After serving House Dayne for half a decade, Pylos was, like most of Starfall's inhabitants, intrigued by Edric Dayne. Having arrived from the Citadel just a few moons after Edric's birth, the Maester was somewhat intrigued by the babe who never seemed to cry. As time passed by, the lordling continued to display a series of peculiarities; he did not play as the other children, seldom ignored all around him, and had a tendency to seclude himself in his room with books about the most different subjects. When his father, alarmed by the risk of his sole heir opting to join the Citadel, ordered the boy to be given lessons in swordsmanship much earlier than usual, Edric gave out a rare smile, with the sword being his only toy. Too young to practice with the pages, little Edric even received praise from most of his instructors due to his growing technique with the sword.
Pylos himself couldn't help but give praise to the lordling; who seemed to excel in most subjects, often forcing him to move towards more complex lessons. Despite all his eccentricities, the lad was very polite and courteous something that made him adored by the servants.
The only negative thing Pylos could say about the boy was the detachment he had from his family. Perhaps as a consequence of growing up without a mother, the boy rarely spoke with his father and attempted to distance himself from young Allyria, something that greatly saddened the young lady.
The fourth son of a landed knight for House Broom of the Westerlands, Pylos was accustomed to the sight of blond-haired people, yet Edric's coloring was ashen if compared to the Lannister gold; his dark-blue eyes giving him even a bit of resemblance to the Targaryens who once ruled the Seven Kingdoms. He sat rather uncomfortably at the large chair built to an adult's frame but did not complain.
The Tower of Dawn, a smaller tower adjacent to the more famous Palestone Sword Tower which customarily housed the children of the lord, became emptied due to Lord Ulrick Dayne's decision to not remarry after his wife's passing. Edric requested to have some of the rooms repurposed to give him more space and serve as a small study for him, something that the lord accepted after witnessing his son's prowess with the sword. It was eerily quiet as by now servants knew that the lordling disliked being bothered. A small candle illuminated his face, that had the smallest of frowns.
Even if the lordling did not utter any word or react physically, the Maester knew that its contents were important as he should've finished by now. After some seconds of contemplation, the lad sighed, setting the letter on the table.
"You may read it, Maester Pylos."
The Westerlander, moved by his own curiosity took the letter and began reading its contents. As he progressed his breathing grew labored, by the time he finished he was almost gasping for air.
"My lord, I could not even imagine what you are feeling right now." He attempted to offer his condolences, only to be stopped short by the new Lord's raised hand.
"Offer me condolences later, now we have to secure the inheritance." The boy said sharply.
"What do you mean, young lord?" Pylos asked with a frown.
"I am six, Allyria is seven. Both our mothers are dead; this makes a regent needed. Who do you think is the most likely to step up?"
"Your cousin Gerold. Unexperienced he may be, but he is the closest living relative who bears the name Dayne. Should I send a letter to High Hermitage asking for his presence?"
"No." the Lord said resolutely. "Gerold may have fooled the deceased lord, but I am not easily deceived. If we invite this man into my castle, I will be dead before my next name day, with Allyria no doubt sharing the same fate in a few moons' turn."
"My lord, you are calling Ser Gerold a kinslayer?" Pylos asked in bafflement.
"No, I am pointing out that he is poised to become one if given the chance."
The calmness of the boy irked Pylos. He did not show any sort of reaction towards the news of his father's passing but now he was openly badmouthing his cousin.
"My lord, I can assure you that this is not going to happen…" Pylos spoke, only to be silenced once again.
"Forget. Gerold." He said in a tone no child should have. "If he wasn't in line, who would be next?"
"It falls to your liege to decide."
"This is also something to be avoided. Lord Dayne already defied Doran once by joining the march towards Pyke. Whilst I doubt the man would seek retribution, I do not want any ties to Sunspear, and most importantly I want a loyal regent. One who would not question my decisions, neither disrupt them."
"Then…"
"You are going to be my regent, Pylos." The boy decided.
"My lord, this isn't how things work…" The Maester attempted to refuse but was once again cut off.
