Chapter 88: A meeting of kings
28 AF
Rickon
He looked upon the bodies of the fanatics hanging from the trees. He had followed Ricky's example by gutting them and having their entrails slowly drop to the ground as they hang there. It was a gruesome sight, but a powerful message.
By now, even the stupidest Southern fanatic knew what awaited him when he took up arms against House Stark. No matter how zealously they believed in their Seven, they knew that their gods wouldn't save them from a Stark's Northern wrath.
He recalled the ten days since the battle of Pinkmaiden. Taking the castle had been easy. After they had threatened to execute Lord Lewys, his wife Lady Rhialta Piper, formerly Vance, had opened the gates for them. In return, Robb had kept her household intact.
After the keep's capture, his brother had divided his forces. Robb himself had gone to the Golden Tooth to speak with King Willem Lannister.
Two days after the battle, Lannister had arrived at the castle of House Lefford with a force of ten thousand men and had quickly taken command. Not much later, they had received a messenger asking Robb to meet Willem there and discuss the involvement of his vassals in 'The war of the Trouts', as the singers had started to call it.
Robb and Jon had left in force. Twelve thousand men from both the Riverlands and the North had followed them in a show of strength. They didn't expect any strife, but it was better to be prepared. It might also convince the Leffords and Lannisters to make concessions with an army at their gates. Concessions they were owed after their involvements in this war.
In the meantime, his nephew Rickard was tasked with turning Pinkmaiden into a stronghold and supply base in the Western Riverlands, in anticipation of what both the Lannisters and Tyrells would be doing.
Robb's youngest son had also left. Him and Cley had been sent back to Moat Cailin with a thousand Northmen. They served as a guard for the hundreds of men that had been forced to take the black. Lord Lolliston had been beheaded for his remarks to Ricky earlier in the war, but Lords Piper and Keath were already on their way north.
They certainly weren't the only ones. Ser Lucos Bracken, Ser Jeremy Grell as well as the Keath and Lolliston heirs were also accompanying them, together with two dozen brothers, cousins and other adult males from the lordly houses that had rebelled against him. The intent of this was to curb the families' influence by reducing their members.
Together with these nobles, three hundred and fifty footmen and seventy-nine knights would take the black. Another one hundred tradesmen that had fought in the enemy army also marched to the Wall. The Night's Watch had a shortage of many kinds of tradesmen, and many among those that had joined the enemy, be it freely or forcibly levied, had worked in such professions. They could now showcase their talent in the freezing colds.
Guarding prisoners wasn't Littlejon's only task. He was also ordered to wait upon the new army's arrival at Moat Cailin. Once it had completely gathered, his young nephew would lead it south into the Riverlands. Their spies told them that the Tyrell king had left Highgarden with a force of twenty-five thousand. However, the Southern flower marched slowly as many of his lords still joined him on the march. If the Reach chose war, they would need their Northern reinforcements if they didn't want to be outnumbered.
He looked upon the bowels of a septon dropping into the bushes with grim satisfaction.
All those that had rebelled against them would be severely punished in time, he reminded himself with glee. In the days after the war, Robb had heard them all out to gather advice on how to punish them. Soon, they would feel the consequences of their actions. The punishment of House Piper was the only one that had already started. Fitting, as they had also been the first Riverlanders to support Elmar.
They had forcibly taken custody over the new Lord Piper, Lord Lewys' only grandson. The boy was only four years old and had immediately been sent to Riverrun with his mother and sister. The boy would be separated from both soon and either serve there or with another loyal family in the Riverlands. He would only be allowed to return to Pinkmaiden when he became sixteen years old, his brother had ruled.
Lady Rhialta would be left in Pinkmaiden to organize the Piper affairs, but she served as nothing more than a way to easily placate the household. Already his brother and Lord Tully were looking for a way to divide large parts of the Piper lands and who to install as castellan in their name. Dividing the lands was going to be a difficult task, as none of its neighbors, except Houses Goodwood and Tully, had joined Robb's side. Nevertheless, they would be significantly reduced in size.
House Piper wasn't the only one who'd be losing lands. The lands of Houses Terrick and Lolliston would both be reduced in half, while also being doomed to a child ruler. The details were still to be decided, but none of the rebels would escape the dance.
With the rest of his family separating, he had asked his brother for a command to go deal with House Rollingford and bring to heel the last remnants of House Cressey. Surprisingly, Robb had agreed.
This is how he found himself traversing the Riverlands with three thousand Northmen, coming mostly from Houses Karstark, Cerwyn, Woolfield and Slate. All those houses had lost family at Sow's Horn or in the wake of it. The intent of his mission was clear: revenge.
His three thousand Northmen were accompanied by the forces of House Blackwood. Together they crossed the kingdom on their way to House Rollinford to bring them to justice. They would also take care of any rebels and zealots they passed on their way, such as those hanging in front of them.
