Three Months Later

Outside the Fortress of Wyl

King Aegon sat within his tent, listening to yet another messenger prattle on about their lord's reasoning for not participating in the campaign, and while the others had been respectful, this one was almost smug, his lieges disdain for Aegon apparent just through his written word.

‘’My Lord of Lannister will not be raising his banners your Grace, he reminds you that his vassalship only obligates that he send men if the realm is attacked or faces rebellion, in wars of expansion the choice to participate is the Lord Paramounts.’’ The messenger said.

‘’Your message has been received….I trust you can make your own way back to Casterly Rock…’’ Aegon said curtly, and the lannister messenger nodded and left the tent.

The messenger spoke true, despite the Lord Paramounts allegiance to the Targaryens, they could not be forced to raise their banners in wars of expansion.

The King had received many such messengers lately, he had already known the Reach and Stormlands would not be sending men, but some of the other regions were more surprising. Torrhen Stark of the North had sent a raven stating that the distance between the North and Dorne made their participation impossible, and besides that he found it unwise to leave his lands after so many minor issues among his vassals.

The Riverlands had been the most surprising, Edmyn Tully had not officially agreed or denied the Kings call to arms, instead claiming to need time to raise a force, but Aegon knew his master-of-laws well enough to know that, despite being loyal, Edmyn Tully knew his rights and felt he had contributed enough men to the Targaryen cause the past few years.

That left the Vale and the Iron Islands. Since Ronnel Arryn was not yet of age, Aegon had the right to order the Knights of the Vale to join the campaign, but the King had chosen not to do so. If he raised them, all the logistical matters of their mustering would fall to him, and not the lords of the vale, which included their feeding and pay, a logistical challenge, and besides that he didn't have enough ships on the eastern coast to transport them all at once and would instead have to do it piecemeal, so instead Aegon had decided he did not need the Vale.

Surprisingly, it had been the region where Aegon's influence was most tenuous that had been the most enthusiastic to the King's call to arms. Vickon Greyjoy had pledged 200 longships and some 15,000 men to the conquest, though Aegon was smart enough to know they were more interested in plunder and glory then they were loyal.

Rhaenys had wanted Aegon to refuse them, saying that the Ironborn were only joining as an excuse to rape and plunder Dorne, but Aegon, while understanding of their true motivations also understood he needed them, they were his only allies in this war and their ships would make it so that a multi-pronged invasion was possible, Aegon attacking down through the boneway from the Stormlands, and the Ironborn landing somewhere along the coast, forcing the Dornish to fight two enemies.

Aegon had a formidable host to his own credit, he led an army of some 10,000 men drawn from the Crownlands, several thousand from King's Landing, while others were drawn from the Kingswood and Blackwater Bay, though his biggest advantage were his and his sisters Dragons.

His first objective was to take the castle of Wyl, the first Dornish fortress guarding the boneway, a long narrow mountainous pass that connected the Stormlands to Dorne. He had considered burning out the garrison, but Grandmaster Arlan, who had insisted on accompanying the King shared his knowledge that Wyl had caverns underneath it that Dragonfire would not touch, and the garrison would retreat to in the event of an attack, their best course of action was to starve the castle to surrender.

In addition to this attack through the Boneway, he had tasked his cousin and master of ships Aethen Velaryon, to take 45 galleys and 1600 men, the strength of Dragonstone and capture the island castle of Ghaston Grey which the Dornish used as a prison. In truth the island had little strategic value, but capturing it meant that they would have complete control of the Sea of Dorne.

9th Moon, 8001

King Aegons Tent, Wyl

‘’In the name of Lord Walter Wyl….I do surrender the castle with the authority given to me as regent.’’ The Dornish knight said, drawing his sword and giving it to the Kingsguard Ser Gawen Corbray, a symbol of the castle's surrender.

‘’I accept your surrender Ser..on the conditions neither you or any of your garrison bear arms against my men..’’ King Aegon said with a nod. After around three months of siege the castle had surrendered, their food stores running low, the lord of Wyl was a boy of around 14, and so the surrender had been conducted by his regent, an unlanded knight called Ser Neilyn, the master of arms of Wyl.

Ser Neilyn nodded his assent and hesitated for a moment ‘’I would speak with you your grace.’’

Aegon turned to his Kingsguard and nodded, the man had given his sword and he had all his Kingsguard in the tent with him, save for Ser Stafford Lannister who he had left in the capitol to guard his pregnant sister Visenya and their young daughter.

Aegon nodded to the chair and the Knight sat.

‘’If you're coming down the boneway, then your next target is Yronwood….seat of the second most powerful house in Dorne….you won't take the castle like you took our castle…its walls are thicker and the castle is bigger, it can hold 5000 men and feed the for a year, it has wells inside the walls….they have had time to muster that amount I would guess.’’ The Knight said.

‘’And why should I believe that Ser….you refused to surrender the keep for weeks, and now you wish to aid us?’’ Aegon said.

‘’I have no love for the Yronwoods, before the young lord Walter inherited the keep I served his father Edwyle, he was not a perfect man…but he had a fine military mind…I respected that….Lord Yronwood had him poisoned.’’ The Knight responded.

Aegon nodded ‘’If you hold such a dislike of the Yronwoods, why resist my army for months, you yourself have said that they have had ample time to prepare their garrison and foodstores, if you wish for their fall the wiser move would have been to let us pass.’’

