JON Arryn (Prologue)

COLD. It felt so cold that Jon had to call the serving men thrice to put more wood into the hearth. He himself possessed no strength, whatsoever, to even move from his bed. The Tower of the Hand had become a sort of prison for him, as he spent the last couple of days staring at the ceiling, brooding on what occurred to him. I never saw this coming, so untimely. If only it could have waited a few more weeks. But what really itched Jon was the ….How could I be so blind. All these years in front of my eyesS and I failed to see. For the past 15 years he had served as the Hand of the king, doing good to the phrase "The King dreams and the Hand fulfills ".Only thing was that Robert never dreamt of anything other than Tourneys,Feasts,Warm beds and fully filled flagons. This was when he wasn't drunk. Otherwise he never dreamt of anything. And he never saw or even suspected, Jon thought, How could he, my little hot headed child. He always had that trusting nature. When it came to trusting someone .Robert was quite a man. He had trusted Barristen selmy, Kingslayer, Balon Greyjoy, Tywin lannister among others.YES,even those who slew children. The memories of corpses of Rhaegar's children still haunted him. That and the worst words that came out of Robert's mouth after Jon reached the capital."DRAGONSPAWNS, NO CHILDREN….THESE ARE DRAGONSPAWNS",He had shouted at Ned. Those innocent children. Royal children…..Children…..How could I….No it must be said. For Robert's sake, for the Realm's sake. It must be done….must be done….done… ...Then he sunk into a deep slumber.

This is the end; Jon knew it, felt it and would soon experience it. His breathing had become a very tiresome job; he wasn't able to open his mouth properly to drink some water. Maester Colemon used to put a round stick in his mouth and pour honeyed water and, sometimes, Milk into his mouth. That kept him satiated. Until Pycelle sent him away.Colemon also used to pour some fiery liquid, probably pepper juice into his mouth and he retched many times a he was reluctant to do so but slowly he felt his strength returning to him. UNTIL Pycelle sent him away. He knows that I know. Jon knew that the Grand Maester was a Lannister creature to the bone. The sack of Kingslanding never left his mind. Nor did the name of the person who made it to happen. If it wasn't for the importance of his findings, he would have exposed Pycelle and sent him to prison. Perhaps I should try. The thought quickly melted away. No I need my strength to tell the truth. Here and Now.

"Ser Vardis, Vardis…..The door swung open. "My lord", Ser Vardis, his faithful captain of guards entered with a worried look on his face."Tell the king I need to speak with him…..And yes", as the Captain was moving towards the door, "tell the same to Lysa and my children. BOTH of them". Vardis bowed and closed the door as he exited.

Martyn,you sweet little boy. The memory brought a faint smile on his face. The memory of a child whom he placed in his lap from his bed 15 years ago. The bed of a dying Allysa Waynwood. Such a tragedy. For both of them. He had bee

n blown away from his feet when the news of the death of his distant cousin and, more importantly Eldest ward he loved, reached him in the camps of the Stony sept. "Darling of the vale", Denys was called and truly so. Ever gallent,ever charming, ever courteous and quite a headstrong lad he was, though not as hot headed as Robert nor as Solemn as Ned. The children I never had. The children, rather a child, he had is a different story. My own fraility,not hers fault.Sweetrobin his only living child was called as he had named him Robin. He wanted him to be Robert's namesake but Lysa had refused."Not that drunken sot, no". How could he refuse. Half a dozen miscarriages and many stillbirths ,she had every right to name him. But years brought no strength to him, just bouts of shakings. No maester was able to cure him and his mothers behavior worsened the situation. I will hate her for breastfeeding him though She does it behind my back ,always. He had little to be glad about. His family line was in danger. Except that 5 year old sickly boy of his, he had no other heir. Heir to the vale and the titles of the warden and defenders. Arryn line was in danger. But I have him. Again, he smiled. The son of Denys Arryn and Allysa Waynwood whom he had raised as his own for the past 15 years, as he had promised to his mother. My blood, Arryn blood. May the seven help him. When the Gods had placed him in a position where he feared about the future of Arryn bloodline, He made a decision. When it became clear that he won't be having a child anytime soon, he brought the young Martyn to Kingslanding to be raised as his heir. A decision for which he paid a heavy price .Lysa left in a rage to Eyrie and refused to show up for a year. It was only after he himself went to bring her back that she relented. He Raised the boy as his own, educated him in Eyrie and Kingslanding, made sure he trained well in every respect. If he was to die without a natural heir then it would be him he will name for the position ,notwithstanding the disgusting behavior of Lysa and subtle looks of the lords he faced he faced. However, the boy was less of Denys and more of him which meant that he was less of a rider and more of a reader, less of a sword swinger and more of a quill user. The lad was smart ,though, and quite wise from an early ,Jon felt a little disappointed. As to answer his calls,when the lad was 9,The Mother finally granted his wife a son. There was no saying had to send the boy back to Eyrie. But he still saw a worthy successor in him so to put the boy's time away from Kingslanding to good use, Jon instead sent him to the Knight of the Bloody Gate ,Ser Brynden Tully ,the renowned 'Blackfish' as he was called to serve as his page. If anyone would hone his skills it had to be the blackfish. Such a man…."JON" His thoughts withered as the door slammed open…."IS EVERYTHING ALL RIGHT ?"…..King Robert Baratheon asked with frown on his face. "Everything except me, your grace" He answered slowly. The big man smiled sadly, something quite uncommon for him."Wits will be the last thing that leave you ,Jon…..and stop this damned courtesy"…If any amount of GRACE would restore me that beloved smile of yours, I would gladly skin it off my fat body" So true.

"Father" A soft voice. If only it had been true. "Dear Martyn. Come sit besides me". Before his eyes stood his image, his youth. A boy ,tall enough in height, with Broad shoulders and dark brown hair. But his most striking features were his eyes. Falcon eyes, sharp and piercing. And dark brown as well, looks more like Denys with those. Where is your lady mother? The boy moved uncomfortably in his position. Of course she is not that."Where ,child" ? The boy met his gaze, though with certain difficulty. "She was indisposed as of late "Of course, she fears her son might catch the sickness, as if he is quite healthy now."Never mind ,my boy...I…..he began to cough badly and a sharp pain ran through his chest and the belly…"Seven, save me'….."JON"….Robert called out…. "You should"…"PYCELLE" he roared…."WHERE ARE YOU…YOU GREY SUNKEN"….Jon lifted his hand to silence him…."I need to speak to only you two"…..Robert…."You should have seen….coff coff coff….Many years since then….coff coff….Lot at stake…still….aaaah….THE pain was unbearable…..Robert had already rushed to find tried to wave at him but to no avail. I need to tell him. He mustered all his strength."Martyn, my boy. You should be strong ,my son. Perilous times lie ahead. Testing times, BLOODY times. Whose blood, it doesn't matter. All that matters is you and what is yours, to take responsibility of. Protect your family, my son. It is as yours as it was mine Care for them, especially for your younger brother. Raise him to be an honorable man worthy of ruling Protect the vale and all those who live in it."….The pain was killing him….."MY Son, be careful of some people, for they are quite dangerous. Fight falsehood wit truth and…..aahhhh….seven, save me"…Two men entered the door…His eyes were losing their power….It is near. Tell him. It has to be Ned after me. He must know. Father help us…"Martyn, tell them….tell Eddard…Tell him….THE SEED IS STRONG…..THE SEED IS STRONG…..Strong….."My lord" A ponderous voice called out and moments later a white bearded man poured some chalky liquid into his mouth…And he drifted into an endless void…DEEP,VERY DEEP BUT BETTER….