ASOIAF: The True House of Dragons

This time, Harren finally caught a glimpse of the monster's general shape beneath the surface. Its head was shaped like a sharp cone, bearing a startling resemblance to the dragon heads of House Targaryen.

"Use javelins and crossbows—fire at will!" Harren bellowed, roaring furiously again and again.

As the massive creature moved through the water, the warriors of the Iron Islands seized their moment and loosed several arrows.

But the wooden shafts couldn't pierce the deep sea; only the javelins barely managed to reach the beast's body. Even then, their speed was slowed drastically by the water, failing to break through its skin.

After a long and fruitless effort, Harren could do nothing but watch as his longboats sank one after another. With no other choice, he raised his sword and signaled the retreat.

"Fall back! Everyone retreat!"

The crashing sounds were relentless. Almost every time they moved a short distance, the hull of another longboat would be struck and cracked.

Only after the fleet had cleared The Gullet and approached the shores of Blackwater Bay did the giant sea creature finally let them go.

Harren stared at the writhing black shadow beneath the waves, still shaken. He couldn't tell if this sea dragon was somehow connected to House Targaryen, or if it was just a freak maritime disaster.

But now, with barely a dozen longboats left, the plan to attack Dragonstone had clearly failed.

According to Ironborn legend, the Grey King of the Age of Heroes once slew the mighty sea dragon Nagga. But Harren knew full well what he was capable of and didn't make the foolish mistake of diving in to fight the creature head-on.

With the raid a complete disaster, Harren had no choice but to slink back to Harrenhal in defeat.

...

On the balcony of the Windwyrm Tower at Dragonstone.

Old Nan Illya slowly lowered her arms from their outstretched embrace, placing both hands on the stone railing, eyes tightly shut.

After a moment's rest, her hair and eyes gradually returned to their usual grayish-blue hue.

She let out a long sigh, adjusted her simple dark red housekeeper's robe, and muttered to herself, "That Sea Snake devoured nearly ten of the life seeds Aegon left behind, and took so many benefits from House Targaryen. We've only used it once in all these decades—such a waste, such a massive waste..."

...

In the Stepstones, aside from Ross Island, the most well-known islands were Bloodstone and Grey Gallows.

Now that Ross Island had been burned down by Balerion, no one knew when—or if—it would be rebuilt. Among the inhabited islands of the Stepstones, Ross Island had essentially been wiped off the map.

The other two key islands were swiftly taken with little resistance by the combined forces of the North and Dragonstone.

Aegon spent nearly two months at sea before finally crushing the influence of Volantis in the Stepstones.

The Targaryen fleet suffered minimal losses, while the warriors of the Winter Kingdom fought with unusual fervor. Perhaps Torrhen had realized his involvement in the war didn't matter much either way, and was simply trying harder to earn some credit.

During the naval campaign, Dorne sent a messenger, announcing their intent to withdraw from the war and cease their involvement in the Volantis conflict. They also promised to send a shipment of treasure to appease the wrath of the Dragonlord of House Targaryen.

"This fence-sitter will have to be pulled out sooner or later."

"This wallflower will have to be pulled out sooner or later."

After receiving Dorne's letter calling for an end to the war, Aegon tore it to shreds—but still agreed to their request. The immediate priority was to destroy Valentine, after all. If the Dragon Party of Valentine fled too early, House Targaryen would face endless trouble in the future.

Once Aegon and the Storm King's joint fleet had pacified the forces across the Narrow Sea, they received news from the land-based coalition of the Five Kingdoms.

The armies of the Five Kingdoms had already taken Myr. With strategic points on both flanks—Myr and the Stepstones—captured, the Volantis army stationed in Lys realized they had no way to hold their position. They preemptively withdrew to the heartland of Volantis.

The Free City of Lys was taken over by the Five Kingdoms' armies without resistance.

As the leader of the coalition, Aerion ordered Aegon and the Storm King's fleet to head for the Bay of Volantis and block the port, preventing the Volantine nobility from escaping.

This world war, involving most of the Known World, had consumed countless resources and manpower. If the Volantine elite were allowed to flee and no one was left to bear the consequences, then the alliance of the Six Kingdoms and House Targaryen would become a laughingstock.

After resupplying at the Stepstones, the fleet entered a long, monotonous stretch of sea travel.

Aegon and his sister Rhaenys took turns guarding the fleet, while Daemon arranged for several cargo ships to trail behind them.

Everyone predicted that this war would yield unimaginable riches.

Volantis was the Free City closest to Slaver's Bay, located on the southern coast of the Essos continent. Having conquered and looted the Free Cities of Lys and Myr, its internal wealth was said to be beyond imagination.

Daemon sent messages to Dragonstone and Driftmark, ordering not just cargo ships, but even fishing boats to be requisitioned for transporting supplies and plunder.

Time flowed quietly by, and two months at sea slipped past.

The Five Kingdoms' land armies remained in constant contact with the fleets of the two allied realms, sending daily dispatches with victories like "how many miles we advanced today" or "which towns we've taken." Tactical setbacks were rare.

The Volantis army, like a bird startled by a bowstring, had fully retreated to their homeland.

Then came the day when Aegon soared above the skies of the Free City of Volantis, mounted atop Balerion the Black Dread.

The people of Volantis were reminded once more of what it meant to be ruled by Dragonlords.

The Dragonlord's earth-shaking roar thundered over the ancient city, steeped in thousands of years of history, plunging the citizens and nobility alike into utter panic.

Though tens of thousands of defenders still stood atop the city walls, and thousands of elite soldiers were stationed within the city's barracks, they brought no sense of safety to the hearts of the people.

The overwhelming pressure radiating from Balerion's colossal body—stretching over a hundred meters—was simply too great.

