Chương 2230: 24
Summary:
The Dragon and the Stag make their plans for war. Whilst Ned learns an important piece of information
The Griffin
Jon Connington was seated in the main hall of Storms End sipping his wine. They were being served an evening meal of mutton stew which Jon had barely touched. The Castellan, Ser Cortnay Penrose had allowed 20 of his men to reside in the castle whilst the rest of the Golden Company forces would have to remain camped outside the walls of the castle. Jon estimated that there were at least 500 men inside the castle but that did not faze him. If the rest of the plan worked perfectly then they would not see him coming.
The men were well into their cups at this time of the evening and Jon was pleased with this, the men would be difficult to rouse if they were drunk. He watched as they laughed and joked with each other, one man boasted about how he was going to slay a dragon, another boasted about what he would do if he had a night with the Dragon Queen. Jon shook his head at these idiots, they would be lucky to see the morning.
Lord Renly was not in the hall and Jon was worried. He hoped that Renly was still in the castle as he would make a valuable hostage. He also hoped that Renly had not sent word to the Usurper informing him of their presence. Jon knew that if the Usurper found out they were in the Stormlands, then he would turn around and send his forces south. Jon did not want this, this would make it easier for the false prince to win his war. Jon hoped that the false prince and the Usurper would weaken each other and that would make it easier for him to seat the true King on the throne.
Ser Cortnay was seated at the high table but his meal was untouched as well. Jon noticed that he had been staring at him throughout the entire meal and this made Jon uncomfortable. Had he been recognized? Jon hoped that he hadn't. His sweaty hand drifted subconsciously to his dagger and his fingers brushed over the hilt. He had to be patient, if he acted too soon it would all be for nothing. He had to be patient, they had been accepted into the castle, and it was all going according to plan.
But what if they got lost? Or what if the seas were too rough? 20 men were not enough to swarm the castle, they needed their reinforcements. Jon took a nervous sip of his wine before setting it back on the table. He swirled the sweet taste in his mouth and used it to try and calm his nerves.
He looked up at the high table and saw that Ser Cortnay was no longer there, he quickly scanned around the hall and then he spotted him standing in front of him. Jon rose to his feet but he was quickly waved away and Ser Cortnay instead chose to sit opposite him at their table. Jon looked at the man and nodded.
"How long have you been serving in the Golden Company?" he asked,
"Nearly 20 years," Jon replied, this was close enough to the truth.
"Where are you from?" he asked and Jon looked at him suspiciously,
"Essos," he lied. "I was born in Pentos or thereabouts,"
"Parents?"
"Dead," and the man nodded slowly.
"How many men do you have?"
"20,000 roughly. How many men do the Targaryens have?" Jon asked nonchalantly.
"Not a clue," he said with a shrug and this disappointed Jon, although he realised that the Spider would have this type of information.
"When do you plan on marching to Kings Landing?" he asked,
"Soon. Within the next few days," Jon lied. "The King is expecting us and we shouldn't keep him waiting," and Cortnay nodded.
"Did you know they called a council?" he asked and Jon shook his head, it would be better to act as if he did not know.
"The Targaryens called a council to 'discuss the issue of the Iron Throne'. King Robert went and he sent us a raven telling us about what happened," he told him and Jon reached to take a drink of his wine.
"The Targaryens showed up, but only with two dragons," he said and Jon raised an eyebrow in surprise. Could they have killed a Dragon already? That thought filled him with confidence if the Usurper could kill one, he could easily kill the other two. The Dornish had friends in the Citadel and they had made great progress on this issue. They would soon share what they have found with them. He lifted his cup to his lips and he started to drink.
"He also said that Rhaegar Targaryen is alive," and Jon nearly choked on his drink. He spluttered loudly and Harry looked at him with a concerned look on his face. Jon shook his head repeatedly, Rhaegar could not be alive, everyone knew the story, that he had died on the Trident.
"Rhaegar Targaryen died on the Trident," Harry said and Cortnay shook his head.
"That's what I thought," Cortnay said to them "But the King himself saw Rhaegar Targaryen and so did everyone else at the council, it must be true,"
Jon nodded slowly and focused on his drink. He felt a warm, hopeful feeling build inside of him. Rhaegar was alive, his silver prince was alive after all these years and Jon had his son. He had the true prince.
Varys should have known, he was the Spider, he knew everything. Why would he hide this piece of information from him? Did he not trust him? Jon started to grow angry, the Spider was playing games with him again. He would have to deal with him properly when he finally saw him. He knew the Spider was hiding from King Robert somewhere, but the Spider would find a way to survive, he always did.
Then Jon realised that if he was at the council, then he would be with Daenerys and the false prince. Why would Rhaegar do this? Surely he of all people would know that this boy was not the true King? Something was not making sense.
"I have heard stories about King Aegon, I have heard that he is the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark, but that can't be true," Jon said but Cortnay shook his head
"No. It apparently is true, it was confirmed by Lord Eddard Stark of Winterfell, and apparently he had hid the boy and disguised him as his bastard,"
Jon was silent for a few moments as he took in what was said. He had always known that Elia was not good enough for his silver Prince but he was sure that Lyanna Stark was no better. Lord Stark hid the boy? Jon did not understand that, Lord Stark was the Usurper's dog, why would he do this?
"Rhaegar already had a wife, Elia," Jon said. "This boy is no more than a bastard," but Ser Cortnay only shrugged.
"Bastard or not. We're still going to have to kill him," he said. "Why do you care anyway?" he asked as he looked at him suspiciously.
"No particular reason," Jon said as he took a small sip of his wine.
"I'm sure there is a reason, a sellsword from Essos is taking an interest in the Targaryens," he said as he stared at him. Jon swilled his wine and shrugged his shoulders.
"Can't a man be curious?" he asked and Cortnay looked at him suspiciously before he slowly nodded. "It's getting late, I think I will retire for the evening," Jon said as he slowly stood up.
"You know where your chambers are?" he asked and Jon nodded. He shared one last quick glance at Harry before leaving. He left the warm great hall and entered the cooler corridors of Storms End. He quickly walked to his chambers and then bolted the door behind him. Once he was in his room he sunk to the floor and ran his hands through his hair and breathed a loud sigh.
Rhaegar was alive, his silver prince was alive, but he was with the false prince. Jon would have to meet him and show him his true son and then Rhaegar would put a stop to this foolishness. If Jon could return his firstborn son to him, then he would finally be worthy of him.
Then Jon realised that returning his son would not be enough, he would have to do better. If he could sit the boy on the throne first, then Rhaegar would be impressed and he would be unable to refuse him. Jon took a deep breath and looked out of the window. It was dark but they would have to wait for the castle to quiet down, then they could strike. Jon stood up and looked out of the window, it was a cloudy moonless night and this wasn't good. Black Balaq might have trouble shooting down any ravens that tried to leave the castle.
Then Jon moved back inside his room, sat on his bed and he waited. Soon it would be time to strike.
The Lord of Winterfell
Ned Stark stood alone in the cold crypts of Winterfell. He had entered the crypts late last night and Ned was sure that the sun would have come up by now. He stood opposite the statue of Lyanna, staring at the stone figure. It was nothing like her and the stonemason had been unable to do her justice. Lyanna was much more beautiful than this. Ned closed his eyes as he remembered the last time he saw her, dying in that bed all the way in Dorne, so far from home. Then his thoughts turned to Jon, and how poorly he had handled the situation.
The political situation in the North was very difficult at the moment, he had never seen his bannermen so divided and unruly, nearly every day in the great hall they had held the same debate. Some houses, such as Karstark and Hornwood strongly opposed Jon and his reforms and they wanted to go to war. Other houses like Manderly and Cerwyn had agreed with him and agreed that Jon's vision for the North was good and they should stand behind him. Other Lords were unhappy after they had heard of the allegations that Jon had levelled against his father, Lord Rickard. Then when they heard about his plans to depose House Tully and strip them of their lands, titles and positions, more Lords had been willing to go to war against Jon.
Ned knew that whatever decision he made in the end, a portion of his bannermen would be upset. Whilst he was the Lord and his word was final, he knew that he did not have enough support to win a civil war in the North if it came down to it, and even if he could win, Winter was coming and a depleted North might not live to see the spring.