What exactly would happen to rebel lands in the Former Crownlands still needed to be decided, but it was certain they would be distributed among their allies.
In the meantime, Robb, on the insistence of Ricky and many of the Northern lords, had called for a hunt against fanatic septons and septas. Any of them who had pleaded for men to revolt in the name of the Seven would be captured. The septas were to be sent to the Silent Sisters, while the septons would be hanged.
The one whose bowels were hanging in the bushes had been one of those. He had manipulated two dozen local peasant boys into joining Elmar's forces. Two weeks after the battle, only three boys had made it home. Some of their grieving mothers had eagerly pointed his trackers to the septon. Hopefully, peace and quiet would soon be able to return upon this little community next to the Rushing Falls.
This hunt had shocked some Riverlander vassals, but they had been pacified by the promise that those could immediately be replaced by other septons. Robb had sworn to them that the Riverlands would not lack religious representation. They had needed this, as some feared that their religion would be disfavored and mistreated after the actions of the fanatics. Robb had ensured them that that wouldn't be the case.
His brother had already secretively written to Lord Wylis Manderly to prepare septons from White Harbror for the travel to the Blackwater. Even after they were done cleansing the land from zealots, the Northmen living there would be outnumbered by the local Andal population many times over. Better to have their religious leaders preach tolerance, instead of hatred.
In five days, he had marched passed Wayfarer's Rest and Acorn Hall. There, he had forcibly levied an extra five hundred soldiers for his force. These houses had had no choice in the matter, refusing another order from a prince would be signing their death warrant. In total, that brought his force to forty-five hundred men, which was more than enough to deal with House Rollingford.
The route that he had taken was no coincidence, it had been intricately mapped out by Robb to show everyone that the Stark's authority had returned in the Western and Central Riverlands. Still, it remained a safe distance away from both Stoney Sept and Harrenhal. His elder brother would personally secure both in time, but first he had to deal with Lannister.
He had only taken one detour from his brother's route. Some of his men had wanted to see High Heart, and he had agreed. The detour had cost them almost a full day's march, but the moral benefit to his Old Gods' believing forces had been incredible. They were all ready to drink the blood of the Rollingfords, after seeing what another fanatic Andal force had done to one of their holy sites.
From here, he would march southeast until he reached the Rollingford lands. Ravens had flown to Houses Sumber and Mossbridge to inform them of his coming. He didn't necessarily need their forces in the coming fight, but they could come in handy.
He looked upon the bodies of those hanging one last time. The septon and his band of a dozen ruffians were hanging there, but also the local miller and his wife for harboring and aiding them.
He had abstained from hurting their four children, as otherwise he wouldn't be any better than those zealots. Instead, the two eldest boys would be escorted to Riverrun to join the orphanages at the Wall. The younger boy and girl were too young to ever remember any of this. They could be brought up in the orphanages of one of the Riverlander towns. The local mill he had bestowed upon the miller's cousin, as he had been the one who had ratted out the septon to Meeron Reed's crannogmen.
Howland's heir was proving invaluable in matters of tracking and scouting. Aye, the lad looked different, and he and his men spent most of their time on their own, but they always delivered.
Some friction had arisen when Meeron had asked not to partake in the battle at Pinkmaiden, as he had felt that his crannogmen would hardly be of any use in a pitched battle. He feared that they would simply be slaughtered due to their smaller statue and lower weight when fighting enemy heavy infantry.
Some had called them cowards, but in the end Robb had ruled in Reed's favor. Meeron and his band had stayed behind to guard the camp. After the battle, they had hunted enemy stragglers for three days. In those three days, the two hundred crannogmen had killed and captured twice their number and had thereby redeemed themselves in his eyes and those of most of the army.
Sadly, he would have need of the man in the next few weeks. In contrast to other parts of the Riverlands, fanatics still ran rampant here. Many groups from the Central Riverlands had migrated here out of fear of their patrols. In addition, many of the splinter groups of Elmar's army had hailed from these regions and were now wandering aimlessly around their native areas.
The best they could do was hide, because all those still wishing to run around rampantly murdering, raping and stealing would be hanging from similar trees soon.
Ned, short for Edrick, Cassel would not forgive what those men had done to his brother's lands and people. Never would he forget how his sister Lyanne and her family had been brutally murdered in the wake of Sow's Horn. Ned had saved him half a dozen times in Essos. Now it was his time to repay the favor.
He would not rest until all those responsible were dead. The clergymen and Faith Militant that had been a part of the massacre had already felt their wrath, as they had rejoined Elmar and been present at Pinkmaiden. Now it was the time for House Rollingford and the locals to feel their hammer crashing down upon them.
Robb
He rode to the large and luxurious pavilion that had been set up between their two forces, in the shadow of the Golden Tooth. King Willem Lannister awaited him in front of it.
