So Yorick is going to intervene eh, I doubt he will lead the army personally, but it makes me wonder who is, after all his eldest son is merely 16 years old.
This could mean we'll be introduced to the Wyls of Wyl, the family of Queen Wenda Yronwood.
Even if the Yronwood forces drive away the Fowler-Blackmont army, I seriously doubt Albin will agree on any terms Yorick is offering, and it didn't seemed they went to siege Kingsgrave.
Gwendis
"We need to stick together, Trentan," Gwendis said softly, looking the young thief to the eyes. "Aisha and her false knight, they… more don't care about us, not really. They only want to use us, and when we've fulfilled our purpose, we won't be worth anything to them. Right now, you are the only one I can trust, and I'm the only one you can trust."
"I understand that now," Trentan replied with a gulp. "Aisha listened to me when I told her about my past, my struggles. She also opened up to me about her struggles, but... now I have to wonder if everything she told me was a lie, a story to manipulate me to empathize with her. One thing I know for sure, the Aisha who I spent hours with talking about our pasts... it's a different person from the Aisha that murdered Lyla Sand with no remorse."
Gwendis was unsure what to say to this. It was hard for her to imagine Aisha opening up and talking about struggles of her own. For Gwendis the Da… [view original content]
[Agree with Trentan] The Yronwood's are coming to Kingsgrave to potentially save the Manwoody's? This is very interesting! I look forward to seeing how this potential alliance has taken shape!
Gwendis
"We need to stick together, Trentan," Gwendis said softly, looking the young thief to the eyes. "Aisha and her false knight, they… more don't care about us, not really. They only want to use us, and when we've fulfilled our purpose, we won't be worth anything to them. Right now, you are the only one I can trust, and I'm the only one you can trust."
"I understand that now," Trentan replied with a gulp. "Aisha listened to me when I told her about my past, my struggles. She also opened up to me about her struggles, but... now I have to wonder if everything she told me was a lie, a story to manipulate me to empathize with her. One thing I know for sure, the Aisha who I spent hours with talking about our pasts... it's a different person from the Aisha that murdered Lyla Sand with no remorse."
Gwendis was unsure what to say to this. It was hard for her to imagine Aisha opening up and talking about struggles of her own. For Gwendis the Da… [view original content]
So it seems indeed. We'll have to see how much we can learn about the details of this alliance without actually having a PoV in the councils of either houses. Well, perhaps Albin will slip something to Kortney
[Agree with Trentan] The Yronwood's are coming to Kingsgrave to potentially save the Manwoody's? This is very interesting! I look forward to seeing how this potential alliance has taken shape!
A very clear voting once again, Gwendis will agree with Trentan, keeping up the positive spirits Sure, Trentan might be a bit naive here, but it's probably better to stay hopeful and positive here, considering that the road ahead for them is sure to be hard, and being all defeated won't make it any easier.
Next we'll have Ortheg PoV, and it's done already! As a reminder, last time Ortheg started training swordplay with his half-sister Tanya, and briefly met his half-brother Artos and his cousins Olyvar and Addam. After this, he went to meet King Yorick for the first time, which was also Yorick's first appearance in the story. Yorick recognized Ortheg as his late brother Andrey's bastard son, and thus welcomed him to the court and gave him an opportunity to prove himself. By the end of their meeting, Yorick asked what is the most important feature of a knight in service of the King, and you voted for Ortheg to answer "loyalty". We'll see what does Yorick think about this answer. We'll also see Ortheg start learning to read, and get some more of Yorick As said, the part is ready and will be posted right after this message.
"Loyalty, Your Grace," Ortheg answered King Yorick's question with uncertainty in his words. "Loyalty is the most important feature of a knight in service of the King," he repeated, now with a more confident tone.
Yorick Yronwood clapped his hands together once. "Correct," he said smoothly, a smirk forming on his face. "You will train to be more skilled with the sword, and you will read to sharpen your mind. And whenever you will face my enemies, I expect you to be brave. However, none of that will matter if you are not loyal to me. I expect you to remember that, Ortheg Sand."
"I will, Your Grace," Ortheg assured with a deep bow. The King nodded with a subtle smirk still on his face. "You are dismissed," he said coldly, and quickly Ortheg turned towards the door and walked out, Maester Symon coming after him.
