(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.)
(Florent Encampment)
"Footly is demanding we relieve his siege as soon as possible" Alester spoke.
"Is he Mad?"
"I refuse to sacrifice my men for his folly!"
"Who's idea was it to attack Lord Erlend's lands?"
"Utter Foolishness."
"Absolutely not."
"ENOUGH!" Axell roared, silencing the tent.
The objections of the Lords gathered went silent, though a few continued muttering and murmuring under their breath.
It had been their brother Ryam's idea to attack the Riverlands, their fool brother having urged his brother-in-law Lord Footly to attack while the Mudd's attention was elsewhere.
For this reason, Alester had made sure Ryam was nowhere near the meeting tent, lest the Lords turn their ire on to him. Footly had been an idealistic fool, with too much bravo and little to no thought in that mind of his, but he had a lot of friends, many of whom were in this tent. It would be unwise to him in, while tempers were still high.
"Despite Lord Footly's brash actions, Lord Erlend has yet to declare his support for the fat Oaf, we can still salvage this." Alester reasoned.
The gathered Lords nodded their heads to his words, once many had taken a step back to think, they realised the rumors of a Tyrell-Mudd alliance were highly unlikely. After all the Young Lord and his forces had just finished reclaiming the Riverlands, conquering the crownlands, and subduing the Mountain Clans.
He'd already proven himself as a Commander and a respectable Lord, his men were likely haggard and needed to recuperate, there was no reason for him to throw his Banners into another war.
Unfortunately due to the brash decisions of one of their own, they were now in the unenviable position of facing an unamused Mudd. Tales of his ruthlessness and martial prowess made them quite nervous.
Especially when their most experienced Commander in the North, was Mathis Rowan who sided with the Tyrells, putting them in a disadvantageous position.
That's without mentioning his Uncle Lorimas a renowned Knight and his Commander Duncan Strong who was currently besieging Tumbleton.
(A/N: Most of Westeros aren't accustomed to the ranks that House Mudd and the Banners use, so even though Duncan is a Lt. General, they'll just call him Commander or Marshall depending on the size of the host he has under him.)
"Perhaps we could request a meeting with Lord Erlend?" Lord Crane suggested. Murmurs of agreement could be heard around the tent.
Axell pondered the suggestion, it wasn't a terrible idea and could give them some room to reposition themselves, now that they were facing a war on two fronts.
"I heard that Lord Erlend burned a raven sent by the Tyrells." Ser Norcross spoke up.
"I heard he wasn't particularly happy about the rumors." Another one agreed.
"Who would be, no sensible Lord likes to be used."
"It was probably that grape bitch Olenna who spread it."
"Yeah, she must've wanted to force Lord Mudd into an alliance."
"Might've wanted him to impregnate her daughter and then smother him in his sleep."
"Wouldn't put it past the Old Hag."
Alester let out a sigh, as the Lords devolved into another argument about how terrible the Redwyne Hag was.
Not that he disagreed, like most of the Lords, he had heavy suspicions on the manner of way Luthor had died.
'Rode himself off a cliff, what a sack of horse shit'
Luthor may not have been the most intelligent of fellows, but the man wasn't stupid enough to kill himself like that. More than likely the Hag had orchestrated his death and seized control over the Reach through her oaf of a son.
While there was some pity in him for Mace, it wasn't enough to quell his ambition to gain the rightful position House Florent was owed as the most direct descendants of the late Gardeners.
…
(Mace Tyrell POV, Tyrell Encampent)
Mace was confident he could win this war, the war that would finally put those smug proud fools in their places, the war that would ensure his house's position would remain secure forevermore. The War that would put his name in the history books, as one of the greatest Tyrells to ever rule Highgarden.
Even though Randyll had refused to heed his calls to assemble, the man at least did his Job and made sure those Dornish snakes weren't getting anywhere near Highgarden.