Lannister was dressed in a red tunic and trouser, finished with golden lace. On the front of his tunic a golden lion was proudly stitched. From his shoulders flowed a satin cloak of red and gold. His crown was made of gold and decorated with rubies, which both complemented his long golden hair. He looked regal, as did his twin brother beside him.
They weren't alone. Behind them stood two large and impressive men. Those would be his kingsguard, whom King Willem had given them golden cloaks to differentiate them from others.
Next to Willem stood other nobles, some whose sigils were familiar from past wars. Houses Crakehall, Westerling, Banefort, Swyft, Serret, Marbrand and Prester were all present. No coincidence, he knew. All of those were tied to the Lannisters by marriage. Nevertheless, others were present too, like Lords Jast and Plumm, as well as Lady Alysanne Lefford.
His gaze turned hard, as he looked upon the woman in front of him. He had once treated her with respect and amicability. He had fostered a friendship with her and helped her battle her grasping cousins. In return, she had helped to put a dagger in his back. That would not go unpunished.
The invitation had been clear. No more than twenty guards, ten high-ranking nobles and an additional advisor of choice were allowed to escort them to the pavilion.
Torr and Ser Edmyn Grey accompanied him from his Wolfsguard, together with eighteen of the best swordsmen in his guard. The ten nobles of his choice had been picked equally from both kingdoms.
For the Riverlands, he had Lords Hoster Tully, Lucas Goodwood, Damwell Deddings, as well as Sers Patrek Mallister and Lymond Bracken. The last name had been controversial, but it would be a show of force for the Westerlands to see that the Brackens had returned to the fold as they remained one of the strongest houses in the Riverlands. Besides, Ser Lymond fully understood that he was not expected to speak.
For the North, Lords Smalljon Umber, Domeric Bolton and Timotty Flint accompanied him, as well as Ser Wyman Manderly and Ellard Dustin. It was a very prestigious company, and this was done deliberately. Lastly, his brother Jon accompanied him as well. In the meantime, the army was under the joined command of Lord Lyman Darry and Lady Dacey Mormont.
At a respectful distance, he dismounted his horse. "King Willem!" He greeted the blonde-haired man in front of him. "King Robb, it is good to see you. Be welcome in the Westerlands." The regal reply came.
Both introduced their companions, before stepping inside the tent. Only the two Kingsguard members and nobles from each side joined inside, while each side's eighteen guards took up position in a perimeter around the pavilion.
He looked around the tent, but no servants could be seen. Nonetheless, the table was filled with royal amounts of bread, salt and wine. At the sight, he nodded in thanks to his Western counterpart. A good sign to start these negotiations.
Once all were seated and had taken their pick from the food and drinks in front of them, Willem opened the conversation. "I thank you for so quickly answering my request to talk, King Stark. Much has happened, and I think it best that we ourselves talk this out as equals. No matter how much we respect and count on them, there are some issues on which our lords can't speak or act in our name."
The words that the blonde-haired king spoke were clearly carefully chosen. He would agree to play this game. "I understand, King Lannister. It has been too long, a talk in person could be a good thing for both our kingdoms. On top of that, there are indeed many things that we need to talk about."
Willem Lannister nodded. "First of all, I would like renew House Lannister's commitment to peace and trade with your kingdom. In the last twenty-five years, we have clearly seen that this can benefit us both. Only recently has this notion been forced to the background, and not by my own choosing."
"I am glad to hear this renewed commitment from House Lannister, as you can understand that some in my court have … doubted about your intentions after your vassals' recent actions." He replied diplomatically.
"Understandably so, I am afraid. I regret the actions of Houses Lefford and Payne, and those smaller houses that followed them, and I can assure you that I neither support their actions nor the views that led to those." The Westerlander responded, and he quickly continued.
"It may please you to know that steps have already been undertaken to punish those for their unlawful incursions into your lands."
"Punished? How so?" He asked curiously, his lords all leaning forward now.
"My troops have personally taken control of the Golden Tooth. Ser Francis Piper, the lord-consort of Lady Lefford, has been apprehended and will be sent to the Wall for his involvement in the conflict. To make sure that it doesn't happen again, Lady Lefford's two eldest grandchildren have been placed in my custody. Her grandson will be raised with mine in Casterly Rock, while her granddaughter will be placed with my sister at Banefort." Lannister told him.
This surprised him. This was indeed a serious punishment that he had given the Leffords. It was not enough but showed his intention for peace to be genuine.
In the back of his mind, he also remembered that this was a great outcome for the Lannisters themselves. The only reason the Leffords and Paynes had been able to do this was because of Willem's lack of authority over them. By doing this, he firmly reestablished control over the east of his realm. The Leffords had been seriously humbled.
"It may also please you that I have broken up the beginnings of a small army that was planning on marching to Willow Wood. Their peasant leaders and the organizing septon have been hung and the forces dispersed.
He nodded approvingly, but still received a look from his brother to push for more. "What about House Payne and the smaller houses that joined them?" He asked.