To avoid a civil war, he would need Jon's support. If he bent the knee to Jon, then he would have the support of the dragons on his side and those in the North who opposed him would not be able to win a war against the dragons. Ned knew that Jon would win this war against Robert Baratheon and this would serve as an example to those in the North who were foolish enough to oppose the dragons.
As he thought of Jon, he thought back to their meeting at the council. Ned knew that their meeting at the council had gone badly and perhaps he was to blame for that. Had he not brought Catelyn with him, then Jon would have had less reason to be angry with him. Ned had realised that Jon was right, his decision to allow to Catelyn to treat him poorly was a selfish one. He had reasoned that allowing Catelyn to treat Jon poorly would help sell the lie that he was his bastard, no one would expect a highborn woman to treat her husband's bastard well. Yet that decision had backfired and it had allowed an unhealthy level of resentment to build up and this was something that only he could take the blame for.
Ned wondered that if he went south now, without Catelyn being present, if they could have a better conversation and clear the air properly. If he had that chance Ned knew that he would have to apologize to Jon for what had happened to him whilst he was at Winterfell. If he could speak to Jon alone, without Catelyn and Rhaegar being present then maybe they stand a chance at having a better and more fruitful conversation.
As Ned's thoughts turned to Rhaegar, he realised that the silver prince was once again, the cause of his problems. Ned knew that Rhaegar was the one who had told Jon these lies about his father. He remembered that Rhaegar said that Lyanna was the mystery knight at the tourney all those years ago, another obvious lie.
Ned knew his sister, she was wild and fierce, but she was not the mystery knight. Mystery knights showed up at Tourneys all the time. The great Ser Barristan the Bold dressed up as a mystery knight once. There was no hidden conspiracy behind it, it was just a mystery knight
"My Lord," he heard a voice call and Ned turned to see that it was Howland Reed. He was meaning to go and look for him to speak privately, but it seems Howland had found him first.
"Please, you can call me Ned, you should know that by now," Ned returned with a smile. The small crannogman smiled in return. Ned looked at his face in the flickering light. He had also aged since that day, he had a few streaks of grey in his hair and he had allowed his beard to grow slightly.
"Ned, what can I do for you?" he asked
"I wanted to speak to you about Lyanna, and Jon," he said and Howland nodded slowly.
"Her husband is alive," Ned began and Howland again nodded but kept quiet, he was a man of little words.
"I met them both again at the council and it did not go well. Jon does not like me, he is angry at me for the way I treated him when he was growing up around Winterfell. I admit, his anger is justified but I think that Rhaegar is using this anger to turn him against me,"
"How is he doing that?"
"He is making up lies about my father. He says that he was part of a conspiracy to overthrow the Targaryen dynasty. Rhaegar said that the only reason that this conspiracy failed was because my sister told him about it and therefore he was able to stop it but the whole thing does not make any sense. If Lyanna knew about this conspiracy, who would have told her? I was not told and even if she knew, she would never betray her family like that,"
Howland was quiet for a few moments before he spoke,
"I didn't know Lyanna as well as you did, but I do know that she would always stand up and do what is right," he said softly and Ned paused, he remembered that Rhaegar had said something similar to him at the council.
"How could she find out about this conspiracy? If my father had planned this, he would have told all of us, or none of us," Ned pointed out.
"Perhaps, she overheard a conversation that she should not have. I am sure that we can agree that Lyanna did not usually care to do what society told her to do," he said quietly and Ned nodded in agreement. "I can't tell you if this conspiracy is true or not but I do know that if there was injustice, she would have stood up to stop it," he said calmly and Ned nodded. He knew his sister, this sounded like the type of thing that she would do.
"Howland, what do you know about the Knight of the Laughing Tree?" he asked and he saw Howlands eyes widen in surprise. "At the council, Rhaegar said that the mystery knight was Lyanna and he was the one that found her. He lied and said that his father somehow found out that she was the mystery knight and had sent men to arrest her and this was why they ran off together,"
Howland nodded slowly. "Lyanna was the Knight of the Laughing Tree, that part is true. I am not sure about the rest of it,"
"What?" Ned said as he whipped his head around to look at him "That can't be true,"
"It is true. Lyanna found me when I was being attacked by those squires and she was the one that saved me. After that, she decided to dress up as the mystery knight to teach them a public lesson," he said and Ned just shook his head.
"That doesn't make sense. She was the daughter of a great Lord, if she wanted to send a message, she could have stood up at the feast and those knights would have all listened to her," he said adamantly but Howland just shrugged.
"Perhaps, she thought that it would be better to teach them a lesson with actions rather than words. By defeating them in the joust, she embarrassed them in front of all the Lords of the realm and forced the knights to take their squire's punishment seriously. I don't think they would have done so if Lyanna stood up and spoken about it at the feast to do this,"
Ned was quiet as he thought about Howland's words. He could see his logic, by defeating them in the joust she did send a better message but this revelation also had further implications.
If Lyanna was the mystery knight, then Rhaegar's story about his father wanting to arrest her would be true. Ned still remembered the King's anger that day, he had set a bounty on the Knight's head and he had been determined to find him. Perhaps, Rhaegar really did save his sister from a terrible fate at the Mad King's hands. If this was true, then maybe he would have to rethink his opinion on Rhaegar Targaryen after all.
Then Ned thought about the conspiracy, perhaps Howland was right. Maybe Lyanna had secretly overheard a conversation that she should not have and then she had told Rhaegar, maybe there really was a conspiracy after all. Jon's arguments and the reasoning did have a certain amount of logic, his father's decisions on the marriages of Brandon and Lyanna, his own fostering in the Vale broke the traditions and general views of all the previous Lords of Winterfell. However, this still did not sound like something his father would have done, he needed proof.
Ned shook his head and sighed in frustration. There was only one man who would be able to prove this conspiracy, Lord Hoster Tully, but to see him Ned knew that he would have to ride South and take his bannermen with him. Then Ned thought about Robb's raven to Jon, they were still awaiting his reply.
"I need to ride south to see Hoster Tully, only he can confirm this conspiracy," Ned said but Howland shook his head.
"Your bannermen will want to accompany you. The Karstarks and the Hornwoods especially," he said and Ned knew that he was right. "Worse still, this could look like an act of war, you can't go to war against Lyanna's son, Ned,"
"I know that I can't. I will ride as far South as our borders with the Riverlands and no further. Lord Hoster will have to meet me in Northern territory," Ned said and Howland nodded slowly.
"What about your bannermen, what will you tell them?" he asked and Ned paused before he replied.
"I will bring them all south. The Lords such as Karstark and Hornwood who wish to go to war against the Dragons will have an opportunity to see the dragons for themselves, that way they can all see how foolish they are for even entertaining this idea,"
"What will you do if you see him?" Howland asked and Ned took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Their meeting at the council had gone badly but Ned still made a promise to his mother, he could not go to war against him.
He would have to bend the knee and support his claim. Ned knew that Jon would win the war without his help, but he also knew that in order to repair their relationship, he would have to reach out and make an effort. Ned hoped that if he saw Jon again with the intention to bend the knee and acknowledge him as King, then Jon would in turn be merciful towards his wife and they can work to repair this relationship.
"I will bend the knee," Ned said quietly and he saw Howland nod and smile "But I will not tell this to the Lords. Some of them are already unhappy and if I tell them that I plan to bend the knee then this could cause them to make some rash decisions. If I keep them in the dark, then they will be willing follow me,"
"I think that you should leave them here and I don't think you should lie to them," Howland said quietly
"I have no choice Howland. If I tell them that I plan to bend the knee and they don't agree, then they have the entire march south to create a plot to get rid of me. If I tell them and I leave them here, then they are free to wage war in the North whilst I'm gone. By lying to them, I take these options away from them,"
He heard Howland sigh before speaking,
"Aye, you're probably right but I don't think your bannermen will betray you, they will grumble and complain, but I think that eventually they will accept your decision," he said but Ned was not so sure and he knew than it was better to be safe than sorry.
