The Farosi
I own nothing but my OC's
AN: Well, I wasn't expecting Ned's actions in the last chapter to have caused so much frustration from so many. Keep in mind he didn't have much time to make his decision and he was just trying to make the best out of a fairly bad situation. Still, I hope this clears things up a bit.
Chapter Eleven
The Ascension
This is a giant mess, Ned thought to himself as he and others, the large group of his own household guards and staff, Baratheon's retainers, as well as one Tarly still wearing his Farosi uniform, rode along the road at a brisk pace. It wasn't long until they caught up with King Renly and of course he was confused as to what he was doing.
When he had been told of the Farosi's plan he was outraged, almost looking like Robert at his worst, but he calmed down soon and listened to Ned, explaining what he had done, persuading Jon to stay and act as a spy if he could. Renly was glad to hear that when he realised something.
'They have nearluy forteen thousand men at the Arbor! I told Robert and Arryn not to let them in but they did it anyway and now look.'
He sent a rider to a nearby holdfast with a rookery to send word to Lord Redwyne but Ned doubted it would do any good. He expected Princess Radwen had already sent word to the troops there to sieze the island, from there they could strike at the Reach and begin their invasion of the mainland. As they went on he thought about all of this, it was ridiculous. The other wars were simple by comparrison, two sides, he chose one and fought for it. Now there were the forces of Renly, the Lannisters who would almost certainly support Joffrey and the Farosi who were an entire problem themselves. Not long ago it looked like they would destroy Lord Tywin's armies and win the war quickly but now they had the Farosi to deal with.
Am I doing the right thing? he wondered. Yes, he was sure of it, no, not sure of it, but he thought it was the best he could do. While he had a reputation as being an unbendable moralising man he was Warden of the North, of course he knew politics. He was raised to be a soldier and one thing was obvious. They couldn't win this war, not in the tradition sense anyway.
He didn't have much time to plan this but he came up with one and he hoped it would work. He would advise Renly on his actions against the Farosi to win as many victories as possible on the battlefield. He had spent enough time looking at how Farsos worked to know that they had one weakness, the Senate. Senators needed to win elections to keep their seats, wars meant taxes, meant expenses and it meant a lot of unhappy people voting for Senators. If he could make the war as costly as possible for the Farosi then, while they might not win, they could negotiate a peace that would be favourable. Of course, there was another question. Why not just support the Farosi? Proclaim to the world Jon's heritage and let the Farosi have the Iron Throne. No. The Dragons lost their rights to the throne after the rebellion, any oaths he had to that house burned with his father. Most people would think the same, another Targaryen on the throne would have the support of few unless they had no choice. More than that, yes, the Farosi would bring a lot to Westeros but what would they destroy? Everything that had happened in their land happened slowly, over the course of thousands of years. They wanted to bring thousands of years of advancement to Westeros in just a few, it could destroy Westeros. Yes, he wanted to see their advancements but bringing them in slowly, carefully, giving people time to adjust, it would make long term peace rather than short lived triumphs. One of his bannermen bought a Farosi threshing machine a few years before, when the harvest came in the small folk who would usually do the threshing had no work and they rioted. Overnight this device changed things and no one thought it through.
Lastly, of course, he had a backup plan. If something happened to Renly everything would go even worse, the rightful heir would be Shireen but, sadly, no one would fight and kill to put a girl whose face had been destroyed by Greyscale on the throne. There would be no other choice, then, maybe, for the good of the realm, he could reveal the truth about Jon and support him, bringing about peace.
It was not a perfect solution but he was doing the best he could. He looked to Renly, he could be a far better king than Robert but who would be better on the throne, Jon or Renly? He feared for Jon, as a normal soldier he was one among many, as a prince or a king he would have enemies everywhere. That's the main reason he sent him to Farsos, he could be safe from his families enemies and have a life, the only alternative would have probably been the Wall. He wouldn't break his promise to Lyanna, her son would live no matter what.
...
Jon was crouching low behind the stone ballustrade, his men around him doing the same, not too far away Captain Lowhill was doing the same, the whole company doing the same as they waited for the order. When Jon had first looked over the ballustrade, after entering the gallery, he saw a company of the Military Police, all wearing their black leather battle coats and carrying their revolver rifles, a few putting away the strangling wires they had used to kill the guards outside the door to the gallery. Jon looked at Donley, the wire he had used, made from a thin length of metal similar to what grocers used to slice cheese, was wrapped around his belt. They just had to wait for the order and they would fire. They would fire down into the throne room below them.
The plan was simple, Radwen would be the distraction, she and her small force of just a hundred Royal Guardsmen, would slowly move through the city, all the attention would be on them and the outer defences. As they did that the key part of the plan would take place. Most of the embassy garrison and the soldiers underground would then advance through the tunnels beneath the city and attack the Gold Cloaks Barracks, secure the gates and other important sites.
