Chapter 469 - Situation in King’s Landing.

Chapter 469: Chapter 469 - Situation in King’s Landing.

[Chapter Size: 4500 Words.]

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Third Person POV

King’s Landing, 300 AC.

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Weeks earlier, in King’s Landing, things were still trying to return to normal after Pycelle’s execution on Lord Tywin’s orders, something that had surprised practically everyone at court that very same day, since no one knew exactly what to think about it. No one, either, had dared to question him after Tywin himself explained his reasons that same night.

After all, the maester had written lies about his wife and, together with other maesters, especially the one responsible for Casterly Rock at the time, had taken part in Joanna’s poisoning.

In any case, the days continued to pass and, without being able to do much about it, Tyrion eventually found himself before the septon in Baelon’s sept, while the young lady of the North walked toward him, escorted by none other than Joffrey, who wore that crooked smile on his face and, as always, would not miss the opportunity to mock his dwarf uncle.

Tyrion might even have made some joke under other circumstances, after all, his nephew had spent the last few days complaining and grumbling furiously because of the Arcticans’ actions or rather, the lack of information from them, something that always made his nephew seem on the verge of hysteria. But the joke would never come, when he was the reason for Joffrey’s joy, when in that situation, it was his humiliation that Joffrey was enjoying.

Joffrey had even made a point of removing the small stool Tyrion was supposed to use to reach Sansa, forcing the girl to bend down so that he could place the cloak over her shoulders as part of the wedding rites, drawing several laughs from those present. Tyrion merely sighed, unable to do anything at that moment, and the wedding continued until it finally ended.

Later, when he arrived at the chambers he would now share with his wife, Tyrion was already somewhat drunk, finding Sansa huddled in one corner of the room, trembling as she watched him with obvious apprehension.

Tyrion had no intention whatsoever of consummating that marriage, but he asked her to face him and Sansa obeyed with a certain resignation, slowly lowering her hands and allowing him to see her face completely.

The enormous scar immediately caught his attention. In a way, it almost matched the scars he himself carried, though on the young woman before him it seemed much worse. It was a cut that ran from her forehead, between her eyes, across her nose, and even through her mouth.

Sansa noticed his gaze and seemed to interpret it as judgment or disgust, for she immediately covered part of her face again.

"Go rest, I’m not going to do anything to you", Tyrion finally said with a weary sigh.

Sansa seemed to thank him in silence before walking to the bed and lying down, although Tyrion could still hear her quiet sobs for some time afterward. He felt sorry for her, especially seeing her being forced to endure so much and submit to the wishes of people over whom she had no control.

The girl had left Winterfell of her own free will, it was true, seduced by the promises of a life as queen that Cersei had made to her, causing her to flee the North and forcing her father, even though he was already expecting death, to go south to save his daughter... Tyrion could hardly blame her entirely for a decision made out of a young girl’s naivety.

Perhaps that girl also harbored some jealousy involving her sister, after all, even during the short time he had spent in Winterfell, it was possible to notice how complicated the relationship between the two Stark girls was.

From what he had heard, Arya had always been the target of jokes as a child, before leaving for that kingdom beyond the Wall with her brother, or rather, cousin now. Tyrion had heard that she was a skinny girl, with the Stark face and a more ordinary appearance, clumsy, who preferred swords, horses, and clothes considered improper for a young lady, even receiving the unpleasant nickname "Horseface" from the other girls and being constantly criticized even by her own septa.

But that girl had disappeared for 3 or 4 years... When Arya Stark appeared again before the eyes of Westeros, at 12 namedays old, emerging in Dorne alongside the Arcticans and their king, little remained of the girl everyone used to mock, she had transformed into a young woman of astonishing beauty, something that had caused surprise even among those who remembered her in Winterfell.

Tyrion, however, did not find that transformation so difficult to believe after everything he had already heard about Arctic and, especially, after discovering what those people were capable of.

He almost wondered whether they could cure him of being a dwarf, but thinking about it, there were actual dwarves in that kingdom, they did not cure them... Still, it seemed his life would be better in a place like that, full of companions the same height as him...

In any case, Sansa did not seem to have accepted her sister’s changes very well or the attention she received from the family and others, especially because, while Arya had followed a completely different path from her older sister, Sansa had ended up following another that had led her to that situation.