The Onion Knight
It was early in the morning and the sun was barely over the horizon as Ser Davos Seaworth made his way towards Kings Landing. The ink coloured waters of the Blackwater Bay were smooth and this meant sailing from Dragonstone had been relatively straight forward. He spied the Red Keep looming tall on Aegon's high hill and he could see the royal flags waving gently in the morning breeze. He wondered how soon until the crowned Stag of House Baratheon would be replaced with the three headed red dragon of House Targaryen.
The King had been planning his war in the recent few weeks and Davos had not been invited to those war councils. However, a few weeks ago, the King had come and spoken to him to ask for a favor. King Aegon had asked if he could use his skills as a smuggler to sneak into the city and gauge the city's defenses. Davos was unsure of how suitable he would be for this task, he knew nothing of war but he decided that he would give it his best effort. They told him to pay attention to the city walls to look for those scorpions that could harm their dragons.
Davos had been wary of the young King and Queen at first, they had made their fiery arrival on the back of their screaming dragons breathing fire down onto him and his fleet. He had thought that they would soon depart from Dragonstone to bring fire and blood to Westeros in the typical Targaryen way. He had been surprised to know that were not like that. They could have imprisoned Shireen and used her as a hostage but instead they had treated her with kindness. They had allowed her to roam the castle and spend time with their child, a cheerful young boy who reminded Davos of his own little children home at Cape Wrath.
Davos believed that this kindness helped Shireen to move past the death of her parents. It was a difficult transition for her but she had been feeling better lately and this pleased Davos. She had been spending time with the Queen more and Davos guessed that she thought of her as a bigger sister of sorts. This was kind of Queen Daenerys, Davos had seen Queen Cersei a few times during his trips to the capital and he was sure that this was something she would not have done.
He knew many of the coves that surrounded Kings Landing from his days as a smuggler so it would be relatively easy for him to slip into the city undetected. Davos took a deep breath as he focused on directing his small boat into the cove. He had used this cove for decades and it was one of his favorite spots to smuggle his goods into Kings Landing. The cliffs provided a natural cover from the guards on the walls and Davos knew that the entrance to this cove was one of the blind spots in the city's defenses.
He skillfully navigated the boat around the rocks and then hauled it onto the smooth pebble shore. He pushed the boat to one side and then hauled out a sack of onions that he had brought with him. If anyone spotted him, he was just an ordinary merchant looking to sell some of his goods.
This cove was in a cave and towards the back of the cave, Davos knew that there was a stepped path that would take him up to the surface in Flea Bottom. As far as he knew, the city watch had forgotten about this cave and they were unlikely to travel into Flea Bottom just to search for it. Perhaps, once this cave was a secret exit to help people escape the city in case it fell, either way, it was long forgotten.
He ran a hand through his rough beard and made his way up towards the surface. Once he surfaced, he breathed in the familiar flea bottom stink. That familiar stench of pig sties and stables that he had grown up with, it almost felt like home. Flea Bottom sat at the bottom of Rhaenys hill, site of the famous Dragonpit.
Davos saw the people slowly waking up and beginning to start their daily activities. Bleary eyed people were rising from their hovels and he could smell the pot shops cooking up their usual bowl of brown mush, he only wondered what was in them this morning. He carefully navigated the maze of narrow alleyways and dirty streets.
Davos decided that the best course of action would be to start from Flea Bottom and to inspect as many of the city gates as he could. He found that the Iron Gate, Dragon Gate and the Old Gate were all closed and barred shut. The Mud Gate and the Gate of the Gods were open, but only to merchants and fishmongers who wanted to enter the city to sell their goods. The guards did not allow anyone to leave.
Those who were allowed to leave the city left through the Kings Gate and the Lions Gate but Lannister men in their crimson cloaks were always on guard manning the posts. Davos watched from afar as they stopped every wagon and carriage that made their way to the gates. They forced riders to open their saddlebags and they searched every single wagon and carriage and they questioned everyone who tried to leave on foot. Davos was unsure why they cared so much about who was leaving the city, surely it only mattered who was trying to enter.
He was not allowed to get onto the city walls as they were filled with Gold Cloaks but he did see a few large mounted scorpions in the stretch of wall between the Iron Gate and the Old Gate. He was unable to get a good look at them but from this distance they looked much bigger than the ones they had on Dragonstone. He would have to report this back to the King and the Queen.
As Davos walked through the city, he quickly realised that the city was close to starving and as a result his bag of onions was empty within minutes. Davos wondered where all the food went and how the people in the city would cope. The people in Flea Bottom would make do, they always had. Whether it was pieces of rat or pieces of bird they would find something to eat and to throw into their bowls of brown. They also still had the sea and the river, fishmongers square was still bustling with activity and the King and Queen had thankfully not sailed their fleet down the Blackwater.
What the Highborn would do was another matter entirely, he saw several small riots break out in the streets. One baker had his store completely overrun by a group of men who quickly made off with all of his bread. Then a few streets later, Davos saw the same men fighting amongst themselves as they tried to share the loot. Unfortunately for them, the gold cloaks quickly intervened and hauled them all away, but not before giving them a good beating first.
It was around mid-day by the time Davos reached the Sept of Baelor on Visenya's hill. The Sept stood on a white marble plaza with a statue of King Baelor standing tall looking over the city. From this height Davos could see nearly everything in Kings Landing, he looked out towards the Blackwater and he saw a few war Galleys in the Blackwater itself. Davos was surprised by this, he had thought that the entire Royal fleet would have been destroyed during the naval battle at Dragonstone. King Robert must have kept a few ships behind in case he needed to make an escape.
People had started to gather on the plaza. Davos noticed that these people were mostly low born and they all shared the same look of unhappiness and resentment. Perhaps, the lack of food in the capital was upsetting them more than Davos anticipated. The High Septon came out to preach to the crowd. He was a short squat man with greying hair and Davos stopped to listen to him speak.
"People of King's Landing," he called out in a loud high voice "We gather here in this holy place to hear the words of the Gods. The Targaryens are here once again in Westeros. They follow the red god of fire, that god is false!" he shouted and Davos saw several of the commoners nod their head in agreement.
"If the Targaryens win, they will destroy the Septs and will force you all to follow their false Gods! The Targaryens practice the sinful act of incest, the Seven decree that incest is a sin! We must join together and pray! We must pray to the Father! For he shall protect the good King Robert in battle! We must pray to the Warrior! For he shall give King Robert strength! We must pray to the Crone! For she shall give King Robert wisdom to win this war! Pray! We must pray!" he shouted to the crowd.
Davos rolled his eyes and decided to leave the plaza, he had seen those dragons in battle himself and they were gods in their own right. He made his way through the crowd of people and he headed down Visenya's hill. The talk of war and the Targaryens were on the lips of everyone he passed by, for lowborn to highborn. He heard people talk about Queen Daenerys. One man said that she bathed herself in the blood of virgins to keep her skin smooth and supple, another man said that the King fed their dragons human flesh to help to grow. Another said that they practiced blood sacrifices every day and this is what gave the King his ability to change his appearance.
Davos ignored these rumors, the people of Kings Landing often had nothing better to do than to gossip and spread rumors. This was especially true now since they were not allowed to leave the city. Davos decided to head along the street of flour, home of the many bakeries in Kings Landing. He saw several members of the Gold Cloaks patrolling these streets and keeping the King's peace. Davos decided to head into one of the stores to see what he could find out.
The baker was a tall lean man with a long pointed nose and a completely bald head. His thin lips were locked into a grimace and Davos quickly purchased a loaf of bread which he would give to someone on his way back through flea bottom.
"Why are they stopping people from leaving the city?" he asked the baker,
"The King has decreed that every single armorer and apprentice on the street of steel must stay and commission weapons for war. The Gold Cloaks stop and search everyone that tries to leave, if they find so much as a dagger they will take it from you and keep it," Davos nodded slowly.
"Why haven't you left?"
"Where would I go? I am a baker and this is my store. It belonged to my father, and to his father before him. I will not leave," he replied simply.
"But still, war is coming,"
"I have already survived one sack of this city, I can survive another," Davos nodded and then thanked the man before heading back into the street. The baker was a fool for staying, his shop would not survive a sack and his stubbornness could cost him his life He decided to head towards the Street of steel to see if the baker's words were true and he was surprised to see that they were.