"After we reach an agreement, I will march to their keep with my forces. House Payne will be subject to similar conditions. Hostages will be demanded to ensure good behavior, while the main instigator, in this case Lord Payne's cousin and steward, will be sent to the Wall. Three heads of knightly families will accompany him as well." Willem Lannister answered.
It was clear that he wanted to respond and take control over his vassals once again, without taking too many risks. The main instigator in this had of course been Lord Payne himself. However, removing him would be controversial in the Westerlands. By removing his steward, he showcased that his power ran deep, even being able to hit the Payne household. Still, none of the other houses would risk angering the king for a mere steward.
"I thank you for your swift and thorough response to this outrage. It is a show of good faith which is wholeheartedly appreciated by me and mine." He replied. "Nevertheless, I still believe that my vassals have a right on compensation. The Leffords marched into my kingdom with twenty-five hundred men. Ser Tybolt Payne with a thousand, while their families also financed thousands of mercenaries. These forces devastated the Western and Southern Riverlands for months. This is not so easily forgiven."
The ruler of Casterly Rock tried to direct the conversation in a different direction now that compensation was on the table. "Speaking of Ser Tybolt, and Ser Leo Lefford as well, how are they faring? How are all captives faring?"
He looked into the eyes of his Westerlander counterpart. "After the battle, all remaining members of the Faith Militant were executed. A dozen captives or so had been from the Westerlands, but as the order is also banned in your kingdom, I would expect that this is no problem for you."
His threat was clear. Do not, in anyway, protect the fanatics. The Westerlords seemed to have heard it, as murmuring amongst them started. Some of those had been from knightly families, while a Lefford and Payne cousin had also joined the order.
King Willem gave him a fake smile. "Of course not. It is better to be rid of those zealots once and for all. How are the others faring?"
"After the war, all foreign knights and soldiers were sent to the Wall. Mostly men from the Reach, but even a handful of volunteers from the Stormlands and Dorne." He replied, intently stopping there to take a deep breath. This let to shock and outrage amongst the Westerlords.
"My vassals wanted me to do the same for those from the West, and we did do that with the mercenaries and the lowborn household knights. Nevertheless, I refrained from banishing the higher nobles, for now. I first wanted to talk about this matter with you." He finished, which immediately reduced the tension again.
The king's twin brother, Prince Martyn, seemed annoyed at his antics, but the king himself showed no emotion. "I thank you for this consideration. In the idea of stability, I would perhaps propose for them to be ransomed after all. Lady Lefford has already lost one of her sons in the battle, the message not to strike your lands has been received in blood. There is no added benefit to her losing another. The same goes for House Payne and the knightly houses. They have all lost family members, friends and vassals. They have been battered. Hurting them more would just hurt our relations."
He almost smiled at the unveiled threat. Willem Lannister had come a long way since he had forced the crown upon him to fight his grand-uncle Tywin. However, he would not let this go so easily.
"I could only entertain the thought of ransoms, if we first talked about reparations." He dropped the hated word. All among the table remembered the indemnities they had had to pay after the last wars. It had stifled their growth and emptied their pockets. Only now had they all started to recover from that ordeal.
Lannister tried to object, but he shut him up. "I fully believe that you were not behind this, King Willem. As such, I don't ask any reparations of you, or anyone else at this table except her." He pointed to Lady Alysanne.
"This incursion was led, organized and paid for by Houses Lefford and Payne, together with five smaller knightly houses. I demand payment from them. For the farms that have been destroyed from Pinkmaiden to the God's Eye River and from the Goldroad to Riverrun. For the men that have been killed there, the women that have been raped, the crops that have been stolen and the children that have been slaughtered."
He looked into the eyes of all the lords of the Westerlands one by one. "My vassals would never allow me to walk away here with nothing. Especially not if I also allow those perpetrators we captured to live. However, I don't need them to remind me of how foul that would be. In my own conscience, I could not walk away from here with nothing. I won't." The last words he said, while peering into the green eyes of the Lannister king.
King Willem looked to his lords for support, before continuing. "What would you have in mind?"
He inhaled sharply. "The lands of Houses Lefford and Payne have remained untouched during this conflict, in contrast to the Riverlands. I would demand a hundred thousand Northern gold coins from them, each. For the knightly houses, I will accept ten thousand each."
Half the Westerlords eyes turned into their sockets. He knew that he asked for a true fortune, but he wanted to make a point here. Nevertheless, he knew that the number would be haggled down. He had inflated it so that he and his lords would be happy with less.
"The number you propose is too high, King Stark." Willem Lannister told him. "We would accept your distribution key, but would you accept half of your original proposal?"
This would give him one hundred twenty-five those golden coins. A true fortune, but the West was rich. No Northern house could easily pay such sums, but the Leffords and Paynes could with their mines and fertile lands.
"I am willing to drop my original offer somewhat, in light of our continued good relations and the clear effort that you have made to rectify this situation before coming here. What would you say of four fifths?" He countered.
