Fourth Month of 236 A.L. Storm's End
Lord Robar Baratheon.
The thought of the roses getting their hands on Storm's End angered Robar beyond words. Robar was not a man who was quick to anger, but he felt that the roses did not deserve his daughter nor did they deserve his home. They were nothing more than up jumped stewards who had changed their allegiance the minute it had benefitted them, and Robar despised them for it. Lord Otto Tyrell was an oaf, a man who would been put down the minute Robar thought of what to do. At least the man's son Willas was a decent sort, smart and kind, he was a knight but did not seem all that good with a sword, then again very few could stand against Robar with his hammer in hand. That the man was kind to his daughter was all that truly mattered to Robar, for if the man had not been kind he would have seen to it that he floated to the bottom of Shipbreaker's Bay. But the lad was kind and smart, and made his daughter happy, and Robar felt bad that he was plotting to destroy the lad's family.
Lords Caron, Estermont, Dondarrion, Swann, Connington and Tarth had come to Storm's End to speak with Robar, under the pretence of doing something about the Dornish but in actual fact to speak of how they would remove the roses from their lands. Robar spoke first. "My lords, I thank you all for coming. Winter has gone and summer is here, and with it we shall have our freedom once more. The roses are beginning to over exert themselves, and with the Redwyne Fleet engaged in combat with the Ironborn on the Dornish coast, I do believe now might be the perfect opportunity to strike. Lord Caron what news have you got for us, on how the Dornish are doing?"
Lord Caron was a big man and smart, he spoke then. "The Dornish forces under the command of Doran Martell are mustering in the Boneway as we speak and shall be marching towards the Reach for another offensive. Furthermore, Ser Alor Blackmont is gathering another host, with which he means to use to fight the Redwyne fleet and any men they bring to shore."
"Princess Arianne it seems is resorting to desperate measures. If she has indeed agreed to see Quellon Greyjoy's son wed to her daughter and heir, then perhaps it is time we considered changing our thought process." Lord Swann said.
"You would have us support the black dragon then? When we know full well that having a Tyrell at Storm's End could mean for us all?" Lord Connington asked, his voice dripping with scorn.
"I would have us do what would be needed of any good lord, to ensure that our people and land remain safe. If we are to fight, we must know who to count on, and as such I do not think Dorne can be relied upon as much anymore. After all we all know what the Ironborn are like, and I do not believe they should be trusted." Lord Swann countered.
"I agree with Lord Swann," Lord Dondarrion said. "The Ironborn have allied themselves with Dorne, and who knows that the terms of that alliance were? We might be staring at another set of raids and another House Hoare situation here. Perhaps we might needs to declare ourselves free from the throne and look to Tyrell to see if he will give us a life line."
Robar's uncle, Lord Edwyn Tarth snorted then and said. "Craven, the lot of you sound like cravens. So what if Arianne Martell has allied with the Ironborn? We can benefit from this alliance. Ally with them and we can have the Tyrells beaten at sea and cut off from their reserves on land. And we can have a three way kingdom, and make the throne bleed."
Robar liked the sound of that, but there was one thing that was nagging at the back of his mind. "If we were to become independent I do believe that we would need more than just Dorne and the Islands to aid us, we would need the Crownlands as well, and they are always under the throne's control. Besides, we have sworn ourselves to the Targaryens, we cannot go back on our word to them, and we cannot declare independence without the other lords and smallfolk rising up against us should we declare for them when they do eventually land."
His uncle spoke up then. "Do we even know if they plan on landing and reclaiming the throne? As far as we know Prince Aegon spends his days in Pentos plotting and doing not much else. Whilst Prince Duncan fights as a sellsword and earns some sort of money, and rejects offers of marriage from houses in the crownlands and from Pentoshi nobles. Meanwhile, Volantis begins stirring and making overtures towards the Targaryens. How do we know they will even bother returning?"
Lord Connington speaks then. "They must return. Prince Aegon is not the sort of man to allow something to go undone. He wants the throne, as he will see it as a way to set right what was done wrong, and he will want his daughter back. That in itself will be enough incentive to bring them back, be it with a sellsword army or with our own swords at their backs. And besides, the throne is levying heavier taxes to pay for their war with Dorne. Sooner or later lords will rebel and we shall have our chance."
"How many houses still remain loyal to the red dragon? All the other great houses seemed to have forgotten how they got so prosperous in the first place. Perhaps we might as well try and bring the Tyrells down ourselves and go from there?" Robar asks.
His uncle speaks then. "How do you propose we do that then my lord?"
Robar smiles then and says. "Well, soon enough the Tyrells themselves shall be here. It will be simple to deal with them, one by one."
