In Crab's Bay, on a chilly morning, Gendry arrived at a quiet harbor near Dreadfort on the 'Tyroshi' ship. There were not many ships here; partly because war clouds were gathering, and partly because the crabfeeders men were so poor that few merchant ships came to this place.
The ocean merchant ship had a deep draft, two rows of oars, a gilded prow, and three tall masts with sails unfurled. Its hull was painted a flamboyant, gaudy red, typical of the Tyrosh style. It wasn't just this one merchant ship; the soldiers were spread across several of the fastest ships.
The sea breeze caressed Gendry's cheek as he looked out at the distant, barren lands, mostly pine forests and swamps. Every dark valley on the peninsula had its lord, and these lords and their subjects trusted no outsiders. They were mostly descendants of the first men.
Gendry was the first to disembark. His height and build made him stand out, and the crabfeeders men immediately noticed this tall, agile, natural warrior. Next came Anguy, followed by five hundred elite cavalrymen.
Like Gendry, the soldiers led their fine warhorses and wore black scale plate armor. Their golden cloaks bore quartered badges, with the once-hated leaping stag and the three-headed red dragon responding to each other. This scene struck the crabfeeders men as comical, but such was the irony of history.
Under the curious gaze of the soldiers, the Crab Peninsula taxi soldiers had been waiting for a long time. Ser Mortimer Boggs led the crabfeeders men, and House Thorne, House Bren of Brownbarrow, House Bren of Dreadfort, House Cafferen, House Crakehall, House Hardy, House Payne, and others had all sent their people.
They brought taxi soldiers, some older, some younger, and even some burly women carrying spears, all retaining their fierce and unruly nature, earning them the moniker'semi-savages'. The War of the Usurper had taken too many young elites from the crabfeeders men, so they had to make do with what they had.
"Your Highness, we have already put the armor you sent to use," Ser Boros said. Gendry looked out to see the black-scaled taxi soldiers like a black forest, their Longspears gleaming with a cold light.
"Very good."
The crabfeeders men looked curiously at this warrior. He was tall and agile, exuding the masculine aura of a fighter. People on both sides of the Narrow Sea said he was unrivaled on the battlefield, fighting Myr, killing Khal, conquering the Two Cities – he was invincible, comparable to The Conqueror, and even the crabfeeders men had heard these rumors many times.
"Your Highness, welcome to the loyal Crab Peninsula," Ser Mortimer Boggs said, kneeling.
"I have witnessed your loyalty." Gendry helped Ser Mortimer Boggs to his feet, then helped up each person behind him. Gendry wanted to familiarize himself with their names and characteristics; he had only heard of them in letters before, but he couldn't miss any opportunity to warm a loyal supporter.
"Jak, Jak Crakehall." The head of House Crakehall was a young man with brown hair and brown eyes, but he was tall and robust, looking like the legendary giant on his house's sigil.
"Arryn Bren of Brownbarrow."
... The crabfeeders men were overwhelmed, for the King indeed possessed the legendary charisma that made people willing to die for him.
Most of these families did not appear in the original book. The crabfeeders men were indeed loyal to the true dragon, and they were perfunctory with the royal decrees. However, firstly, this place was known for its barrenness, and King's Landing felt there wasn't much profit to be gained. Secondly, the Crab Peninsula had complex terrain and unruly people, so King's Landing could only let them be. They could only symbolically add some taxes, and everyone would avoid meeting each other.
"Ser Boros has already led us to kill The Mountain, and we will send more gifts to Tywin," Jak said.
"Let Lannister wail at our encounter."
"Beat Lannister."
"Beat the traitors!" the crabfeeders men roared, whether old warriors, children, or women.
Among those the crabfeeders men hated most were Lannister, Arryn, Baratheon, and Stark. Relatively speaking, the traitor Lannister was the dirtiest and most ruthless, so they naturally hated him to the core. Now that King Robert was dead and the stag and dragon had reconciled, avenging Tywin went without saying.
"Your Highness, I have gathered the men. As you commanded, I have organized two thousand five hundred cavalrymen. We can depart now. I have also prepared the large river boats on the Crab Peninsula in advance, which can also transport soldiers across," Ser Boros said.
Two thousand five hundred cavalrymen were not the limit of the Crab Peninsula, but these were the elite vanguards.
"Very good," Gendry said. "Our ally has not yet arrived."
"Alright," Ser Boros knew who Gendry was referring to, naturally the blue robes from the direction of the Vale.
Gendry had his Gold Cloaks (their cloaks were golden with quartered badges) line up at the harbor.
The quartered banners fluttered, and everyone watched the harbor, wondering how many ships the visitors from the Vale would bring.
The Vale's sea ships soon arrived, led by two Old Men: Ser Barristan and Bronze Yohn. Behind them were two young men, the Commanders of Redfort and Seagull Town. Then came the elite Vale cavalry.
The Knights of the Vale were numerous, well-equipped, and well-trained, which not only spoke to their martial tradition but also to their greater wealth. There were the orange cloaks of House Royce, and the red cloaks of Redfort and Seagull Town.
Yohn looked at the elite Gold Cloaks lined up along the harbor. They were silent and stern, riding tall horses, with a confident gleam in their eyes, and their Longspears emitted a faint cold light. Only victorious troops possessed such spirit, ready to overcome all difficulties, leading the vanguard. Even the impoverished crabfeeders men had now been re-equipped and looked completely new.
"We are here, Your Highness," Bronze Yohn first apologized to Gendry. "Due to secrecy, we did not go through Seagull Town and carefully dispatched ships from Runestone, which caused some delay."
"That's fine," Gendry reassured him. Littlefinger's starting point was Seagull Town, which was as permeable as a sieve, so departing from Seagull Town was disadvantageous. However, House Royce was a powerful and established house. As a top-tier noble family in the Vale, they could field over five thousand taxi soldiers, and their foundation was unmatched. Maintaining sea ships was also not difficult for them.
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