Willem nodded in thought. "I thank you for the sentiment, yet I would have to ask you to drop it a bit further. Maybe two thirds of your original asking price would work?"
He thought that over. He could of course haggle further, but it could endanger the good relations that they had and he would ask for more concessions after this. The total amount would almost equal the amount that the whole of Dorne had had to pay him. Not bad for two lordly houses and five knightly ones.
"I will accept, but I would like to get the total amount in five years, one fifth each year." He countered.
"One seventh every year for seven years." Willem haggled further, and he agreed.
"Now the ransoms." He said, Lannister nodded. "Let's say … five hundred golden coins in our currency for Ser Tybolt Payne and a thousand for Ser Leo Lefford as he is the heir. A hundred for the heads of the knightly family's and thirty for each of their family members." The terms were more than generous and as such he agreed.
"Do you have anything more to ask of me?" King Willem asked him.
"In fact, I do want to ask two more things." He started. "Firstly, I wanted to ask for an additional warehouse in Lannisport for our Northern wares. It seems that our traders have difficulty doing business in your city as they lack storage spaces. As you know, we mostly trade logs, furs and hides. Things that use up more space than most trade wares."
In all honesty, they already had generous storage spaces, but they could always use more. Lannisport was the largest regional trade hub. From there, their wares would always be bought up and distributed further inland by carts or up and down the Westerlander coast to smaller harbors by ships.
He saw Martyn Lannister grind his teeth, but his elder brother agreed to his request. "Lastly, there is the issue of our defensive alliance."
"What of it?" King Willem asked with eyes full of suspicion.
"The last war was a civil war, as such this fell out of the bounds of our former agreement. Nonetheless, I would ask to renew the agreement to aid each other in case of war with the Reach."
Willem Lannister looked at him, long and hard, before speaking. "The Tyrells have marched from Highgarden." It wasn't a question.
"They have." He confirmed.
"You suspect they had something to do with the Faith and Footly's part in the Tully civil war." That was another statement.
"I do." He established the reason for his question.
"You want us to fight alongside you if King Garlan marches against you." Lannister voiced his thoughts.
This time he shook his head. "No, I do not need your men to fight alongside me, although I would welcome it. If the Tyrells march into the Riverlands, I want you to burn everything between the Ocean Road and the Lesser Mander. I want you to burn every keep, town and farmhouse north of Highgarden. I want you and your men to get rich by attacking the undefended lands of Houses Oakheart, Crane and Rowan, while their armies are marching into the Riverlands."
King Willem squinted his eyes. "Why would you want this?"
"To send a message. Marching into the Riverlands has been a common occurrence in Westerosi history. From now on, it has consequences. I will try to come to a peaceful agreement with King Garlan. However, from what I have heard of the man, he might not be interested in that. If he opts for war, the Reach will burn. This will happen with or without your help. I only ask if you will honor our previous agreement or not." He stated.
His threat was clear. The Westerlands had benefitted massively from trade with the North and Riverlands, and due to his interference they had also traded with the Iron Isles instead of worrying about their raiders. If they reneged on the previous agreements when it came to defense, he might do the same when it came to trade. In such a world, the Reach might be destroyed, which would leave no neighbors for the Westermen to trade with.
A tense silence filled the pavilion for a long time, until something flickered in his opponent's eyes. "Of course, we would honor our agreement. I will personally move my army southwards after dealing with House Payne. The cooperation with the North and the Riverlands has been very beneficial these past decades. We would hate to lose it."
"As would we." He replied.
Willem Lannister stood up. "Then it seems that we have reached an agreement, King Robb. I thank you again for your swift arrival. I propose to have a toast on continued cooperation and trade between our kingdoms."
He got up as well, and picked up his glass of Arbor Red. "To peace and trade between the North, Riverlands and the Westerlands." Both their lords joined in, happy that strife had been averted. His eyes pierced into those of Lady Alysanne Lefford. You have achieved nothing, except the fall and financial ruination of your house. His eyes told her. Ashamed, she quickly looked away. The speed at which she looked down to the ground gave him greater satisfaction than any agreement ever could.
(a week later)
Rickon
His campaign hadn't gone as he had planned or hoped. When he had arrived at the castle of House Rollingford four days ago, he had expected an army. All he had seen had been trampled and deserted fields.
The remnants of an army encampment in the valley in front of the castle had been clear, but there was no one to be seen. The castle itself was garrisoned by only two hundred men, its commander being Lord Rollingford's bastard cousin.
The latter had surrendered quickly, after being assured that he and his men could leave the castle with their lives intact. All had been allowed to leave, on the condition that they left their weapons and valuables behind.
He had looted everything there was to find, but it hadn't been much. Lord Rollingford had taken most of his treasury with him. The bastard cousin had told him that he had fled with his family and forces towards Tumbleton.
