Chapter 15: The Sunken Crown, The Weaver's Price
The parley at the Blackwater Rush had ended not with an accord, but with a chasm of unspoken threats and irreconcilable ambitions. Aegon Targaryen, the self-proclaimed Conqueror, had been left to brood over the unsettling presence of Lord Aerion Vaelaros and his Lost Legion – a rival Valyrian power that refused to kneel, a shadow of Old Valyria that claimed a deeper wisdom and hinted at far grander designs than the mere subjugation of Westeros. The "defeat" Aegon had tasted was the bitter pill of uncertainty, the unwelcome intrusion of a variable he could neither easily control nor ignore. His war council buzzed with theories, fears, and contingency plans for this enigmatic new force. Some, like the ever-warlike Visenya, advocated for a swift, decisive strike to eliminate this potential rival before they grew stronger. Others, like the more cautious Orys Baratheon, urged diplomacy or at least a period of observation, wary of the Legion's unknown full strength and their clearly advanced dragons. Rhaenys remained thoughtful, intrigued by Aerion's pronouncements of lost Valyrian lore, a subtle seed of curiosity planted by Aizen's careful rhetoric.
Aizen, having returned to his hidden base in the Stepstones, wasted no time in capitalizing on the unease he had sown. He had measured Aegon and found him… wanting. A formidable warrior, a competent commander, but ultimately a man limited by conventional ambition and a rather pedestrian understanding of true power. Aegon sought a crown; Aizen sought godhood. Their paths were destined to diverge, and Aizen would ensure that divergence was as spectacular and soul-rich as possible.
His next strategic move needed to be both a demonstration of the Lost Legion's independent might and a means to further destabilize Aegon's consolidation of power, thereby creating fertile ground for future conflicts. After careful analysis of Argent's latest intelligence reports, Aizen selected his stage: the Iron Islands.
The Ironborn, under their then-King Harren the Black's heirs (or other rebelling chieftains following Harrenhal's destruction), were a fierce, proud, and fractious people, their reaving culture anathema to Aegon's vision of a unified, peaceful realm. Aegon had dealt with Harrenhal, but the Iron Islands themselves remained a nest of defiance, their longships a threat to the western coasts. Subjugating them would be a bloody, difficult affair for the Targaryens. A perfect crucible for Aizen's purposes.
"Lord Aerion Vaelaros" did not offer his services to Aegon to quell the Ironborn. Nor did he directly challenge the Targaryen claim. Instead, he enacted a bolder, more insidious strategy. The Lost Legion, under the banner of the "true and ancient Vaelaros lineage," would "liberate" the Iron Islands from their own "self-destructive savagery" and "the encroaching shadow of Targaryen tyranny," establishing a "Protectorate of the Valyrian Concord." It was a masterstroke of propaganda – positioning Aerion as a benevolent, enlightened Valyrian bringing order and "true Valyrian wisdom" to a benighted people, while simultaneously carving out an independent domain and directly challenging Aegon's sovereignty.
The black fleet, with Vhagarion and the dragon squadron soaring above, descended upon the Iron Islands like a storm of obsidian and emerald fire. The Ironborn, caught between their internal power struggles and their defiance of Aegon, were utterly unprepared for this new, sophisticated enemy. Their longships, though nimble, were no match for Aizen's elementally powered vessels, which moved with unnatural speed and precision, their Kido-Valyrian armaments unleashing blasts of concussive force and searing energy that shattered timber and boiled the sea.
The juvenile dragons of the Lost Legion, now seasoned from the Last Storm and further honed by Aizen's training, descended upon the Ironborn strongholds – Pyke, Great Wyk, Orkmont. They fought not with the wild fury of Aegon's dragons, but with a terrifying, coordinated intelligence. One squadron would use precise, concussive flame-blasts to breach fortifications, another would unleash a chilling frost-fire that froze rigging and spread panic, while a third harried the Ironborn defenders with strafing runs of razor-sharp, magically propelled obsidian shards.
Lord Aerion, atop the colossal Vhagarion, was a figure of awe and terror. He did not engage in wanton slaughter. Instead, he targeted key defenses, shattered the fleets of rebellious reaver kings in precise, devastating strikes, and then, with Vhagarion's roar shaking the very cliffs, offered terms. Surrender to the Valyrian Concord, accept Lord Aerion's enlightened rule and protection, renounce the "Old Way" of reaving, and live in peace and prosperity under the guidance of true Valyrian wisdom. Resist, and face utter annihilation.
