The cool sea wind off Seagard carried salt and dampness, but it could not clear the heaviness in the council hall.
Lord Jason Mallister, tall and lean, paced back and forth on the stone floor.
His sea-blue eyes were full of bloodshot lines. His brown-and-white hair looked messy. Exhaustion seemed to pour out of his broad shoulders.
Every step he took felt like it was pressing on the lords' already tight nerves.
At last he stopped and announced in a hoarse voice, "This is the message from Riverrun."
"Lords."
"I know what you are all worried about."
"Lord Hoster has sent troops to hunt down those damned pirates who have poured into the Riverlands."
As soon as he finished speaking, the lord of House Perry, who sat at the end of the long table, stood up at once. His face was full of anxiety.
"Lord Jason! They are striking everywhere along the Trident! My lands are by the river! My wife's crow told me! The farmers have already seen those damned black sails of the longships!"
His words were like a stone dropped into still water. Ripples spread at once.
The lords of the Riverlands began to argue.
"A half of the farmers I raised have already run off at night! They say they have to protect their wives and children! My men can't hold them!"
"If this keeps going, our army will break before the Ironborn even attack!"
"We can't let this continue! My men caught more than a dozen deserters last night! They actually said they wanted to go home and fight the Ironborn there! At least die beside their families!"
"My lands are even closer to the Trident. What if the Ironborn come to my territory..."
"Shut up, you cowards! If this gate at Seagard falls, none of us will escape!"
Panic kept spreading.
These nobles who had lived in the Riverlands for generations looked at Jason Mallister with hesitation and doubt in their eyes.
Defending Seagard meant exposing their own lands, their wealth, and their families to Ironborn raiding.
Jason's gaze swept over them.
He only rubbed his forehead, tired.
He knew what they were thinking. They wanted to go home.
Farmers were fleeing. Lords were wavering.
The great ships of Seagard were already starting to leak in this storm.
His announcement of Riverrun's support had calmed the crew for the moment, keeping them from abandoning the ship to save themselves.
But the water in the hold kept rising.
Everyone knew that four thousand farmers from Riverrun would not stand against two thousand Ironborn, or even a thousand.
"Quiet!"
The shout cut through the noisy hall at once.
It came from Lord Clement Piper of Pinkmaiden.
He slammed his hand on the table so hard that the wine in his cup splashed out.
"Cowards!" he shouted, glaring at them all.
"Deserters? Then use their blood to warn the rest. Set up gallows in front of the army and hang a hundred men every day."
"Let's see! Is my rope stronger, or are their necks?"
His fat body shook.
The room fell silent.
Then a calm yet firm voice rang out.
"Lord Clement, your method will only make things worse."
Tytos Blackwood spoke slowly.
"These farmers are not soldiers. They took up pitchforks and spears and came all this way to protect their home."
"Now their homes are burning, their families are threatened, and you want to force them to fight for you with your rope? They will run even faster."
Clement sneered.
"Lord Tytos, you are always so kind. But can your kindness stop the Ironborn's swords? Can it send those pirates back to their rocks?"
"No," Tytos answered calmly. "But a united army can."
"Lord Hoster has already mobilized Riverrun. A force of two thousand men is gathering."
"My family is mobilizing too. Altogether we will send four thousand."
"That power can destroy the Ironborn invaders. Our task is to hold Seagard and defend the Riverlands."
He looked at Jason Mallister.
"Lord Jason, am I right?"
Jason Mallister nodded heavily.
As an old enemy of the Ironborn, he did not believe that four thousand farmers could defeat several thousand Ironborn.
But at this moment, he needed an ally with weight, like House Blackwood, to steady the army's morale.
"Lord Tytos is right."
Jason stood, hand on his sword hilt, eyes burning.
"We are the shield of the Riverlands! I promise you this! The eagle banner of Seagard will not fall! The Ironborn will not march through us!"
He paused, and his voice grew harder.
"I understand your concerns. But anyone who attempts to withdraw on their own at this moment will be considered a traitor to House Tully and an enemy of Seagard. His name and his house will be carved on the pillar of shame in all Seven Kingdoms."
The lords fell silent.
Jason Mallister's authority, Tytos Blackwood's support, and the news that Riverrun's great army would soon hunt the Ironborn together, all of it held their unease in place for now.
Their faces still showed worry, but no one dared to speak up about withdrawing again.
Lord Raymun Darry, who had stayed silent and seemed unconcerned, watched all of this with a complex look in his eyes.
His lands were far from that Ironborn force.
And he kept remembering the words Solomon had told him.
Stay away from the rivers. Build strong defenses.
His army had lost the least along the long coast.
Baron Deddington, on the other hand, thought of his wife and her letter.
That loyal bannerman of his, who had survived by luck while other lords had shown only hollow loyalty, had sent four hundred men to help defend his own Deddington Castle.
Somehow, it made him feel a little ashamed.
At that moment, the heavy oak door was shoved open.
A soldier in Seagard guard armor ran in fast, panting hard, his helmet tilted to one side.
Clement jumped up in rage and pointed at the soldier.
"Who gave you the right to storm into a lord's council? Someone, drag him out and cut him down!"
Several guards stepped forward to seize the intruder.
"Wait!"
Jason Mallister raised a hand to stop them.
He saw the look on the soldier's face.
An ill omen seized his heart.
His voice was dry.
"Let him speak."
The soldier dropped to his knees.
He had run so hard that he was gasping for breath, barely able to form a complete sentence.
He reached into his chest and pulled out a scroll soaked in blood.
A servant took it and carefully handed it to Jason Mallister.
The hall went dead silent.
Every eye was fixed on that small scroll.
Jason Mallister lifted his head and looked at each person in the room.
His face was pale as paper.
He opened his mouth as if to say something, but finally just handed the scroll to the maester beside him.
The maester took the scroll, looked at it, and read in a voice that trembled too.
"Letryce Castle... has been taken by the Ironborn..."
"Lord Lemon Letryce's wife has abandoned the castle..."
"Escaping to Harrenhal..."
The maester's voice grew smaller and smaller, nearly inaudible.
When the last word fell, the air in the whole hall seemed to be sucked away.
A strong castle had fallen.
The lord's family had fled.
That message was more lethal than a thousand deserters or ten thousand complaints.
In the hall, the lords looked at one another, each with a different expression.
This invasion was far larger and more destructive than they had imagined.
Jason Mallister slowly sank back into his main chair.
He felt his strength drained away.
This was a much bigger problem now.
70+ chapters are available now and daily updates! @patreon.com/agenttwilight