"You did well, Ortheg," the maester complimented calmly. "I was quite surprised actually. I half expected you to accidently insult the King with your words. After all, common folk are not taught the manners of court like they do with noble children."
"I know how to be respectful," Ortheg replied with a sigh, and a small smile formed on Symon's face. "Indeed, you do," he agreed quietly. "We'll meet next morning in my office. It's time for you to start learning how to read."
-
Ortheg's eyes ran quickly through the symbols on the page, symbols he couldn't understand. His eyes naturally turned to the picture above the symbols. It was a picture of a warrior, a knight, stepping out of his boat to a rocky beach. In the knight's white shield was a red seven-pointed star, and his sword was shining steel. This book had been written by Maester Ondrew for noble children almost fifty years ago, to tell a simplified version of the Andal invasion – or so Maester Symon had told Ortheg.
Symon tapped his wooden wand on the first letter under the picture, the one that was bigger than all the rest of the symbols on the page. "What letter is this?" The maester asked strictly, and Ortheg scratched his head. They had gone through all the letters a few times already, but it was hard to remember. "Is it... T?" Ortheg asked hesitantly, and Symon shook his head.
"It's M, like mountain," he said with a small sigh. "This reads, 'Morgan Martell lead the invasion to Dorne'." Orhteg nodded, interested to learn more. "Did the Yronwood's come with the Andals too?" He asked curiously, but Symon shook his head.
"No, the Yronwood's are descendants of the First Men, and have ruled these lands since the Age of Heroes. The first Yronwood kings claimed to be descendants of gods," the maester explained with a dry tone on his voice. "And... is that true?" Ortheg asked, fascinated by the possibility of having blood of the gods running through his veins.
"There is no way to disprove it," Symon answered with a sigh. "But most likely it's just a story, something the Yronwood kings of old used to justify their power over the people on their lands. After the Andals came, the Yronwood's eventually converted to their Faith of Seven. That is also the time when they started to write down their stories, which is why we know much more about the Yronwood kings after the Andal invasion."
"So, it wasn't the Seven whose blood the Yronwood kings claimed to have?" Orhteg asked, and Symon shook his head. "No, those kings hadn't even heard of the Seven when they made their claims," he said with a subtle smirk on his face. "Anyway, back to..."
The maester's words were cut off by a knock on his door. Taking in a deep breath, Symon stood up and walked to the door of his small chambers. As he opened it, Ortheg saw Tanya standing on the other side of it.
"Lady Tanya," Symon greeted her respectfully, and she responded with a nod. "I've come to fetch my brother," Tanya said nonchalantly, and Ortheg stood up from his chair.
"What for?" Maester Symon asked with a slightly irritated tone on his voice, and Tanya smiled. "King Yorick is about to hold a court session," she answered calmly. "I figured it would be good for Ortheg to see it." Symon turned to Ortheg, and let out a sigh after eyeing him for a moment. "I suppose you're right," he admitted. "It's good for the boy to see how the King's justice is served. Go then," he urged Ortheg, and he obeyed, walking out of the maester's chambers with a grin on his face.
"Did you learn anything?" Tanya asked after they closed the door, and Ortheg nodded. "A little," he answered, which made Tanya chuckle. "Maester Symon is a good teacher, he even managed to teach Olyvar to read, the bullheaded boy," she spoke with a warm and friendly tone as they walked down from the tower and into the courtyard. "And he knows more than any other man I've ever met. Ask him anything and he almost always has the answer."
"He taught me a little about the history of the Yronwood's," Ortheg said, and Tanya nodded. "And I'm sure he'll teach you more in the future," she said softly, as they arrived to the doors of the main keep and walked in, past the guards standing by it. The castle was more crowded today than it had been yesterday. People had arrived to give their pleads and requests for the King. Quietly Ortheg and Tanya walked into the large throne room, and took their place from the sidelines.
