Chapter 1: prologue
Robert's rebellion is over. The corpses of Ellia Martell and her children rest on Lannister robes. Lord Tywin in his crimson and gold majesty of the western lion coldly smiled at the cruel reaction of the new king of the seven kingdoms, Jon Arryn frowned but solemnly ignored the outcome of that conflict.
Garvy Wyce, the Lord of Frostport and commander of the most powerful fleet in the Seven Kingdoms, spat in disgust at the actions of the protector of the West. Wearing his blue plate armor and a white cape with Wyce's mountain of ice in the center, Garvy approached the three corpses, knelt down and prayed for the souls of those three innocents.
"What does that mean, Garvy?"
King Robert asked.
"Mercy for souls, Robert"
replied the lord.
"Stop those damn dragons?!"
Robert's fury mixed with his words.
"Stop the children! You filthy boar"
Garvy's response infuriated the new king, who rose from the improvised throne made in Riverrun. Swords were drawn and Wyce soldiers had already surrounded the loyalists Baratheon, Arryn and Tully and the Starks remained neutral, without the presence of Lord Stark and the second in command being Lord Garvy, they maintained neutrality just for the safety of the numerical superiority of Wyce men.
"Take the bodies to a ship heading to Dorne, let the Martells take care of the funeral"
"I order you!..."
"You don't give me orders!"
Lord Wyce interrupted the king and tensions escalated further.
"Remember your place, Wyce, the oath you swore to Lord Eddard at Winterfell..."
Jon Arryn mediated but Garvy did not allow it.
"My oath was in revenge on my friends: Rickard, Anna and Bran! Not this filthy boar and this maneless lion, much less you Arryn, you allowing the cruel end of these children shows me that southern ambitions are as ugly as a whore old"
Robert's grip on the arm of his wooden throne tightened and cracks were heard, Tywin Lannister frowned and a snort followed by the chant of his soldiers' drawn blades was the signal for the remaining Northmen to join Wyce's men.
"Don't expect my relationship with Ned to cool your punishment, Wyce! I still remember your insubordination when you took away my chance to kill that bastard!"
Robert spat out curses and curses but Lord Wyce remained cool and the tensions in the tent remained heavy like an anvil on the back of his neck.
"What are you waiting for?! Take their bodies!"
Garvy ordered and two knights went to Rhaegar Targaryen's children and wife and unlike what they imagined, neither Tywin, Robert or Jon Arryn stopped the knights.
"The northerners will remain in the regions close to the dock and there we will wait for our Lord Stark"
The lord of Frostport left and the northern men surrounded him, protecting the one left to command his armies.
"Gary you idiot, the war took away your reason?!"
Roared Wyman Manderly, lord of White Harbor. The knights remained at their lord's side, protecting him and Lord Wyman continued to rebuke his friend, until they arrived at Garvy's personal tent.
"Not since Trident has shown him favor and corrected him like a foolish child. He lost his fiancée to that bastard!"
"I also lost a lot in this war"
Garvy replied, taking a sip of wine.
"I lost a woman I loved, I lost brothers, friends, neighbors and loyal servants who saw in the death of Lord Stark and his beloved heir the spark that set their cold hearts on fire! I lost as much as Robert Baratheon and I lost more than Eddard Stark!"
"So it was true"
Wyman resolved the doubt that had flooded his mind.
"You and Lyanna, you had an affair"
"I swore to protect her, I swore I would take her from Robert and give her a dowry that Rickard wouldn't dare refuse..."
"But there was no time."
"It was satisfying to run him through with my halberd, to see him call her by her full name, not the way she liked it! I saw the regret in the tears but there was no satisfaction."
"Why do you talk like she's not alive, Gary?"
"Ser Ethon sent me a message using his ancient gift. Lyanna Stark died in Dorne, after giving birth to a stillborn child by Rhaegar Targaryen."
"By the Seven, Does the king know this?"
"He will know, but not from me."
Days passed, the capital still stabilizing after the sack by Tywin Lannister's men. Blackwater Bay was filled with ships and galleys with sails bearing the colors of Manderly and Wyce, there were more than a hundred and the northern men by order of Garvy Wyce kept order from the pier to Fishmonger Square and the surrounding area. Using his dominance over that region, Lord Wyman Manderly exchanged and traded with the Kingslanders slaughtered by the brutality of the war. There were also exchanges with traders who came from the seas without knowing the end of the conflict and agreements were reached between Essos and the Wyce and Manderly. It didn't take long for these agreements to reach the ears of Jon Arryn and Tywin Lannister, who tried to share part of the profit that the two smaller houses took from there, but any armed intervention proved to be frustrated when the heads of troublemakers and scouts were handed over to the lords of Casterly Rock and Valley respectively.