"Where is the loyalty of a Maester?"
"Towards the castle where he lives." At the lord's pointed look he quickly added. "And it's lord."
"You have my father's seal, yes?" At his shaky nod, the lordling smirked. "Good, I've been practicing with a quill for a long time with that in mind."
The following moons were eventful, to say the least. The funeral of Lord Ulrick was a quiet affair, which Edric decided should only be attended by the castle, not sending any letters or invitations to his bannermen. Despite being regent in name, Pylos' attributions didn't increase; instead, the young lord decided to simply take his deceased father's duties in the castle. He went as far as to claim the Lord's chamber atop the Palestone Sword. Another quirkiness of his was his habit of simply showing up unannounced, watching the servants in the castle do their work; he seemed to have a genuine interest in the working of the castle, and more often than not had a peculiar, if not strange, piece of advice to give.
Much to Pylos' surprise, however, the servants seemed to appreciate his input. With Edric's help, the cooks invented what he called the Starfall Milk, a rather peculiar, sweet-tasting dessert made by adding sugar to the milk and then boiling it for some time until its color changed. According to Edric, if properly conservated, this milk wouldn't sour as its natural version, something that, if true, would truly revolutionize the kitchens. However, the same lord also threatened to have him suffer a most painful fate should the news of his invention reach other castles.
Yet, he ventured further than simply giving cooking advice. He made a point of being present in hearings and would sit in court until every petitioner was heard.
"These people faced a strenuous boat journey to get in here, Pylos; they deserve to be heard." Edric had justified.
The young lord also personally responded to the ravens sent, making him a gloried spectator. Sunspear's response towards Edric's appointment was received last week, with Prince Doran accepting the late lord Ulrick's forged letter, alongside came an invitation for young Edric to visit the Water Gardens at his leisure, something promptly refused.
"There's a lot to be done here."
Another letter came, this time from Edric's other uncle, Lord Roxton, brother to his late mother; offering an apt castellan alongside some of the finest men from his household, to which Edric refused yet again.
"I need men loyal to me, not to my uncle. Skills can be developed with experience, but loyalty is a fickle mistress."
The new Lord of Starfall was once again hearing petitioners when one of his household guards appeared, whispering some words at the lordling's ears. His eyes narrowed, and he gave a nod alongside a whispered command, before passing his judgment on the matter at hand – a minor lord who was faced with rampant attacks of snakes in his lands. "Lord Sylton, I advise you to stop hunting hawks and falcons until further notice; they can predate several snakes. I'll be looking into a more reliable solution in the meantime; also try to have servants working in locations more susceptible to snake attacks wear ticker layers of protection in their feet and legs; it may be uncomfortable but might as well save their lives."
The baffled lord nodded and curtsied as his liege glanced at the rest of the line to see him. "I'll be interrupting court for a few hours, but I promise to return. A servant will be here with fresh water, bread, and salt shortly."
"Follow me." He commanded.
Despite having visited a few keeps in the Westerlands, as well as studying in the Citadel, Pylos was still impressed by the Starfall castle the first time he set foot there. Built on stone and marble on an island of the same name, legend told the first of the Daynes tracked a falling star there, its metal being used to craft their legendary greatsword – Dawn. Once the seat of the Kings of Torrentine; the castle's location in the joining of the treacherous waters of the Torrentine with the Sunset Sea made it an extremely secure stronghold, that only fell once – to the might of dragons. Proof of that feat lies within a section on the western shore of the castle, melted marble and stone ruins. Despite its strategic importance, the castle was also elegant and well-designed, leaving ladies and architects alike in awe.
"My lord." The same guard, Ceros if Pylos recalled correctly, greeted, followed along by two dozen soldiers, donning crossbows and bows made of Dornish yew.
As the group descended from the high ground in which the castle proper was built to the portcullis at ground level, the Maester noticed the different banners that approached from the harbor.
