293AC
Grey Gallows was a large island as things went, around one hundred and thirty miles long at its furthest, and about eighty wide, I imagined it was likely a mountainous plateau in the ancient times when Essos was still connected to Westeros.
I had certainly seen it's like in my old life, in the British isles. Towering cliffs of stone dotted its coast, edged by shallow beaches, and only the occasional river, slope, or small bay opened the otherwise seemingly impenetrable wall of granite that looked down on us as we sailed south around its eastern coast.
It became obvious as we went just how wild it was. Vast stretches of untamed wilderness were visible in the brief glimpses we had through the impenetrable wall of cliffs, and the rivers revealed portals into a land of tall rocky mountains reaching up into the heavens above fertile valleys, their sides covered in deep green temperate rainforests that seemed to spring up with the promise of untapped resources.
It looked like paradise.
Once again, I found myself wondering how on earth these islands were as unpopulated as they were. We had passed only a few small hamlets on the north coast, and only one or two fishing villages on the east, over a distance of over a hundred miles.
Sure, Westeros itself was heavily underpopulated, and I presumed the same of Essos, both were continents but near Essos and Westeros both had far smaller populations than they should. Even the "heavily developed" Reach, boasted a theoretical population of twelve million. A smaller number than medieval France at half its size.
It was probably the harshness of winter that did it, but even still, the world seemed far too big for the number of people in it.
The Seven Kingdoms had around forty million people in them. Forty million in a region a hundred times the size of medieval England.
It should have been Four-hundred Million.
Essos was closer to what it should be, what with the dense free cities, but even it had great tracts of unused or abandoned lands.
It all felt wrong.
But then, it was all the better for me.
I glanced south towards the oncoming bay. Great Gallows was a pirate town, originally Rhoynish in origin, it sat on the edge of a wide and deep bay with a small island at its center. It was an excellent place for a port or shipyard, though only a small one operated here, restocking the ships that passed through the six hundred mile straights of the Southern Narrow Sea.
That many of these ships were pirates obviously wasn't any of their concern.
"Mhm," I grumbled, rubbing at my chin, which had in the last few months began to sprout some of its first hairs. "I wouldn't want to make this approach at night, cliffs are two sharp at the bay's entrance. It needs a lighthouse."
"We're going to secure that island first, have the men prepare the longboats."
I had no doubt the people here knew we were coming, and the island would be an excellent place to lay an ambush, as my father described happening at Lys.
My personal fleet consisted of the Sword of Baratheon, the cutter Silver Wind, and the newly made Galleon the Thundering Roar. Two larger ships were present in both my group and in Aurion Waters' fleet since we were subjugating the largest islands in the Stepstones.
My vessels drew into a broadside position on the town, and on the two ships in its harbor, as longboats with about one-hundred men aboard them went out towards the rocky forested island in the bay.
I watched with interest as they departed, forming into groups and beginning to move into the-
"One of them is raising their sails, your grace, it appears they intend to flee."
I was distracted from my observance, turning to face the pirates, who were evidently going to attempt to slip out on the same southwesterly wind we rode in on.
They would get absolutely nowhere.
"Fire when ready." I nodded to the First mate, one Robin, who had the excellent characteristic of good lungs, barking it out to the crewmen and loud enough that the other ships could hear.
It wasn't long at all before the small deck guns had opened up, shortly followed by their larger brethren on the gun decks below. Cannonballs flew through the air above the waves, and at least a third of them hit the enemy vessel, sing splinters exploding out from its wounded side.
Then the Wind behind us opened up, and the Thunder as well, and the vessel was shattered, it's central mast splitting open from a direct hit, it's proud triangular sail collapsing no longer suspended.
"Excellent shot." I smiled, I'd see about getting that man a bag of coin. "Keep up the fire, demonstrate properly what happens to pirates who try to fight back." I turned back towards the town, my hands clapped behind my back.
"And get more of the landing boats ready with the grenadiers. Let's see if the townsmen still want to make a fuss after seeing that."
As the heavily armored men marched onto the deck, I smiled, my blood boiling. Already I could see the path of the future stretching out before me, a thick jungle of weeds and vines, just waiting for a Machete, or perhaps a Road building crew to tear it apart and make it usable.
A railway built around the world.
"I will lead the attack myself."