He had put a small garrison of Blackwood soldiers under one of their cousins inside the keep, before moving on to the lands of House Cressey.
This is where he found himself now, but to his surprise he found the keep already under siege. He was greeted enthusiastically by the force's outriders and taken to their camp. He could see the flags of Houses Sumber, Rykker, Crabb, Mossbridge, Rosby and Hayford fluttering above some of the tents. Men cheered him on, as his horse trotted through the camp with Shaggy alongside it.
Before he knew what had happened, he found himself in a command tent in the middle of the camp, with men bowing slightly in front of him. "My Prince, we are overjoyed at your arrival." A balding man with a slight belly spoke jovially. He knew the man to be Lord Jasper Rykker.
Lord Jasper was the powerful Lord of Duskendale, who had completely switched sides to his family after the last war. His father had died fighting for the Lannisters against Robb, but he himself had become a staunch Stark loyalist.
Since the destruction of King's Landing, Duskendale had flourished and regained its old position as the main port along Blackwater Bay. Even its relationship with King's Landing's successor Riverport was amicable. Lord Jasper had married an Umber niece and his eldest son and heir had recently married one of Lord Brynden Blackwood's daughters. Because of this, the Blackwoods and Umbers among his forces greeted him amicably.
Behind Lord Jasper stood the twins of Riverport. The sons of Lord Rodrik immediately walked forward and hugged Osric Umber, as well as the Karstark brothers, Edrick and Rickon. The latter to were also cousins of them through their Umber mother's side, he knew.
Behind the twins came Martyn Cassel, who quickly embraced his brother Edrick Cassel and then him. "It is good to see you, Martyn. We feared you lost."
The eldest Cassel brother looked at him grimly. "We almost perished. Only Alaric's heroic last stand gave us a chance to escape." He replied, as he nodded to a young boy standing at the back of the room. He wore the colors of House Rosby, and couldn't be more than six-, or seventeen years old.
"Alaric's boy?" He asked, and Martyn nodded. The Karstark brothers seemed to have noticed this and they immediately walked towards him with long strides. The boy seemed alarmed, but he seemed to calm down when they both grabbed him in bear hugs one by one.
All in the room looked upon the spectacle. "It's good to finally meet you cousin!" Edrick Karstark loudly exclaimed. His younger brother looked the boy over from his face to his shoes. "You may dress yourself in Rosby cloths and take your mother's name, for us you remain a Karstark."
The boy smiled at that. Edrick Karstark put a hand on his young kinsman's shoulder. "What happened to your father and brother is a tragedy. We are here to help you get the revenge you deserve and teach you about your father's family and our customs. You are one of us, you should know how you ought to behave too."
"Aye", his brother agreed. "First of all, we need to teach you how to grow out a good Northern beard. Those hairs are pathetic Barthogan Rosby. Our shared forefathers would be ashamed." This seemed to break the ice, as all laughed at the joke.
He then greeted the last noblemen in the tent, Lord Donnel Locke, Ser Harry Mossbridge and Ser Jonothor Crabb, before asking them what was going on. He told them what he had seen on the Rollingford's lands, and they didn't seem surprised.
"We heard about that. We feared Cressey would have similar ideas and decided to block him from running." Harlon Sumber, the eldest of the twins, told him.
"Good thinking." He agreed. "What is the situation with Cressey?"
"We have had him holed up here for a week, but he has enough food and drink inside to last him until the next winter." His brother Hoarfrost answered.
"So, it will be an assault." He mused aloud. "Or a surrender." Ned added. He raised an eyebrow to his lifelong friend, who simply shrugged. "Never underestimate the power of royalty, my dear prince." The last words were added in mockery, but he knew that Cassel had a point.
"Aye, I'll talk to them. No time to waste, I'll do it now." He looked around. "Locke, Karstark, Umber, … Sumber, Blackwood, Rykker and Slate, you come with me. The others can happily fraternize with distant cousins and allies while they help our forces set up camp."
"Which one?" The twins asked at the same time, to the pleasure of Rickon Karstark. "I was just about to ask the same thing." He smiled.
He rolled his eyes at the antics. "The eldest of you, that goes for all of the names I called out." He replied, as he threw his Karstark namesake an annoyed look.
The eight of them walked out, before he turned around. "Martyn, you should come too." The eldest Cassel brother happily obliged. Together they rode up to the end of the encampment.
He looked at Lord Jasper Rykker. "Can you have a messenger go to the wall?"
"Of course, with what message?" The Lord of Duskendale answered his question with one of his own.
"That I, Prince Rickon Stark, want to talk." He replied, as ominously as possible. This made many of his companions grin in response. They had all heard of how he had treated House Terrick. He wouldn't hesitate to do that again to House Cressey, and they knew it.
The messenger went back and forth a handful of times, until it was agreed that Lord Cressey would come outside. He only did so on the condition that two highborn nobles would temporarily change places with him as hostages. He didn't want to get captured or threatened to open the gate, it seemed. Smart man, it wouldn't have been below him to try something like that.
