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Chapter 2: Brief History of House Stormbreaker
Excerpt from A Cumulative Record of House Stormbreaker by Maester Riddick
Not much is known about the early history of House Stormbreaker before their successful overthrowing of House Blacktyde. Many maesters have theorized that they were a newly ennobled house under the rule of House Blacktyde prior to their rebellion. It was during the early reign of the mythical Grey King that the Iron Islands began to grow into a separate culture from the mainland First Men.
It is believed that around 1000 or so years after the Long Night the First Men discovered what would become the Iron Islands. The First Men would migrate to these islands and settle them. What is known is that prior to the First Men's arrival on the Iron Islands there was an oily black throne carved in the shape of a kraken. It would later become known as the Seastone chair. It is said that the Seastone chair was found upon the island of Old Wyk. There have been other sightings of this oily black stone throughout the world in such places as the base of the Hightower, the ancient city of Yeen, and even in the shadowy city of Asshai.
Some believe these oily stone works are the creation of beings called the Deep Ones. The Deep Ones are a legendary, non-human intelligent race which may or may not have existed in ancient times, during the Dawn Age. Supposedly, they were a dark and vile race of half-men, half-fish creatures, who lurked in the depths of the oceans and harassed the coastlands. Some maesters believe that the Deep Ones used to inhabit the Iron Islands before the arrival of the First Men.
The First Men of the Iron Islands could have arrived during or even after the Long Night and settled the many islands. It is believed they migrated due to drop in temperature and the long winters that were faced. Though some believe it was due to fear of the Others. While this is unproven many see this as non-plausible as there has never been proof of their existence. Besides the accounts of the oral legends of the First Men culture Some maesters place this migration as around 8000 or even 7000 years ago.
Many of these First Men had brought weirwood saplings and seeds along with them and grew many godswoods throughout each island. It was during the early consolidation and later reign of the mythic Grey King that the people who would later be known as the Ironborn would start the worship of the Drowned God. The Grey King was a legendary monarch of the Iron Islands who is said to have ruled for over a thousand years.
It is said that the Grey King slew the Seadragon Nagga which upon its death the Drowned God turned its bones into stone. With the bones of Nagga the Grey king would build the Grey King's Hall. They say he took a mermaid for wife so his children and descendants could live on both land and water. It is said after his rule the Grey King entered the ocean and was welcomed into the Drowned God's Hall.
While most believe this story to be myth there is some truth in this tale. Many of the Iron Islands claim descent from the Grey King and share his blood. It is most likely that the Houses were intermarried or even branched off from the now extinct House Greyiron. It is more plausible that close to one thousand years that House Greyiron ruled the Iron Islands as High Kings. It is during the early consolidation of the Iron Islands that House Stormbreaker rebelled against House Blacktyde. It is believed that around 6500 years ago they acted.
Many of the Iron Islands seem to forget that they were once First Men who worshipped the Old Gods. The only noble House that still identified as First Men and worshipped the Old Gods were the Stormbreakers. They rebelled against their liege after it became known that the Blacktydes converted. It was through the influence and military campaigns of House Greyiron that caused many Houses to covert to the worship of the Drowned God.
The first Lord of House Stormbreaker was a man named Darren. He led an uprising of smallfolk and like-minded nobles who inhabited the island of Blacktyde and overthrew the ruling house. It is known that they razed the castle of Blacktyde and caused the extinction of the entire house. It is believed that House Stormbreaker along with others refused to worship this new god as they were deeply rooted in the worship of the Old Gods. This caused tension between those who worshipped the Old Gods and the Drowned God. Where once many godswoods and weirwoods existed in the Iron Islands only the sacred woods on Blacktyde remained. Those who would later become the Ironborn uprooted and burned the places of worship and slaughtered those who stuck to the old beliefs. During this time of unrest, the Greyirons began to expand and took control or even had the other islands submit to their overlordship.
Meanwhile the Stormbreakers may have liberated the island of Blacktyde they still faced hostilities from the others. The Greyirons took offense to the actions of this new house and saw it as a challenge to their rule. Not much is known about the coming conflict after what would be known as the Culling of Blacktyde. It is theorized that for a time House Stormbreaker capitalized on their early success to strike out against the other islands. Though they did not have much success after those early victories. The whole of the newly identified Ironborn would come together under the Greyirons and strike back against House Stormbreaker. The war between House Stormbreaker and the Ironborn would be known as Darren's Uprising. It is significant to point out that this war was very short lived due to the overwhelming opposition Darren faced. It is believed that the war lasted around one year. While the Greyirons won all it caused was for Darren and all who followed him to flee the Iron Islands. It is said when Darren first starting his campaign he vowed that his house would not rest till the Iron Islands who brought back to the Old Gods.
It seems House Stormbreaker took this vow seriously as after being exiled and settling in the Riverlands they would continue to fight the Ironborn for millennia. They also established their own Kingdom over a period of thousands of years that encompasses the Northern Riverlands, western islands of the Iron Islands, and part of the eastern coast of the Westerlands. The lands ruled by House Stormbreaker would be later known as the Kingdom of Midlands. While they are the only kingdom left who worship the Old Gods south of the Neck, their influence has caused some surrounding First Men houses to continue to worship the Old Gods though the Andal Invasion and even after Aegon's conquest.
Author's Note: Please leave a review since it helps with the writing of the story and my continuing growth as an author. I have decided that this will become a full-time story since I've grown really interested to see this story through. I will try and update Rise of the Grey Wolf and Roman Invicta of Westeros when I can, but this story will likely be more frequently updated. I plan on their being some skips between chapters as the time after the Long Night and Aegon's Conquest is such a huge amount of time to cover. Every few chapters I will add a chapter focused on the writings of Maester Riddick about House Stormbreaker. I think it's a fun thing to do since I can write the history/lore of House Stormbreaker as the next chapters will then cover what is in the excerpt.