GROUPS	Maesters - A would be maester begins his training as a novice. When he earns his first link, he becomes an acolyte. An acolyte wears the links he has earned on a leather thong around his neck. A novice or acolyte earns a link by demonstrating his skill in front of the archmaester responsible for whichever discipline he is trying to earn his link for. The final test the acolyte must pass before being raised to maester involves spending a night in darkness unless he can light one of the Citadel's four glass candles, an impossible task. This serves as a lesson that even with knowledge some things are not possible.
ITEMS	Glass Candle - A candle from Valyria made of dragonglass. One cannot be lit by any known method. The Citadel has four of them in their possession, one green and three black. The final test of an acolyte before becoming a maester involves spending a night in the dark unless the acolyte can light one of the candles. It serves as a reminder that even with knowledge some things are not possible.
LOCATIONS	The Hightower - The Hightower is a giant lighthouse/fortress that sits on Battle Island in the harbor of Oldtown. House Hightower rules from this fortress. Oldtown - Oldtown is built entirely of stone and every street down to the meanest alley is cobbled. The guildhalls of the city line the west bank of the Honeywine, while further upriver the Citadel straddles both sides of the river, with stone bridges containing halls and houses connecting the two halves. It houses several septs, including the Sailor's Sept, the Lord's Sept, the Seven Shrines, and the Starry Sept, which had been the home of the High Septons for one thousand years before the coming of the Targaryens. There is a small temple to the Lord of Light at the wharf.
CHAPTER BY CHAPTER	1.  Prologue 17.  Jaime II 33.  Cersei VII 2.  The Prophet 18.  Cersei IV 34.  Jaime V 3.  The Captain Of Guards 19.  The Iron Captain 35.  Cat Of The Canals 4.  Cersei I 20.  The Drowned Man 36.  Samwell IV 5.  Brienne I 21.  Brienne IV 37.  Cersei VIII 6.  Samwell I 22.  The Queenmaker 38.  Brienne VII 7.  Arya I 23.  Arya II 39.  Jaime VI 8.  Cersei II 24.  Alayne I 40.  Cersei IX 9.  Jaime I 25.  Cersei V 41.  The Princess In The Tower 10.  Brienne II 26.  Brienne V 42.  Alayne II 11.  Sansa I 27.  Samwell III 43.  Brienne VIII 12.  The Kraken's Daughter 28.  Jaime III 44.  Cersei X 13.  Cersei III 29.  Cersei VI 45.  Jaime VII 14.  The Soiled Knight 30.  The Reaver 46.  Samwell V 15.  Brienne III 31.  Jaime IV 16.  Samwell II 32.  Brienne VI