King's Landing 109 A.L.

Lord Corlys Velaryon

Corlys Velaryon was an old man, he'd just seen in his sixty seventh nameday and as he thought about that, he got to thinking of his family. His beloved wife Saera had died a year ago on this very day, died from a fever that had claimed many lives on the Driftmark, something that had left both Corlys and the king devastated, Saera had been so filled with life and energy that not having her in his life was something he had never been prepared for. At least a part of her lived on in their children, Laenor who was a grandfather himself now, what with Corlys' grandson Lucerys and his wife Melena having had their own firstborn son Addam. Laenor seemed to have finally calmed down, Corlys supposed that his son had finally taken stock of life, after all he was thirty nine and so could no longer truly afford to be so rash and bold as he had been when he was twenty. As for Corlys' other children, they all seemed to be settling into their roles in life quite well. Daemon his second son had settled into married life well, having wed Lady Bethany Redwyne an alliance that now made House Velaryon one of the most powerful houses in all of Westeros and gave Daemon control over the Redwyne fleet and the Arbor what with Lady Bethany being the Lady of the Arbor following her father's death, their two children Alyn and Aelix were bundles of energy that reminded Corlys a lot of Daemon in their own ways. His third son Aemon had also married and had children and grandchildren of his own, and as such seemed very content with life on the Stepstones serving as Daemon Targaryen's right hand man. Then there was his daughter Alysanne, who from her letters seemed to be enjoying life on the Stepstones a lot, it seemed that Daemon Targaryen the rogue, had finally settled down and was treating Corlys' little girl like the princess she was. He was happy his little girl was happy and that she was happy with her life and her children.

As he thought about his life, he was happy that House Velaryon continued to grow in power and influence at court and in Westeros in general. They had control over the narrow sea and had a vast navy, one that was big enough to rival and perhaps best the Redwyne fleet if it ever came down to it. Corlys did hope that the king would grant him permission to construct a big enough royal fleet, so that the throne could exert dominance over all of the water, and not just those closest to Westeros. So far the royal fleet had expanded from just the bare 90 ships that had been in service since the days of the conqueror, and had grown to some 150 trade vessels that could balance out as war galleys and another fifty ships that were purely war galleys. Corlys hoped to see that number double within the next few years, especially with there being rumours floating round court that the Triarchy were arming themselves once more and were preparing for war. There were also other rumours closer to home that made Corlys wonder if perhaps Westeros might be facing another internal struggle similar to what had occurred during the reigns of the sons of the dragon. Princess Rhaenys had yet to produce a male heir having only produced three daughters: Alysanne, Vaelana and Visenya, and whilst all three girls were formidable and had bonded with dragons, there was a lot of pressure on the King and Prince Aemon to have the marriage set aside so that the Prince could wed another woman, who would produce a male heir and soon. Of course both the Prince and the King had refused to entertain such notions, with Corlys even overhearing the Prince saying to his wife that should anyone even consider offering their daughter to him as a potential bride, he would feed the bride and the father to Meleys or to Vermithor. Something that made Corlys chuckle somewhat, as it seemed funny to him that many around court thought that the Prince had no backbone or spine, and that he would be easily manipulated, when it was clear to anyone with eyes how much in love the Prince and Princess were and how much they meant to one another. Still it seemed as if some people were not so keen on using their eyes and their common sense and were determined to drive a wedge between the Prince and the King or the Prince and the Princess, the Faith were trying to convince the king that the Princess's lack of a male heir was a sign by the seven that the marriage was not meant to be and should be set aside, whilst some of the court were trying to get the council to convince the king to dissolve the marriage. Some such as Ser Otto Hightower were trying to force the issue, and as such Corlys had actually had a fair few stern words for the man, including the words 'blood of the dragon' and 'ruined.' Of course, Corlys was trying maintain some distance from the matter, after all he was very good friends with the King and as such did not want the king to think he was part of those idiots who were all pressed about getting a male heir for their own purposes. As far as he was concerned from what he had seen of the Princess, her daughters would make very good heirs and as such Princess Alysanne who had bonded with her namesake's dragon Silverwing was already displaying a very sharp mind and keenness for politics similar to her mother.