House Dayne of Starfall's coat of arms had a white sword and falling star crossed on lilac backgrounding, representing the origin of their castle and Dawn. House Dayne of High Hermitage kept the same banner but added two white triangles on the corners of the banner, likely representing the Red Mountains which they defended.
"Your cousin, Ser Gerold Dayne approaches, my lord."
"How many men he rides with?"
"Ten, m'lord."
"I'll meet him at the gates. Ceros, have the best archers manning the walls and take the rest and join me at the gates. Pylos, you are to join us too."
Soon enough they came to face with Ser Gerold and his entourage. Unlike the men-at-arms from his region who wore plate armor and were armed with maces and crossbows, Gerold's men were lightly armored, wearing tattered tunics, and donned spears. Edric's cousin stood out, towering above all but Ceros, and had a clean shave, sharp nose, and regal appearance. His hair, unlike Edric's, had a certain gleam onto it, that drew almost as much attention as the black streak of hair that seemingly divided his hair in two.
"Cousin." Edric greeted. "What brings you here?"
"Your safety, my lord." The Dayne of High Hermitage said, before glaring at Pylos with his dark purple eyes. "I'm afraid you are being misguided by your Maester."
"How so?" Edric asked with a raised eyebrow.
"This man claims your late father entrusted him with his regency, but I find that hard to believe. How long he had been there? Five years, less? Hard to believe that a man as stalwart as Uncle Ulrick would entrust the safety of his sole heir to the hands of a stranger rather than family. He feeds you lies, cousin, give the command and I'll see him removed."
Pylos gasped and stepped back as the man reached for his sword, purple staring at him with a sneer.
"Cousin Gerold, if Pylos was a usurper as you claim we'd all be dead by now." Edric said impassively, gesturing to the many archers and crossbowmen trained above. "I understand that you may not have visited Starfall as much in the last few years, but Pylos' service has been nothing short of brilliant; hence why my dear father entrusted him with such a heavy burden."
"Are these your own thoughts or lies that were fed to you? Cousin, I beg you to think whether you are dismissing your own blood from service in favor of a Westlander stranger."
Gerold's voice grew in hostility, and it seemed that he wasn't the only one who read through the veiled threat, Ceros resting his hand on the pommel of the sword. Not even the mention of his region earned him scrutiny from the soldiers who stared impassively at their High Hermitage counterparts.
"Gerold, I understand you are concerned with the safety of your family; so much that you left your own lands and came to Starfall without even sending a raven. Yet, these aren't my orders that you are disobeying, but my father's." Edric said with more edge than a six namedays old should have.
"While we discuss disrespecting the wishes of my father, the Blackmonts and maybe even the Fowlers see an opportunity to test waters and move against us; marching alongside the Lannisters shortly after the mindless murder of Princess Elia and her children earned us no goodwill from Dorne; so I beg you to go back to High Hermitage and shield House Dayne of harm."
Gerold Dayne stared at the lord, his eyes flashing in anger before looking at the guards and finally at him. "Should anything happen to my cousin you'll be held responsible. Is that clear?"
Pylos could only gulp and nod. "I'll be departing to High Hermitage in the morning."
"There's no need to wait." Edric said, earning incredulous looks from the others. "As we were speaking I had tasked the castellan to procure our most experienced captain to ferry you and your men to Brighttail, where the reeve will provide you with reinforcements; then I command you to follow the road to Vulture's Watch, where the local lord will provide you with a batch of recruits; then cross to High Hermitage where you will resume the defense of our northern border."
Gerold stared impassively at the lordling for a few seconds under the scrutinizing gaze of the soldiers before nodding, his face a mask of indifference. "As my liege commands."
The taller Dayne turned away, followed by his men, but not without sneering at him.
"Ser Gerold?" Edric called out.
"Yes?"
"I wish you good fortune in the wars to come."
