Eddard III
When Ned entered the council chamber he noticed that he was last to do so. 'You shouldn't have eaten that cheese, Ned. Told you it was bad.' The Voice spoke, and lied to him nonetheless. It never spoke that the cheese was bad.
"Sit, Ned." Robert spoke, Ned moved to the seat to the right of Jon Arryn. Jon himself sat to Robert's right while Tywin was to Robert's left. Doran was next to Eddard as he sat down, clearly staying away from Tywin. Hoster himself was seated next to Tywin.
"Only Quellon and Mace are missing from lord paramounts, though I would rather not meet with them." Robert spoke and chuckled to himself, none other entertained him with a chuckle making Robert sigh. 'Tough audience, I know that pain.' The Voice spoke in Eddard's mind.
"Your arrival was a pleasant news to us, Prince Doran, I hope that the Redwyne and Royal fleets didn't try to stop you from reaching King's Landing." Jon Arryn spoke to Doran, with a kind enough voice.
"Thankfully the passage was safe, Lord Arryn." Prince Doran answered with a slight smile.
'God this is so fucking boring!' The Voice shouted in his mind, Eddard found it disturbing that he thought the same.
"Speaking of which, the Storm's End is still under siege by Mace, he has around sixty thousand men with him. A fool that he is, he could have easily squashed us if he were to move north earlier." Robert said and Ned had to disagree.
"Not a fool, it was a wise decision. No one can claim that Tyrells didn't fight for Targaryens, even if he didn't want them to win. He waited and feasted, Mace sent a token force to help Rheagar while the realm bled." Ned claimed and all the eyes focused on him. "He lost barely any men and will probably surrender once we show up, claiming that the Reach alone cannot face an entire coalition. It was wise to do so, even if unhonorable."
"Lord Stark speaks the truth, yet I doubt that it was Lord Mace's plan. It was an easy way to ensure the survival of House Tyrell, no doubt Lady Olenna had a say in the movement of the Reach's army. In the end they are only an upjumped steward house, they cannot take big risks less other Reach houses try to claim Highgarden." Lord Tywin backed Ned in his assessment.
"Around six thousand Dornish spears survived and are near King's Landing, along with Stormlanders and the rest of Crownlands host, with mounted men of Westerlands, Riverlands, Vale and the North we can easily muster forty thousand men, most of which would be cavalry, making it easier to move fast." Ned claimed, wishing to push the meeting towards a quick end, his bowels started to play a song that he didn't like.
"And if they wish to fight?" Hoster asked, Jon Arryn took it upon himself to answer. "They won't, Reach would burn if they did. Lord Tywin spoke truth of house Tyrell. Their vassals don't have much love for them." Jon turned to Ned next. "Would you lead the men south, Ned?"
Eddard pretended to think over the proposal. "I will." Jon Arryn nodded and turned to Doran.
"Would you accept Lord Stark's proposal of leading your men down south, Prince Doran? They are to return to Dorne." Doran pondered the question for a while.
"I accept, as long as my sister Ellia and niece Rhaenys are released to go back to Dorne." Doran said calmly and stared at his King. Robert frowned, but said nothing. 'Jon must have spoken extensively to Robert about it, I expected him to shout for Rhaenys murder.' Eddard did too, he remembered what Voice told him of Robert's reaction when he would have seen the dead babes. 'I see no babes. Only Dragonspawn!' The Voice added, this time even though Aegon died there were no babes presented to Robert in Lannister cloaks, Tywin didn't see the need to do that with Jaime's deed.
"Of course, though you have to understand that she will have to marry whom we decree. Once she turns into a woman grown of course." Jon Arryn spoke while Robert's frown stayed on his face.
"Oberyn will lead my men South. Under Lord Stark's orders that is." Doran said and nodded towards Ned, which nodded in return.
Robert spoke next, no doubt wanting to change the subject before he burst from anger. "Let us speak of the wildfire plot, what are we to do about the Tyrantsbane?" Robert said, his frown lessening a bit as he spoke Ser Jaime's new title.
Tywin spoke with eagerness not often seen in the Great Lion. No doubt it was the most important matter that he came to speak about at this meeting. "Ser Jaime has slain his King that he vowed to protect. He did so saving the entire city, but he is a Kingslayer nonetheless. I ask you, your grace to expel him from the Kingsguard, it is enough of a punishment." Robert spoke nothing in return yet looked to his other side and stared at Ned to voice his opinion. 'Figures that Tywin wishes the return of his heir, poor Tyrion losing his heirloom of Casterly Rock, although it will be good for him to reunite with his brother.' Voice commented.
"I agree with Lord Tywin, Ser Jaime's both oaths acted against each other. In the end he chose his gods against his King, it would be foolish to punish him truly, but even more foolish to keep him as a Kingsguard." Eddard spoke, much to Robert's surprise, who turned to Jon Arryn to speak.
"Ser Jaime has shown his honor as a knight and kept his vows to the gods." Jon Arryn spoke simply.
"I will announce this on the morrow. What else is left to speak about?" Robert turned to Jon once again.
"The war is almost won, it is time to start initial peace talks." Jon Arryn stated, though Eddard knew it would be better to call it haggling. 'Haggling indeed, yet we have our own piece to haggle for.' Voice added.
