Legacy of the White Dragon : Dance of the Dragons

Corlys Velaryon (Sixth Moon) 

The Seadrake Aemon's ship near Bloodstone.

Bloodstone, the stronghold of the Crabfeeder, would finally fall after two years of war. "You feel the end too," Aemon's voice was low, yet the longing to end this war was evident.

"Yes, it will be difficult. They have been weakening, the bloated crops in the sea speak to their failures to gain enough food. Yet it is a formidable base. No wonder these brigands chose it for their main operations. The fort doesn't have walls like Wreckstone did, only caverns, a gate in front of a sandy beach, and coves where they have harbored their ships, not accessible for our dragons. A direct assault would bleed us, and the men feel the end, so not many will be willing to start, a desperate fight like this one."

"You speak true Corlys, yet what if we lure them out? Make them come onto the sandy beach. If we were able to attack them and if the dragons were of use?" He rubbed his chin at Aemon's words.

"We could still starve them out further," He said as, he looked back to see Simon Redwyne, the second son of Lord Corbin Redwyne, among the rest of the commanders. "True, yet we have to maintain a constant blockade around Bloodstone itself, preventing them from fishing. But I question if that is wise. During my scouting mission, I discovered hidden openings where they bring out mobile catapults and scorpions. The ships would be sitting ducks to them, not even Balerion could be on patrol the entire time. Also, if we withdraw forces from the blockade for too long, as well as the threat of the dragons, what would the Triarchy then do?" Aemon's voice questioned, receiving murmurs of agreement.

"True, my prince, you have spoken before of luring them out. But what or whom would be enough to make them come out?" Simon questioned. "I think I know what will be useful," Aemon's voice was low, fixed on the Bloodstone beach.

"Me," and all the commanders of the fleet looked up to their prince. "Your Grace, you can't! You are the heir to the Iron Throne. You can't go," Lord Edric Karstark said, his concern evident in his voice. "My prince, good-son, the love you bear my daughter, don't do it," he pleaded. "You can't protect your family if you die here, or the realm for that matter," he urged, trying to sway Aemon from this path.

"So, what would you have me do? Nothing? Well, please tell me who we can take Bloodstone with minimal losses and without losing the integrity of the blockade," Aemon gazed at the group of men, some two decades his senior, looking away. He thought of it too, what would also accomplish the same objective.

"Your grace, I asked to be let into Bloodstone. I infiltrated the fortress and opened the gates. After that, it will only be a battle inside," Ser Criston Cole spoke up. It could work; he had a dronish look and could be mistaken for a sellsword, and Cole had excellent fighting capabilities.

"As much as I appreciate the idea and your courage, it is much the same. We could easily attack the beach, assault the gates, and break them open. Yet we would still need to go into Bloodstone itself. This is the base of their commander; it would be a bloodbath if we attack them that way," Aemon said, giving Criston a warm smile.

Balerion roared then, it was loud. Aemon had his eyes closed; he knew of their bond. "Fire and Blood. It will exhaust our dragons, but I know it will bring the rats out of the hole," Aemon's eyes glinted with power, and he began to explain the plan. Then he thought, soon they would speak of Crabfeeder's folly instead of Harren's Folly, or both.

"Send out a message for parley. Lord Corlys, hold up the flag of truce. I will give them a choice, and I'm curious to meet this Crabfeeder. He has given us much grief these past two years. Let's see if the man can be reasoned with before we turn Bloodstone into another Harrenhal," he nodded. "I shall set up the agreement for you."

The parley.

"The famous White Dragon, the scourge of the Narrow Sea," declared the Crabfeeder, his Valyrian words echoing beneath the golden visage that concealed his face. Adorned in armor crafted of scale mail, weathered by the salt and sea, on it, he wore his wealth in gold and silver trinkets.

"Well, I must say I am surprised you came to meet me. I suspected your rationale went out of the window when you attacked Westorish ships. Yet your reign of terror proved short-lived. You rid these waters of pirates only to become the very scourge you claimed to despise. How pitiful, an excuse for men," Aemon spat toward the ground.

"I choose my path, and I honor that a great lord of Old Valyria came to my humble shore. I must be truly worth something for you to come. Yet it will end for you here, Bloodstone will be the place where your conquest stops. Or perhaps you take it, but not before I bleed you dry, so the past two years you spent here will all be for nothing when you lose it all again," the Crabfeeder mocked.