Tyrion felt some pity for the girl because she had seen her family practically massacred, at least that was what the available information made it seem like.

Her father was dead.

Her mother had also been murdered.

Her older brother was apparently dying inside the black cells

While her two younger brothers were also considered dead after Theon’s invasion of Winterfell.

Although there were conflicting rumors about that. Some said that Jon Arctic himself had claimed that those bodies found in Winterfell did not belong to the Stark boys.

Perhaps they would have better information about that if the North had not simply stopped responding, just like the Riverlands and, more recently, the West.

Thinking about the West certainly did not make Tyrion very cheerful. The Arcticans had somehow reached it, and they had taken Casterly Rock with ease, but no one in King’s Landing knew exactly where they were or what they intended to do, and there was something else that sent an unpleasant shiver through Tyrion whenever he thought about it.

His brother and his uncle Kevan were heading directly there...

He feared for Jaime and also for Kevan, while Genna, his aunt and Kevan’s wife, likewise faced an uncertain fate as captives of the Arcticans. The worst part was precisely the lack of information, something that was leaving the entire court increasingly tense, his nephew himself spent his days shouting at men and demanding that they send rider after rider to discover why no information was coming through.

One of the few concrete pieces of news had come from Darry. According to the reports, the king of Arctic himself had appeared at the Darry castle and massacred hundreds of Lannister men under the Mountain’s command, even with Sandor Clegane beside them, it was the king of Arctic who had done it, practically alone, according to the survivors who remained at the castle.

They said that Jon Arctic had rescued the young Darry and left Gregor Clegane even more mutilated than before, carrying him away in the talons of a giant eagle, which had simply flown out through the courtyard, while Sandor, who had ended up unconscious during the confrontation, later disappeared without leaving any trace after leaving the castle.

Information had also emerged that Addam Marbrand’s army had marched south instead of continuing toward the Golden Tooth, something that had confused even his father, who immediately ordered riders to be sent out to discover what was happening.

None of them returned.

Tywin had also demanded that Jaime return to King’s Landing immediately.

No reply came.

They were being manipulated the entire time and Tyrion could not imagine how they could face someone capable of simply making all the ravens disappear from the sky, who could use magic, according to what he had heard from the people who returned from Darry, and fly around using it. Some riders sent to investigate had later been found dead, some with their necks recently broken, beside their own horses.

And that raised another even more disturbing possibility. Could someone be insane enough to control the horses themselves from a distance and with such ease?

Tyrion had already heard enough stories about Jon Arctic controlling animals not to completely dismiss that possibility. The ravens were already gone, messengers were not reaching their destinations, riders sent to gather information simply failed to return and, little by little, King’s Landing was becoming blind to everything happening around the world.

While their lands were being devastated and they were vulnerable to an attack at any moment... They still had around 100 thousand men, but how long would that last?

A shiver always ran through Tyrion when he thought about it.

A knock at the door pulled him from his thoughts as he drank a little more wine, trying to ignore Sansa’s quiet sobs coming from the bed.

Tyrion raised his eyes toward the door. "Come in."

It opened and Shae appeared on the other side, carrying fresh sheets.

"I came in because I didn’t hear any noise. You seem to have finished already, my lord..." The connotation in the last two words was full of mockery.

He raised his gaze toward his lover, who immediately made an expression of displeasure as she looked at him, making it quite clear what she thought of that situation.

Tyrion merely took another sip of wine. It was not as if he had chosen to marry Sansa Stark.

Shae probably imagined that he should have already consummated the marriage, but that was not what she found when Tyrion simply pointed toward the bed, where the girl remained huddled in a corner, her body trembling slightly as she continued to sniffle, but fully dressed.

"I see the girl still isn’t ready", Shae said indifferently.

"For the love of the gods, Shae, do you really think I would do that?", Tyrion grumbled, looking at her. "Besides, if I touch that girl, I’d rather not even imagine what those Arcticans might do to me."

Shae merely cast another glance at Sansa, but Tyrion no longer had the patience to continue that conversation.

In any case, after Shae left, Tyrion took some sheets and blankets, threw them on the floor, and settled down there to sleep, after all, the two of them would have to remain in that room throughout the night to at least keep up appearances.

At least he had managed to escape before they began that damned wedding ritual where they would tear off his clothes while carrying him to the chambers.

