It took two weeks to build and install the smoke flowers. Two big 'flowers' were installed on both sides of the Sovereign and the Eärrámë; these platforms had a 45-degree swivel and could be raised by 30 degrees. They could be locked into place at any degree, and stretch fabric cushions easily handled the recoil. They could then be withdrawn far enough to reload. One 'flower' was mounted on the fore castle and one on the poop deck. The throat on these 'flowers' was the size of a cantaloupe, and the shot was made of iron. The 4 large troop ships had a large 'flower' mounted on either side, and two of them had a small 'flower' mounted on their fore castles. Each stonekin ship had a large and a small 'flower' mounted. The sandkin ship had a large 'flower' mounted on each side. That left three 'flowers' unused, and the installation teams were debating whether to keep them in reserve or install them when a very large royal ship slipped into the secret harbor. The royals, their guards, and their treasures, which were supposed to go west, ran into a Zon blockade, turned around, and boarded the royal ship. That cinched it; those leftover 'flowers' were mounted on it.
Arya swore in the refugee royals, their guards, and their crew. And their armada became 10 ships. Shortly after the last 1000-plus stonekin arrived at the estate, were sworn in, and joined their kin, they saw which way the wind was blowing and threw their lot in with the others fleeing. The nearly 10,000 people were assigned to their ships and began drilling on board each. Foodstuffs and water barrels were being loaded every day.
Ned was beside himself with joy, while he was mainly camped out on the deck of his ship, which was clearly being prepared for launch, he started visiting each vessel. He oversaw the installation of weapons and the loading of goods and ammunition. He inspected each crate and barrel brought on board, and if something were not up to snuff, he would clearly let the people doing the loading know. "Yes, Ned!" became a new rally cry for the motley bunch. It rather endeared them to him and each other. More than once, he was seen dropping dead rodents off of ship railings, and he would carefully watch them sink. No rodents in his fleet!
Ned joined Nymeria less and less on her hunts, and she made herself scarce because of the hustle and bustle going on at the estate. She checked in on Arya often, but the circles of her hunts got wider. She had caught and killed two Zon spies, which she dragged to the building where her kills were stored. Ming started checking the building each morning on his rounds of gathering intel. One night, Nymeria was on the top of a nearby mountain, and she thought she caught a whiff of home. She sat and howled so loudly it woke the whole camp, though she was nearly a mile away. She understood all the activity meant a long ship ride and then home.
The Zonian general who took over after the raid devastated the town received word that the beachhead attempt in Aman had been destroyed. He clearly wasn't going to be able to invade there, but word came from his superiors that 20 new ships were on their way to him, full of troops and supplies. The raid that trashed one of their cities was not being taken lightly; he was to invade Thrain instead. To that end, he began to send troops to blockade the country. He didn't have the ships to handle the port, but he would soon have them. He began feeling out the enemy's resistance at focal points. And discovered very little. It was clear that Thrain had begun sending its people south into the mountains to set up resistance there. Several ships had fled to Aman loaded with goods and people, and even the royal ship had vanished. His intel on the strange easterners was spotty, though; his team members kept dying before they could report. He would send more, but the results were the same. When the ships arrived, he would blockade the entire coast and prevent them from escaping home or to Aman. And the ships were due any day now.
Preparations for launch were finished now, and at the last minute, 8 of the tall man's group showed up and were placed on the royal's ship after swearing fealty in a rushed ceremony. The Zon troops and ships had arrived, and the invasion of Thrain was in full swing. Smoke from fires in the city was getting closer, and as they loaded up to leave, a watcher came running, saying 4 Zonian ships were not far from the mouth of their harbor. It was decided that the Sovereign and the Eärrámë would leave first and engage the enemy vessels, allowing the other ships a chance to break free. As the two vessels broke out of the harbor into the open, a huge explosion came from the area of the palace. It shook the land and vibrated through the water; birds took flight everywhere, and a shock wave from the blast leveled buildings in a wide circle. On the royal ship, King Wen's children all said, "Good-bye, father." They understood that the palace had been captured, and when the Zon general came to kill King Wen in his throne room, the blast had been detonated.