"Don't be so sure. I give you this chance: surrender now and we will not kill you all. I gave the same offer to your Wreckstone garrison, and they refused. They fed my dragon, and fish of the sea. Let me tell you this, Harren thought Harrenhal was impregnable. Now they speak of Harren's Folly. Refuse, and you will know why my House's words are Fire and Blood," Aemon's voice was hard and high, speaking down to the rat.

"Well, I'm not Harren. You are not Aegon come again. I shall never surrender, nor would my men. They have enjoyed your Westeroshi women and spoils too much, they would never bow to you now," Crabfeeder taunted.

"Not a surprising answer." Aemon sighed, before speaking again. "I regret the loss of innocent lives that will fall when all this is done," Aemon shot back with no hint of surprise. He suspected the answer. "Go back inside, Crab, and when you feel your walls crumble around you, remember that the world will remember Craghas Folly in the same breath as they would Harren's. At least the world will remember you, Craghas the fool."

"Why did you come? You knew my answer the moment you stepped down from that beach. Why did you come here?" Aemon smirked at the Crabfeeder's words.

"This war has grown tiresome, and many moments were dull. I wanted to see you in person and get a measure of you. The man who had taken the Stepstones," Aemon spoke with an arrogance he didn't know he possessed. "Well, now you have, Dragon."

"Aye, now I have, and I must say I'm disappointed. A dying idiot of a man is all I see. They call you Crabfeeder, but the only thing you got in common with a crab is your hard shell, how is the the greyscale?" Aemon mocked and turned his back on the man, walking back to Balerion who waited on the beach, ready to take to the sky.

"Soon, crab, you will be fried in your shell," he mocked and walked back with the rest of the men who had come to the parley.

Aemon Targaryen (Sixth Moon).

One of the smaller isles outside Bloodstone.

"So you think the plan can work. You can melt Bloodstone to the ground?" He asked Balerion after he walked up to him. "Easly enough, yeah after that I will be out for a week if not more. Harrenhal was very similar, and I'm stronger than I was then, and with Seasmoke's help, it should be fine." Balerion rumbled puffing up smoke into the air. 

"Good because if this doesn't work all out assault on Bloodstone will be necessary. Many will die in those caverns, I hope we turn this all well." He spoke the words but he felt doubt. "Don't worry my friend, Bloodstone will become Harren's folly come again." He nodded to Balerion and went back to Laenor who waited beside Seasmoke.

"Laenor are you ready, you know what to do?" "Of course, I know what to do, take out the catapults and outgoing ships? But Aemon you know, all the captives that may still be inside of the Bloodstone will die as well. I just wanted to ask if you are okay with it or not." He grimaced at Laenor's words.

"That is the cost of war, will those captives be worth all the lives lost, the lives of our men, we have fought and bled with this past two years? The possible destruction of our forces. They are weakened by starvation and demoralization yet this is their last stronghold. I wish it could be another Dark Den is only a small outpost for ships and, to gather water supplies. Not highly defended, this is the last one their last stronghold, they know they will die, and will fight nail, and there is a chance our forces will be broken in their caves if we attempt a direct attack." He said with a sigh.

"He took a deep breath, and spoke again, "Now let's fight this final battle, harden our hearts to what is to come, and end this war, in this blasted land, and we will be able to go home." He grumbled.

"Be safe brother, it would be a pity to lose you now when the end is reached," Laenor said as they embraced. "You two brother, I doubt Joffrey wishes to be left alone." He said with a smirk, and Laenor smirked at him.

"Fire and Blood brother." He murmured as they held their heads together. "Fire and Blood," Laenor answered in turn.

"Well, my friend ready, tell the world why your moniker is the "Black Dread?" Balerion roared and the ground trembled. Seasmoke answered with one of his own. Both the dragons leaped into the sky, and he felt himself shiver at what he was about to do.

He looked at the Isle of Bloodstone, nothing about it would tell you there was anything. Only hard rocks, and coves allowed for safe harbor for their ships. Sone if it all works out as they had planned. The damn place that had sheltered the Crab from their attacks into a smoldering ruin.

"Well, my friend now it is on you." He said, "I shall not disappoint my friend." "Dracarys, Balerion, burn them all." Oh shit, he said the damn words, yet what that, 'burn them all' it gave me shivers, he sounded like his mad grandfather.