Lords Donnel Locke and Cregan Slate volunteered and were soon guided inside. Instead, he had the unfortunate 'pleasure' of meeting Lord Willam Cressey in a field between the camp and the keep. The man was old and could easily have been his father. He was bald, with only some grey hairs on the side of his head betraying that any hair had once grown on his head.
"Prince Rickon, I have heard much about you." The old man started the conversation.
"Sadly, I can say the same for you Lord Willam." He retorted, making clear from the start how this conversation would be going.
Lord Cressey crossed his arms. "You wanted to talk to me?"
"Aye, I did. Give up while you still can, your little rebellion has failed. Elmar is rotting in Pinkmaiden's prison, and all the neutral houses are bending their knees quicker than a starving whore." He told him matter-of-factly.
"That may be so, but my stores are full. I can easily outlast your sieges for months, perhaps years. Long enough for the Tyrells or Lannisters to challenge your brother." Lord Willam replied.
He shrugged. "My brother will by now be on his way back from the Golden Tooth. Lannister asked to meet him to renew their alliance. No aid will come from there." He could of course only speculate why Lannister wanted to see Robb, but Cressey didn't need to know that.
It seemed to have worked, as doubt shimmered in his opponent's eyes. "That still leaves the Tyrells." He replied, after regaining himself.
He shrugged again. "Aye, it does. However, my brother has called the full banners of the North. Twenty thousand more Northmen will be coming down the Causeway in a matter of weeks. The King has also written to our allies in the Vale and the Stormlands for aid. No matter how many troops Tyrell brings with him, we can easily double it. We will crush the flower boy, as my brother crushed his grandfather and uncle a generation ago. The only question is this: will you have surrendered before that happens or will your family be destroyed."
The embers of doubt in Cressey's eyes had by now become roaring fires. Still, he had the courage to try and haggle. "Let's say I entertain your idea. What would such a surrender look like? I could easily tie a thousand of your men here. Men you might need against the flowers."
He had to respect the effort. "Or I could simply assault your keep."
Now Cressey grinned. "I have four hundred warriors behind my walls. They are armed to the teeth and eager to fight. You might win, but for every man of mine you will lose three."
To the Andal warlord's surprise, he didn't care. "On my way here, hundreds of men from neutral houses augmented my forces. I would put those on the first line. Only by the time your walls are breached, and your arrows spent, will I and my elite Northmen come out to play. Men who lost kin at Sow's Horn or one of your stupid raids in the area."
He stepped right into the older lord's face. "You may have heard a lot about me, Lord Cressey, but I can tell you one thing about me that you don't yet know. Once I unsheathe my sword, I don't put it back until it has bathed in blood. You may verify this with the population of the town of Daegerys in Essos, if you find any of its former citizens still breathing."
He took a step back, as he saw Lord Willam visibly swallow. "The choice is yours whether I will take out my sword, but I can promise you that it won't be put down before the Cressey line has been ended."
Lord Cressey seemed to be truly terrified now, but still pushed on. It made him respect the man more. "You talk about surrender, My Prince, but refuse to tell me what your terms would be."
"Your men would be forced in our army. Your family would lose a decent chunk of its lands. You would lose your wealth, maybe even your lordly title, but your family would survive. Your heirs would still rule the keep of your forefathers long after you are death. Aye, some of them might be fostered in Riverrun, Riverport or Raventree, but they will all come back to rule your family's lands." He replied uncaringly.
He almost hoped the old man would refuse his offer. He had come here looking for a fight, a fight which had already been denied to him by the Rollinsfords. He would gladly take up arms against this Southron's keep.
"What would become of me?" Lord Willam asked.
"You would be given the honorable choice to join the Night's Watch." The man nodded at that, he seemed to have expected it.
"What about my adult sons and grandsons? I already lost my heir and three of my grandsons due to that lot. I didn't even get a chance to bury them." Cressey countered emotionally, as he pointed at Cassel, Karstark and the (S)Umbers in his company.
Harlon Sumber smiled grimly in response. "It would be my pleasure to bury the others too. They shouldn't have marched upon our allies." He voiced, as he pointed to Martyn Cassel, the Lord of Hayford. "Deep inside of you, you knew what would happen when you sent them to attack Hayford. The only one to blame for their deaths is you."
The Southern lord took the comments on the chin, although it had clearly hit a nerve. "Your remaining sons and grandsons will be spared, once hostages are given and your new heir pays homage to the King. You will also receive back the bones of your lost kin, so they can be buried in your home." He replied, in a seldom moment of empathy. He saw the pain in the man's face, and apparently his heir had already died anyway.
The man seemed to have difficulty to hold it together but nodded. "Thank you, Prince Rickon. On those terms, I am willing to surrender. Let me break the news to my family first, the gates will open in an hour."