According to Colonel Donnah's agents all of the staff in the Red Keep had been ordered to stay in their quarters so if a fight broke out in the castle no one would have to worry about screaming servants. This meant that the entire regiment of infantry who would be infiltrating the Red Keep wouldn't be found by accident, with all the attention on the throne room and the walls no one would see them coming. The company of the Light Horse commanded by Captain Lowhill and a company of Military Policemen would infiltrate the Red Keep first though.
When they had left the embassy and marched into the underground stores and barracks they went past hundreds of regular infantry who had been in these tunnels for weeks, all of them looking surly and eager for the fight to start, their bayonets fixed and rifles loaded. Their officers were doing a good job at keeping them in line but they were impatient. Soon they made their way to the tunnels leading to the Red Keep which a small number of the Military Police had cleared of potential spies and soon they were in the lower levels of the castle.
After that they split up into their platoons or troops, quickly making their own paths through the castle. Jon's men were only nearly found once when a young man, by his clothes he was a noble, and a servant girl, were making love in an alcove, taking advantage of the empty corridors. Fortunately they weren't at it for long and soon hurried off, only slowing the troop down for a few minutes.
'That the best he could do?' Sergeant Osoni chuckled to Jon afterwards.
Jon couldn't help a slight laugh at that but his mind was focused on the mission. They met up with Lowhill and the rest of the company near the doors to the gallery of the throne room and a few volunteers went ahead to silently kill the few guards there, after that everyone entered the gallery, crouching low behind the ballustrade just as Radwen and her guards entered.
There they waited, listening as the two sides talked, Jon growing nervous at the thought of Radwen being in the line of fire. She could shoot a revolver but it was something else to look a man in the eyes and kill him, he wasn't sure if Radwen was able to do that. He wasn't sure if he wanted Radwen to have to do that.
''Let her speak,' Jon heard Queen Cersie. 'After that we will get onto the matter of her soldiers leaving this city.'
Jon heard Corporal Donley hiss with laughter at that.
Thank you. I wish to state my fathers claim to the Iron Throne,' Radwen said in a fairly normal voice as if it had been any normal conversation.
'What did you say?' somone, Littlefinger he guessed, asked her, clearly confused.
'My fathers claim to the throne. It's all legal.'
'You have no right to this throne!'
Yes I do.'
'How long did it take your father to make it up?' Cersie asked he with an icy tone.
'We've been waiting for this for thousands of years.'
'Don't be ridiculous.'
Jon peered over very quickly and made note that a number of the enemy had shotguns, not too dangerous but if they got a good shot at Radwen it would be the end of her.
'Alright lads,' he said quickly, 'focus fire on the shotgunners.'
'I am serious,' he heard Radwen tell all of those gathered. 'Don't you know the history of your own family Your Grace?'
'What has that to do with anything?'
'Everything actually. Did you really think we were all dead and gone, that we would never come back? Your ancestor wasn't as clever as he thought, just one escaped his massacre and fled Westeros, Cassius Hill.'
He could hear the men below drawing swords.
'At arms' Ser Barristan shouted and Jon felt regreat at knowing that it was likely that soon Ser Barristan the Bold, the greatest of the Kings Guard, would be dead soon. That man fought alongside his father in battle.
'Who are you?' the Queen asked Radwen, it was clear how terrified the woman was.
'A daughter of House Cassius, descended from the bastard line of House Casterly, Lords of Casterly Rock. As recompense for the actions of your ancestor, Lan the Clever, the Senate has voted that House Lannister shall be stripped of all their titles and lands which shall be claimed back by House Cassius. Through that we claim the throne. Surrender now and you will be fine, refuse, and you will die.'
'Now that's a statement and a half,' Osoni said to Jon.
'I know.'
'Kill them!' the inbred shit declared. 'Kill them!'
'Now men!' he heard Radwen shout and Jon stood up at once, revolver drawn and his eyes met Radwen's as she was pulled behind the line of her Royal Guard who took aim at the enemy.
The Lannister troops and Gold Cloaks were stunned at th reveal.
'FIRE AT WILL!' Lowhill ordered and what followed was short and bloody.
Jon fired carefully, always aiming down into the mass of enemy soldiers who tried to fight back but, as most were armed only with hand to hand weapons, they futily hid behind their shields only to be cut down anyway. With a shot to the leg someone knocked down Ser Barristan, the Hound hell to his hands and knees with three bullets buried in his chest. The rest of the Kings Guard were cut down by volley fire from the Royal Guard. Some of the Military Police threw hand bombs, black cast iron spheres filled with black powder, down into the enemy, the explosions tearing them to pieces. Jon reloaded his pistol and saw Radwen behind her guards, holding her pistol but her hand shaking slightly at what she was seeing.