In contrast, Volantis's only silver magic dragon was barely thirty meters long, comparable in size to Vhagar and Meraxes. All of them were dragons born after the Doom of Valyria.

At the Volantis harbor, numerous nobles attempted to flee. But before their ships could even leave the bay, they were cut off by the advancing Targaryen fleet.

The day after Aegon and the Storm King's fleet reached the bay, the combined forces of the Five Kingdoms slowly appeared across the plains outside the city of Volantis.

Nearly a hundred thousand soldiers surged forward like a roaring tide, sealing off every major route into the city and locking down the ancient stronghold completely.

On the same day, Volantis's letter of surrender was delivered to the coalition's war tent by an envoy—but no one paid it any attention.

At this point, Volantis was like a fish on the chopping block, ready to be butchered. No one cared what the fish thought; everyone was focused on carving up the spoils of victory.

That very day, Aegon and the Storm King met with the leaders and generals of the five land-based kingdoms.

Inside the coalition's temporary war tent, the seven great powers convened once more to discuss how to deal with Volantis, a city already doomed beyond salvation.

This time, nearly every faction leader proposed revisions to the original alliance treaty concerning the division of spoils.

Originally, in line with international humanitarian principles, the treaty had stipulated that Lys and Myr—two Free Cities that had been conquered by Volantis—would be restored to their independent status after the war.

Now, however, many leaders were offering "small suggestions," saying the cities could be rebuilt, yes, but not granted sovereignty. Instead, their Triarchs and stationed troops would be appointed by the coalition members themselves.

Arguments over interests filled the war tent.

Meanwhile, inside Volantis, the ruling council was in a panic, like ants on a hot pan. They anxiously watched the coalition encampment outside the city walls, unsure of when the army might begin its assault.

On the second night of the siege, chaos erupted within the city.

The Tiger Party and the Elephant Party joined forces to launch a surprise attack on the Dragon Party's House Valentine, hoping to capture its leader, Jehettys, and offer him up to the coalition in exchange for their own survival.

The Tiger and Elephant Parties had little choice.

With Balerion the Dragonlord looming above, the city walls that had taken thousands of years to build were utterly useless.

The enemy wasn't even in a rush to attack—they were waiting for Volantis to surrender on its own. This was a war that could not be won. Under the constant surveillance of three dragons circling above, no clever tactic or ambush could succeed. As long as the coalition didn't make the mistake of turning on itself, Volantis was destined to fall.

And so, the coalition's leaders became spectators to the unfolding drama.

A chorus of battle cries rang out from within the city, and moments later, a silver dragon, long dormant in the underground Dragonpit, suddenly burst into the sky.

At first, Aegon thought it was trying to flee. But to his surprise, the silver dragon—about thirty meters in length—turned its fury inward, unleashing its dragonfire upon the city itself.

In that moment, Aegon understood: House Valentine, backed into a corner and betrayed from within by the Tiger and Elephant Parties, had chosen to burn the city down with them, dragging a few enemies into the flames. Even the destruction of wealth would deprive the coalition of valuable resources.

But the Tiger and Elephant Parties had clearly prepared for such a possibility. Not far from the Dragonpit, dozens of siege crossbows had been set up in neat rows on nearby rooftops.

The moment the silver dragon took flight, those siege crossbows unleashed a dense barrage of massive bolts.

In the darkness, the dragon's silvery scales caught the faintest glimmers of light—making it all the easier to target.

Countless bolts swarmed toward it like locusts, piercing it instantly. Its leathery wings were riddled with holes. Screeching in agony, the silver dragon thrashed violently before plummeting straight to the ground.

Aegon's brows furrowed as he watched it fall. A sudden pang seized his chest. He drew in a slow, deep breath, his expression darkening with displeasure.

In the end, he chose not to intervene in the turmoil consuming the city of Volantis.

Early the next morning...

The gates of Volantis slowly opened as a large cart pulled by several horses rolled out. On the cart rested a silver dragon head the size of a small boat, escorted by a group of Volantines as it left the city.

The leaders of the allied forces had all come to the front lines to witness the scene.

At a gesture from the leaders of the Tiger Party and the Elephant Party, the bodies of all the members of House Valentine were brought out one by one.

With that, House Valentine—one of the last two remaining Dragonlord families in the world—was completely wiped out.

Alongside the bodies, two silver dragon eggs were also presented.

Aerion wore the same expression as Aegon had the night before—brows tightly furrowed. In Aerion's mind, the death of Valentine's King-tier Dragon should have come at the jaws of Balerion, not at the hands of mortals using siege crossbows.

Though House Valentine was an enemy Dragonlord family, their downfall in such a pitiful manner undoubtedly tarnished the invincible aura of the Dragonlords.

At that moment, Aerion keenly noticed the gazes of the Free Cities' rulers shifting—intentionally or not—between the silver dragon skull and Balerion.

He wasn't satisfied with the outcome, but the destruction of their foes was still something to be relieved about.

The silver dragon eggs from House Valentine were also presented to House Targaryen by the six kingdoms.

Naturally, the others had hoped to keep the rare and precious eggs, but Aerion had refused to concede a single inch on the matter. As stipulated in the alliance, the eggs were to belong solely to House Targaryen.

After all, the Free Cities had once been colonies of Valyria. With their vast populations, finding a few bastards from former Dragonlord bloodlines wouldn't be difficult—and if someone with enough ambition backed them, another Dragonlord house could rise again.

Following the Tiger and Elephant factions' surrender ceremony, the allied forces officially entered Volantis.

All of Volantis's original armies were disarmed and placed under centralized control. Its political officials were imprisoned, awaiting judgment by the coalition.

Only now did the war that had engulfed nearly half of the Known World finally draw to a close.

What followed was the time for the allied forces to divide the spoils and feast.