Chương 92: The Dragon King Arrives
It was quiet, neither side saying anything as they sat patiently. Flags flapped in the wind, the ruffling of leather and armour joining the sound as men shifted to get into a more comfortable position. Yet they were all on alert, all those experienced in warfare and battle scanning their surroundings carefully.
An hour, that's how long they had spent, only moments of idle chatter breaking through the silence between them. Yet, despite that time, there was still no sign of Aegon Targaryen or his entourage at all.
That alone raised questions. Had he simply decided to not join and was preparing himself for war against his enemies? Was he on his way here to negotiate? Or was he on his way here to kill both his enemies? Or just one of them?
As those questions crossed Robb's mind, he looked towards Daenerys and her group carefully. 'Am I too late? Are Aegon and she allies and I am simply being played for a fool?' Quickly he dismissed those thoughts as he looked upon the slumbering Dragon behind the Queen. 'No, if that was the case she would have no need to wait this long. If she were allied with Aegon then she would have just killed me the moment I arrived.'
However, despite this Robb didn't relax, especially not when he looked upon the Unsullied behind her. He had done his research upon the soldiers of Essos, no city seemed to have a standing army. Instead, they either armed their slaves and sent them out to die while weakening the enemy. Others just hired large numbers of Sellsword Companies. The only thing close to a standing force within Essos was the Unsullied, slave soldiers trained from birth.
They worried Robb a great deal and it was another reason he didn't want Daenerys as an enemy. He had heard tales of the skill and discipline that Unsullied possessed and while they were lightly armoured, their training was extensive. The most famous of their skill was in the story of three thousand Unsullied forcing a Khalasar of fifty thousand Dothraki to retreat.
Robb had never met Dothraki personally so he couldn't say much for their skill, but the sheer number of foes the Unsullied fought against despite their few numbers told him all he needed to know. 'With the plans, I have in place I may be able to deal with her Dragons and perhaps on the open fields, I may be able to beat her Unsullied. But if I was to besiege Dragonstone, even with my full force I may lose. Especially if Aegon is not taken care of first.'
He let none of these thoughts appear on his face, instead of looking to the sun in the sky which was beginning to drop. Night was coming and that only made Robb's concerns rise. It was highly possible that as Daenerys and he retired for the evening to begin negotiations between the two of them on the morrow that during the night, Aegon could attack.
"Perhaps it would be best if we began negotiations of our own." Robb proposed arms crossed over his chest. Daenerys looked up from where she had been stroking the snout of her Dragon and turned to him inquisitively.
"Without Aegon?" She questioned and Robb shrugged.
"The sun is going to set soon. So it seems likely that Aegon has no intention of negotiating with us. War is his answer and I shall respond in kind. But I would like to know your own answer." Robb answered. "Do you intend for peace or war?"
Yet it was not Daenerys that answered, instead it was Tyrion who did in her place though perhaps without permission if the look that came across the Dragon Queens face was anything to go by. "Perhaps Aegon has been delayed, trying to ensure a safe path to this meeting. Especially considering your army is marching south. It raises the question if you even came to negotiate in the first place or if war was always your answer?"
His words were sharp and earned more than a few reactions. The most obvious was Smalljon whose blade was halfway out of its sheath before Dacey managed to stop him. "Ye dare speak to a King in such a fashion. I'll have yer head on a spike before yer rotten mouth opens again!"
Before Smalljon's tirade could continue, Robb rose his hand, silencing the giant of a man without saying even a word. Yet he never took his gaze off Daenerys, judging her reaction to Tyrion's words. She didn't seem to overly trust the imp, but she at least seemed to share similar concerns that Tyrion had raised. It at least showed to him that Daenerys had come here meaning to negotiate and not betray him.
That was good news at least.
"You forget, Imp that until the Targaryens arrived the war in the south had been won. Your father, uncle and brother were captured along with the Mountain. The Westerlands had all but fallen with only Casterly Rock remaining, which has now fallen. The only Lannisters not captive to me were Joffrey, Cersei and the other children. But they posed no threat to me." Robb explained firmly. "Then I learn that two forces of Targaryens arrive, one possessing three Dragons and having a host of twenty thousand men. The other allied with the Dornish and Golden Company, numbering thirty thousand."
"Their intentions were unknown, their loyalties to one another also a mystery. Even now I do not know of where you two stand in comparison to the other. I have fought this war for three years of my life and I was close to ending it all. I will not risk the stability I have brought and needlessly start a war that could be easily avoided with a meeting with you both. However, I am not a naïve fool. We may have a truce, but I am still fighting a war and will act in a fashion befitting of that aim." Robb finally turned his gaze towards Tyrion.
Beside him, Grey Wind and Nymeria raised and snarled. Drogon as if sensing something was amiss opened his eyes, a single action that attracted nearly everyone's gaze. The only ones who didn't look being Daenerys, Tyrion and Robb.
"If war can be avoided in this meeting then I will gladly do my part to ensure that is the case. Lannisters may possess no honour or care for the common folk but do not presume that to be the case for me." There was a warning there, everyone heard it clearly.