He was sure that the grizzled Lord would eventually come to his sense and realise what a great Leader and Commander Mace made. It was his genius that saw Robert flee for his life at Ashford and the Stormlords cowering in their keeps.
Bah, he'd show them all their places, and when they come crawling for mercy and forgiveness he might be magnanimous enough to let them off with a few punishments.
Standing there proudly, Mace Tyrell felt on top of the world.
...
(Olenna Tyrell POV, Highgarden)
"I don't particularly know why, but I feel like your brother is thinking something stupid again." She said.
"You're probably not wrong Mother," Janna replied.
"Of course not, I'm never wrong silly girl." This earned her a roll in the eyes from her daughter.
"Has Lord Erlend responded to the raven?" Janna asked, wanting to change the topic.
Seeing no reason to deny the change, "No, the Mudd has yet to respond. More than likely he's furious with the rumors." Olenna said.
"I heard from Willas that one of his trusted Commanders had died during the Footly's attack." Janna looked worried.
Olenna nodded in response, not many were aware of it but one of Erlends Commanders, a good friend of his had died in the attack. The only reason they were aware of this, was because they managed to sneak in a few spies who were posing as servants for some of the Riverlords.
They'd still failed to turn any of the enlisted men from the Banners or the Officers to their side. Whatever the young conqueror and his forbearers did to gain so much faith and loyalty from their men truly baffled her and admittedly impressed her.
The current situation for the Tyrells wasn't as bad as it could've been had they not made their recent marital ties, otherwise, they would've already been ousted from Highgarden.
[Tyrell Loyalists:]
Hightower, Bulwer, Beesbury, Costayne, Blackbar, Meadows, Rowan, Redwyne and Fossoway.
...
[Florent Loyalists:]
Crane, Footly, Norcross, Merryweather, Caswell, Appleton, and Oakheart.
...
[Neutrals:]
Serry, Chester, Grimm, Hewett, Peake, Tarly, Hunt, Mullendore, Cuy, and Ashford.
...
[Uncertain:]
Various Minor houses, the most prominent being House Osgrey.
While it could be argued that House Tyrell had the advantage both in the number of Houses supporting them and the men they could call to arms, a significant portion of these Houses had their men tied up in defending the reach from the recent surge in Ironborn raids.
The Shield Isles could only do so much in keeping them out and none of the Houses wanted their families to be placed in danger by focusing all their troops in supporting the Tyrells.
There was also the lack of experienced Commanders in the Tyrell forces, Mathias was holed up in his keep, unable to make a move, having been surrounded by Florent supporters.
Randyll wanted nothing to do with this Civil War despite his marriage to a florent, being more focused on the Dornish rather than what he considered a bunch of ambitious fools.
Last she heard from Mace, he had put Brightwater Keep to siege in hopes of demoralizing the Florents should they lose their ancestral seat. Though it was unlikely he'd get any of the members as hostages, apparently most of them had been moved to Red Lake long before the war began.
There was also the issue with Erlend Mudd, they had been unable to get to him before the war had begun, having been on the move for nearly his whole Riverlands campaign.
Not to mention there were rumors of a potential marriage between him and Catelyn Tully, which while wouldn't bring him much manpower, would solidify his hold over the Riverlands. Something Janna wouldn't be able to provide, much to her annoyance.
A rather strapping young man appeared, interrupting her thoughts. He looked quite nervous, it was probably Left and Right.
"I apologise my Lady, but this just came from Lord Tarly." Raising her eyebrows at the parchment, Janna grabbed it for her and read through it.
Olenna simply waited for her daughter to finish reading, while she sized up the young man.
"Oh My…" gasped Janna.
Raising her eyebrow at the astonished look on her daughter's face, "Well, What is it that's gotten that bastard's knickers in a twist?"
"House Manwoody, Fowler, and Blackmont have raised their men-at-arms and are marching towards Hunt" She whispered.
"Well, Shit…" was all Olenna could say to that.
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