It was rainy when Lord Stark arrived at King's Landing. With him were William Dustin, Howland Reed, Ser Ethon Graen, and Cayle Towers. But it was a cart that caught Garvy's attention and he galloped in front of it and there he saw what appeared to be a young body, wrapped in a white cloak soaked in water and blood...
Ned looked dejected, with a distant look and a broken spirit. Garvy didn't want to see Lyanna Stark's body there, cold and still. He ordered the Silent Sisters to take care of Lyanna and returned to his tent and stayed there until Robert Baratheon himself arrived with an armed entourage expecting resistance from Garvy but there he found grief and anger. Eddard's grief was such that after a discussion between Lords Arryn and Lannister about Lord Wyce's actions, the king himself began to announce his forgiveness for Lord Wyce's practices after witnessing and understanding the reason for the fight of those men. Lord Wyce's anger was in keeping with his personality, throwing himself into the bottom of a glass of wine that multiplied to dozens and ended in a fainting spell and a slight alcoholic coma lasting two days. Lord Wyce had awoken on a farewell day, on which he saw the Northmen depart home in the ships and galleys for White Harbor.
"The healer told me that he had awakened"
Said Lord Wyman Manderly, dressed in his blue velvet doublet with Manderly's Merman sewn on top, he had arrived a few minutes after Garvy's awakening. He wore a seamless black doublet over it and just a gray cape with simple embroidery in the colors of his house's coat of arms.
"1/3 of our forces left, Lyanna went with them but Lord Stark remains in the city. Ellia and her children arrived in Dorne last night and a thank you from Doran Martell arrived with an eagle"
"And Dragonstone?"
"Queen Rhaella and her daughter Daenerys are heading to Braavos. The boy Viserys unfortunately contracted a bad flu and could not survive the trip..."
"What else?"
"I thought I'd seen them before."
"Who?"
"In addition to Lady Lyanna, a couple of babies and Lady Ashara Dayne arrived together from Lord Eddard Stark's entourage"
Wyman's words brought order to Garvy's mind, not believing what he had heard there.
"Bran left heirs?"
He asked Wyman, who nodded.
"The boy's name is Jon and the girl's name is Dyana. Both are children of Lord Brandon, born to Lady Ashara Dayne who unfortunately did not survive the birth of the children"
The calm broke and surprise, fear, happiness and even relief came over Garvy.
"Where are these children?"
Garvy asked.
"Sleeping and protected by trustworthy soldiers, they are both fed by a wet nurse handpicked by one of my galley servants."
Wyman responded and Garvy sighed in relief. Both knew of Hoster Tully's plans to want his grandchildren as lords of the largest of the seven kingdoms. The news of Jon and Dyana's birth was a major obstacle to their plans and an old man like Hoster is cruel enough to remove the innocent newborns from his path.
"Thank you very much, Wyman, I don't know what I would do without you my friend"
"Save the thanks for later, Gary, we have too many problems right now."
"Like this?"
"A few days ago, Tywin Lannister and Jon Arryn asked for punishment for their practices of trading with foreigners without the crown's legislation, Robert forgave him after the grief for Lyanna hit him, but those old men still ask for an increase in taxes and the donation of some ships and galleys as compensation for losses. And Eddard, after hearing about what he did while he remained in command, accepted some terms"
Wyman clenched his fists in anger but Garvy just smiled in contempt.
"Let them take the damn galleys and some ships from Frostport"
"But Garvy, we fought this war for them! Have you forgotten the state your ships are in after taking down that Redwyne siege?!"
The lord of White Harbor reddened his cheeks in fury. When war broke out and the Tyrells besieged Storm's End with the Redwyne fleet awaiting the slow and painful deaths of Stannis Baratheon and his family, it was the Wolf Fleet that fought its way through a bloody war at sea and rescued Robert Baratheon's kin from starvation.
"You have to learn a lot, Wyman"
The sneer never left Garvy's lips.
"They will have some potholed galleys and ships in need of repair. But we will have the most precious thing!"
"What would it be?"
"New Gift"
It took a while for Wyman to connect the dots and understand Garvy Wyce's plans.
"A large strip of land stretching from the Shivering Sea to the Bay of Ice. Large fertile fields and lots of strong old timber for new ships and galleys"
Wyman sighed and pushed his blond hair back thinking about how much gold that region would bring to his coffers.
"But Lord Stark will not allow us to have power over these lands, it would be easier for him to give them to the Kastark or the Umber, for the seven even to the mountain clans"
Wyman said and Garvy then opened the entrance to his tent and pointed to a young soldier polishing his blade.
"We don't need so much work, Wyman, we have a house that needs forgiveness"
He pointed to Cayle Towers.
"House Towers has been a minor vassal of the Wyce since the wars of conquest of the ancient Winter Kings. I don't think one vassal of yours should be enough."
"But Cayle is not my vassal"
"Like this?"