The sky above the street of steel was filled with black smoke from the forges. Davos slowly made his way to the top of the hill where he knew the more expensive shops could be found. At the top of the hill was a large shop made of timber and stone, this store was larger than any other shop in the street. Davos pushed open the door and entered the shop.
The inside of the shop was bustling with activity, he saw several apprentices walking quickly back and forth carrying various pieces of armor. He heard loud shouting, clanging and banging as they all worked. Then he saw the owner of the shop, a man that went by the name of Tobho Mott. He was shouting at his apprentices and the man did not look like he was in a good mood. Davos had visited this shop once with Lord Stannis, he only hoped that he remembered him.
Tobho eventually saw him standing near the front of his shop and Davos was pleased to see a brief flicker of recognition pass over his face.
"You came here once with the former Hand," he said as he walked over and Davos nodded. "If you're here to see if I'm finished making the Prince's armor, I haven't. I told the Gold Cloaks earlier that I would have it finished by tomorrow," he said angrily but Davos shook his head.
"I take it you're overworked?" Davos asked,
"You people have me working like a slave," he growled "Day and night my smiths are laboring over their fires. I have lost half my apprentices over the past month. Some of them don't show up again and the ones I replace them with are so incompetent that I kick them out before lunch! Then every day you and your Gold Cloaks keep coming back telling me you want more and more armor. I have no more!" he yelled as he slammed his fist down on the wooden table. Davos raised his hand up apologetically.
"I am not here on the behalf of King Robert and I no longer work for Lord Stannis either," he told him and he saw his eyes widen in surprise before they narrowed suspiciously.
"Then why are you here?" he asked quietly and Davos stepped closer to him so he was not overheard.
"I have heard that none of the smiths are allowed to leave the city, is that true?" he asked and the man nodded. "Would you like to leave?"
"I come from Qohor, my people know the power of the dragons," he whispered as he nodded.
"I can help you,"
"How?"
"I can smuggle you out of the city, tonight,"
"Impossible, the gates are all barred and closed at night,"
"Not by land but by sea," Davos told him but he shook his head.
"By sea? Where to?"
"Dragonstone," and this time he shook his head vigorously and stepped away.
"No. This is a trick, I do not believe you. I want you to leave my shop,"
"No no, this is no trick I promise you," Davos said as he reached inside of his robes. Inside he carried a scroll with King Aegon's seal on it.
"This is a scroll from King Aegon and Queen Daenerys. I told them that you are the best armorer in the city and they would like you to work for them," he told him as he handed him the scroll. He broke the seal and read it quickly before he clutched it tightly in his hand.
"Why would I work for them? Why should I trust you? For all I know this could be a trick to test my loyalty. If I come with you then you lead me to the Gold Cloaks and they imprison me,"
"They won't. They need you to make armor for their knights, they won't hurt you," Davos told him but he still looked at him suspiciously. He shook his head before he took the scroll and threw it into the fire.
"We should go with him," Davos heard another voice say. He turned towards the speaker and saw that it was a tall young man with black hair and bright blue eyes.
"Boy get back to work!" Tobho roared but he stood there defiantly.
"What's the point? These weapons will do nuffin for them. They have dragons and they're coming to take back their city. I don't wanna be here when they do,"
Tobho looked at him and shook his head. "You are like new steel, crude and in need of a beating,"
"The boy speaks true," Davos pointed out. "If you're here when the city falls, I don't think your chances are very good,"
"There's already small riots in the streets and it will only get worse," the boy pointed out.
"If you decline our offer, then I will take the young lad at least," the King and Queen would be able to find a use for him, that's a strength of theirs. Finding uses for the people who followed them. He saw the young lad look at him eagerly and nod in thanks. Tobho looked at him and shook his head.
"How does a man like you end up speaking on behalf of the Targaryens?" he asked,
"I was on Dragonstone with Lord Stannis when the Targaryen fleet arrived. I was there on my ship during the battle and I saw their dragons. Let me tell you this, those dragons are real and they are fierce, anyone who tries to stand against them will be defeated. Lord Stannis lost that day and so did I. However, the King and Queen showed mercy on me and found a place for me in their service. I am a common man with no real skills, imagine what they can do with you,"
He saw Tobho look slowly around his shop.
"Your shop is in danger whatever you do. If you stay here when the city falls, who knows what will happen to it. However, if you take a chance and join me then when this is over, the King and Queen will allow you to build a bigger and better shop and to make armor for the new Targaryen dynasty. Your armor will be worn by princes and knights, that is something that you will not get if you stay here,"
The man looked at him slowly before he nodded. "Fine, I will go with you and this boy can come. I want you to stay here until we leave. I don't want you to alert the Gold Cloaks," and Davos nodded before moving to find some place to sit.
"What is your name boy?" he asked the young lad.
"Gendry,"
The Dragon King
Jon laid in bed at Dragonstone, Daenerys was cuddled under his arm as they looked up at the canopy. It was the middle of the morning, but they had taken the morning off so they could speak and discuss things among themselves. He gently rubbed her shoulder as she laid on his chest.
"I'm sweaty," she said simply and Jon chuckled,
"You're the one who woke me up this morning and started this all off,"
"I know, I wanted to repay the favor from last time when you woke me up in the morning," she said softly.
"You didn't have to repay me like that," he said but she just shrugged.
"I know but I wanted to try it. I have done for weeks,"
"You're much tighter there,"
"I know I could feel you more," she said as she ran her hands along the fine hair on his chest. "I liked it though, we'll have to try it again sometime,"
Jon smiled, he would like that.
"Jon," she said in a light voice "Have you ever wondered what it would have been like if we grew up together?"
"As if the war didn't happen or if my father won the war?"
"Let's say if Rhaegar won that day on the Trident, imagine how different our lives would be,"
"I would have grown up as a prince," Jon said quietly as he thought about it. He would have grown up in King's Landing, away from the North. He would not know Arya or Robb or anyone from Winterfell nearly as well, would they still have grown close? Jon shuddered to think of what his life would be like without those relationships. "I would have been a prince and you would have been a princess,"
"You would have been such a serious little prince," she teased and Jon shook his head.
"I would not,"
"Yes, you would. I could just imagine you spending all of your days sulking around the Red Keep with your serious face on, and I would have followed you around trying to cheer you up," and Jon laughed at that.
"We would have gotten into so much trouble together,"
"I know. We would sneak into each other's rooms for starts," Dany whispered to him.
"And what would we be doing in each other's rooms?"
"I would be doing this," she whispered as she slowly moved her hand on his cock and Jon took a deep breath.
"Careful now. If I have you again I will have you screaming so loud half the castle will hear it,"
"Let them," she whispered.
"What about Daeron? We don't want to wake him," he said and this caused Dany to stop.
"We have never woken him up once, but go and check," she said to him. "If he's still asleep I want you to comeback and ravish me," she said seductively and Jon felt his cock twitch in excitement.
Jon lifted the covers off him and then slowly climbed out of bed. He crossed over to the nursery and he was surprised to see that Daeron was indeed awake. His son was sitting inside of his crib and he was playing with his egg, he was using his small hands to try and roll it in his crib. Daeron had seemed to have chosen the golden egg and he had slept with it in his crib every night since. When Daeron saw him he smiled and to Jon's surprise he pulled himself up using the side of his crib.
"Careful now son," he said as he bent down to lift him up out of his crib. Daeron babbled happily and Jon gave him a gentle kiss. "I think you're ready to walk," and Daeron seemed to agree with him because he kept squirming in his arms until Jon sat down on the floor and put him on his feet. He looked at Daeron expectantly as he wobbled back and forth before falling down.
"Come on son, I know you can do it," he whispered as he picked him up again. Jon and Daeron repeated this for a few moments before he heard Daenerys enter the nursery.
"Everything okay?" she asked.
"I was just giving him a little bit of help that's all," Jon said as he turned to face her. She had put on a long dark red robe.
"Help with what?" she asked but before Jon could reply Dany squealed loudly.
"Look look!" she said pointing at Daeron and Jon quickly turned around to see that Daeron had slowly started to totter towards him. He managed two steps before he fell down but it was enough to give Jon one of the widest smiles he'd ever have in his life. Dany quickly swooped in and peppered his face with kisses and Jon heard Daeron laugh and babble happily.
