Corlys Velaryon

Corlys Velaryon is the youngest child of Vaemond Velaryon and Vaella Targaryen. He served as the Master of Ships for several years, but was eventually made the Captain-General of the Golden Company in 408AC. Currently wed to Queen Visaera Targaryen, they have one child - Aerys Velaryon.

He is the captain of the Stormbringer.

Appearance and Character
A Valyrian through and through, Corlys bears the features and look of a typical member of his house. Only slightly taller than average, his most marked feature are his rather pale, purple eyes - but even these are not overly astonishing, and he would not consider his look to be unique. A man of duty and of honour, he has spent most of his days aboard his ship, the Stormbringer, where he keeps the king's peace upon the waves.

A skilled fighter, if a reluctant one, Corlys has several actions to his name and fights most often with a longsword, or a Myrish crossbow.

His personal sigil is a golden snake consuming its own tail, set upon a sea-green field. Inspired by the most famous bearer of his name - Corlys the Seasnake - it flies above the Stormbringer at all times.

Upbringing
Corlys was born to his mother and father late in the year 382AC. He was a strong and healthy babe - a welcome surprise, considering the age of his mother - but grew slowly, seeming reluctant to speak, walk, or sleep alone.

In time however Corlys came into his own, growing into a handsome boy with the silver locks of his ancestors, and wide, bright eyes that seemed likely to drink the world. He consumed tales from his maesters and tutors with speed, though often struggled with his letters, and mathematics.

It was adventure that Corlys wanted, it seemed, and as a scion of House Velaryon adventure was indeed part of his destiny. But the young boy showed little aptitude for dragons. He feared Seastar far too much to approach, and it was deemed that an egg would be wasted upon him.

Driftmark, and Dragons
In time Corlys came to respect and understand dragons, even if he never truly came to love them like other Valyrian descendants did. His elder siblings were married off, or began to spend less time at home, and so Corlys found himself wandering the halls of the castle alone; terrorizing servants, and causing his parents no end of grief.

Hoping that firm discipline might shape his hooligan of a boy into a man proper, Vaemond personally took Corlys under his wing. The young Velaryon aided his father in whatever tasks and purposes he could, serving as his squire during battle and his messenger during his days at court.

Corlys blossomed under the eye of his father, who became his mentor and chief inspiration. Recklessness was soon replaced by prudence, sloth by diligence and dutiful adherence, pride by humility and a desire to serve.

The War of the Three Thieves
In 396AC the first skirmish of the War was fought, and Corlys was there upon the field as a cabin boy for a family friend. He watched with horror as Viserion fell from the sky, and as Daarius Ormollen's fleet set upon them with a hunger. The defeat was his first taste of battle, and of fear - but he would not forget the sight of that day; not of Viserion as he scorched the enemy vessels, wings fanning the flames with every great gusting swoop, the waters beneath him boiling at the scalding heat of his fire - nor of Viserion, wounded, and falling.

Corlys would return with much of the rest of the Crownlander fleet, and participate in the fighting to drive back the enemy ships. Though he did not land upon Grey Gallows with the others, he watched from a ship as Maekar and Alequo Silverband dueled in the skies above the fortress.

The Scarlet Winter
When the winter settled upon the Blackwater, and froze many of the ports ice solid, several ships were damaged by the ice and the cold, rendering them unusable. Seeing an opportunity, Corlys secured one of these damaged vessels and set about attempting to restore it to its former glory. The work was long and arduous, but it was a labour of love and devotion. By winter's end, the Stormbringer stood proud. During the construction of the ship, he met Aaron Celtigar and soon both became close friends. He had also fought in the Crownlander fleet, and memories of it brought them close.

Captain
With a ship of his own now at hand, Corlys is finally commissioned as a captain in his own right midway through the year 405 AC. Since then he has fought in numerous engagements, though mostly against smugglers and pirates. In this, he brought Aaron Celtigar and many months at see made them eventually temporal lovers. In fact, Aaron and Corlys always called themselves "Twin souls" and were close all along. Aaron enjoyed the company of men and women and so did Corlys.

Corlys and Aaron on board of the Stormbringer, traveled the Narrow Sea, as far as Braavos and Lys, but had not yet found the answer to the longing for adventure that yet lies within him. During one of his voyages, in 406 AC, he ended up meeting Vaena Targaryen of Whitefyre. He would eventually visit her often and both became close. Vaena also had an adventurous nature and was a dragonrider. Her extensive knowledge of Valyrian customs brought them closer together. This led to more eventually, and both ended up becoming lovers. Vaena was knowledgable in Valyrian customs and tought many things to Corlys in the time they spent together.

A Grieving Son
Following the death of Vaemond Velaryon, Corlys escorted his father's corpse from Harrenhal to Driftmark. It was a somber journey, one of self reflection and contemplation - though its quiet was shattered by the feuding between Aurane and Lucerys, who nearly slew one another on the the docks of High Tide. The ship they had arrived on was set alight, and sank to the bottom of the sea - taking with it the body of Vaemond Velaryon, never to be seen again.

