7th Month of 247 A.C. Old Anchor

Lord Edwyle Stark

The war in the Vale had waged for two years now, countless battles had been fought, won and lost. Castles had fallen and been reclaimed, and through all of that Edwyle had watched the men he called friends live and die by the sword, laughing as they went to their deaths. Hells even his own uncle Errold had died, laughing as they had stormed Old Anchor. Old Anchor the seat of House Melcolm, and the castle they were currently stuck in, and had been for nearly a year since the battle with the forces of Runestone. Lord Andar Royce sat outside the walls of the castle with some 3,000 men more men than Edwyle had now, he was sure Lords Bolton and Karstark had retreated to the north somehow once it became clear that they would not gain more aid from the Iron Throne. Gods alone knew what the King was doing, but something else seemed to have taken his attention. Davos Sunderland and his men were dead, their corpses still fresh in the Elder Wood, Lord Borrell long since dead and no one knew what had become of Lord Goodthorpe, perhaps he too was dead. All Edwyle knew was that this war was over now, Jon Arryn was marching towards Old Anchor with a sizeable host and that was what worried Edwyle.

Of course Royce had seemingly remembered that they were kin, and as such had allowed Edwyle to give him a letter to send to his sister Jocelyn at the Gates of the Moon. After that letter a deal was struck, and now Edwyle was waiting to meet with Royce and his sworn men to discuss whether or not the deal would still go through. The doors to the solar opened and Lord Andar Royce strode in. "Jon Arryn has been delayed coming here, by the scores of clansmen I sent his way. Be thankful that I still follow the old gods my lord otherwise your head would be decorating a spike right now."

Edwyle nodded his thanks and then asked. "And the second part of the plan? That is in action now?"

"Yes. My cousin knew to follow the code I sent him. Soon enough your sister and her family will be safely away from the Gates of the Moon and on a ship bound for the north. As to Jasper Waynwood well that is where your men come into play. Can Lord Dorren Umber be trusted to do as asked?" Royce questioned.

Edwyle said a quick prayer to the old gods for his sister's safety and then said. "Yes I believe so my lord. Dorren might be a giant, but he can be a quiet one when he wants to be. He is also very, very cunning. You have no need to fear on that count. Now what about the final part of the plan, when shall that be coming into play?"

"My, my lord you surely are in a rush to head off out of here. Have you had your fill of glory then? Realised that war is not a game?" Lord Andar taunted.

Edwyle ignored the taunt and merely said. "I have done what I set out to do, and now wish for nothing more than to head home. So tell me will I be able to take my men back with me once this plan is done?"

Thankfully Royce nods and says. "When my squire returns, me and my men and the host surrounding these walls shall ride out and aid Lord Arryn in defeating the clansmen. You will have about a day's head start before the pursuit begins. In that time I insist that you take the southern road to Gulltown, Jasper Grafton bears no love for the Arryns and will let you and your men go without question."

"And what of the ships we had docked in the fingers, what about them?" Edwyle asks.

"Leave them to burn. My cousin Beron shall see them burnt. Now if you have no further questions, I must go and see to my men. I suggest you speak with your bannermen now my lord." With that Andar Royce takes his leave.

Once the man is gone, Edwyle knocks on the door connecting the solar to the other study and his lords' bannermen: Ryswell, Dustin, Manderly, Glover, Umber and their sworn men enter as well as his uncles Rodrik and Brandon. "You heard what was said. Dorren I want you to take the Bloody Gate, beat it raw, and then ride for Riverrun. Once you are out of the Vale, Arryn has no claim over your head." Dorren nods and then Edwyle turns to his uncle Rodrik and asks. "Do you believe Royce spoke truly? Will he uphold his end of the deal?"

His uncle is silent for a moment and then says. "I believe so, at least about Jocelyn and her children leaving the gates of the moon. As for all else that he said, who knows. He is a southerner, and they are notoriously untrustworthy. We shall have to proceed with caution when we do finally leave. And there is something he is not telling us, I could see in his eyes. Something dangerous is out there."

"What could be more dangerous than a bunch of southerners?" Lord Glover asks.

"I know not, but clearly there is something out there in the Vale that is causing all of these plans to be put into motion. But regardless we must tread very carefully now." Rodrik says.

Edwyle nods. "Very well, you all know what your roles are in this. I want this done to perfection, no false starts or fake ends. We escape and go through with it to the end."

His bannermen voice their understanding and soon enough the meeting comes to an end. Edwyle is the last to leave the room and once he is armoured and ready, his uncle Rodrik comes and says. "The Royce host has left, they have only left behind some 200 men as they said they would."