"I can't believe it, he's not even a year old," she said happily as she gently put him on the floor again. Daeron held onto her robe tightly and he used her to help him along.
"Our baby boy has taken his first steps!" she gushed. "Come on Jon, let's get dressed. Today will be a family day,"
Jon smiled and stood up. They gathered their things and made their way through the castle to the secret bathhouse that they had found. The grey tiled floors led to a huge tub in the center of the room with steps leading down to it. They quickly disrobed and settled in the tub. The warm water was relaxing and soothing and on occasion they had spent hours alone together in this room, but he knew that today would not be one of those days. They bathed Daeron first and then themselves before they headed back to their rooms to dress.
After they bathed, they dressed and to Jon's surprise, Daenerys had styled her hair differently.
"Why did you change your hair?"
"Margaery and I found a portrait of Queen Visenya and I loved the way she braided her hair so I decided to try it. Do you like it?"
Jon cocked his head to the side as she slowly turned around and gave her a smile.
"I think it looks nice. Daeron seems to like it," he said as he noticed Daeron hold onto her braids.
"He always pulls my hair," she said quickly as she gently pulled his hand away. She wore a long pale blue dress with no slits or cut outs to go along with her black sandals. They then walked to a small hall near their rooms and helped themselves to some of the fruits that were in a bowl on the side. As they ate, Dany cut off little pieces of fruit to feed to Daeron. Jon chuckled as he slowly ate his pieces of banana but shied away from the peaches.
"They're actually really sweet," Jon said to her as he took a bite of the peach.
"I know but it takes him a while to get used to it. See he has to taste it first then if he likes it he'll try a bite," she said as she gently put a small piece in his mouth again. Jon watched as Daeron scrunched up his face before he spat out the piece of peach.
"Ok so no peaches. We'll have some more Banana instead," Dany said as she kissed him on his forehead. "Morning brother," she said as Rhaegar walked into the hall.
"Good morning," he said as he sat down with them. He reached out and slowly tickled Daeron and he was rewarded with a giggle.
"Daeron, show your grandfather what you did this morning," Dany said as she put him down on his feet a short distance away from her. Daeron looked up at her before he slowly wobbled his way back over to her.
"Wow," Rhaegar said as he watched Daeron make his way to his mother. "I can't believe it. I'll let you both know he is going to be even more of a handful now," he said with a cheeky smile.
"No, Daeron will be a good boy for us. Isn't that right?" Dany said as she kissed him on his stomach. "Would you like to join us in the gardens today?"
"I have to show you something first," Rhaegar said as he turned towards him and he pulled out a raven scroll. "A raven came, from Winterfell," he said as he passed over the scroll. Jon looked at the scroll nervously and wondered who it was from? Had Lord Stark thought about his offer to remain neutral and was issuing his response? He took the scroll from his father and opened it and he was surprised to see that it was from Robb.
"Dear Jon
We have safely arrived back in Winterfell after the council. Arya misses you dearly and she is eager to meet your family. Bran and Rickon are well and are also eager to see you again, but their excitement pales in comparison to Arya.
Father and I have spoken to the Northern Lords about your reforms. I think that father and I will be able to convince the Lords to accept your reforms, chopping down trees to sell in Braavos will help the North during the long and hard winters. However, when the Northern Lords learned of your accusations against our grandfather, Lord Rickard they rose up in anger. Some lords want to march south to help defend House Tully as they know you are planning to depose them. King Robert has also sent an offer to my father expressing interest in an alliance but I am not sure he will take it. However, the Northern Lords know of this offer so they may force my father to go south to join his strength to Robert's.
Jon, I know this may be difficult for you due to the animosity between you and my mother but I beg that you agree to show mercy on House Tully. If you do this, then the Northern Lords will not ride south to go to war. Jon, you are my brother and I beg that you have mercy on my mother's family. If you don't, then I can't promise that I will be able to stop the Northern Lords from marching south.
Please reply as soon as you can.
Robb Stark,"
Jon finished reading the letter and then threw it onto the table, he ran his hands through his raven hair as he considered Robb's words. So many thoughts crossed through his mind at once, this offer changed a lot of their plans.
"Call a war council meeting," he said in a low voice after a pause. "This affects our war plans,"
"Jon, what are you going to do?" he heard Rhaegar ask as he stood to his feet. Jon just shook his head and walked through the hallways of Dragonstone towards the chamber of the painted table. He entered the large room and immediately crossed to the North facing window and he looked out over the grey ocean that made up the narrow sea. He heard people slowly making their way into the room but he didn't turn around to look at them.
Could he forgive Lady Catelyn? After all the horrible things she had done to him? At the council, she couldn't even call him by his proper title, she called him a bastard and she clearly had no remorse for her actions, she deserved to get punished, for everything she did to him. Then, he thought of Robb, and Arya and everyone else in Winterfell, could he let go of his anger at Lady Catelyn to avoid going to war with them?
For all her faults, she was still their mother and Jon could not deny that she loved her children and her family. Jon knew what he needed to do, but he decided to let everyone in the room voice their opinions on the matter before making his final decision.
"Jon," he heard Daenerys softly call as she gently brushed his elbow. "Everyone is here," and then he turned around to look at the room. Rhaegar, Tyrion, Ser Barristan, Ser Loras, Asha Greyjoy, Ser, Jaime, Ser Loras, Grey Worm, Ser Davos, Ghost and Dany were all here for this meeting. Dany must have given Daeron to one of her handmaidens whilst they held this meeting. He was surprised to see Asha Greyjoy here, he did not know she was on the island.
"My Lords," he said in greeting "and lady," he said with a nod towards Asha, "As you may know, we have spent the last few weeks planning our strategy for the war, but something has come up that means we may have to reconsider. I have received a raven from Robb Stark of Winterfell, my brother. He asks that we show mercy on House Tully," Jon said and he saw Tyrion's eyes widen in surprise.
"Can I see the message?" he asked and Jon handed over the scroll. He saw Tyrion scan it quickly and then he repeated the message for the rest of the room to hear.
"Son, I think you should let it go," Rhaegar said immediately.
"Brother, are you forgetting what Lady Catelyn did to him? She treated your son like he was nothing, she was rude to us both at the council, she should be punished," Daenerys said firmly.
"I agree with Queen Daenerys," Asha said.
"I agree with Prince Rhaegar," Ser Barristan countered. "We should try for peace with the Starks and the Tullys,"
"And let Lady Catelyn get away with treating an innocent child in that way?" Daenerys returned sharply.
"We can still punish Lady Catelyn if the King desires it, send her to the Silent Sisters after the war is over," Ser Jaime suggested.
"That would soon start another war with the North and the Riverlands," Rhaegar told him and he saw Ser Barristan nod.
"Perhaps deposing House Tully was not the best idea," Tyrion said "They have no love for Robert Baratheon and offering them peaceful terms would have won them to our side," and he saw Rhaegar nod in agreement. Jon paused as he heard this, he realised Tyrion was right and this was something that he had caused by letting his anger get the better of him at the council.
He let everyone in the room voice their opinions on the matter until Rhaegar grew frustrated.
"Jon, they are your family! If you don't let this grudge go, you will have to fight against your family!" he shouted and this caused everyone to fall silent.
"Brother, did you forget what their family did to ours? Hoster Tully used the rebellion to improve his house's standing. I am not defending what our father did, but house Tully had no grievance with House Targaryen,"
"Dany, I remember what they did, but it is in the past and we can't let old grudges affect our judgment today. Right now, the best decision is to let go of our anger against House Tully,"
"We can't let their actions go unpunished," Dany said as she crossed her arms across her chest.
Jon decided to interrupt them before they could argue further.
"Ser Davos, I have noticed that you haven't spoken, what do you think?"