Many Ironborn chieftains, their pride formidable but their pragmatism sharpened by the sight of dragons far more disciplined and numerous than they had anticipated from the Targaryens, bent the knee with surprising speed. Others, the most recalcitrant followers of the Drowned God, fought to the bitter end, their strongholds becoming fiery tombs, their souls a rich, defiant harvest for Aizen's unseen collection apparatus. Argent, leading the Sentinel knights, conducted swift, surgical strikes against the most resistant elements, his warriors moving like black phantoms, their Valyrian steel reaping a grim tally.
Within weeks, the primary resistance in the Iron Islands was broken. "Lord Aerion Vaelaros" established his seat in the ancient fortress of Pyke, its grim towers now adorned with the Vaelaros banner. He did not rule as a typical conqueror. He immediately implemented "reforms": a codified system of laws (based on refined Valyrian principles, subtly undermining the authority of the Drowned God priests), the introduction of advanced Valyrian fishing techniques and boat-building designs (increasing prosperity while creating dependency), and the establishment of academies to teach "Valyrian arts and sciences" (a means of indoctrination and identifying individuals with latent talents). He even initiated a grand project to rebuild parts of Pyke using fused stone techniques, a display of arcane power that left the Ironborn awestruck and fearful.
This "enlightened Valyrian rule" was, of course, a carefully constructed facade. Beneath the surface, Aizen was subtly restructuring Ironborn society, breaking their fierce independence, and transforming the islands into a secure naval base and a future recruiting ground for his own forces. The souls of the defiant dead fueled the Hōgyoku, and the fear and awe of the living created a climate of absolute obedience to their new, enigmatic Valyrian lord.
The news of Lord Aerion's conquest of the Iron Islands, under the banner of an independent Valyrian protectorate, sent fresh tremors through Westeros. Aegon Targaryen was reportedly furious. This was a direct usurpation of his claimed sovereignty, a Valyrian rival carving out a kingdom within his kingdom. He had been outmaneuvered. While he was bogged down in the complexities of subduing the vastness of the mainland, Aerion had seized a significant strategic archipelago with swift, decisive force.
Aegon's council was divided. Visenya urged an immediate, punitive expedition to crush Aerion and his "pretender legion." Orys Baratheon cautioned that Aegon's forces were already stretched thin, and a direct confrontation with another Valyrian dragonlord faction, especially one whose full strength and magical capabilities were still unknown, was a massive gamble. Rhaenys, perhaps, saw a glimmer of Aerion's "wisdom" in his seemingly organized approach to governing Pyke, a stark contrast to the often brutal pragmatism of Aegon's own conquest.
Aizen, from his new seat at Pyke (though he often retreated to his true sanctum in the Smoking Sea via Kido-enhanced teleportation or his swift flagship to oversee his deeper projects), relished the chaos he was orchestrating. He knew Aegon could not let this challenge stand indefinitely. A confrontation was inevitable. And that confrontation, when it came, would be a feast.
He began to actively sow more seeds for that future conflict.
* Undermining the Faith: From Pyke, "Lord Aerion" issued pronouncements on the "primitive superstitions" of the Faith of the Seven, contrasting them with the "enlightened pantheon and ancestor veneration of Old Valyria" (largely Aizen's own theological inventions, designed to appeal to Valyrian pride and offer a more empowering alternative to the Faith's doctrines of sin and supplication). He even allowed, and subtly encouraged, the Ironborn to continue their Drowned God worship, framing it as a "unique, primal expression of an ancient truth," thereby creating a religious fault line and subtly positioning himself as a protector of "persecuted" faiths against the encroaching Andal religion.
* Secret Emissaries: Argent dispatched cloaked Sentinels, posing as disenfranchised Valyrian exiles or disillusioned Westerosi nobles, to other regions. They made contact with minor lords resentful of Targaryen rule, with ambitious second sons, with practitioners of forbidden hedge magic, offering them knowledge, resources, or promises of future power in exchange for information and loyalty to the "true Valyrian restoration" heralded by Lord Aerion.
