Chapter 47: The Dragonbane's Shadow and the Shadow King's Unseen Sun (Life Under the New Order: Aegon III)
The death of King Aegon II Targaryen, poisoned by his own desperate councilors as the grim host of Cregan Stark descended upon a war-weary King's Landing, brought the bloodiest chapter of the Dance of the Dragons to its shuddering close. The ascension of young Aegon III, Rhaenyra's traumatized son, marked not a triumphant restoration, but the beginning of a somber, dragonless twilight for House Targaryen. For Aelyx Velaryon, the immortal Shadow King of Skagos, this new era – the reign of the "Dragonbane" – was a period of intense, almost exultant observation and the quiet, exponential growth of his own hidden, draconic imperium.
Decades flowed by, each one a fleeting breath in Aelyx's eternal lifespan, but a significant passage for the mortal realm. Aegon III grew from a melancholic boy-king, haunted by the memory of his mother's horrific death, into a dour, joyless man. His reign was characterized by the long shadow of the Dance, by the machinations of ambitious regents in his youth, and later, by his own deep-seated aversion to the very creatures that had been the sigil and strength of his house.
The most significant development, meticulously tracked by Aelyx's agents and confirmed by the increasingly rare and sorrowful greensight visions of Lyra and Daenys, was the inexorable decline and eventual extinction of the Targaryen dragons. The last few survivors of the Dance – Morning, the small pale pink she-dragon hatched during the war; Silverwing, who had fled riderless after Second Tumbleton; the Cannibal and Sheepstealer, wild and untamable on Dragonstone – dwindled one by one. Sickness, failed hatchings, stillbirths, and perhaps even a subtle, pervasive despair that settled over the remaining beasts in the shadow of their King's grief, all contributed to their demise. Aegon III made no effort to revive their breeding; indeed, many whispered he secretly welcomed their passing. The last known Targaryen dragon, a stunted, sickly green she-dragon, died small and malformed during his reign, marking the end of an era.
"The fire of the Targaryens is extinguished," Aelyx announced, a note of profound, cold satisfaction in his voice, as he addressed his immortal family in the Obsidian Council Chamber. Before them, a magically projected image depicted the last, pathetic Targaryen dragon taking its final breath. "They have achieved what no enemy could: the complete annihilation of their own greatest power. They are Valyrians no more, merely lords with a fading legacy and a dangerous claim. The skies of Westeros are empty of their fire, for now."
His children and grandchildren, now numbering generations deep within the sanctuary, listened with rapt attention. They understood the monumental significance of this event. With the Targaryen dragons gone, their own hidden legion of nearly three hundred Skagosi dragons – vibrant, powerful, and continuing to breed successfully under Aelyx's meticulous programs – represented the sole repository of true dragonpower left in the world. It was a secret of unimaginable strategic value.
Publicly, Skagos, under the rule of successive Lord Volmarks (Aelyx's descendants, each playing their mortal part with flawless precision before their own staged "deaths" and quiet retreats into the sanctuary's embrace), continued its trajectory of prosperity and unwavering loyalty to Winterfell, and through them, to the Iron Throne. During Aegon III's reign, Lord Edric Volmark (Aelyx's great-great-great-great-grandson, a man of stern Northern demeanor but with his ancestor's violet eyes) presided over Icefang Keep. Skagos was known as the "Northern Treasury," its "Heir's Hoard" gold mine a seemingly endless source of wealth that funded not only Skagosi development but also provided substantial support to the Starks, allowing the North to recover swiftly from any lingering economic effects of the Dance and to maintain its strength against wildling incursions or harsh winters. This financial largesse ensured Skagos's continued autonomy and the deep gratitude of Winterfell.