It was almost an hour later when Hoster stopped speaking, asking for many minor things to be conceded and lords to be punished, when Jon Arryn answered Hoster, Ned quickly butted in before someone else could. "The North may not have the same problems as your realms my Lords, but has problems nonetheless." Eddard started making all eyes turn to him with their stoic faces, even Robert's face was all blank. 'I think he finally understood what it means to be King, and that it is awfully boring.' Voice quipped.
"The North is barely connected to the south, the only connection is the old Kingsroad on the eastern side of the Neck and travel by ship from the White Harbour. I believe it is in favor of the Seven Kingdoms to make an additional one." Eddard spoke, though none showed any interest in it. "I mean to build a new city on the west coast, what I ask for is a charter for it and a road to connect it with the south through the western part of the Neck. From Saltspear's tip through the western part of the Neck then Seagard and to Riverrun, by rough estimation such a road, made with stone would cost up to 300 thousand gold dragons and take six years at most to complete, since big part of it runs through the Neck's swampy hills." Tywin raised an eyebrow while listening to my proposition, perhaps he was wondering why Eddard was so adamant with building roads, no other Lords knew that he had spoken with Tywin about funding another road.
It was Hoster that spoke next, clearly eager to support the project. "I agree with my Goodson, such construction would bring necessary stability to the Riverlands, and the realm as a whole." 'And decrease the influence of the Twins, not to mention the trade that would run between North and Westerlands straight through Riverrun.' Voice added in Eddard's mind.
"Once the war ends the prospectors will be sent and the charter written." Jon Arryn spoke, Eddard could see a hint of pride in his eyes. 'It is good to have connections, that is what your father wished to achieve, shame that the cost was so high.' Voice added.
The meeting continued for the next hour, many lords lands were carved, many knights holdfasts exchanged hands, but more importantly the letter to Mace was drafted. Another thing Ned asked for is for all the men that fought to be given two gold dragon worth of silver stags, Robert was quick to accept. Finally after almost three hours Eddard found relief in one of the outhouses. 'Told you that cheese was bad.' Eddard didn't acknowledge Voice's attempt to annoy him yet again.
The next day Eddard took his men staying at the Red Keep and left for the camp outside King's Landing, it took him half an hour to reach the camp, and the first thing he did was to call for a council of the northern lords. It took barely half an hour for all the lords of note to assemble.
The Northern camp was under command of Wyman Manderly while Ned was away, few northern lords didn't like that but it was not like they were marching to battle. He trusted Manderly to keep the camp well supplied, making men less prone to visit King's Landing for some action.
He could see Wyman sitting to his right, next to him Rickard Karstark and young Roose Bolton sat one seat further. To his left was Howland Reed, 'Crannogman Ninja' The Voice called him before, whatever it meant. Next to Howland sat William Dustin, further away from them sat other lords of houses Umber, Ryswell, Mormont, Glover and various leaders from the mountain clans and lesser houses like house Cerwyn and both Flints.
"We are marching south to relieve Storm's End siege, though we don't expect fighting. Lord Wyman, Lord Bolton, Lord Dustin and Lord Ryswell, Yours and my own mounted men will go south, we leave King's Landing in two days." Eddard spoke to which various Lords nodded. "Lord Karstark, you will take the rest of the men and march back home in a few days. Robert means to share some of his new treasury with the men, 2 gold coins worth in silver for every fighting man and the same amount times how many men a Lord brought for the Lord's themselves." Some Lords cheered at that, though Eddard knew that it was not much for the Lords, even northern ones. 'But it is a lot for common soldiers.' Voice spoke and Eddard found himself agreeing.
There were no more words that Eddard had to share, though various Lords wished to voice their grievances and so the meeting continued for the next hour. When the Lords were leaving the command tent he asked Howland to stay.
Eddard made sure to speak quietly. "I know where Lyanna is. I need you to find at least three dozen trusted men that will not tell a secret that we will need to keep, preferably ones strong enough to wield crossbows. You have time until we reach Storm's End."
Howland nodded and answered in a similar quiet voice. "It will be done, do you expect complications?" Eddard quickly answered. "Complications that will need to be kept secret from Robert, for Lyanna. It is best not to speak of it near King's Landing." Howland bowed and left the tent. 'We will need a trusted maester, though I know no other than Luwin who is at Riverrun with pregnant Cat. Perhaps Cressen would be willing to keep secret from Robert, but I doubt he would keep it a secret from Stannis.' Voice spoke, though Eddard didn't like taking such chances and denied Cressen as a possibility. 'We can risk it with a woodwitch, or experienced midwives.' The Voice spoke, yet Ned didn't want to take risks with his sister's life, the Voice continued after a while. 'She might die no matter what we do, she is barely sixteen years old.' Eddard didn't want to acknowledge that possibility.
The army marched out two days later, Valemen under the command Ser Denys Arryn, Dornish under Prince Oberyn Martell, Westerlanders under Ser Kevan Lannister, Riverlanders under Ser Brynden Tully, Crownlanders under Lord Gyles Rosby and Stormlanders under command of some knight that Eddard has never heard of, not a surprise since there were only one thousand of them in the host, while the rest was broken by Randyll Tarly at Ashford and dispersed early in the war. Overall command was Eddards duty, he commanded Northern host as well. Ser Barristan was too wounded to join the host.
"It will be a long two months, Lord Stark." Said Prince Oberyn while on a horse next to Eddard. 'Told you he wants to bed you.' Voice joked, at least Ned hoped it was a joke.