"Your grace. I can't begin to understand what it was like growing up for you in that environment, no child should have to go through that. I served Lord Stannis for many years and he was a just man and he always believed in doing what was right. In any other situation, I would agree that she should be punished for what she did, but this is no ordinary situation. I agree with your father, you should show mercy on the Tullys," he said and Jon nodded in response. Jon thought back to what happened at the council, where he had let his anger get the better of him and it had cost them some alliances. He was a King now and he had to do better, he had to let this anger go. But Dany was right as well, the Tullys had betrayed his family for the chance to increase their power, he could not let such a betrayal go unpunished. Not to mention, how could he trust such a dubious house to rule the Riverlands in his name.
"Send a raven to Winterfell informing them of my decision. The Tullys will get to keep all their lands but will no longer be the rulers of the Riverlands due to self-serving actions in the rebellion. Further, I promise not to seek any further punishment on them if they willingly bend the knee. I hope that Robb and the Northern Lords understand that my decision is just and merciful. I will sign and stamp it later," he said and he saw Rhaegar look at him before he slowly nodded. He knew that his father would have wanted no punishment, but Jon knew that would have made him look weak, so this was the compromise he was willing to make.
"Now, we need to reconsider our war plans slightly. Asha, you will still be blockading Kings Landing with our fleet, we don't want any supplies to enter the city. As Ser Davos has found out, there is a lack of food in the capital, whilst it is unfortunate that the citizens of the city will have to suffer, this lack of food will turn them against Robert and towards us. With the support of the Reach, we will be able to feed the people and this will be important in winning them to our side after the war and building some good will," Jon said. He had heard that Robert was spreading vile lies about them in the capital.
"Now, we will not be taking the city right now. They have scorpions mounted on the city walls. Our plan is to draw King Robert out and then defeat him in battle first, that way those in the city will have nothing left to fight for and they will stand down, that way our dragons are not at risk,"
"Ser Loras, you will sail back to Highgarden. You and your brothers will lead the forces from the Reach north into the Riverlands until you can meet us around Harrenhall or Castle Darry. Dany and I will head into the Vale to rally the Vale lords loyal to us. Then, we will use our armies to head west into the Riverlands to meet Tywin Lannister. I want you to stay as far away from Lord Tywin's territory as possible, I don't want him to spot your army"
"Your grace, will the Riverlords not see this as an act of aggression?" Ser Barristan asked.
"We will inform the Riverlords loyal to us of our plans. Hopefully, House Tully will accept our offer and either join us or stay out of the conflict," Rhaegar said immediately.
"We don't have a lot of choice. Robert Baratheon knows that we have the support of the Reach and he needs food for his army. We know that he wants an alliance with House Stark and therefore the Riverlands. If he doesn't get this alliance, he will have to find food for his army someplace else. The army from the Reach is just as big as his and if he wages war in the reach, he will deplete his army before he meets our main host. I think that he will try to appeal to Hoster Tully directly and if that fails, he will attack the Riverlands which are an easier opponent to defeat,"
"Why would he not send troops from the Stormlands and from the Westerlands into the Reach? If they attacked from both sides they stand a better chance of being successful," Dany asked.
"Your grace, King Robert has already called most of his banners North from the Stormlands to the capital, they have been camped outside the city walls for months," Ser Jaime informed her.
"Besides, Robert needs troops, he will only lose troops if he attacks the Reach, he stands to gain more troops if he heads North to convince Lord Tully to join his side. At the council several of the Riverlords wanted to stand against us, he knows that and he will try to convince those Lords to support him. I am confident, Robert will not attack the Reach" Jon told her and she slowly nodded.
"Why don't we send some of our troops to Storms End and the Stormlands?" Tyrion asked. "The Stormlands are Robert Baratheon's home territory and if we take it, he would look incredibly weak. Not to mention, you are planning on letting Shireen rule Storms End after the war, if you show the Storm Lords that they have an alternative Baratheon that they can back, I am sure that they will be much more receptive to leaving Robert's side,"
"Shireen is still just a girl, not a political piece to be used," Dany said coolly and he saw Ser Davos nod
"Why can't she be both? Surely you knew these were the implications when you decided to appoint her Lady of Storms End after the war? What I am suggesting here is that we use this option to try and win this war faster,"
"What would you have her do?" Ser Davos asked.
"Nothing much. I think that if we showed her to some of the Storm Lords and she tells them that she has been treated well and kindly, then the other Storm Lords will listen and they may be more willing to lay down their weapons and not to fight for King Robert,"
"They won't believe that," Ser Davos quickly replied "I certainly wouldn't. It would look like you have her as a captive and you're trying to use her,"
"Your graces, I am from the Storm Lands and the Storm Lords are all fiercely loyal to House Baratheon. The Stormlands are a martial society and I do not believe that you will be able to convince the Storm Lords to join you with words alone, and certainly not with the Lady Shireen, Why would they choose a young girl over their liege lord who broke your family's dynasty and is a proven warrior and commander." Ser Barristan wisely said
"However, Tyrion does raise a good point. Taking the Stormlands from Robert would weaken him significantly, and it would certainly cut off his last place of escape," Dany said "Perhaps we should send some of our forces to try and take these lands. Ser Jaime has told us that Robert Baratheon has called his banners North, so these lands should be relatively easy to take?"
"How many men were you planning on sparing for the task?" Jon asked.
"We could send either the Second Sons or the Stormcrows. Ser Loras can accompany them instead of heading into the Reach. I am sure his brothers can coordinate the attacks without him,"
"Your idea has merit but I have other plans for our sellswords," Jon said "There is no strategic gain in taking the Stormlands from Robert. If he were to retreat, he would head to King's Landing where we know he has his scorpions to protect him from our Dragons. The Stormlands don't produce much food to make it worth our while to take it. If we sent Ser Loras along with our sellswords, we would just be splitting our forces thin for no good reason,"
He saw Dany frown and she folded her arms across her chest "So what plan do you have for our sellswords?" she asked.
"Right, so once our host and the Reach forces meet up around Harrenhal, we will then march West, eventually into the Westerlands. Whilst we are doing this, Tyrion and Ser Jaime will take our sellswords and sail to Casterly Rock. That way we cut of Tywin Lannister's base and his place of retreat. We will have him out in the open where our Dothraki work best,"
"Casterly Rock is built into the side of a great stone hill, it may be one of the only castles in Westeros that could survive your dragonflame," Tyrion said. "If we take it, he will not be able to hold out in a siege,"
"I think Asha should join you," Daenerys said and Jon looked at her curiously.
"My father has allied with King Robert in exchange for getting his son back. He promised him the Iron Fleet in return, commanded by my Uncle Victarion,"
"I think Asha will be of much better use escorting our ships to Lannisport rather than here blocking a bay. If the Iron fleet sail, then Asha should be there to battle them," Daenerys said and Asha nodded.
"Does your father know that you are here?"
"My father told me he is bringing back the Old way, so I agreed with his suggestion to head east, to reave and rape through these lands," she said with a roll of her eyes. "I know my father, he won't lift a finger to help the Usurper. He'll serve himself first,"
"You probably should have told me earlier," Jon said,
"I told the Queen," she replied immediately and Jon just shook his head and let the issue slide.
"Our plan right now is to meet King Robert in battle somewhere in the Riverlands. We defeat him and then we turn our armies south again towards Kings Landing," Jon said to the room.
"Ser Loras, We'd like you to leave as soon as possible. The sooner the Reach mobilizes and moves north into the Riverlands, the better. We have had your armor commissioned first so it should be ready for use in battle," Dany said to him and the young knight nodded.
"Right, does everybody understand what they have to do?" Jon asked and they all nodded. "Good, now I want everybody to get ready. I want to leave as soon as possible,"
The She Wolf of Winterfell
Arya Stark stood alone on the battlements of Winterfell. Her father was readying his army to go south to bend the knee to Jon. He had come to her room earlier to tell her this earlier but he had instructed her to not speak of this to anyone since his bannermen could not learn of it now since they may protest against it. Her father had hoped that he would be able to sway them to his side after they see Jon's entire army and dragons.
It was good that her father had decided to bend the knee to Jon and would do so in person, however she was not happy that he was bringing his bannermen. He should have left them at home. Arya knew that she would not wait behind for them again. Arya had let Robb go without her last time and it had not worked out well, she would go herself and make sure that Jon and her father worked everything out.
