Aerion's War II

(Third Person POV)

[The Vale]

Jaecaerys stood atop a cliff, Vermax sitting behind him as he let out a rumble. He looked all around the mountainous region he was in, taking in the sight. He had just received word of Aerion's exploits during the last couple of days; singlehandedly shifting the War in their favor in a single day. 

Jace, however, thought that as long as Vhagar is alive, the Greens always have a chance and that she should be taken care of. He didn't really share the same sentiment on Aemond. As long as his dragon was dead, he shouldn't pose that big of a problem. 

Willam Royce walked up to them, "My Prince." He said

Vermax stepped closer, growling. 

"Lykiri, Vermax." Jace said in high-valyrian

Vermax stepped back, shaking his neck. 

Willam looked at Jace, "Vermax is in fact Ill-Tempered." He said with a chuckle, "But nothing compared to Vermithor. You see, when Aerion first claimed him, nobody and I mean nobody was allowed within the vicinity of our Lord. It took us weeks to adjust to the massive beast that the Bronze Fury was." 

Jace smiled, "Vermax is but a child to him, eh?" He said, "I understand." 

"Ah, but that Dragon became our symbol. It's quite poetic; our House birthed a Targaryen who later claimed a Bronze-Scaled Dragon." Willam said

Jace looked at him, "What do you make of this?" He asked, "Of Aerion?" 

"What about him?" Willam asked

"I've always asked myself why Aerion doesn't call himself Prince. He was born when Daemon was in line for the throne, technically he is a Prince. My Grandmother is a Princess because her father was Heir at some point." Jace said suddenly, "Yet, he calls himself Lord. Lord of Runestone. I would understand if he wishes to be the same as his sisters but it was the same before they were born, before I was born." 

"Ah." Willam said as he stood next to him, "We did call him Prince, at the start. But he was but a babe. After his mother passed, we called him Lord due to his ascension to the Seat. But when he grew older, we asked if he rather be called what he was; a Prince." 

Jace looked at him, "And?" 

"He refused. Being Prince meant having a claim to the throne, or at least having some connection to it." Willam said, "Aerion was never interested in it. Once he claimed Vermithor, that was it for him. He was willing to live his life however it happened. No ambition, no drive, that is something that many of us were confused with. He was a Targaryen over everything, he should have some of it. But no, he didn't want to place himself at a level where people would have to treat him with respect immediately. He wanted to earn that respect. And that he did." 

"Right...." Jace said as he looked down, "He's humble, I guess. As humble as a Targaryen could get." 

"That was before your Mother, however." Willam said, "When they married, I saw a bit of change in Aerion. He steeled himself for what was to come. He knew that being your Mother's husband would put him in the last position he ever wanted to be in; near the Throne. But here we are, Prince Jaecaerys....He's fighting a War for her....for you. He has shed so much blood for her, for that Throne. It is ironic, isn't it? No matter how much those of dragon's blood try to distance themselves from that, they eventually end up bleeding for it.....or make the realm bleed for it." 

Jace nodded, "It is inevitable, I suppose." 

"Right, I suppose that's true." He said as he looked around, "We just received word. Queen Rhaenyra has secretly sent your sister, Princess Rhea to Runestone. Despite that, I want you and Lady Baela to pretend she's not there. Her Grace did not intend to tell you, but I feel that you deserve to know. Because if something happens, you'll tell Lord Aerion, who doesn't know." 

"What?" Jace said, "Why?" 

"I do not know." Willam said, "But I am afraid that my place will be at Runestone, defending her till the end should it come to that." 

Jace nodded, "Yea." He said, "I would like for you to do that." 

"The Knights of Runestone will not fail Her Grace." Willam said, 

"Princesss Rhea will be safe." 

***********

[Westerlands]

Vermithor let out a rumble as Aerion pulled his blade out of the chest of a Lannister soldier, the entire battlefield around them completely leveled. 

Aerion was clad in his armor, this time it wasn't as bloody as before. This was because most of the forces that Aerion wiped out were significantly smaller than the ones he's fought. These forces were attacking nearby towns and villages, trying to take their food and supplies. He had them lured to an open field by a group of Tyrell riders when he descended upon them and within minutes, he obliterated hundreds of Lannister soldiers. 

He had dismounted Vermithor and finished up the remaining soldiers, giving them a quick death with Lamentation. 

"Hm..." He said as he turned around and wiped his blade with a rag, "I wonder if they would ever surrender." 

A rider galloped towards him, "My Lord." He said, "We have captured several hundred Lannister forces, they've surrendered and swore allegiance to you. Your response?"

"I massacre thousands of their comrades and now they come to their senses?" Aerion said with a sigh, "Fine, I accept. Have them regroup towards the Riverlands and attack the main Hightower forces by tomorrow." 

"Of course." the rider said, "What of Vhagar and Tessarion?" 

"Their movements are strange." Aerion said, "I do not know what they plan but their damage is not as significant as I thought. They're sticking to populated areas so should I engage them, the casualties would be severe." 

"Sometimes, casualties are inevitable, My Lord." The Rider said

"I know." Aerion said, "But if I have the choice to prevent innocent deaths, what do you think I'll do?" 

"Of course, I will not object." He said, "Facing two dragons would prove rather troublesome, after all." 

"I don't care about the two dragons." Aerion walked past him, "It's killing their riders that worry me." 

"My Lord?" the rider said

"You wish to brand me a Kinslayer?" Aerion said, "If there were no consequences to that, Aemond would be dead by now." 

"R-Right...." the rider said

"So long as we pressure them enough to surrender like the Lannister forces, it is fine." Aerion said as he began to mount Vermithor, "I also intend to know Daemon's plan. He hasn't moved from Harrenhal. Move our forces back to Stony Sept and make sure no stragglers get past that point. We corral the Greens in the Riverlands and end things there." 

"Yes, My Lord." He said

Aerion nodded, "Let's continue this." He said as Vermithor let out a roar, 

"This War...." 

****************

[The Vale]

In the skies above the mountainous region, golden wings were seen. Sunfyre flew below the clouds as Aegon The Older sat atop in the saddle. It was unknown why the Usurper King had taken his dragon to flight and head to The Vale.

"Fucking imbeciles, the lot of them." Aegon said as he chugged wine from a leather flask, "All of them are fucking imbeciles!!!" 

In the distance, he heard a loud dragon's roar, alerting him. 

"What?" He said as he steered Sunfyre towards it

As he got closer to the rocky hills, he noticed dragon wings. He landed Sunfyre atop the hill and looked down low, spotting a relatively large dragon brownish in color that was gorging on sheep while a single man was sitting next to him. 

"What in the hells?" Aegon said with his eyes narrowed

Down below, Ulf The White was panting heavily as the dragon ate a group of sheep. What Aegon had just come across was a targaryen bastard successfully claiming a wild dragon. How this became possible was unknown because in the past couple of days, strange events were happening. 

Aegon looked at his, "A dragon...." 

"Bastards in the Vale.." A voice said in his ear, "Use them. And when you're done, discard them." 

Aegon nodded, "Right...." he said softly, "Hey you!!!" 

The dragon heard Aegon's voice and lifted its head up, growling deeply as Ulf looked up in shock. 

"H-Huh?!" He exclaimed

Sunfyre let out a roar, establishing his dominance, which resonated with the wild dragon that lowered its head. 

Aegon leaned down, "So...." he said, "You got yourself a Dragon?" 

"Isn't that interesting....."