Seventh Month of 236 A.L. Winterfell
Lord Brandon Stark
Peace in the north, summer was here and peace had come, and Brandon could not have been happier. Finally there was a chance for him to enjoy sometime at home in Winterfell with his wife and children. Jeyne, oh how he had come to rely on her, she was his strong right hand, and he thought he might be very fond of her, not in love but very fond of her, he was finally over Melantha and together he and Jeyne were making Winterfell and the north strong again. Their children, were growing up quickly. Arthur, their eldest son and child, was a strong willed child though he could be very quiet at times, he could also be very talkative, and he was also very observant about many things. Sansa their eldest daughter was a quiet child, and was very polite and would be the perfect Queen when her time came. Benjen was a wild child, always gallivanting about the place and climbing the walls even though he was barely out of swaddling, then there was Rickon their third child who was silent as a shadow until provoked. And then there was Brandon's niece Serena who would one day be wed to Arthur, she reminded Brandon a lot of Donnor, with her quiet manner and strong mindedness.
Donnor's ghost hung heavy over Brandon and everything he did, there were times when Brandon wished he could simply have allowed his brother to live and give him the responsibilities that weighed down on him like a hammer, and there were other times when Brandon swore a bloody vengeance to his brother's ghost. And of course there was the fact that the mountain clans had sworn their allegiance to Donnor's boy, and recognised him as Lord of the Northern Mountain Clans, something that Brandon found both useful and frustrating at the same time. Useful as it meant that the mountain clans would now be better organised in dealing with the wildlings should they ever pose a serious threat, and frustrating as it meant the boy was now very powerful and should he chose to do so could very well threaten Brandon and his children and their right to Winterfell. Gods he knew not what to do.
Of course there were other worries that Brandon had now, and as such he had called a council of his lords together. Lord Hoarfrost Umber, Lord Artos Dustin, Lord Brandon Ryswell, Lord Rickard Bolton and his brother Rodrik. "Thank you for coming my lords," Brandon began. "Since the civil war and the war in the south have ended, the north has seen in summer and with it peace. I mean to ensure that the north never again faces a war similar to the one that plagued us for three years. And as such my heir Arthur shall wed Serena Stark, my brother Donnor's eldest daughter. As for Donnor's boy, well he has been confirmed as Lord of the Northern Mountains, and so long as he or his advisors never try and usurp my or mine heirs positions in charge of Winterfell and the north, he and his heirs are welcome to their castle and stronghold. As for Edwyle, the boy will soon be heading north to join the Night's Watch and as such shall do so willingly. Now, Lord Umber, how are things looking to the north?"
Hoarfrost was silent a moment and then said. "Well my lord. The wildlings are not crossing the wall in any significant numbers, and those that do cross are being thrown back or captured and questioned. They shall not be uniting behind the Red Raven anytime soon, and as such we should expect no trouble from them for some time."
Brandon and then said. "That is good, still I want the patrols near the gift and your border lands to continue. Now we must turn southwards. There has been word from the King, it appears that he means to go through with his war with Dorne and has asked us to send men southward. The question how many men to send and who should command them?"
His men all began speaking at once, but Brandon held up his hand and nodded to Lord Rickard Bolton who spoke softly. "My lord, I believe sending as little men as possible southward would be the best possible option. After all it would mean we still have enough strength in our own lands should the Ironborn turn their attention north, and it would also mean that the King cannot complain. I would say around 3,000 men be sent southward under someone you trust implicitly."
"I agree with Lord Bolton." Lord Dustin says. "We have paid enough in corpses for the wars these southerners have waged. I say send as few men as possible, and send someone who you can trust to know when we should retreat."
Brandon was silent a moment and then said. "Very well. I agree that we've had enough of having all of our men brought to the southern hells. I believe now is the time we make a break from the south, but not in terms of freedom, more in terms of how many men we send to die there. 3,000 men shall head south under the command of my brother Rodrik and you Lord Rickard. Head south towards Riverrun where you shall meet with Lord Tully's host and remember, act as though you were fighting to preserve yourselves, I want no word of slaughter or northmen."
Both men nod and then Brandon asks. "Now how likely, Lord Flint do you believe it that an Ironborn invasion could occur?"
Lord Flint was silent a moment and then said. "I believe it is possible. Lord Quellon seeks revenge for the death of his father and brothers, and we know Lord Beron, your own father was the one to wreak havoc on the Greyjoys last time. I would not be surprised if his eyes turn north once the fighting in the south is done."
Brandon nods and says. "Then we must be well prepared to throw the kraken back into the sea."