She also wanted to see Jon again, it had been far too long since she had seen her brother. Truthfully, she had been planning to leave Winterfell for weeks, her plan was to take a horse and then ride to White Harbour and then on to Dragonstone. Now it seemed she would just follow the army south to meet him.
She also wanted to meet his wife. Arya knew that she must be pretty special to win Jon's heart but she wanted to see her for herself. Then of course there was his baby, Arya didn't really care much for babies, Sansa was usually more interested in them but she was eager to meet Jon's son. She would teach him to ride and to fight and she would love him as if he was her own.
As soon as Arya had heard that her father was planning to ride south she had put her plan into action. She had snuck into the kitchens earlier and she had stolen some food. Her plan was to head into the Wolfswood and then meet up with the tail end of her their army as they got further away from Winterfell.
Arya heard a noise coming from the hallway and she instantly spun around and hid her pack under the bed again, she saw it was Jojen and she scowled.
"What do you want?" she asked suspiciously,
"I came to see you off," he said casually.
"I'm not going anywhere,"
"Yes you are, you're going to meet your pack again," he replied calmly and Arya scowled at him.
"You don't know what you're talking about," and this caused him to smile slightly.
"You should cut your hair. If you look like a boy no one will bat an eye," he said and Arya chewed her lip nervously. If she cut her hair, Jon might not recognize her. "I can cut it for you if you like," he offered and Arya nodded slowly, she realised that it would be for the better.
Jojen entered the room and bolted the door closed. Arya took a seat on a chair and Jojen moved behind her.
"You should be careful when you're out there, my father told me that the Northern Lords are unhappy," he said as he pulled out his knife.
"I know that," she said quickly, she was not stupid. "The Manderlys, Hornwoods and the Karstarks want to go to war. The Cerwyn's, Glovers, Dustin and Reed don't. The Manderlys are always complaining loudly to father,"
Jojen was quiet for a few moments before he spoke again,
"Lord Karstark is the loudest but you should always be wary of the quiet ones, often times they are the most dangerous," he said quietly and Arya scowled. What was he talking about? Was he talking about his father? Robb did mention that he was the quietest during the meetings and during that day in the great hall, Lord Reed had been silent.
"Hurry up," Arya said quickly as she began to feel uncomfortable. Arya looked at the door and saw that it was bolted shut. Arya knew that Needle was behind her under the bed and he currently had his knife very close to her neck.
"There, all done," he said and she sprung up out of her seat and turned around to look at him suspiciously. He seemed to notice her unease because he raised his hands up to show that he meant her no harm.
"Arya, when you're out there. Never forget who is a part of your pack," he said cryptically. Arya shook her head and scowled at him.
"I need to get going," she said as she donned her cloak, attached needle to her hip and headed to the door. She put one hand on the handle before she heard him speak again.
"Never forget," he whispered.
The Stag King
King Robert sat in the largest chair in the small council chamber, he looked at the other lords looking at him nervously waiting for the meeting to start. He remembered when his council was filled with people, now the table was quiet and almost empty. Baelish, Stark, Selmy, Varys, all traitorous bastards, they could all go and rot in hell for all he cared. It was good that all the vermin was gone, after the war was over he'd scrap it and fill it with loyal people, or he'd scrap it all together. Who could he honestly trust at this point? Ned Stark had been his best friend for years and he had betrayed him. Even his brother had failed him, all he had to do was marry the Tyrell girl, it was a simple enough task but he had failed him. Robert had not seen Renly since that night they argued at the council. He looked at the men sitting at the table, it was just Pycelle, Tywin Lannister and Joffrey.
He wasn't even sure if he could trust Tywin Lannister, even his own children had gone over to the Targaryens and his daughter was far away in Casterly Rock, the bastard could easily betray him. In fact, Robert would not have been surprised if he was already working behind his back, that would certainly explain why his children had gone over to the other side. He would have to keep Joffrey close, Tywin would stay loyal because of Joffrey. Then, he turned to Pycelle, the blundering old fool.
"Pycelle!" he roared "Have you found the Spider?" and the old man meekly shook his head
"No, your grace,"
"Why?"
"The Spider knew we were coming. Once we received your raven from the council, I summoned the Gold Cloaks and we went to his room but he was long gone,"
Robert shook his head in anger.
"Gone where?" he asked angrily and Pycelle shook his head, the useless fool did not know.
"Perhaps Dorne or Essos," Tywin suggested "If Tyrion's tale is true then the false prince would be in Dorne with the Martells, or he would be in Essos. Either way the Spider is gone,"
"We need to find him," Robert said angrily and Tywin just looked at him.
"He is one boy with a handful of sellswords at best. We need to focus on the Targaryens with their dragons," he said simply. Robert glared at him for a few minutes. This false prince was something that he did not want to deal with. He was not surprised that there was a boy pretending to be a false prince. Rhaegar fucking Targaryen was alive, Ned Stark had betrayed him, why couldn't there be another foolish boy pretending to be a Targaryen prince.
"Send word to your brother or to Storms End. If the false prince is with the Dornish, then they may try to attack the Stormlands whilst you are away," Tywin said and Robert nodded.
"Pycelle see that this is done, send a message to Storms End as soon as we are finished here. Hopefully, Renly has run back to Storms end," he ordered and Pycelle quickly nodded.
Robert then took a long drink of his summer wine before continuing.
"Right. We need to plan this war for my throne," he began before he belched loudly. "The scorpions are on the city walls, if they fly those dragons close I want them all shot down. Let it be known that I will give 100,000 golden dragons to the man who slays a dragon. I will give Dragonstone to the man who captures either the boy, the girl or that bastard Rhaegar," he spoke and no one answered him, they just nodded obediently.
"Father, where will our troops go?" Joffrey asked,
"The Riverlands, the Dragonspawn are hoarding all the food from the Reach and I need food to feed my armies. Hoster Tully and the Riverlords have food that we will take,"
"Stealing from the Riverlords might turn them against you," Pycelle said.
"I am not stealing," Robert spat as he glared at the old fool. "They are my subjects and they are helping their King defend the realm against foreign invaders!"
"Of course your grace," Pycelle said quickly as he nodded at him.
"I agree, the Tullys will be our allies. The Targaryens have foolishly announced their plans to depose and humiliate the Tullys and we should use that to our advantage. Send a raven to Lord Hoster and express interest in an alliance," Tywin said wisely.
"Lord Tywin will send a portion of his troops from the Westerlands and they will raid in the Reach. Mace Tyrell is a useless fucker who will spend half the time chasing his own tail. He will not march until he is sure that the Reach is safe, he will be of no help to the Dragonspawn," Robert said before he took another deep long drink. The wine was good and it helped him think better. He belched loudly and he the sound it made caused him to laugh darkly.
"We need to be quick about this," Robert slurred. "We will start marching for the Riverlands today. The sooner we get to Hoster Tully and the Riverlords, the better. If he doesn't want to join with us, we'll just take what we can and burn what we can't," Robert said with another laugh.
"What about Lord Stark?" Tywin Lannister said from his position on his right hand side. "You send a raven expressing your interest in an alliance. Has he responded?"
Robert shrugged. "Pycelle!" he yelled and the Grandmaester jolted, he looked like he was sleeping. "Has the Northern bastard replied?"
"No your grace," he stammered quickly and Robert just shrugged and reached for his drink of wine only to find the cup was empty.
"Wine!" he roared and his squire quickly came forward to refill his cup. It was another Lannister boy, Lancel was his name. Robert shook his head and drank heartily from his cup. Once he was finished he sat back and shrugged his shoulders.
"Fuck Ned Stark. We don't need him, I will deal with him after I deal with the dragonspawn," Robert said with a dismissive wave of his hand. If Stark wanted to stay in the freezing cold he was more than welcome to.
"We need to know where he is anyway," Tywin said immediately. "If he rides south, then he will bring at least 20,000 Northerners with him, we need to know where those troops are going. He will either fight against the Targaryens to defend his wife's family or he will fight against us for his sister's son,"
"He won't fight for the boy, they hate each other," Robert said immediately.
"That does not matter, Stark is an honorable man and he hid the boy for over 18 years. He clearly cares deeply for him and that bond will not vanish instantly. We should be very careful," Tywin said and Robert shook his head at him. He took another deep drink of his wine before leaning forward onto the table speaking again.