Lord Edric Volmark paid his respects to King Aegon III via his Stark liege, sending lavish gifts of Skagosi gold, rare white furs, and intricately carved obsidian to King's Landing on occasions of state. Skagosi merchant ships, their hulls dark and swift, expanded their discreet trade networks, sometimes venturing as far as the Free Cities of Essos, always under carefully constructed mundane identities, bringing back not just wealth but invaluable intelligence for Aelyx. The island kingdom was seen as a loyal, if somewhat remote and enigmatic, jewel in the Northern crown, its people hardy, its lord wise, its Valyrian heritage a fading, romantic quirk in a world that was rapidly forgetting the true meaning of Valyrian power.
Within the sanctuary of Mount Skatus, however, the Valyrian legacy burned brighter than ever. Aelyx's direct descendants, now spanning five generations beyond his own children, formed a thriving, multi-layered society of immortals and exceptionally long-lived magic-users. The Elixir of Life, its potency amplified by the soul-fed Philosopher's Stone, was administered judiciously, ensuring the core leadership of the dynasty – Aelyx, Lyanna, their children, and the most promising and loyal of their grandchildren – remained untouched by age. Younger generations received diluted forms, granting them centuries of vitality and enhanced magical aptitude.
The seventeen dragons hatched from the stolen Targaryen eggs were now magnificent adults, fully integrated into the Skagosi dragon population. Aenar's meticulous breeding programs had carefully crossed their potent southern bloodlines with the hardiest and most intelligent of the original Skagosi dragons, resulting in new strains of breathtaking beauty and power. There were dragons with scales like polished obsidian that seemed to drink the light, making them almost invisible in the night sky; dragons whose fire burned with an ethereal blue or green flame, capable of melting different materials or having unique magical properties; dragons of unusual speed and agility, perfect for reconnaissance or surgical strikes. Each new generation of Volmark children was bonded with these exceptional beasts, their training as dragonriders starting almost from infancy.
The magical arts within the sanctuary had reached unprecedented heights. Aelyx, with centuries of accumulated knowledge from Voldemort, Flamel, and the recovered Valyrian grimoires, guided his descendants in exploring every facet of arcane power. Visenya and Maegor, now ancient and revered commanders, had codified Skagosi dragon warfare into a deadly art form, their phantom squadrons capable of maneuvers that would have astounded even the Targaryens in their prime. Lyra and Daenys, their greensight a constant, invaluable oracle, guided the sanctuary's long-term planning, their visions sifting the currents of fate for threats and opportunities decades, even centuries, in advance. Aenar and Aegon Volmark, with their teams of house-elf and Volmark enchanters, had perfected wards around Mount Skatus that were, Aelyx believed, truly impenetrable, capable of deflecting any known magical or mundane assault, even the concentrated fire of multiple dragons (should such a threat ever arise again from the outside world). They had also developed new forms of long-range scrying, allowing Aelyx to observe events across Westeros and even parts of Essos with remarkable clarity. Rhaenys, the mistress of illusions, had extended her art to create vast, shifting glamours around the entire island of Skagos, subtly altering its perceived coastline, weather patterns, and even its apparent magical signature to any prying magical senses.
The house-elf and phoenix populations continued to flourish, integral parts of the sanctuary's ecosystem. The house-elves, now numbering in the thousands, were a sophisticated, multi-talented society, their innate magic honed and specialized, their loyalty to the Volmarks absolute and eternal. The phoenixes, their flock nearly a hundred strong, filled the highest, light-infused caverns with their healing songs, their tears a vital component in the most potent Elixirs and restorative potions, their very presence a symbol of the Volmark dynasty's unending cycle of life and power.
During the reign of Aegon III, Aelyx saw an opportunity not for overt action, but for the subtle, long-term infiltration of influence. With the Targaryen dragons gone, the power of the great lords of Westeros subtly increased. The Iron Throne, while still the ultimate authority, became more reliant on their support. Aelyx, through the immense wealth of House Volmark, began to discreetly extend "loans" and "investments" not just to Northern houses, but, through carefully disguised intermediaries and shell trading companies established by Tibbit, to select, influential houses in the south – houses that were financially strained after the Dance, or ambitious for greater power. He sought no immediate return, no overt political concessions. He was merely sowing seeds of indebtedness, creating subtle dependencies that might, generations hence, be leveraged by his descendants.
