Chapter 49
STEFFON BARATHEON
It was obvious that his grandfather was not happy with his choices, and though the man had raised him, Steffon was not inclined to rule the Seven Kingdoms according to his whims.
Tywin Lannister was an able administrator and a ruthless commander, and if it were any other time, Steffon would have happily handed him the reins so that he might eat, sleep, and fuck to his heart's content.
They were kin, so the man would never betray him, and he was certain that he would be able to steer the realm towards peace and prosperity. But these were not times of peace. The Seven Kingdoms faced too many threats, and Steffon would need them all to save himself and humanity.
"It's too generous," Tywin uttered as he read the terms he had reached with Arianne, and deceiving the Martells like this was a big gamble, but in the end this was the only peaceful way he could think of to bring Dorne back into the fold.
The Dornis had little love for the Iron Throne, and the other Kingdoms did not much like them either. The Dornish were scorned for their treacherous nature, so in many ways it was ironic that he had trapped them using their own weapon.
"I know for a fact that Viserys Targaryen was planning to land his armies at Planky Town to launch his campaign," and if the Dornish were to side with him, then he would have a spear aimed at his back.
Of course, a single Kingdom would never win the Beggar Prince the Iron Throne, but in order to spare themselves the resources for the most consequential war, he needed to bring down Viserys quickly.
"With this, I have now taken away the only Kingdom that would even think of allying with him," and his grandfather was not convinced.
"They committed treason. You could have them quartered, and that would be too great a mercy," and Tywin Lannister was a man of little mercy. The older man's eyes narrowed.
"I do hope that this is not a result of some other temptations offered by that woman," and Arianne was quite firm in holding him to his promise of companionship.
Doran Martell was already headed to the capital, and the rest of the Dornish retinue were all imprisoned in a manse just outside the Red Keep.
"Do you really think me a fool?" and this was the second time he had been accused of falling to such temptations, but that was not the case.
"I may have taken away his ability to land on my shores, but it does not mean that Viserys Targaryen has given up on his claim. He will come to our shores one way or another, and if we are to succeed against him, we must bring the Seven Kingdoms together," and that was why the armies had already departed to the North, to take it back from Euron's hands.
"You could slaughter the Martells, and install a more amenable lord in their place," and he did not have the time for that.
"I am afraid I have already made my choice," Steffon countered as he took a sip of his wine. The Old Lion was not satisfied, but there was little that he could do now.
"Then let us speak of the other thing," he began, and the air in the room shifted once more.
"Sansa Stark," and that was the other decision he had made that went against his grandfather's preference.
"Yes," Steffon answered.
"She is the one," and it was not a radical choice. Even when they had met the first time, Tywin Lannister had offered him her name as a potential candidate.
"I am not disagreeing with you, though I do believe that the Tyrells have more to offer," and materially that was true, but the Tyrells were not a popular House.
The whole realm disliked them for their ambition and their greed. Olenna Tyrell may have spun a nice web of alliances to secure their power in the Reach, but they were not respected.
"I dislike their ambition," Steffon countered, and he had pondered over this question for a few moons now, and each day the realm was without a queen and a proper heir, the vultures grew more and more eager.
"Ambition can be a good thing. You could marry Margaery Tyrell, and make it all yours," and he shook his head.
"No," and he would not reward their endless ambition with Queenship.
"The Crown could use their grain and their gold," Tywin Lannister offered pragmatism.
"They would not dare hold them from me. I have already struck a deal with Braavos to buy cheap grain from them, as for the Gold we are now on a much more solid footing than we were two moons ago," and Tyrion had worked his magic, and found them a solid chunk of change.
"I also intend to appoint Randall Tarly to my council, as the Master of Laws. He is a well-respected man, and his presence on the Council would keep the Tyrells in check," but with the Dornish now on his side, he would have a spear aimed at the back of the Reach if they were stepped out of line.
The annexation of Harrenhall also gave him a stronghold to launch a quick offensive against them without much trouble. Moreover, he intended to offer them some incentive.
"That is a good idea," and now his council was fully assembled. Kevan Lannister had departed the capital, and his seat would go to Tyrion. Randall Tarly would become the Master of Laws, and he intended to make Hound the commander of the City Watch.
Bronn was another choice, but he had need of his expertise somewhere else.
"I do not wish for it to be an elaborate affair. It would be improper to hold a grand wedding while the realm faces the threat of war," and Tywin Lannister nodded.
"I will have the arrangements made," and that was good, and much would change in the capital after his wedding.
He had already spoken to his uncle, Jaime, who would depart the capital soon enough after giving up his gold cloak. It was a bad precedent, and to the outside world, Ser Barristan had resigned over this egregious act.
But the truth was not so simple.
"What of the Stark woman?" his grandfather questioned, and he wondered when he would ask him about her.
"I believe you intended to hang her," and yet he had changed his mind, and Catelyn Tully was now headed towards the dock along with Ser Barristan to mount a ship bound for Braavos.
