6th Month of 298 A.C. Riverlands
Ser Jaime Lannister
Stark had been a fool, he had been walking a treacherous route for some time before he had been arrested, and he had been bumbling around like a chicken without a head for some time before that. That he had been arrested had come as no surprise to Jaime, the man was far too much of a threat whether he was smart or not, to allow to live. With Stark in a cell somewhere within the bowels of the Red Keep, Jaime had been sent off by the king to the Riverlands, to aid his father in destroying the resistance that was growing within it. They had won a clear victory at the Golden Tooth and at Wayfarer's Rest putting the Vances to the sword, and forcing the other Vances to do them fealty, so far it was going well, they held Edmure Tully prisoner. But as always with war there was more that needed to be done. Robb Stark was marching south with an army of angry northmen at his side, and Riverrun still held out despite the fact that the heir to Riverrun was dangling by a life's thread. His father had called a war council to discuss what they were going to do, and so that was where Jaime was now, listening intently to his father talk.
"No doubt Hoster Tully made sure that there was enough food brought in before he sent his son off to war. Riverrun's garrison might well be able to hold out against a siege for another six months. That is time we do not have. Action must be taken and soon, before reinforcements come from the more disparate areas." his father says.
Jaime looks at his father, and notes the tired lines across his face, his father was getting old, was old as it were, but there was still a sense of strength and purpose to him. "How do you suggest we proceed with that my lord?" Jaime asks.
His father looks at him then, assessing him, his gaze piercing and relentless. "Robb Stark is coming south with an army of northmen, that much we know. It would not be too much of a stretch to think that the Freys will side with him. Stevron Frey most likely went north to remind the boy of the alliance his father had struck with Walder during the rebellion. We must make sure that Stark does not have enough time to get to Riverrun."
"So you would suggest sending a host against him then?" Jaime questions.
"Yes, I would. Stark's heir is untested and he is a green boy. His commanders are men who are all quite divisive in and amongst themselves, they shall be testing him, trying to see where his weaknesses lie, and where they might be able to force something out of him. We must needs exploit that." his father responds.
Jaime looks at the map before them then, and thinks hard. "The Tumblestone is not such an insurmountable obstacle that we cannot cross it. Of course, I do not think you would want the entire Lannister army to leave the siege to take on Stark. Therefore I suggest we divided the host into three, one portion remains here laying siege to the castle and guarding Ser Edmure, one portion crosses the Tumblestone and begins a raiding campaign through the Whispering Wood and up near Oldstones, and the third portion march southward toward King's Landing."
There is a moment's silence as his father's lords consider this, and then Lord Brax speaks. "We do not know how many men Stark might have brought south with him, and if the Freys are siding with him, then would it not perhaps be wiser to keep two thirds of the army together, to ensure that we are not outnumbered?"
Jaime looks at the man, Brax is an old man now, he was once a confident soldier, but age has made him cautious. "I do not think so." Jaime responds. "We must take the attack to Stark, no doubt, he will expect us to bring two thirds of our army up to meet him, and he might well therefore split his own host into two, to cause a diversion. We must make sure that he regrets that. The element of surprise is crucial."
"I agree with Ser Jaime." Lord Crakehall says. "Stark is a green boy, and as such, I have a feeling it will be men like the Greatjon and Roose Bolton who will actually be doing the planning and the commanding of his men. We must make sure that we do not fall into their traps."
Jaime looks at his cousin Lord Damon Marbrand and asks. "My lord, how goes the training of the shield walls?"
"It goes well Ser." his cousin replies. "The men are growing more confident with every passing day. Soon enough they shall be near indestructible."
Jaime nods, that is good, he had seen the shield wall in action at the Golden Tooth, and at Wayfarer's Rest, it was something to behold. It had sent the fear of god into some of the rivermen, and might well have contributed toward their defeat. He looks at his father then, and sees that the man is looking at him intently, the old desire to impress the man flares up then. "What do you think father? Do you think the shield wall should come north with me or not?"
