Interlude: Alvan Dominion

Beyond the Sunset Sea lies a continent twice the size of Westeros, the first Westerosi that ever made it to these lands was a king of a northern kingdom. Brandon "the Shipwright" Stark sailed from the western coastline of the North, his journey brought an age of prosperity to his homeland but a price must be paid. The Union of Alvus, an alliance of multiple city-states and small kingdoms, rebelled against the tyranny of Altomesian Empire are being led by Duchess Katarina Ambry, the founder of the eventual Alvan Dominion who controls the entirety of the continent, sought the help of the arriving Northmen from Westeros in their campaign to rid the tyrant Emperor Quintus VII. Under one and a half months of continuous negotiations on both sides, the Stark-led expedition eventually agreed upon the condition that there will be trade established between Alvus and the North. The campaign took 10 years to truly end, the Shipwright have unfortunately met his end during the final days of the war but there are rumours that the Stark have slept multiple times with the Duchess and beget a child with her, nonetheless trade sprung up between two lands. Ships coming from lands beyond the Sunset Sea, surprised the northerners and first mistakenly identified as ironborn reavers, tensions cooled down when banners of the men and women who participated in the expedition of the Shipwright.

The trade between the two kingdoms centered around Bear Island and Deepwood Motte due to the already established settlements and its distance from the ironborn menace, nevertheless the trade agreements may not be as prosperous as expected it brought Alvan ideas into the Northern culture, primarily on animal husbandry and agriculture. While the North will never be able to raise a large number of ships on their western coastline, it was the Alvan ships that provided much protection from small ironborn raids, though the distance put a strain on communication between Winterfell and Sainzburg the bonds made through war and the occasional intermarriage and travels of Stark women and bastards to the western continent have placed a special place for the North. The trade between the two peoples where mostly made up of what lacked the other, the North lacked in foodstuffs but have a multitude of untapped resources and on the other hand, the Dominion have large tracts of wheat fields and other agriculture but lacks the important ores and woods to maintain its military might.

The North has kept the information regarding western continent for the advantages it brought to them in terms of food stocks during winter. On the side of the Alvan Dominion, due to impressive naval might that dominates much of the Sunset Sea has ensured that its rivals won't have access to their ancient allies and kin. The arrival of the Valyrian dragonlords have made these secrets all the more important. Due to a Stark married to heir of the of the Emperor at that time, their Alvan kin were willing to fight, defend and provide aid to the North but this was halted by King Torrhen due to the dragons that House Targaryen mounts and the amount of death and destruction that it might wrought to the North and its people, also the possible chance of loosing Moat Cailin to the south is a consequence that the North cannot afford and as such for the first time, the North was forced to bend the knee to foreigners and their Alvan cousins were force to watch as their Stark kin insulted as heathens and barbarians.