Edwyle nods and then says. "Tell Dorren that now is his time to shine." His uncle nods, and as Edwyle walks through the castle he can hear the gates being lifted and the sounds of fighting drift through to him. He walks to the battlements to see the Giant of House Umber waving proudly in the air as Dorren Umber and his men smash the 200 Royce men to pieces. "Tell Lords Glover and Manderly to prepare the torches." Edwyle tells one of his men.

Once the man has left, Edwyle heads down towards the grounds, where his men are all ready and saddled, once he is mounted he gives the order and he and his men ride out of Old Anchor, and towards the southern road. When they are a safe distance away, Edwyle roars. "Let the flame loose." And once he hears Lords Glover and Manderly barking the commands and hears a whoosh of flame, he looks round to see Old Anchor burning. Nothing will be left of House Melcolm's seat once the flames are done, just as there is nothing left of House Melcolm.

They ride as quickly as their horses can go on the southern road, not daring to stop for a rest or for food. This goes on for at least three days in which time, Edwyle swears the road to Gulltown still seems to go on and on with no end in sight. Eventually he calls a halt to the march and sends his two most trusted scouts out to gather information. Whilst they are out, Edwyle and the rest of the men tend to their horses and to themselves, and eventually Jason Ironsmith, and Willam Woolfield return with some interesting tidings. "Jon Arryn has put a bounty on your head my lord. He claims to be doing so in the name of the Targaryen boy he claims to be king. Some 600 gold dragons to the man who brings him to the Eyrie alive." Ironsmith reports.

"Well at least the man seems to value my life highly." Edwyle says to the amusement of his lords. "Now what else did you learn?"

Ironsmith is silent a moment and then he says. "Lord Umber managed to break through the Bloody Gate, he and his men destroyed the gate and those who guard it. But Lord Dorren died of his wounds whilst staying at the Crossroads Inn. His son Jonnel now leads the Umber men back to the neck."

All the men were silent then, for Dorren Umber was a good man, a true Northman. "That is not all we learnt my lord." Woolfield said. "We also learnt that some woman has been causing trouble for the nobles in the Vale. They call her the Black Swan."

At this Edwyle's interest was piqued, he had heard his grandmother speak of her on cold winter nights, and his uncles Rodrik and Errold also looked interested. "What do they say of this black swan?"

"They say she runs with devils and clansmen, that she mates with animals and that she is a sign from the seven for the Arryns supporting the Targaryens. Other than that they say nothing else." Woolfield said.

"Very well then. It makes no matter. Now was there any word on Jocelyn or her husband or daughters?" Edwyle asked.

Ironsmith is the one to speak to that. "There was actually my lord. The people of Shett's Town said that Lady Jocelyn and her children had escaped the Gates of the Moon and were heading towards the Riverlands. Whilst others say they escaped and were heading north. But all tales agree that she has escaped."

Edwyle nodded that was good news. "And what of her husband?"

"Ser Benedict died my lord. How he died none know, but that he is dead all agree." Ironsmith replies.

At that Edwyle is torn, he does not want to leave his sister alone with her daughters roaming the Riverlands whilst war wages, nor does he wish to abandon his men before they get to Gulltown and to home. As if sensing his burning desire to do both, his uncle Errold says. "It is better for you to come back north Ed. You will do no good gallivanting off to find Jocelyn now. She will come home, and now it is time for us to go home."

Edwyle is about to respond when an arrow comes flying past and hits the tree next to him. Turning round he sees a company of men wearing masks, and then a voice, a woman's voice. "He shall be going nowhere just now. Not until he is done with me."

"Who are you, and what do you want with the Lord of Winterfell?" his uncle Rodrik asks, stepping forward then his sword drawn.

The men move aside and the woman steps forward wearing a swan mask. "Do you not remember me Rodrik? I confess it has been a while since last we met. But not so long for you to forget me." With that she removed her mask, and long brown hair fell down and her eyes, gods her eyes were the same as his.

"Alysanne?" he heard his uncles Rodrik and Errold say softly.

"Aye, indeed. I have come back and now I desire to speak with you all. You wish to leave for the north, but not before I get my due." The black swan replied.

Both his uncles were speechless as were many of his men, and so he merely asked. "And what due is this? That you would seek to stop the Lord of Winterfell and his men from returning home?"

"I have come to claim what I should have gotten long ago, when your father was still alive. Or perhaps even when my own father was still alive. Sold off like chattel as I was. This is my due, and I shall have it." The woman says.

Edwyle feels his anger begin to growing unsheathing Ice he asks. "And what due is this, I ask again."

The woman looks at him and smiles. "Why, your blood nephew."