Of course that was all for the nonce, for now the King had called a council meeting and though he was old and tired Corlys had arrived at the council chamber to find the other members already present. Lord Boremund Baratheon the master of laws and Lord Lyman Beesbury the master of coin were conversing, Grand Maester Runciter and Lord Larys strong two men who Corlys trusted not at all were also conversing, Prince Aemon and Princess Rhaenys were sat silently observing all that was happening before them, though they did nod at him when they saw him enter. Once the king entered all discussion stopped and the King sat down and then spoke. "My lords, thank you for coming. Now it has been some time since we last met, and of course there has been a lot of interesting developments, the Sept of Remembrance has been refurbished and the High Septon and his followers have now moved in. The Faith has spread to the Stepstones and those cutthroats and pirates my nephew so loves conversing with have converted to it and seem to have become its staunchest defenders. Dorne celebrates the birth of my nephew Prince Aelix and soon enough will celebrate the birth of another child from my brother and goodsister's union. But what more news is there for us to discuss?"

Lord Larys spoke then which in itself was unusual. "There is news from Essos Your Grace. Our friends in Pentos and Bravos report that the Triarchy's new leader Alequo Morro has approached them about sealing a new alliance. They believe that this alliance is aimed at re-conquering the Stepstones."

The king was silent for a moment before he asked. "How solid is their evidence that this is what the man has approached them for? After all I was led to believe that the treaty we signed with this man that you yourself came up with was concrete in expounding on what would happen should they ever look towards the Stepstones again."

Lord Larys had the grace to look somewhat abashed. "Aye I did Your Grace, and for a time it did appear as if Morro would honour that agreement, but the man is being pressured by his backers in the Triarchy's senate to reclaim the Stepstones, and as such the man will need to take some sort of action if he wants to remain as their leader."

Corlys saw that his friend looked very annoyed with the master of whispers, and was amazed that he managed to keep his voice so calm. "Very well then. I want a solid report before we take any solid action against them. Runciter, I want a raven sent to Daemon alerting him to the possibility of action from the Triarchy so long as he and his dragon are ready there should be no slowness in response. On that matter, Corlys how is work on the royal fleet coming along?"

"It is coming along well Your Grace. We now have 150 trade vessels that can double up as war galleys and 50 pure war galleys. I do hope to see that number double within the next five years should the peace continue and trade continue to flourish. And soon enough the throne should be able to dominate the seas." Corlys replied.

The king nodded and said. "Well should these rumours come to fruition then the fleet might need to be called into action sooner than we had thought. Will they be battle ready by years end my lord?"

That question did catch Corlys off guard, and yet he answered slowly. "A year's end Your Grace? Surely you do not expect battle to come to our shores that soon?"

The king looks at him and says simply. "We can never be too lax when it comes to the Essosi. Now will the ships be ready for war should the need arise or not?"

Corlys was silent for a moment before he nodded. "Yes Your Grace, they shall be ready for combat by year's end. Who will lead the Royal Fleet?"

The king was silent for a moment before he said. "You shall as my master of ships. It is time your son Laenor learnt the ropes of leading the Velaryon fleet. I shall need you to guide the men through the stages of naval war. For now though we must prepare. Now what other issues are there for us to discuss?"

Grand Maester Runciter spoke then and Corlys had a feeling the man was going to be voicing whatever thought Ser Otto had given him. "There is just one small matter Your Grace. And whilst it might not be right to say in front of the whole council, I feel it is only right that it is brought up now. Prince Viserys has been away for nearly a whole year now, and still you have not seen fit to tell us where he has gone. Whilst this might be seen as acceptable for a month or half a year, it is not acceptable to keep whatever important mission the Prince as your hand as gone on from the council. And so in the best interests of the council, I must ask where has Prince Viserys gone and what has he gone to do for you?"

The king was silent for a long time and then he said. "You are right in that Prince Viserys has been gone for a long time Runciter, but you do not have the authority to question my decision to withhold where he has been from the council. That is my prerogative and mine alone. Had I seen the need to tell you I would have done so. That I have not, should clearly tell you that the need for you all to know is not pressing nor shall it be pressing, once it does become apparent that you need to know I shall tell you."

Runciter though did not seem willing to let the matter drop. "Be that as it may Your Grace, surely you must be able to tell us where Princess Aemma and Princess Rhaenrya are? That they are not in the Vale is clear, where are they Your Grace and why are they not in King's Landing?"

At this Prince Aemon spoke his voice sharp. "Why are you asking so many questions Runciter? Have you forgotten who it is you are speaking to? You cannot question the king and expect him to answer you, when you're own loyalties are questionable."

Runciter blustered but stopped when the King spoke. "Enough, soon enough you shall all know where Viserys has been and where his wife and daughter are. Until then we have more pressing matters to focus on."