Ser Neilyn nodded slowly ‘’Perhaps you are right, your grace….but this war will end one way or another, and no matter who wins I intend to be standing at the end of it…what would my reputation be if I was known as the man that surrendered Wyl without resisting….I held out for as long as I could….none can blame me for surrendering.’’

Aegon nodded slowly ‘’I can respect that….your counsel is noted.’’

The Dornish Knight bowed his head and began to leave the tent.

‘’Ser Neilyn.’’ King Aegon said, causing the knight to turn around.

‘’I will not take you into my service in this war….but if you are standing at the end of it come to Kings Landing….I have need for Knights, especially honest ones.’’ Aegon said.

‘’I shall your grace.’’ Ser Neilyn said with a final bow, leaving the tent.

The King did not attempt to take the nearby village, his goal was to advance through the boneway, not to plunder the homes of smallfolk, people that would one day be his own, once the surrender of Wyl was attained, the King and his host rode south, to Yronwood, a formidable castle.

Two Weeks Later

Castle of Yronwood

Aegon, Rhaenys and his Kingsguard rode towards Yronwood, the Dornish mountains on their side.

It was easy to see why House Yronwood was the most powerful house in Dorne save the Martells, the land, unlike most of Dorne, was forested, with many rivers snaking through the mountains, the land rich and fertile.

The castle was made of gray stone, with high thick walls and several round drum towers, the main entrance was guarded by a massive Iron Gate with bars several feet thick, the battlements were teeming with men and it became clear that Ser Neilyns claim the castle could hold 5000 men was no exaggeration.

Suddenly the massive iron portcullis slowly opened, the sound being heard at a great distance, once it had opened a group of men rode out, all armed and armored, one of them carrying the banner of house Yronwood, the yellow and black gate fluttering in the wind.

At the forefront was a man about Aegon's age armored in steel, a yellow and black cloak on his back, his hair obscured under a metal helm with white cloth wrapped above the nasal, though the man's piercing blue eyes were visible even at a distance.

‘’It is customary to bow before ones King….but since you are on horseback we shall dispense with that…I shall take your surrender now my Lord.’’ Aegon said as the Yronwood retinue approached.

‘’I am no Lord….and you are no King of mine……I am Ser Cletus Yronwood, my fathers heir, and I have been tasked with the defense of this castle….go back the way you came and perhaps you and your whore of a sister will survive.’’ The man said spitting to the side, his voice stern as steel.’’

‘’You will watch your words…’’ Aegon began but Rhaenys put a hand on her brothers shoulder to calm him

‘’I shall forgive your insult my lord…in the interest of resolving this matter quickly…surrender the castle and you have my word you and your family shall be able to leave in peace, your garrison shall be treated fairly as well.’’ Rhaenys said in a conciliatory tone.

Ser Cletus was silent for a moment and then spit to the side again ‘’And why would I surrender you foreign bitch….I have the castle provisioned and prepared to withstand a siege for years…enough food to feed 5000 men for however long it takes for reinforcements to arrive and drive your abomination of a brother back to the Stormlands….you will be crushed between the army of Dorne and my garrison'’

Aegon was not a man used to having such brazen insults directed at him or his family, much less to his face, and it was only Rhaenys’s hand on his that allowed him to keep it together.

‘’You are lucky that I abide by the laws of the land….if you were not under the flag of truce you would pay for those words Ser.’’ Aegon said curtly.

Ser Cletus was silent at that, his piercing blue eyes meeting the Kings.

‘’Ser Cletus…I have no doubt you have prepared your castle well for a siege…but it is all for naught…there will not be a siege.’’ Rhaenys began.

‘’Then you are more fool than I thought….you have less than 10,000 men, you cannot hope to take the castle by storm….but by all means try…doom your bastard men to a battle they cannot win.’’ Ser Cletus responded.

‘’You misunderstand Ser…we have two dragons, if you insist on following this path it will be you who is dooming your men to dragonfire….you can prevent this…surrender the castle and you will be treated fairly.’’ Rhaenys said, almost pleadingly.

‘’Aye…I know of your Dragons….look upon the battlements….I have half a dozen Scorpions…you fly your beasts anywhere close to the battlements and you will be shot from the sky.’’  Ser Cletus said, gesturing to the six huge wooden crossbows positioned on Yronwoods walls.

‘’Your arrogance is the same that Black Harren showed in Harrenhal, I trust you know of what happened then Ser.’’ Aegon asked.

Cletus shook his head ‘’Black Harren did not have scorpions.’’

‘’If you think you can kill our dragons with….’’ Aegon continued before Ser Cletus interrupted him.

‘’You…and your dragons can go fuck yourselves….you say there shall be no siege…than you are more than welcome to throw yourselves at my walls…come dragon or siege tower….you will die.’’ Ser Cletus said, nodding to his men who rode back to the castle, kicking up a cloud of dust.

‘’He has left us no choice.’’ Aegon said, looking at Rhaenys.

His sister nodded sadly ‘’They will surrender….once they see enough Dragonfire….we need not kill all of them.’’

The King nodded ‘’It's not my intention to….I see no point in delaying what must be done….we attack within the hour.’’

Rhaenys nodded and left to prepare as Aegon went to his tent.