Jon fired again and struck down the last of the shotgunners when he noticed Baelish and Varys racing for the door to the Small Council Chamber behind the throne. However, at the last second the door was thrown open and from it emerged twenty Military Policemen led by Colonel Donnah, a revolver in each hand. With one pistol he slammed the handle into Baelish's forehead, the man hit the ground, knocked out cold. With the other revolver he took aim at the Spider and fired three times, two striking him in the chest and a third in the head, blowing off half of the bald mans scalp. Soon after that Jon saw the last surviving enemy soldiers throwing down their weapons and surrendering, of course as soon as that was seen, Colonel Donnah ordered the Farosi to cease fire.
'Well done gentlemen,' Radwen said to the soldiers who began to round up the prisoners. 'Take care of the wounded, lock up the prisoners.'
'Let's get down there lads,' Lowhill ordered his men and soon after Jon was walking through the killing field.
He looked at the dead, he thought he saw Maester Pycelle amongst them, Littlefinger was being taken away with the other wounded, such as Ser Barristan and the Hound. Queen Cersie was against a wall, two Military Policemen hodling her at gunpoint, her two youngest children behind her. Joffrey on the other hand had ten of the Royal Guard aiming their rifles at him and was refusing to get off the Iron Throne, behaving like a child who was without his favourite toy.
'No!' he shouted.
'Just get off the damn throne!' Radwen told him.
'No!' this time he stamped his foot as he said it.
'Joffrey just do as she says!' Cersei pleaded with her son.
'I'm finished with this,' said Radwen and she looked at Jon. 'Take him off the throne.'
'Yes Your Highness,' Jon said, remembering that they were both foing their jobs, no time for names.
Jon walked up the steps to the Iron Throne, his pistol still in hand and grabbed Joffrey by the wrist and dragged him down from the throne and almost throwing him to a Military Policeman who, in just two seconds, locked him up in hand cuffs. When Jon saw this he nodded at the policeman who just dragged the would be king away.
'Lock them up in Queen Cersie's chambers. I want a guard on them at all times,' Radwen ordered.
'I'll handle it,' Donnah told her and led the group away.
While this was going on, Jon looked up at the seat of the throne and realised that if things had been different it could have been his. He sighed and returned to stand with Radwen who was now smiling, ignoring the bodies.
'Well done,' she said quietly.
'Thank you.'
'Your Highness,' Captain Lowhill said to her, 'your orders?'
'Secure the castle. We won't have long until everyone outside knwos what's happened. My Royal Guard will remain here. Captain, I must ask you to back into the fight.'
'We will fight with honour Your Highness. Just point at the enemy and we'll blow them away.'
'Good man.'
Jon and the rest of the Light Horsemen, as well as the Military Police, lined up and prepared to march out. Radwen watching them before she turned around and began to walk up onto the Iron Throne. When she came to the top of it she sat down and rested her arms only to pull her hand up to her face where she had cut it on a blade.
'For the Crown,' she declared, 'for the Senate and the People of Farsos!'
'Crown, Senate, People!' Jon and every other soldier echoed before marching out.
...
Along the walls of the Red Keep and in the courtyards a brutal battle was taking place. Jon dodged a spear thrust from a Gold Cloak and then sliced the mans neck open with his saber. With that his men finished clearing that courtyard so he led the in a charge up through a tower and onto a wall where they gunned down some of the last few defenders. With the Red Keep almost secure Jon leaned against the wall and looked out over the city. Smoke was rising from some of the streets and the gunfire was echoing across the city. He could see one of the barracks used by the Gold Cloaks was on fire and expected that heavy fighting was still going on there.
Later, historians would recall this as the start of the Princesses War.
AN: And Kings Landing Falls, the Farosi are victorious, the Spider falls and Princess Radwen sits upon the Iron Throne.
So, that's more or less the end of this part of the story. It will continue though, please read the Epologue and I hope you have all enjoyed this story. The next part, "The Princesses War" is mostly planned out and I will begin publishing as soon as I've written a first draft of the first ten chapters. Yes, that one will be longer than this and I hope more epic.
Review Responses:
Hitman: Thanks for the review, as for your predictions, you'll see soon.
ATP: I hope this clarifies Ned's reasons for making his decision.
Eriador12345: Thanks for your review. I hope this explains Ned's thought process. He doesn't believe that many would support another Targ on the throne after the Mad King and he doesn't want his nephew to be in too much danger which a king would have to deal with. On top of that he's worried about how much damage the Farosi could do to the way of life of the Westerosi. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.
Nestor 1000: Yeah, I've always wondered what would happen under that scenario, this is my version of it.
kdakmmt: In fairness to Ned he was fighting then to bring down the Mad King, here he wants stable rule in Westeros under Renly who isn't insane.
Tertius711: I expect that Radwen would be heartbroken if she learns the truth, however, will she or won't she? You'll have to see.