531 Chapter 531: The Siege of Starfall
Viserys single-handedly captured Storm's End.
The nobles of the Stormlands, upon seeing this 'Conqueror', behaved much like ostriches, burying their heads in the sand and staying silent.
Viserys sat in the great hall of Storm's End, with the body of Stannis displayed at its center. The Stormland nobles hid in the shadows of the hall, only to be called out by Viserys, shuffling forth tremblingly.
The events of that night were so monumental that they would undoubtedly be recorded in history books, critiqued by future generations. Besides the ridicule directed at the three Stormland nobles, there was a growing awe for the young king.
A single man capturing a castle was the stuff of legends. It was then that people realized that Viserys's unification of the Seven Kingdoms seemed unstoppable.
Days after Viserys's solitary conquest of Storm's End, the Targaryen army finally arrived, officially annexing the Stormlands into their kingdom.
Elsewhere, the forces aligned with Queen Arianne, the Dornish army, suffered a defeat at Highgarden and retreated hundreds of miles, regrouping at Starfall.
Starfall was a strategic location, a gateway from Dorne to Highgarden.
Following the Dornish victory at the Marches and the capture of Nightsong, the army set its sights on Highgarden. Starfall, lying in their path, was inevitably affected.
However, the Lord of Starfall, Titus Peake, quickly surrendered when the Dornish forces approached. He knew he couldn't withstand them and that their primary target was Highgarden. Moreover, Lord Titus had distant relatives on the Iron Throne's side...
Leyton Peake, a commander of the Golden Company and an exiled lord, didn't join Viserys's campaign in the Stormlands. Instead, he departed shortly after the retaking of King's Landing, heading straight for Dorne. He was tasked by Princess Rhaenys, then on the Iron Throne, to facilitate communication between the Targaryen and Dornish forces.
Leyton gladly accepted, traveling with his brothers, Tommen Peake and Pycelle Peake, to Dorne. The subsequent war saw the Marcher Lords defeated by the Dornish.
Before this, Leyton had reached out to his distant relative, Titus Peake of Starfall, hoping for a surprise attack on the Marcher Lords. But Titus had declined, mainly due to his disdain for his exiled 'poor relative' and his confidence in his own liege, House Tyrell.
He hadn't expected the Marcher Lords to fall so quickly, nor did he anticipate that the Dornish, after taking Nightsong, would head straight for Highgarden.
When a desperate Titus sought Leyton's help, the tables had turned, with Leyton now in a dominant position. Titus's wife, Margaery Lannister, fell victim to Leyton's long-held desires. Using the king's alleged disdain for the Lannisters as a pretext, Leyton took her. Nights in the Peake brothers' chambers were filled with revelry. Titus bore the humiliation, becoming the butt of many jokes, all for the hope of survival.
However, as Titus believed his alignment with the Dornish and the Targaryens would secure his future, dire news arrived. The renowned 'Guardian of the Stoneway,' Lord Anders Yronwood, leading the Dornish army, was ambushed by the Hightower forces during the siege of Highgarden.
With support from the Oldtown reinforcements and the Tyrell forces of Highgarden, the Dornish army was defeated. The Riverlands army didn't let the Dornish retreat peacefully. They regrouped at Starfall.
This news stunned Titus. He'd backed the Riverlands and they lost. Then he sided with Dorne, and they too faced defeat.
No matter where in the world, traitors are rarely shown mercy. As Titus grappled with the situation, a servant from Starfall approached him. This servant was a spy for House Tyrell in Starfall.
Willas Tyrell, the heir of Highgarden and the de facto commander of the Riverlands army, communicated through this spy. He conveyed that if Titus performed a certain task, his betrayal would be overlooked, and his wife would be rescued...
That night in Starfall:
"Father," Lord Roze Allyrion, a knight of Godsgrace, said, one hand resting on his sword hilt.
His father-in-law, the leader of the Dornish army, Lord Anders Yronwood, looked gravely at a map, trying to strategize. Ever since the failed siege of Highgarden, Lord Anders had been restless. Roze, concerned more for his own interests than his father-in-law's health, suggested considering Willas's proposal.
The Riverlands army, led in name by Lord Mace Tyrell but effectively commanded by his eldest son, Willas, had Starfall surrounded. Willas had merged the forces of House Hightower and House Tyrell. They appeared poised to vanquish the entire Dornish army.
Willas also hinted at negotiations: if Lord Anders surrendered, House Tyrell would aid House Yronwood against House Martell, restoring Yronwood's former glory as 'High Kings of Dorne.'