He also initiated a new, highly selective program within the sanctuary: the training of "Emissaries." These were his great-grandchildren or great-great-grandchildren who possessed not only strong magical abilities but also exceptional intelligence, charisma, and a talent for mundane statecraft. They were given flawless, magically crafted mundane identities, complete with fabricated histories and lineages, and were prepared for eventual, subtle insertion into the wider world – perhaps as respected maesters, influential merchants, trusted advisors to southern lords, or even as spouses to minor but strategically located noble houses. Their purpose was not to conquer or rule openly, but to observe, to gather intelligence, to subtly guide events in ways that favored Skagos's long-term security and prosperity, and to be Aelyx's unseen eyes and ears in the courts of power. This was the ultimate long game, a plan that would unfold over centuries.
The reign of Aegon III was also marked by the brief but influential tenure of his younger brother, Prince Viserys (later King Viserys II), as Hand of the King. Viserys, who had spent his youth as a captive in Lys after the Battle of the Gullet, returned to Westeros a shrewd, intelligent, and remarkably capable administrator. He did much to stabilize the realm, restore the royal finances, and curb the excesses of ambitious lords. Aelyx observed Viserys with a keen interest.
"This one," Aelyx noted to Lyanna, "possesses a competence his brother Aegon sorely lacks. He has the Targaryen intellect without the overt arrogance or melancholic instability that plagues so many of their line. If men like him were the norm in House Targaryen, their dynasty might indeed prove more enduring." However, Aelyx also knew that even the most capable mortal was still just that – mortal. His own plans were predicated on outlasting them all.
Occasionally, a tremor from the south would reach even the remote tranquility of public Skagos. During the Lysene Spring, when a series of plagues and political upheavals swept through the Free Cities, Lord Edric Volmark, on Aelyx's instruction, offered Skagosi ships and gold to assist Northern merchants whose trade was disrupted, further enhancing Skagos's reputation as a reliable and benevolent power. When whispers of sellsail fleets from the Stepstones once again threatened western shipping, the Volmark fleet conducted highly visible patrols, a silent reminder of their naval might.
Internally, Aelyx focused on refining the culture and governance of his hidden kingdom. He commissioned the creation of the Great Volmark Codex, a vast, magically preserved history of their true lineage, their journey from Valyria, their struggles, their triumphs, and their eternal destiny, to be studied by every generation. He established orders of merit and specialization within the sanctuary – Orders of Dragonbonded, Orders of Arcane Lore, Orders of Healing Phoenix, Orders of the Shadow Guard – creating a structured society where every immortal or long-lived Volmark had a clear purpose and a path for advancement, all ultimately serving his overarching vision.
The death of the last Targaryen dragon was a quiet, almost unnoticed event in the grand scheme of Westeros, overshadowed by plagues, political squabbles, and the long, somber reign of the Dragonbane King. But within Mount Skatus, it was marked by a silent, profound acknowledgment. The skies of Westeros now belonged, in secret, to the dragons of Skagos. Aelyx Velaryon felt no urge to fill that public vacuum immediately. His was the patience of mountains, of ancient ice, of starlight that had traveled for millennia. The Targaryens had danced their fiery, self-destructive ballet and had stumbled from the stage, their greatest instruments broken. The Shadow King of Skagos, his own orchestra vast, hidden, and perfectly tuned, merely waited for the opportune overture, perhaps centuries hence, in a world that had forgotten what true dragonpower, wielded with immortal wisdom and unyielding will, could achieve. The new order of a dragonless Westeros (publicly) was, for Aelyx, simply a new canvas upon which to paint the next strokes of his eternal masterpiece.