A few weeks after the visit from Lord Gerold, Pylos was summoned by Lord Edric himself, who had just celebrated his seventh nameday. Upon taking residence at the Lord's chambers of Palestone Sword Tower, Edric not only claimed the lord's chambers but also his solar, perhaps the best chamber in the whole castle, with a scenic balcony that overlooked the entire poring of the Torrentine River into the Sunset Sea. Looking towards the north would provide a view of the flow of the Torrentine through a series of rapids and waterfalls; a glance eastward would present a view of the Elbow, the name given long ago to the southwestern corner of Dorne; the south would see the immenseness of the Sunset Sea, and finally, the west would present the equally imposing Red Mountains.
"I still can't come up with the terms that I now rule this entire land." Edric said, drawing Pylos' attention away from the balcony.
"It's certainly impressive, my lord."
"It's also a reminder of what I stand to lose should I fail."
The Maester frowned. "What do you mean?"
"How many people do you think live in my lands?"
He contemplated his answer for some time. "It's difficult to answer that…"
"My grandfather took an army of five thousand to the Trident during Robert's Rebellion; so, I would assume my domain's population stands out between one and two hundred thousand souls."
The Maester remembered that some of his colleagues in the Citadel had a lead link, signifying mastery over warfare, but he never had an interest in the subject. "May I ask how you came up with that correlation?"
"Armies need supplies, quite a lot of them, so a lord simply can't take all his able-bodied men to war. I estimate that, for each soldier in a war, the lord must have at least between twenty to fifty peasants working in his fields."
"And the women and children, young lord?"
"They also take part in the production of the supplies but contribute less than an able male due to factors such as time spent working and physical capabilities, which might deviate that number around fifty thousand either more or less."
Pylos was quiet for a minute. He wasn't versed in the matters of agriculture or warfare, instead forging links in coinage, history, and metallurgy. Edric Dayne was a strange kid, and his claims and thought process would seem outlandish to most, but the Westlander couldn't find a way to refute his claims.
"I'm not versed in matters like these, my lord but it seems a fair assumption."
"We won't be assuming things anymore; hence why I asked for your presence here."
"What do you mean?"
"I want to survey all the lands sworn to my house; I want to know my people and see what can be done to improve their lives."
"Matters like these are usually conducted by knights sworn to local reeves and minor lords who then report to their superior; I don't know exactly the last time one of these was done but I don't think the numbers changed that much."
"These weren't done the right way; a knight knows how to ride and fight, and some might know how to read and write too but they don't know the intricacies of conducting a census and surveys. We will need knights, yes, but for protection; however, the one doing the survey is me."
"My lord, this is most inadequate." Pylos protested. "A lord's place is at his castle, not traveling at such a young age in what could be an unforgiving environment."
"I accept your concerns, but I must remind you that I am not the only boy in Torrentine with seven namedays; as a Lord, it falls upon me to make difficult decisions; yet, if I cannot endure what the people in the realm face every day, perhaps I shouldn't be making these decisions."
The Maester sighed at the lord's brashness.
"I never saw you back down once you've decided; I just implore you to take the necessary entourage. And I beg for you to return unharmed, or else…" Pylos shuddered at Ser Gerold's warning.
"I don't plan on dying anytime soon." His eyes blue eyes seemingly darkened into a deep violet. "There's a lot yet to accomplish."
The lord shook his head. "Now, changing subjects; do you still keep in touch with your fellow Maesters from the citadel?"
"Yes, with some more than others; why do you ask?"
"I would like to hire the services of someone skilled in drawing maps; do you believe any of your friends might know someone?"
"Maps, my lord? Are the ones at our disposal not to your liking?"
"The one with higher details about the Red Mountains was commissioned before the Conquest; I believe things may have changed and I'd prefer to have these changes well-documented."
"There is no such thing as a chain link in charting, but some links such as mining and forestry might have better knowledge of these. A good friend of mine has these and might know someone, should I contact him?"
"Please do, make clear that I am willing to pay well for a job done right."
"Is there anything else my lord requires?"
"Yes, I'd like for you to pay more attention to my heir's education." The younger Dayne stopped, glancing at Pylos' own expression, that probably wasn't good. "I mean no offense to your skills, Maester, but as I understand she was mostly taught by the septas, is that correct?"