The following days continued to pass and Tyrion noticed how his father grew increasingly irritated by the complete absence of news, there was no information whatsoever about Jaime, Kevan, or the army sent west.

"Still nothing?", Tywin asked during yet another Small Council meeting.

Varys maintained his impassive expression. "No, Lord Hand. There is still no information, my little birds have also stopped bringing news from that region."

"That should be impossible. We should have some information by now", Tywin replied, casting Varys a look that practically accused him of incompetence.

The eunuch merely raised an eyebrow slightly at the same lord who, until a week earlier, had claimed that he would send capable men to discover what was happening, only for every single one of them to disappear as well.

"I think everyone here already understands what’s happening, right?", Oberyn finally spoke, observing those present. "Continuing to send men after information that they clearly don’t want you to receive is starting to seem like a waste."

Tyrion looked at the Dornishman. As much as Oberyn maintained that carefree smile, there was reason in his words. Many men had been sent, even entire groups, to try to discover something and the result had been exactly the same, they disappeared and no one ever heard from them again, few were found alive...

"Then what do you suggest we do, Prince Oberyn?", Cersei’s voice echoed through the room.

"Honestly? I believe continuing to go after them is a mistake, especially when you can’t even maintain a line of communication. You would have a much better chance by gathering your troops and concentrating your forces to face whatever they decide to throw at you."

"You speak that way because it isn’t Dorne being attacked at this very moment. They may still be in the West", Tywin said in a serious tone, his kingdom was being attacked and he was here, his men were growing nervous and he knew he was losing control of his men. Tyrion knew his father was desperate.

"Yes, but you keep sending men directly where the enemy wants them to be, whether you want to admit it or not", Oberyn replied, leaning comfortably back in his chair. "Not that I’m any great expert on wars, but it seems to me that the best chance of surviving an enemy capable of isolating your armies isn’t to keep dividing your forces, but to gather them. That’s what I believe, of course, I’m just a Martell in the middle of all this confusion." The ironic smile on Oberyn’s face did not go unnoticed by anyone.

"Perhaps you should suggest to your brother that he hurry and send Dorne’s troops north, as requested", Cersei said, her voice taking on a tone Tyrion immediately recognized as a poorly disguised threat.

Oberyn merely widened his smile. "Perhaps I should."

Tyrion took another sip of wine as he watched that exchange. Everything was becoming increasingly absurd, and the worst part was that none of them seemed to understand exactly what was happening beyond the walls of King’s Landing.

At least Joffrey wasn’t there this time, as he usually was, shouting at people with questions no one could answer.

They argued about gathering armies, sending messengers, searching for Jaime, and discovering what had happened in the West, completely blind to the true situation.

And at that exact moment, a battle was already being fought in the northern Reach. And while Tyrion remained seated in that room knowing nothing, Jaime was only minutes away from losing his head.

After the meeting, Oberyn did not fail to head directly for his natural habitat: a brothel, with Ellaria accompanying him.

"A eunuch in a brothel... sounds like the beginning of a joke", she said in an amused tone as she entered.

Oberyn was a known regular at that place, so his presence would not cause any surprise, but a eunuch certainly would draw attention. Thinking about their faces, upon receiving a message from Varys I would be waiting for them on the top floor.

"He asked us to meet here precisely so we wouldn’t attract attention, obviously he wants to speak with me personally. Let’s find out what our dear eunuch has to say, but I admit the joke was good", Oberyn replied, amused.

He and Ellaria entered and, after passing through a door and climbing to a more private part of the establishment, they finally reached a chamber with a panoramic view of the city. The city would have been visible if the windows had been open, which was not the case, with Varys standing there among candles, though not far from the curtained window.

Obviously, he did not want to be seen and remained in a corner, partially hidden by the curtains as he watched the movement of King’s Landing from the side.

"So, eunuch, how can I help you? Since you wanted to meet me personally, I imagine you have something important to say."

"I had to choose a more secluded place, where there were no animals nearby capable of hearing us", Varys explained.

That made Oberyn raise an eyebrow. "Oh... so you also fear Jon Arctic, that he might be listening through his control over animals? Well, I shouldn’t be surprised, I heard that birds chased the Queen Mother and also that friend of yours... what was his name again?"

"Baelish", Varys replied, seeming little interested in prolonging the subject.