"Fine. Pycelle, send a raven to Stark again and find out where he is and what he is planning. We will still ride for the Riverlands," Robert said.
"Father, what about their Dragons, surely we should stay here where it is safer?"
"Stay here? And let them take over MY country?" he angrily asked as he fiercely stared at him. "You were there at the council, how long until the Lords turn against me? How long will they stand behind their King who is too much of a coward to defend them?"
"But they have Dragons," Joffrey repeated.
"We have built smaller scorpions that can be pulled by our horses," Tywin said.
"Smaller? They will be useless if they are small!" Joffrey screeched "And they have Dothraki, thousands and thousands of Dothraki! Where are our men! We don't have enough men! We should stay here!"
"The Dothraki are a bunch of untrained savages who prey on the weak. Our knights will cut through them with ease," Tywin said but Robert shook his head.
"They might be savages, but only a fool would underestimate the Dothraki in battle,"
"Luckily I am no fool," Tywin said sharply and Robert nodded slowly. He knew that Tywin Lannister was devious and he would need him and his schemes to defeat them. Both he and Tywin had been in many battles over the years whereas that boy was still new to the ways of war. They may not have the men, but they were much more experienced than him.
Robert smiled to himself as he drained his cup of wine, all hope was not lost yet, if he could secure the Riverlands, then his chances would increase dramatically.
The Griffin
It was almost the middle of the night and Jon Connington moved silently through the dark hallways of Storms End. He had roused Harry a few moments earlier and he was a few steps behind him. They moved on the balls of their feet as they did their best to make little noise. They were near the cellars on the seaward side of the castle and Jon could still hear the waves battering against the rocks below. He led Harry down a flight of stairs and into another dark hallway. There were no guards on duty down here and this pleased Jon, they did not want to spill blood too early.
The corridors in this part of the castle were cold and damp and Jon moved quickly to the end of the hallway where he found an old barred door. Jon looked at the door and saw that the hinges were orange and rusted.
"You sure this is it?" Harry whispered, he sounded nervous and Jon didn't pay much attention to him.
"Yes," he whispered in return. He had been here exactly once before many, many years ago during a tourney at Storms End. He gently rested his sword by the side of the door and knocked twice against the door. The sound of his knuckles on the wooden door sounded impossibly loud in the silence and Jon waited with bated breath, they had to be there otherwise this plan would fall to pieces.
He waited and he waited and Jon could see his breath condensing in front of him before he heard a soft knock in return and Jon breathed a loud sigh of relief. His hands went to the door and he pushed on it firmly but it wouldn't open. He pushed his shoulder against the door and pressed but he realised the door was stuck, it must not have been used in years.
"Fuck sake," Jon said to himself. He took a step back and then he rammed his shoulder into the door repeatedly, the noise sounded scarily loud in the otherwise complete silence. He continued to hammer his shoulder into the door until it finally burst open. He stood back and he saw that Duck, Gerold Dayne and other men of the Golden Company were here.
"How many men did you bring?"
"We set out with 200 but only 100 made it, the rest of the men are ready in the camps," Duck replied. "It was difficult to find the cove in the darkness, we lost another boat on the rocks,"
Jon cursed but they had to go on.
"We will change the plan slightly. Duck and Gerold, you head to the castle walls and get the gates opened. Did you tell Black Balaq to shoot down any ravens?"
"Yes," he said quickly. "He said it would be difficult in these conditions, it's very cloudy and there is no moon," Jon shook his head, this was not what he needed to hear
"Fine. Just go. Head down this corridor and then take the second hallway on your left. Keep climbing the stairs until you reach the ramparts. Take out any guards that will sound the alarm. Harry go with them. I will take 20 men and head towards the castellan and the other officers. If we take out their leaders, they won't be able to retaliate. Lord Renly is still here, we need to take him hostage, do not kill him whatever you do," he said to them and they all nodded.
"Good, now go," he urged.
Jon watched as the men hurried away to complete his orders. He looked at his remaining portion of men and then led them away. Renly and his commanders would be staying in the Western side of the castle where the Lords chambers were, he knew that from his time here as a boy. He led his men quickly but quietly through the castle, he knew that there would be no sentries on the inside of the castle. They would all be on the castle walls standing watch.
They were nearly there when Jon heard a loud war horn blow. Shit, they were already starting the attack. Jon heard loud shouting and he quickly drew his sword and started to sprint. His footsteps pounded against the stone floor as he sprinted towards the Western wing. He jumped up the stairs two at the time and rounded the corner.
The first man he saw didn't even have his sword out, he had staggered into the hallway in only his shorts. "What's going on!" he yelled as he looked towards Jon. Jon just shrugged before he quickly plunged his sword into his stomach and he felt warm wet blood trickled down onto his arm. The man squealed in pain like a pig being put to slaughter and Jon pulled the sword out and cut the man's throat to quickly finish him off.
"Quickly. Kill every man you see, they are not prepared!" he roared to his men and they all split up down the hallway. As Jon suspected, the men in the castle were not ready for this attack. He quickly slayed three unarmed men who had barely gotten the sleep out of their eyes before he was upon them like a wild wolf. Jon killed them all without mercy, this was necessary, it was to sit the rightful King on the throne.
He turned left down a hallway and he saw Cortnay Penrose standing in front of him. His sword was dripping red with blood and his eyes were wide with rage.
"You bastard!" he yelled as he charged towards him. Jon took a deep breath and set his feet. Once Cortnay was in range, he stepped forward and brought his sword down in a savage arc that was aiming for his shoulder. Surprisingly, Cortnay saw the attack coming and he was able to block the attack. Their swords met in a loud dizzying clash of steel that sent shockwaves flowing up his arm and into his shoulder.
Jon yanked his sword away and quickly thrust it forward but Cortnay batted it away with ease. He's stronger than me Jon realised and he took a few nervous steps backward.
Cortnay seemed to realise this as he stepped forward and to send a flurry of attacks towards Jon. Jon did not even try to block them, instead he tried to evade. He kept backing down the hallway hoping that someone would come and help him. Cortnay swung his sword in a savage downward arc that came at Jon too quickly. He took a step back and tried to duck out of the way of his grazed the side of his face. Warm blood poured into Jon's vision and he stumbled backwards blindly.
He tripped and fell backwards and he heard Cortnay standing over him. Jon started to breath heavily, he knew this was the end. Cortnay was going to kill him, he only hoped he had done enough to take the castle for Aegon. Hopefully, this would help him take back his throne.
"Fuck you," Cortnay spat and Jon took his last breath. Then he heard a loud shout followed by a thud to his left. Jon reached out with his right hand to wipe the blood off his face and saw Duck standing over him, his sword was gleaming with bright red blood. Then he looked to his left and he saw Cortnay lying flat on the floor on his stomach, blood pooling out of the back of his head.
Duck held out his hand helped pull Jon into a sitting position.
"The cut doesn't look too deep but you're bleeding heavily," he said worriedly to him.
"What about the rest of the attack?" Jon slurred. His head was spinning slightly and he felt a little bit dizzy.
"We got the castle gates open and I saw our forces storm the courtyard. I think we should have the rest of the castle," he said and Jon gave a long deep sigh of relief, their plan worked.
"Where is Renly?" he asked faintly, he noticed that his breathing was getting heavy.
"We've got him, Ser Gerold found him in the rookery. He has received a raven from the Usurper informing him about us. He knows about the King and he told Renly to let the other Storm Lords know about us,"
Jon was confused. How could the Usurper have found out about them? It didn't make sense. He closed his eyes and tried to focus but his head was throbbing with pain.
"Chains," Jon murmured as he closed his eyes to try shut out the pain. "Get him to send a raven to the Usurper…. tell him….tell him...everything is fine,"
"Jon, you need to lie down and I'll go and find a master," Duck said as he ripped off a sleeve of his garment to press against the wound on his head. Jon leaned backwards slowly until he passed out as his head hit the cold, stone floor.
Notes:
This chapter is a little late, but my laptop is fixed so everything should proceed normally now
The next chapter is called 'The Wolf's Discovery' and it should be out in 7-8 days.
As always, let me know what you think, comments are always appreciated
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