"Yes, that's customary, even in Dorne where gender is less important than the other kingdoms."
"I understand, but Allyria is my heir, and I require her to receive an education fitting to her new station; if she wishes or you feel necessary, she can continue having lessons with the septa, but the main focus now is to have her learn how to properly run a castle. I fear I'll be traveling quite a lot, and her help will be necessary."
As a Westlander, Pylos genuinely liked the way things were done in the other kingdoms; a woman should be taught by a Septa and practice properly running a household, yet this was still Nymeria's kingdom and he had to comply with the lords' request, even if it displeased him.
"Your wish is my command, my lord."
A common assumption regarding the castle of Starfall was that it occupied the entirety of the island of the same name. Pylos suspected that it might've been true in the past but the presence of the castle, and its demands for food, wood, and other resources quickly caused a city to grow under its walls. The inhabitants originally called it Starfall too but a lord from before the conquest decided to name the developing settlement Starport to avoid further confusion. The Maester wondered whether that misconception would finally disappear when the maps commissioned by Lord Edric were finished.
Having arrived recently from The Crag, Tommard, a hunter with a penchant for drawings was, much to his satisfaction, very skilled and pleased the lord, who promptly decided to conduct the first step of his survey on the island of Starfall. Since they were a short distance away from the castle, he and even Lady Allyria were allowed to join the group, although Lord Edric requested extra guards to be posted along to ensure the safety of his heir.
Pylos' assumption of young Lord Edric as a quirky, if not eccentric lad, seemed to be truthful. The last son of Dayne had no qualms in consorting with the smallfolk, often stopping by to talk whenever something caught his interest and often writing with charcoal in a small book he called his journal. Alarmingly, the writing, whilst using known letters, made almost no sense and Pylos wondered whether it was possible that Edric learned a foreign language on his own.
His aunt Allyria seemed a bit more guarded, but following her nephew's example quickly started to talk with the commoners too. It had been approximately two moons since the lord of the castle asked for him to tutor his aunt, and, despite his previous qualms, Pylos had to admit the young lady grew on him. Allyria Dayne didn't resemble her younger nephew, her hair was longer, dark in color, and slightly wavy in contrast to Edric's shorter, straight ashen blonde hair; her eyes were lighter than his and, much to the young lord's barely veiled annoyance, was also taller.
She was nowhere as brilliant as Edric, who would walk into a room, make quick work of everything set in front of him, and leave without uttering a single word. Allyria was very talkative, and, despite not having her nephew's geniality, compensated that with plenty of effort and questions, which probably helped endear her to Pylos. Teaching Edric was infuriating because, despite his best efforts, it seemed that the lord knew almost everything he had to teach. Allyria did not and her questions and effort made his time worthy.
"Maester." The lord in question called out. "How are my heir's lessons going?"
It was yet another peculiarity of Lord Edric Dayne; he disliked referring to others as family. His father was not his father to him but rather the late lord or Lord Ulrick. His mother? Lady Roxton. His deceased Uncle Arthur was simply referred to as the Sword of the Morning. His aunt was his heir. Finally, his cousin Gerold was called the Lord of High Hermitage. Sometimes he would shift his tone, especially with Allyria and Gerold; but usually around servants and even minor lords, he preferred to address by title rather than blood.
"She is progressing well. She may not have your intellect but is driven."
Lord Dayne nodded along, a small smile adorning his face. "I take that you prefer teaching her rather than me."
Pylos felt his cheeks redden and stammered something, only to be cut short by the lord. "Don't worry, Pylos. You seem to be a good Maester, it's just that I require a different type of guidance."
"How so?"
"I have a knack for learning; I can remember things simply by reading about them once. But there's only much you can learn through books and Maesters; this survey is about charting and knowing my lands, yes. But, perhaps most importantly, is about learning what the smallfolk have to teach. I believe that combining the knowledge of books and Maesters with the knowledge of the people will create something truly different here in Starfall."
"What is that?"
The Lord smiled. "Greatness."