"That’s it. I saw his scar during my first few days here, it certainly didn’t make him any more handsome. But I must say his brothels are the best, always having the finest men and women for my beloved and me to enjoy ourselves with... not that you could understand that, right?" Varys made a gesture toward the space between Varys’s legs.

"An unpleasant situation, I must say..." Varys ignored the last comment. "It isn’t exactly easy to escape birds trying to tear out your eyes, I imagine that’s why there are almost no birds left inside the Red Keep."

"I also heard that you had been provoking that man for moons within the council, it seems he merely retaliated...", Oberyn replied.

"Well, it wasn’t only us. I heard Dorne was filled with snakes when you threatened him."

Oberyn immediately grimaced. "It’s true. That caught all of us by surprise, my daughter went too far and ended up gravely injured after facing one of his wives, she hasn’t fully recovered since then. But when she was injured, we showed our weapons and suddenly, snakes began appearing all over Sunspear threatening everyone... Can you imagine? An army of snakes threatening us, Dornishmen, with them fighting for a man from the north?", he replied in a more melancholy tone.

Ellaria clenched one of her hands upon hearing that, she still carried some suppressed anger over everything that had happened back then.

"Well, it was a lesson that all of us learned... Right?", Varys said.

He remembered very well his own surprises regarding Jon Arctic, from the first time he heard about his little birds and had to pass along his information amid that same game of intrigue in King’s Landing when he was only a child in the north. Then came the journeys through the south and, later, everything he had done in Essos, until the threats against Varys and Illyrio over their involvement with Daenerys. Varys knew how dangerous they were, people from Lys had even massacred an entire family within their own city just to avoid being viewed unfavorably by the Arcticans...

Varys remained silent for a long time. But that was not what he had arranged that meeting to discuss.

The eunuch finally turned his full attention back to Oberyn. "Tell me something, Prince Oberyn."

The Dornishman raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"I want to know what your position is... and, more importantly, what Dorne’s position is at this moment."

Oberyn’s smile faded slightly and Varys continued.

"Events are moving much faster than many in this city imagine, but we hope Dorne will be ’with us’ when the time comes." When he said us, he was referring to something specific, not the Lannister-Tyrell alliance...

"After all, it will not be Joffrey Baratheon or Jon Arctic who will rule the Seven Kingdoms if we win this war. Aegon Targaryen is the one whose claim I intend to support, he is the true heir."

Oberyn remained silent for several seconds, carefully studying the man before him. "My brother is still analyzing the situation", he finally replied.

"He has been doing that for quite some time, my prince, I believe the time has come to make a decision, because time is running out. Jon Arctic may be marching here at this very moment and we have no news whatsoever, he has practically isolated King’s Landing from everything happening in the other kingdoms, we are blind and the little information we can still obtain comes from riders arriving from nearby regions", Varys said.

"I cannot speak for my brother, Eunuch, but, to be quite sincere, I believe he will ultimately side with Jon Arctic", Oberyn replied sincerely.

Varys raised an eyebrow. "But he is not the true king, his older brother is. You have already seen him in Essos, you have seen his weapons for this war... Everything will be explained when the time comes, even Jon Arctic will have to kneel before him."

"And what if he doesn’t kneel?", Oberyn asked, narrowing his eyes. "This war you say is about to end will simply begin all over again? Your candidate for the Iron Throne against Jon Arctic?"

"But he has dragons", Varys revealed.

Oberyn tilted his head slightly. "He may have dragons, but I don’t know if that will make as much difference as you imagine in this war. Who can guarantee that Jon Arctic, being capable of controlling practically any animal, isn’t also capable of controlling dragons?"

Oberyn was surprised to notice a rare trace of caution cross Varys’s expression, breaking for a brief moment that impassive mask the eunuch usually maintained, though it quickly returned to its place.

"No. He does not possess such power, the sorceresses of Asshai assured me of that."

"Ah, yes... that necklace he wears, I know very well what it’s for", Oberyn replied, before shaking his head. "Sorry, Varys, but we will not decide anything until we finally find Jon Arctic." Oberyn said, after all, he had to speak with Rhaenys.

"I imagined you would answer that", Varys said in a tone laden with regret.

Oberyn and Ellaria immediately exchanged a glance, there was something strange about the way the eunuch was acting. Then the bald man continued.