* Prophecies and Rumors: Aizen, using his advanced Kido to project illusions and whispers into the dreams of susceptible individuals (seers, village elders, even disgruntled septons), began to weave new prophecies into the fabric of Westerosi belief. Tales of a "Black Dragon from the West," a "Lord of Emerald Fire," who would challenge the "Three-Headed Conqueror" and usher in an age of "true Valyrian enlightenment" or, conversely, a "dark Valyrian sorcerer" who sought to plunge the world into an older, more terrible shadow. These conflicting narratives only added to the confusion and fear surrounding Aerion.
* Technological Seeds: He introduced minor, but significant, "Valyrian" advancements in Pyke – improved forging techniques for common steel (making Ironborn weapons slightly better), basic principles of sanitation that reduced disease, even new methods of navigating by the stars. These were presented as gifts from Lord Aerion's benevolent wisdom, further solidifying his control and creating a stark contrast with the often harsh realities of Targaryen conquest.
The Hōgyoku within Aizen thrummed with a constant, eager anticipation. Each act of manipulation, each seed of discord, each soul harvested from the skirmishes in the Iron Islands, was a step closer to the next grand conflagration. He could feel the spiritual energies of Westeros beginning to roil, the collective anxieties and hatreds creating a fertile ground for conflict. Aegon's Conquest, he mused, was merely the overture. The true symphony of souls would begin when the Conqueror was forced to confront the rival Valyrian power he had so foolishly underestimated.
Back in the Obsidian Spire, Ignis Primus was rapidly approaching full maturity. The colossal magma dragon, its incandescent eyes burning with ancient wisdom, now communicated with Aizen in complex telepathic dialogues, sharing insights into the deep elemental magic of the planet, the history of dragonkind before humanity, and its own burning desire to test its strength against the "lesser fires" of Aegon's mounts. Aizen had begun to subtly weave Ignis Primus into the prophecies he was spreading, hinting at an "Ultimate Dragon, the First Fire Reborn," that would herald the true Valyrian ascendancy.
Aegon Targaryen, meanwhile, was consolidating his hold over the southern kingdoms. He had been crowned by the High Septon in Oldtown. But the shadow of Lord Aerion Vaelaros and his black dragons loomed large over his new reign. Reports from Pyke spoke of Aerion's growing power, his strange "reforms," and the unsettling loyalty he was inspiring in the subjugated Ironborn. The Lost Legion was no longer just a mysterious raiding force; it was an established power, a Valyrian enclave on Westerosi soil, a direct challenge to the Iron Throne.
Aegon knew he had to act. He dispatched a formal, sternly worded raven to Pyke, demanding Lord Aerion present himself at King's Landing (his new, burgeoning capital) to swear fealty, or be declared an enemy of the realm and face the combined might of the Targaryen dragons. It was an ultimatum, a final attempt to assert his dominance.
Aizen, in his guise as Lord Aerion, received the summons with a smile that did not reach his eyes. "The young king grows impatient," he remarked to Argent. "He mistakes a pause for hesitation. He still believes this is his game to command."
He penned his reply. It was brief, courteous, and utterly defiant.
"To Aegon of House Targaryen, styling himself King of Westeros,
Lord Aerion of House Vaelaros, Protector of the Valyrian Concord of the Iron Isles, acknowledges your message. Fealty is for the conquered. The Vaelaros line has never bent its knee to any but the true soul of Valyria itself – a soul you have yet to fully comprehend.
Should you wish to discuss the future of this land as equals, you know where to find me. Should you choose the path of conflict, understand that the fire we wield has been tempered in crucibles far deeper and darker than your own.
Valar Dohaeris. Valar Istarys. (All Men Must Serve. All Men Must Know.)"
(The last two phrases were Aizen's own, subtly twisting Valyrian sayings to imply service to a higher, more knowing power – himself.)
The gauntlet was thrown. The seeds for the next great confrontation, a true clash of Valyrian dragonlords, were now deeply sown, watered by pride, ambition, and the silent, insatiable hunger of a god with a Hōgyoku. Aizen Sōsuke looked out from the highest tower of Pyke towards the mainland, a cold, eager light in his eyes. The upcoming feast of souls promised to be magnificent.