Yet it didn't matter anymore, the black flames licked the rocks, and it started to glow red. It glowed red hot, and he thought back at who he made the Drakestone at that moment. Or how the Valyrian steel glowed bright like the sun when dragonflame heated the steel.

As Balerion blasted the rock, Seasmoke and Laenor did what they were bidden to do. There were some trying to creep out murder holes that were at the sides of the Isle. Perhaps trying to attempt a depressed attempt to kill the dragons yet it didn't matter. Seasmoke blasted them with flames, burning their hopes to ash.

He started to hear, cracks of rock cracking, the molten mass , and it started to sink in some places, how long they had been blasting the rock he did not know. As they had hoped the Gate of Bloodstone opened, and men were starting to run out of them. Smoke flowed them in their wake. As did for other gaps in the rocks, the smoke became thicker, as the black flames continued to dance on the rocks. 

The Oathguard, part of the other regiments of the army wait outside on the beach, them all patiently waiting in their shield walls. As their archers loosed their arrows upon the men, he didn't hear any noises of men meeting their deaths, only the blasting of Balerion flame upon the rocks of Bloodstone.

As Balerion halted his blast after some time, he looked out at sea. Seeing serval ships, of the Crabfeeder were set out to sea, had been easily taken out by his goodfather. The victory was complete as he looked down at Bloodstone, and only saw red-hot molten mass below him. "Finally" he muttered, "Yes my friend, it is over Bloodstone is no more, as will be the Crabfeeder after today," Balerion spoke to him, and he could sense the tiredness of his friend. "Well, done my friend, no we have fought, and soon we shall rest." Balerion roared in answer.

He looked back molten mas, and he wasn't sure how long it exactly had been but they had blasted Bloodstone for some time, he looked at the sea and he even saw the boiling, as the molten rock flowed into the sea. A horrible death he thought, give me a clean death by the blade any day. He knew the death of the blade, it was cold, the cold steel biting into your flesh, and it took you over until there was only cold and darkness.

"Land my friend, we see are troops, and execute the last of these corsairs." Balerion flowed his command, and the dragon landed at the beach, and he gave a triumphed roar, that shook the last of the foundations of Bloodstone if still some remained.

"Thank you, my friend, for everything now please rest you earned it." He murmured to his friend, as stroke his mass gin, and his scale, and were warm, the flames had warmed Balerion up as well. "Soves," He said, and Balerion took to the sky, roaring once more.

"Your Grace, it's over, Bloodstone itself is still in flames and melting as we speak. The Crabfeeder has been captured we are waiting for your orders on what to do with the captives." It had been Ser Criston who come. "Finally, the man will be headed his head put on a spike, to be put in atop the Gate of Litle Tyrosh. The rest of them put stakes down on the beach, and nail them to it. Have them die by the same way they have let our men die." Criston nodded, and he followed him as he walked to the captives.

 "There you are, the great Crab, you got too close to flames and got burned" The man was lumped on his knees. "Well, now you know what happens when you pull the dragon's tail. You shall be burned, and let's today be another reminder of that." He unsheathed his Frostfyre after that, the milky white blade, reflecting the sun, and a molten mass of Bloodstone.

"Any last words before you died Crab." The Crabfeeder looked at him, his golden mask mirrored in his blade. "That, I fought my own way, and I can die knowing did. Do your best Dragon." He had to say this of the man who at least held his head high in his last moments.

"In the name of King Viserys Targaryen, First of His Name, King of the Andals, the Roynar, and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, and Protector of The Realm. I Aemon of the House Targaryen, Prince of Dragonstone, Lord Seadragon Point, and Heir to Iron Throne. Sentence you to die." He said as cripped the dual dragonwolf pommel. The same words, his uncle had instilled in him so many times during an execution. He raised Frostfyre, and the blade fell on his neck, he didn't even use force the blade sliced through the man's neck. Rolling down on the sandy beach, his blood joined those whom he had slain or had fallen in the war.

With the death of the Crabfeeder and the fall of Bloodstone, the war in the Stepstones came to an end, although hostilities between Aemon and Triarchy still existed. The Conquest, and destruction of the corsairs, in the region came to an end In the Year 109 A.C. Sixth Moon.

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