"Then help us avoid this war entirely." Ser Barristan intervened. "Queen Daenerys has a rightful claim to the Iron Throne. Pledge your fealty to her and support her cause. Not even Aegon will be able to withstand against such a united force and war will be avoided entirely."
But many amongst Robb's party scoffed, most noticeably those from the North. Robb himself smiled, though it lacked any sort of humour, it was almost pitying in a way.
"Ser Barristan." He said. "You are a man of honour, a soldier whose skill and accomplishments are still talked about today. I respect you, truly. But do not be so naïve as to believe that I would subject my family to the rule of the Targaryens once more. You know well as to what happened the last time that we did. It is well-known that when a Targaryen is born, the Gods flip a coin. Thankfully it seems that you Queen Daenerys have avoided the fate of madness that has gripped many of your ancestors. It is truly fortunate and a blessing from the Gods."
Robb truly was earnest in his words, she was young, much like himself. So it was impossible to say what she could become in the future, it is possible that Daenerys could have madness hiding under a façade of kindness that could later come to life. It was uncertain, but at this time she was not mad and therefore, Robb thanked the Old Gods for their kindness.
"But who is to say that her descendants will be the same?" There was no answer. "You knew Rhaegar better than me, but by all accounts, he was the pride and joy of Westeros. A shining beacon of hope for a better future. But look what happened next, he kidnapped my aunt and raped her. Then, after wrongfully imprisoning my uncle and my grandfather called forth his right for Trial by Combat, he made a mockery of it all and chose fire, burning my grandfather alive while my uncle died as well. If you believe I will subject my family to the Targaryens once more then you are sadly mistaken."
"My brother did not rape your aunt, Lyanna!" Daenerys argued hotly, Drogon rumbling. "They ran away together."
Robb had heard similar stories himself but he didn't believe them. "Believe what you will, but nonetheless, my family has suffered under your own and I will not force them to do so again."
"You don't have to," Tyrion interjected. "The North can rule itself independently. Though in turn, we would require you to hand over the other kingdoms however you will receive favourable trade agreements and even a powerful ally in the Targaryens. Think about it, northern independence." It was something Tyrion and Ser Barristan had suggested and while initially unwilling, Daenerys had eventually agreed to give up the North if it meant the rest of Westeros.
It was after all the best decision to make.
The North was permanently weakened as a result of this war and they were not a prosperous region anyway. It would take many, many years for it to recover and by that point, Daenerys would have consolidated her rule over the rest of Westeros. Not to mention that considering she controlled the trade, eventually the North would return to the fold of the Seven Kingdoms once more of its own volition.
But perhaps the best thing to come about of this would be a new and perhaps more powerful Kingdom replacing the North in the form of the Riverlands. It was the lead trading hub in the entirety of Westeros considering its vast amounts of rivers that allowed ships to deliver goods to major cities. As a result, it also saw a great deal of immigration from nearby kingdoms and with its farmable land, was a self-sustaining kingdom.
However, its biggest weakness was its military. Back in the time before the Targaryens, the Riverlands had, as the centre of Westeros being the land ravaged most by wars. Various Kings sought to use it to expand their own territories or used it as an area to do battle against their rivals.
It was constantly being destroyed by war and so never developed itself as a true military power, especially not after the fall of the Hammer of Justice, the King of the Rivers and Hills, Tristifer IV Mudd. After his death and the destruction of House Mudd, the Riverlands had never been the same again and had crumbled into near nothingness.
Even under the Targaryens, it had never implemented a proper military structure. As a result, despite possessing large numbers of men at fighting age, it had no way to properly call upon them in times of war. This led to it despite having arguably one of the largest populations in Westeros, only able to call upon an army the size of the Stormlands. This was its biggest weakness, but something that Robb Stark and the Tyrell's had been changing.
If the North was to leave, Daenerys would not lose much as she had initially believed. In fact, if she continued to invest in the Riverlands as Robb had then she would only get stronger.
"Did you know that in the Battle of the Antlers, on the eve of the final day I could have left?" Robb asked and many looked to him in confusion. "Ser Dickon Tarly had prepared boats to ferry me and my council across the Gods Eye and to safety. But I stayed, do you know why?"
"I hardly see what this has to do with the proposition we just gave you?" Daenerys retorted.
Robb smiled. "It has everything to do with it. You see if I was to have taken Dickon's offer. I would be asking the army that remained to give their lives in the final battle against Tywin. Without me to lead them it would have been suicide. I would be asking them to give their lives in place of my own. I couldn't ask them to do that. You see, my dynasty will live in my child. I couldn't ask my soldiers who had fought so fiercely and with such loyalty to make a sacrifice that I myself, was not willing to make."
As soon as those words were spoken, the realisation dawned upon Daenerys and her supporters as well. "Just as I cannot subject my family to the rule of the Targaryens. I can also not ask my people, those who have sworn loyalty to me to do that same if they do not wish it."
Before anything else could be said, a horn was sounded and in the distance, the third ruler arrived.
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