"Cayle Towers was Cayle Snow. Old Trevor Towers fucked a maid and he was born, the boy like any bastard suffered from an early age but he has the gift for war and not since Ygor Wyce has there been a man who brought so many Ironborn to the Night's Watch and Cayle took his father's surname on merit"
A green smile appeared on Wyman.
"By law he does not belong to you but to whom he is sworn"
"House Stark as a Northerner"
"You're a damn genius, Gary"
At the Small Council.
Robert Baratheon sat in the main seat and on his right side was Jon Arryn his hand of king, Stannis Baratheon his master of ships and Lords Eddard Stark and Hoster Tully as mediators of the case presented there. The arrival of Garvy Wyce and Wyman Manderly attracted the attention of Tywin Lannister, who entered and sat down without introducing himself or asking permission from the new king.
"I hate decorum and presentation, you know why you're here"
Said Robert Baratheon.
"Disobedience, Insubordination and Treason towards the Crown"
Tywin Lannister replied.
"The protection of the bodies of Princess Ellia and Princes Aegon and Rhaenys is nothing more than respect for the dead, Lord Tywin. Something your son did not know how to do when he decided to tarnish the honor of his white cloak"
Tywin snorted and narrowed his eyes at Garvy, who returned an icy glare laced with contempt. Garvy may not have been as old as the lion of the West, but he was just as cunning and cruel. The Ironmans knew well how painful death can be when they are torn from their longships and thrown to a horrible death on the wall, with not even a boat in sight.
"Lord Wyce. You stand before the new king of the seven kingdoms, not a Wyron of Tentown"
Ned Stark said with ice in his tone and authority in his words.
"The Wyron's are honorable and know their place as vassals, Lord Stark, they are not carried away by the songs of birds and the swimming of fish much less fear the roar of beasts. They have survived since the era of Greystark and know the fate of Usurpers "
"Lord Stark!"
Roared Jon Arryn.
"Where is your honor before your superiors, Lord Wyce!"
Eddard stood up and Wyman stood in front of Garvy, his hand holding a small dagger hidden in his forearm sleeve.
"With Jon Stark"
Silence fell upon the lords of the Small Council.
"While our galleys are given to men who never remembered us northerners except when good warriors are needed, when these green fagots can't lift a sword without killing their companion next to them, these bastards call us to war and steal of us the most precious"
The poison of hatred filled the eyes of those lords but Eddard sighed and sat down in his chair.
"What does Lord Wyce want in return?"
Eddard was not a man for meetings and the games of nobles, he should not be the lord of Winterfell but his brother Brandon. It took him a while to understand that Lord Wyce would not give up part of his fleet without something in return.
"The New Gift"
It was the silent Wyman Manderly who said it.
"Then it's all done"
Robert said before drinking an entire glass of wine and throwing his chair back, wanting to end the meeting.
"Wait Robert"
Jon Arryn intervened.
"You want more than you should Lord Wyce, ask for something else, that region belongs to the brothers of the night's watch and..."
"And yet it remains an uninhabited land, a fertile and uninhabited land, nothing grows in much of that region and the watch cannot maintain itself even with the lands left by the ancient kings of winter"
Wyman was categorical in his words but those lords did not want that region to be under the power of White Harbor, much less Frostport. But Eddard Stark agreed and understood how much his people needed the grain sown there, even someone who didn't grow up in Winterfell understood.
"Then give them to the Umber or the mountain clans."
Eddard suggested, which brought consensus but Wyman Manderly expected that from him.
"It's a great idea, Lord Stark, but I must remind you that these houses are not known for managing productive land. It's like giving quality steel to a carpenter and asking him to make a good blade..."
"They can learn"
Tywin Lannister interrupted.
"In a hundred years? They will waste more seeds than they will produce good harvests and meanwhile the men of the north throw themselves into the cold embrace of winter choosing death rather than eating what little they obtain"
Garvy responded with a wry smile.
"That's why there is a better alternative"
Wyman said but looking at Lord Stark.
"During the conquest of the Winter Kings, one of the houses that suffered the cutting of their ancestors' blade, House Towers, lost its lands and titles. The few survivors chose vassalage as a minor house in Frostport and Tentown, active in building of buildings and ships for the Ice Fleet. Young Cayle Towers accompanied you in rescuing Lady Lyanna in Dorne. He is a capable and very intelligent young man, also a loyal servant. I donate supplies, servants and soldiers so that there can be development there"
Eddard agreed with Wyman's words and Garvy continued.
"I will also donate supplies and servants to him. The Towers house deserves a second chance"
There were other discussions about readjusting the number of ships and galleys donated to the crown, also about the succession of the lordship of Winterfell, but Eddard was direct in stating that Jon would be the future lord of Winterfell and that the temporary regency would be given to him and Wyce house as it had been since the time before the first men's arrival.
On his war galley: Ice Snake. Garvy Wyce left for White Harbor with a decree legitimizing Cayle Towers as lord of the New Gift. There were also babies Jon and Dyana Stark, sleeping.
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