It is the year 184 AC.
Dorne's pacification is all but at hand, Aegon the Unworthy has legitimized each of his bastards before dying in his own filth, and Daeron II has taken the Iron Throne. In the Vale of Arryn, most nobles have paid such matters little attention thus far -- Targaryens have always begat Targaryens, crownlanders have always been slighting one another, and the crown has always defeated its opposition. The gossip of low lords' extramarital affairs and paltry conversations over the skill of dressmakers has proved enough to distract most of Jasper Arryn's bannermen, but it is not enough to distract the lord of Heart's Home.
The Corbrays, for their quiet, forgotten holdings, have had an ear to the affairs of the Lord Arryn since the days they assisted in the Andal conquest. Gwayne Corbray, Lord Corbray's younger brother, has taken the white cloak of the Kingsguard, sharing details of court with ravens sent to Heart's Home. Now, Lord Edwin Corbray has been at work planning for the war he believes is looming on the horizon with a heavy heart. Though his mind is troubled with the fear of war, it is not troubled with the fear of death. It is not low lords who decide the outcome of battles, but their sworn swords.