"I did, but I believe I found a much better use for her," and he could see how his actions were beginning to frustrate the Old Man, so he decided to share a little secret with him, as he reached for a rolled-up missive and passed it to the man.
"What is this?" the old man asked, and the truth was that even he was not expecting such an opportunity to arise, but Qyburn had hit upon a rather interesting piece of news from Varys' little birds in Pentosh.
The man had wasted little time in taking control of Varys' network, and so, as a consequence of that, they came upon a rather interesting piece of news.
"Varys had a man installed close to Viserys and his sister," and now Tywin Lannister was intrigued.
"Who?" he questioned.
"Ser Jorah Mormont, a disgraced Northner who fled the Seven Kingdoms fearing punishment. But the man has made himself indispensable to Princess Daenerys over the years, and some time ago the man was heard probing for safe passage out of Pentosh," and that was quite a surprise, and one would think that he was trying to escape, but that was not the whole truth.
"He is trying to find passage for two people?" Tywin Lannister read the missive, and his brows came together as the man began rubbing his chin, trying to make sense of what he had just read.
"The Princess," and no one would ever dare belittle the mind of the Old Lion.
"Yes," Steffon replied enthusiastically as he stepped forward.
"She is trying to escape from her brother," and he did not yet have her reasons, but he would have them soon enough, or more accurately, Bran would have them for him.
"I do not know why, but she wishes to leave Viserys's side, and I intend to help her do that. Once she has escaped Pentosh, I intend to make her an offer to turn against her own brother," and it was a great opportunity to weaken the bastard while getting his hands on something he had sought for a long time.
"Why would she do that?" and he did not know yet.
"She is desperate enough to rely on an outsider to escape her brother. There must be a reason for this, and I intend to use that," and even if he was unsuccessful in reaching an accord with her, she would be a good source of information about Viserys and his plans.
"Why not just kill her?" Tywin Lannister suggested.
"You have a man close to her already. Why not use him and be done with both of the Targaryens once and for all?" and that was impossible.
"Jorah Mormont may once have been Varys's man, but I am afraid that is no longer the case. The man has taken a liking to the Princess, and is extremely devoted to her," and he would not dare put her life in danger in any way at all.
"Still, taking her away from Viserys weakens him and gives us a chance to learn of his plans," but this was a very dangerous plan, one that would need both luck and meticulous effort.
His grandfather agreed with him in principle.
"I intend on offering her safe passage to Braavos, through an intermediary," and said intermediary would have reached Pentosh by now.
"Why not bring her here?" That would not work.
"Mormont is a cautious man," and neither he nor Daenerys would ever trust anyone from the Seven Kingdoms.
"He would never let her come here. Well, not at first," he answered with a smile, and Tywin Lannister finally understood his plot.
"You plan on using Catelyn Stark," and Steffon could not help but preen at that, as he felt proud of himself for putting together such a scheme.
"Who better to vouch for my honor and magnanimity than the woman whose life I spared despite her committing treason?" She had already met Sansa, and the red-haired girl had sung many praises of him to her mother.
"That is quite a plot," Tywin Lannister praised before adding.
"Even I would not have been able to put together such a plot in so little time," and that was high praise.
"I had help," he offered, and this was not just his work. No. Tyrion had helped him put this together, and soon enough, he would have his results, and though he was reluctant to admit it, the old Lion knew well that there was only one person who could have helped him with this.
"Tyrion..."
.
.
.
Miles away, Jorah Mormont walked through the dark alleys of Pentosh as he followed the only lead he had found about securing safe and secret passage out of the city. Most of the Magisters and merchants were trying to curry favor with the Prince and would not dare help him.
But there was one man who had offered him what he had sought, a former sell-sword from the Disputed lands. He had his own ship and was perhaps the only one who would dare incur the wrath of the Dragon Prince—and that was the title Prince Viserys had chosen for himself.
It had been some time since the Prince had begun forcing Daenerys to drink Moon Tea, but the Gods had shown her mercy until now. She would use her own hand to empty out her guts just to save the child, but that was unsustainable.
Already, Viserys' patience was beginning to run thin, so Jorah needed to find them passage quickly. He turned into a dark corner and found himself standing there in the dark.
The man wore a hood with a green brooch just like he had been told. Jorah slowly walked up to the man and stood beside him.
"You are the one who offered safe passage out of the city?" the man glanced at him from under the hood.
"Yes, but it's gonna cost ya," he answered bluntly, and Jorah nodded.
"We have gold," he offered, but the man shook his head.
"I already have gold," he answered, meeting his gaze.
"If I am to anger the Dragon Prince by smuggling away his daughter, then the prize should be worth it," and Jorah stilled at that, as he realized that the man had done his due diligence on him.
"What do you want?" he asked with barely hidden frustration.
"A dragon egg...."
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