The inability to even bury his father left Corlys heartbroken, and after a time in Driftmark with his family, repairing his ship, he departed from Westeros to travel the Free Cities with his companions and crew. There they were embroiled in several adventures and conflicts - fleeing from pirates near the Stepstones, skirting a storm that near sunk them off the coast of Myr, hunting down a band of corsairs for a reward from a Tyroshi magister.

The Mummer's War
After several months away with Vaena and Aaron in Essos, Corlys returned to Westeros as he couldnt live anymore without seeking answers to the death of his father. In Westeros, he bent the knee to Queen Visaera. They spoke briefly of his father's murder and she convinced him of the possible culpability of his own sister-by-law, Baela Targaryen. Intent on discovering the truth, Corlys departed for Driftmark to convince Aurane to release his wife for trial in the capital. Aurane, however, was unwilling - the two quarreled, until Corlys was forced to leave empty handed. He returned to King's Landing where he remained until the Queen's Small Council meeting, where he was summoned and dispatched with a large naval fleet to subdue the Arbor, Oldtown, and all of the Whispering Sound.

Corlys arrived in the bay without incident, and secured the Sound as he was commanded. It wasn't long before the Hightowers surrendered to the Crown at Highgarden, and Corlys was recalled with his fleet to King's Landing.

The Golden Company
With Aeron Goldfyre dead during the Battle of the Ford, the Golden Company was left without a leader. Visaera Targaryen named Corlys Velaryon its commander, and set about expanding the company's might and purview.

Though at first he was not particularly pleased with his new position, Corlys came to recognize not only the opportunity present in the Golden Company, but the freedom. With ten thousand men at his command the youth was beholden to none save the Crown, and set about restructuring the Company along lines that more closely resembled what he was used from his life at sea.

It wasn't long after this appointment that another aspect of his life was changed - Visaera Targaryen approached him with an offer to sit as her prince consort, wedding her in a grand ceremony - albeit with short notice. Corlys agreed, and married Visaera late in 408AC. They would later have one son - Aerys Velaryon - in the fourth moon of the following year.

Since then Corlys has focused largely on the Company, his tasks as "Prince" limited and largely ceremonial. With the aid of a wetnurse named Perriane Darke he has raised his young son, trying to veer the boy away from martial pursuits and towards a more peaceful, scholarly life.

Vaena then travelled at the request of Corlys, to be by his side. Their relationship was a secret one, in order not to anger the Queen Visaera. Corlys was determined to marrying Vaena, and in the ways of old Valyria decided to take her as a second wife. This caused a breach between the Queen of Westeros and her husband who never again were close and he and the Queen never shared a bed again. Queen Visaera felt guilty for having the true paternity of Aerys hidden and thus allowed him to take a second wife with whom to father kids of his own. The second marriage came with friction from the faith of the Seven but the recent battles won by Corlys and the new dragonrider addition of Vaena, seemed enough to let the faith quiet and adhere to the doctrine of exceptionalism. Vaena after all was not Westerosi and did not called herself a member of the faith of the Seven but a Valyrian.

However, he kept doing his duties in the Golden Company. After the birth of Aerys, Corlys spent much more time with Vaena than with the Queen, with Vaena going with him on board of her dragon. Soon after, she gave birth to their first born daughter Saera Velaryon, later known as "The Stunning lady of the Waves" and to a son, called Maegon Velaryon. Corlys fought to have them recognized as their legitimized sons as well, which took him a lot of work and convincing but that he finally achieved. Maegon became a succesor of his father and a known sailor, known as "The Lord of the Seas". The Queen, on a smart move, suggested marrying Aerys Velaryon to his half-sister, Saera. which later came to reality, securing the Velaryon line in eyes of Visaera.

The same year Corlys died, Vaena became pregnant again and gave birth to Viserys Velaryon. After the death of Corlys, she married his husband's lover and best friend, Aaron, with whom she had twins: Gaeron Celtigar and Darianne Celtigar.

Family

 * Corlys II Velaryon, d. 345
 * (m) Saera Celtigar, d. 379
 * Vaemond Velaryon, b. 345
 * (m) Vaella Targaryen, his wife, d. 404
 * Shiera Velaryon b. 371
 * (m) Perceon Vance
 * Ser Preston Vance, b. 387
 * Rhialta Vance, b. 389
 * Paxter Vance, b. 395
 * Minisa Vance, b. 399
 * Aurane Velaryon, his firstborn son and heir, b. 375
 * (m) Baela Targaryen of Summerhall
 * Valaena Velaryon, b. 391
 * Daenaera Velaryon, rider of the dragon Erinnon, b. 392
 * Ser Lucerys Velaryon, rider of the dragon Seastar, b. 378
 * Rhaella Velaryon, b. 378
 * (m) Ulrick Dayne, d. 405
 * Their children
 * Corlys III Velaryon, b. 382
 * m. Visaera Targaryen
 * Aerys Velaryon, b. 4th Moon, 409