"Forgive me, prince, but I need to ensure that Dorne supports the true king of Westeros", Varys continued softly and he clapped his hands as the signal to do something.

Footsteps began to echo from the other side of the door. Oberyn immediately reached for his weapon.

The door was broken down the next instant and several men stormed into the chamber, some hidden beneath cloaks, but one of them wore a breastplate bearing a symbol Oberyn knew very well.

The symbol of Arctic.

"You will be captured by assassins from Arctic, that will be the news spread throughout the city and it will serve our cause perfectly. After all, Dorne will seek vengeance.", Varys explained.

"You brought us into a trap!", Ellaria shouted furiously.

The eunuch merely displayed a faint smile. "I received troubling news from the north. Some information managed to get through the blockade, an entire force reached Dragonstone and, according to fishermen who managed to observe the region from afar, they have begun gathering a considerable number of ships", Varys explained. "Don’t you find it strange that so many ships have started disappearing? Vessels coming from Braavos or the North fail to reach their destinations, ships that venture too close to Dragonstone do not return, and practically no one has yet noticed what is happening."

Oberyn remained silent, gradually comprehending the scale of it. "A force managed to reach Dragonstone without anyone in King’s Landing noticing, while the disappearance of the letters keeps everyone too busy trying to discover what is happening on land to pay attention to the sea."

Oberyn’s smile disappeared completely. "So you’re running away", he said, spitting on the floor.

"I’m not running away, more or less making a strategic retreat. I’ve tried to convince the Tyrells for far too long and now they are trapped in this mess by their own choice, I believe they have reached a point from which they simply can no longer escape. I offered them an alliance through marriage to the true king of Westeros, but they refused to listen to me and preferred to continue with their alliance with the Lannisters, now they are in a situation that can no longer be changed", Varys replied calmly.

"In any case, they still have a role to play here. The army in the West is probably fighting a battle at this very moment and may even be losing, no one knows, not even my little birds can bring me information anymore, so I hope those armies can at least weaken the Arcticans while the Golden Company, together with the forces of Dorne, advances from the south."

"Dorne will not agree to this", Oberyn growled.

"Perhaps not now, but the Dornish know how to hold a grudge, don’t they?", Varys asked softly. "Men will see soldiers from Arctic entering this brothel while you and Ellaria were enjoying the night, then, suddenly, everyone here will be found dead."

As he spoke, his men began preparing the scene, scattering bodies throughout the chamber alongside bloodied prostitutes, some of whom Oberyn even recognized, as well as a possible client lying dead amid that carnage.

"You two will be reported as having died in this place, when in truth you will remain my prisoners. And, before you say anything, there is one more piece of information you should know, our negotiations with Princess Arianne Martell have been quite productive, she seems very interested in the possibility of becoming queen of Westeros."

That made Oberyn’s eyes widen. "You cannot be serious", he growled.

The queen of Westeros should be his true niece, that was precisely one of the reasons they intended to speak personally with Jon Arctic, Dorne could accept his claim, but Rhaenys should take her place beside him as queen.

It was better to ensure that blood they knew truly belonged to the Martells sat on the throne, rather than a possible nephew everyone hoped was alive when there was not a single trait, not even one, that resembled Rhaenys, Elia, or Rhaegar.

What Oberyn and the others still did not know was that this was already part of Jon’s plans, and that Jaehaerys, the same boy Rhaenys had carried in her womb when she had been in Dorne, would one day receive the Red Keep and rule those lands, even if he was not the true heir to his father’s kingdom.

Because of that, Varys’s plans to bring Dorne to his candidate’s side were already destined to encounter problems. The growing lack of communication with the Martells and, above all, Oberyn’s evident lack of confidence that Dorne would support Aegon set alarm bells ringing in his mind, he needed Dorne now that he had practically already lost the Reach because of the choice made by those foolish Tyrells.

Even with three dragons, Varys was not certain they could defeat Arctic alone with only the Golden Company.

Because of that, his best hope was to allow the Arcticans to continue wearing themselves down in that war, losing men and resources against the Lannisters, Tyrells, and any other force that could still be thrown against them, while a great army would emerge from the south at the right moment, bringing together Dorne, the Golden Company, and the dragons.

Then, perhaps they would have a chance. And Aegon, his beloved nephew, would finally have the power necessary to rule Westeros.

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