He nodded silently. The old lord rode away again with his small retinue of knights, while Lords Locke and Slate rode back to their camp.
"Will he surrender?" Donnel Locke asked him. "Aye, he will. The gates will open in an hour." He responded, but his mind was somewhere else.
The Lord of Oldcastle grinned and slapped him on the back. "Well done, Prince Rickon. You have saved many lives today, and we can use their troops on the front of our lines in the future."
He nodded, but his mind kept wandering to Old Lord Cressey. That pain in his eyes, is that how it would feel for him to lose Vala? His little girl was seven years old. She was his entire world. However, that man had lost his whole world. He had seen it in his eyes. It was a fate he hoped he would never have to face.
This is it for this chapter.
Robb splits his forces to deal with the remaining rebels. Rickon commands such a group and he forces some neutral houses to their knees, while ridding the lands of zealots. Afterwards, Rickon takes the keep of House Rollingford and deals with House Cressey. During the latter, he joins the lords of Blackwater Bay and the fifteen hundred men Lord Donnel Locke and Ser Jonothor Crabb, whom were sent south before Pinkmaiden.
In the meantime, Robb meets with Willem Lannister. They deal with Houses Lefford and Payne and reaffirm their defensive alliance. Robb is moderately compensated. He gains great symbolic achievements and a decent amount of coin. Both Westerlander houses lose their autonomy and are again firmly under the control of Casterly Rock.
Thank you for your support!
Fannic.
Reviews:
George Martin: If you read history, then you know that that was actually a very common occurrence. This especially happened from 1000-1400 with many parties even switching sides for the biggest rewards during conflicts. The neutral houses committed treason, and will be punished, but the world is not black or white and neither is ruling. Radical acts are a one-way ticket for Robb to assassination. Maybe even the fall of House Stark.
Even Tywin Lannister didn't punish neutral houses (harshly). Many houses owed the Lannisters money when he first came to power. He demanded it back from all of them immediately. Only the Reynes and Tarbecks were so brazen as to openly defy him, but the others didn't pay either. Only after destroying the Reynes and Tarbecks did they fall in line. Robb will do a similar thing here like Tywin. A second example is how Tywin treated the Houses of the Riverlands after Robb's death. He showed mercy out of a position of strength, while demanding hostages. Why? So he could deal with other possible enemies and consolidate his position. A third one is how House Darry was treated by House Tully after Robert's Rebellion. Many others also exist.
Your 70-30 argument is too short-sighed and black and white. This never happens. Some of those 70 are related to the 30 and vice versa. They are friends, kin or owe each other favors. If a king has 30% vassals who actively oppose him he has a major problem and will soon die or lose power. Depending on geography (MOST OF ROBB'S VASSALS AND ARMY ARE STILL IN THE NORTH) and speed, the 30% could easily knock out half of the 70% before they could unite, organize and establish logistics.
You are right about them not staying neutral forever. That's why they will all fall in line now, before the last of the rebels are destroyed. Thereby "joining before the conflict ended."
- Rebfan90: Thank you!
- Hidden Puppeteer: No, King Willas died. King Garlan is his heir, named after his late brother. This was first mentioned in Chapter 80. If you have any questions around the subject, rereading this could help. Thank you for reading the story!
- Force Smuggler: Thank you!
- Supremus85: Probably, yes. The capture of Elmar and the destruction of his army are the nails in the coffin for the uprising. You will get a Tyrell POV soon. Much will become clearer then. The Harlaws, if loyal, will of course be rewarded by Robb. Other loyal allies will be too.
- Poly19hum: Thank you very much for the kind words!
- Yogurt9928: Thank you. There will be interactions with the Tully brothers next chapter, I won't spoil much more. Many of the rewards will become clearer then too.
- Galwidanatitud: Thank you very much.
- Scifiromance: Thank you so much for your continued support and praises. War always has casualties. All were loyal, capable and useful people for Robb. More about Bran and Bryn's reactions later.
Edwyle's future marriage is a long time off, he is six now. She will have to be from the south and both of your suggestions are valid ones. They will (at least) be considered. Whether one of those will be chosen or others will be seen in the future.
- Farroljgk: Thank you so much for the kind words. Glad to read that you are still enjoying the story. I understand that life can be busy sometimes.
Robb is doing just what you said: applying pressure to destroy the remnants. He has send out his family members to help speed up this process. House Rollingford has fled. Their punishment will be grave. You will see this in future chapters.
House Footly will have to be dealt with. Robb can't allow Elmar's wife to escape, especially when she could be pregnant. He will, at the very least, need to work out a deal with the Tyrells similar to the one he worked out with the Lannisters. However, Garlan Tyrell is a lot less compliant than Willem Lannister due to a lot of different factors. Notably, the dead Footly heir was Garlan's friend.
Great idea. I have written it into a future chapter after seeing your comment, but you will have to wait for it as it is not in the next one. Thank you again for this amazing suggestion.