His father is silent for a long moment, as if contemplating whether or not he trusts Jaime enough with this tool of war, or whether he wants to keep it to himself. Eventually the man says. "The shield wall shall come with me Jaime. We do not want to give our enemy too much knowledge of what it is we might be doing or planning. I shall take command of the host heading toward King's Landing, you head north and deal with Stark. Lord Brax, remain here, and command the siege." They all murmur their agreement at this and then the meeting comes to an end, Jaime stands then and walks out of the tent, his thoughts a whir with activity. He knows what needs to be done, he knows Patrek Mallister and Marq Piper have been raiding near their supply lines, they are the two he will need to deal with first, and he knows just how to do it.
Soon enough he and the men under his command have set off from their camp, leaving Riverrun and its accompanying siege behind them, as he rides, he feels the thrill of battle beginning to enter him. It has been some nine years since he fought in the Greyjoy rebellion, and five since he fought against the Shoal Brigands, in some ways he is looking forward to this battle. The northmen are hardy men, and good fighters, perhaps they will be more of a challenge than the rivermen who they are coming to aid. It does not take too long after leaving Riverrun for them to come across a Riverlord raiding party, this one led by Adam Rivers, the bastard brother of Lord Mallister. The fighting is brief and to the point, Rivers is slain, as are his men, and Jaime knows that not one survived, none will send a message to Patrek Mallister or Piper, and he and his men ride on.
They ride and ride, and eventually come across a small band of men with no banners, but Jaime does not want to take any chances and therefore, he and his men attack these men cutting them down and reducing them to nothing but bone and ash. Soon enough they are done, and on they ride. The Whispering Wood is a thick forest, and one that Jaime would not like to get lost in, for he does not think that ones who get lost within the forest could truly survive here, not for long, not with the stories he has heard. But then again, they are only stories are they not? They are not the truth, not really. His thoughts are interrupted by the sounds of horns blowing, so this is where they are then is it? Stark and his companions. Jaime bellows a challenge and goes riding out to meet those who are appearing through the forest to meet him and his men.
Jaime draws his sword, and a change comes across him, as has so often happened when he fights. There is no other thought in his mind, but that of fighting. He swings his sword as the enemy comes towards him, cutting one man down, watching as that man screams to see his hand cut off, Jaime moves on, fighting a big bull of a man, ducking and dodging that man's swings, Jaime ends up inside the man's guard and guts him. He does not stop to see the man's guts fall from his stomach, instead he moves on, and his men follow. He swings his sword as more men come spilling out of the forest and the trees, they all meet his sword, and some survive, losing limbs, others die, their blood staining his sword. Regardless of what happens, he moves on and continues swinging his sword, watching as the northmen continue appearing out of the woodwork, something is going on here, he can sense it, but he does not know what that might be.
He and his men fight, and gods do they fight, he thinks that perhaps he should have been more insistent on taking the shield wall with him, but he thinks that perhaps that would not have made a difference now. These northmen are fighting with a ferocity he has never seen before, actually, that is a lie, he has seen it once before, when he fought the Shoal Bandits, but he does not know whether the two styles would match one another. Regardless, he continues fighting, his sword stained red, his armour dented in several places, but there is one thing on his mind, if he can get to Stark, he can end this fight now, and this war might be over. That thought gives him the strength to push through his pain, and continue fighting.
There are more men here than he thought, Stark must not have sent another force off down toward the Green Fork, or if he has, it is a small force, it seems he has been outwitted by a boy. More men are appearing than he or his men have the stomach to fight. It was a clever plan this, force them to fight with a ferocity early on, and then when the time came, launch the surprise attack on them when they were too tired to keep fighting. A smart move, and one that Jaime approves of, even if it means that they might lose this battle. Not all hope is lost though, he can see Stark nearby, and he roars a challenge and then begins cutting his way through the men in his way. His sword feels like a heavy weight in his arms as he swings it, there is something going on, something more than the trap they have just launched themselves into, it feels as if they have walked into something else here, he does not know why he feels that way but he does.
He cuts down a boy with a moose on his armour, sees the boy squirm before eventually dying, he cuts down a monster of a man with a roaring giant on his armour, and then comes face to face with a woman with a bear on her armour. He fights her, and comes very close to dying himself, before he gets inside the woman's guard and knocks her down with a quick one two parry and blow. He moves onto face two boys with the sun of winter on their armour, he kills one and badly wounds the other, and then Stark is in sight, gods he is so close, and then there is movement underneath him and his horse falls down arrows in it. He blinks once, twice, and then jumps off of his horse, to find several swords pointing at his throat.