(Disclaimer: I do not own A Song of Ice and Fire nor its characters. Those all belong to George R. R. Martin, aside from my OC.)


(Braavos)

In a reasonably sizeable room, sat a group of very worried and influential individuals, discussing the recent events that had occurred within the Sunset Kingdoms.

The Iron Islands had fallen and their attacks provoked a swift and devastating response from the mainland. If word from their spies were to be believed then more than half of the noble houses that ruled the Isles were now extinct.

Now the Isles were under the Mudd's control and they were no closer to being secure.

It was a gamble giving so many resources to the Ironmen. A failed one, since they would not be getting any of it back and there was still the risk of their involvement being leaked to the Mudd King.

No doubt, he'd be after their heads.

"Those savages couldn't even do one job right." someone said.

"They were foolish to go against a united realm." another pointed out.

"It shouldn't have been united in the first place." was the response from the first.

"Indeed, I'm afraid we erred a bit on that. The Ironborn attack merely reinforced his rule, not weakened it." Agreed one of the attendees.

"Why haven't the Targaryen loyalists done anything, they could've stirred up something."

"There was no need, eventually the Dragon Princess would marry the heir. They probably saw no reason to cause problems that would put them in danger for no reason. She would become Queen either way." Explained one.

"Forget the Targaryen, did the horn work?"

"No, our spies are worried it might have the unintended effect of turning its user mad."

"Euron Greyjoy was already mad, he merely became worse once his plans fell apart."

"What were you idiots thinking giving that lunatic a means to control Dragons?"

"It didn't work, so it matters not."

"And if it did? You expect us to ignore the fact that you allowed the trade of what could have brought disaster upon us by a madman."

"I merely facilitated a trade. No more, no less."

"You shouldn't have given the horn you should have brought it to us."

"As I previously said, it did not work. So there would be no point in bringing it here."

"That's enough!" The head of the table silenced those arguing spoke. "Giving them the horn was a mistake. The Ironmen relied on it too much, making it so that the damage they did to the Sunset Kingdom was smaller in scale than it should have been."

"What do you mean minor? Sunspear and Lannisport were devastated. It will take years before I can recover from that."

"I agree, who told them to attack those two."

"I believe it was the mad Kraken who our friend is acquainted with."

"..."

"It doesn't help that both are ruled by Great Lords whose loyalty in Erlend was quite loose."

"So we helped weaken potential allies, is what I'm understanding."

"Exactly."

An audible sigh escaped the Heads mouth. His annoyance with the whole situation comes out. "It will take a long while before both cities recover. We can expect a decrease in trade then."

"We can afford it. Profit can still be made"

"That's if the Triarchy doesn't start forcing their tolls on us again." One voice pointed out.

"Whose Idea was it to support its existence?"

All eyes turned toward the same man who facilitated the trade of the Dragonhorn.

The man looked nervous at their stares. Well aware of the mess he'd caused by helping push for the recreation of the Triarchy.

It had seemed a brilliant idea in his mind initially. Only after its declaration did he realise the mistake he made by doing so. Braavos now had to deal not only with Volantis but also a fledgling powerhouse in the form of a united three daughters.

What was worse was that he'd lost a lot of wealth by doing so. Convincing the right people hadn't been easy. Now he also had to deal with the anger of his fellows who didn't appreciate having to deal with even more problems.

The Triarchy had been an infamous powerhouse in its heyday, once that posed a genuine threat to their interests. Instead of calling on the Mudds to do something about them, the Sealord had sought out Corlys Velaryon to weaken the Three Daughters.

The Mudds had warned the Sealord that no moves had to be made and that the Three Daughters would eventually tear itself apart from the inside. His refusal to heed their warning didn't help him either.

That was a mistake that still haunted the Sealords family to this day, their reputation and prestige having been brought low by it. It also ended up costing Braavos greatly in the process and achieving nothing it sought aside from wasting precious resources and gold.

"What about Volantis, it should be making a move?" Someone asked.

"They're dealing with another slave riot." one answered him.

"That's the 4th one this year. Shouldn't they be cracking down on them?" An annoyed voice stated.

"They did. It didn't work."

"Inbred fools, can't even do the one thing they're good at right."

"Indeed."

The lack of sympathy for the slaves on their part displeased some of those attending, though they chose to remain was no secret among the upper echelons that more than a few of the Braavosi merchant princes here benefited greatly from the slave trade.

While many publicly championed the cause of freeing the slaves within this continent, quite a few of those who did so, secretly profited from it. It wasn't something many dared talk about, the last person to do so had been disposed of and their family with them.

The Mudds were well aware of this and had worked hard to stomp it out. Their failure in doing so lay in the fact that they didn't have enough power, with so many powerful figures working against them both inside and outside Braavos, it was a near-impossible task.

Erlend Mudd presented the greatest threat to them since Aryan the 'Dragonslayer'. The former had gathered more than enough power and influence to take control of Braavos, while the latter had the wealth, popularity, and a sizeable armed force to back him. He had died before he could put his plans into motion thankfully.

It was why they had plotted with Aerys to launch an attack on the Twilight Isles. With Tywin out of the way, it was nearly guaranteed that they would be able to convince the paranoid king to do so.

Unfortunately, they did not count on the son being just as mad as the father.

(A/N: A little bit of background for you, showing why they're so persistent in wanting Erlend gone.)

"We could use Pentos to take down the Triarchy." One suggested.

"How exactly do you propose that?"

"They're pressured to bring back the slave trade." He explained.

"If they do so, it would cut into our profits."

With slavery officially being banned in Pentos, they had been forced to turn to Braavos for different trades that could be made, something that greatly benefited those in the room.

"You don't understand…"

"Then explain it to me you fool."

"If Pentos is to reinstate the slave trade within its territory, It will earn the ire of the Mudd."

"Once he deals with them, he'll go after the Triarchy who caused the issue in the first place."

"..."

Those gathered frowned, though it would deal with the Triarchy without them having to lift a finger.

The problem was that it would also end up bringing the Mudd's attention back to Essos, something they also did not want.

"We'll vote on the matter at a later time." The head finally spoke, turning his attention to a specific person. "Now we have to deal with the fool in our presence who nearly cost us greatly," he said.

All eyes shifted to the man who facilitated the trade of the Dragonhorn and the rise of the Triarchy. Judging on just how much they could gain from him.


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