Looking around, Ortheg saw a young man about his age standing close to the throne. He had a short blonde hair, and was dressed in flamboyant dark silks, with a golden cloak over them. That must be Prince Trevyr, Ortheg thought, seeing the proud expression on the boy's face. Next to him stood a girl, a couple years older than him, dressed in an equally flamboyant gold-and-black silk dress, a silver tiara on top of her long golden hair. Princess Jaena, Ortheg deduced. He had heard stories of her beauty, but he had to admit that those stories didn't do justice for how beautiful the princess truly was. At the moment on her face was a calm and cold expression, as she eyed the people flooding into the hall.
On the other side of the throne stood a tall and lanky man, at least on his early forties. He had a short dark hair, under his long nose was a mustache, and under his mouth a goatee. He was dressed in a simple dark green vest, with a lighter green tunic under it. Ortheg had no idea who this man could be, but probably he was a close adviser of the King. "The man next to the throne is Quentyn Jordayne," Tanya told, apparently noticing that Ortheg was looking at him. "The younger brother of Lord Terren Jordayne of the Tor. Quentyn isn't much of a fighter, but he has other ways of serving the King."
After a few minutes of waiting, the King himself arrived to the hall, escorted by his guards, and with him Queen Wenda. All the chatter stopped immediately, and the people bowed deeply when the royal couple walked past them. Queen Wenda was a woman on her late forties, but she had still a certain mature beauty to her. She had a strong presence, and her long dark hair was majestic, as was her crimson dress and golden jewelry.
The King was dressed in dark blue silks, and on his head was a magnificent golden crown. As he sat down to his throne, Ortheg felt the same strong presence he had felt yesterday on the King's office. This was a man who was aware of the power he held, and wielded it unapologetically.
Soon the first man approached the King, kneeling in front of him. Quentyn Jordayne announced King Yorick with all his titles, and everyone listened in silence. As he was done, Yorick himself spoke up. "You can stand up," he said with a calm and emotionless tone, and the man obeyed. The man looked to be on his late thirties, a healthy-looking man with short dark hair and clothes that seemed too simple for nobleman but also too good for a farmer or a miner.
"Your Grace, my name is Podrick, and I have traveled here from the Tor," the man spoke with a humble tone on his words, and the King nodded. "Are there problems in the Tor?" Yorick asked calmly, glancing silently at Quentyn. Podrick gulped, considering his words for a moment. "I am an owner of a smithy, Your Grace. We are the biggest in the Tor, and arm the troops of House Jordayne. However, lately there has been a... shortage of materials. Less and less iron has been transported to the Tor in the last few months. These days we're hardly able to make half of what we used to."
"There is a reason for this shortage," King Yorick said calmly. "There was an accident in our biggest iron mine a few months ago, a cave-in that killed dozens of miners and blocked the way in," he explained with a cold and bored tone. "It will take a couple more months before said mine will be fully functional again. I assume you can wait a couple more months?" The King asked sternly, and Podrick was quick to bow for his words.
"Of course, Your Grace," he said obediently, and took his leave. Having worked in a mine himself, this kind of stories about cave-ins were terrifying for Ortheg. He imagined the King himself had never been in a mine, for being able to talk about something like that so lightly.
Next the King was approached by two men, who looked foreign. They were pale skinned, or slightly sunburnt in case of the older one. The younger of the two was clad in a leather armor, and carried an axe on his belt. He was a tall young man, and had a stern expression on his face, dark brown hair almost covering his eyes. The older man was much shorter, and had a much calmer expression on his face. They both bowed to King Yorick.
"And who might you be?" The King asked lazily, and the younger man spoke up. "I am Willem Pyke, bastard son of Lord Garvy Saltcliffe, and the man next to me is my guard, Salladhor Longwaters."
"Ironborn?" Yorick asked, his voice much more interested now. "Aye, I come from the Iron Islands, Your Grace," Willem answered calmly, and a smirk formed on Yorick's face. "And what in seven hells is an Ironborn doing in my halls?" He asked.
"Seeking for justice," Willem answered sternly, which made Yorick frown. "Justice for whom?" He asked now.
"For the man who raped and murdered my sister," Willem answered, which made the lords and ladies in the throne room gasp. "A man named Carsen, a sellsword with a burn under his left eye. I heard he served King Albin, so I traveled to Kingsgrave to find him. There I heard he has traveled here, to serve you, King Yorick." For a moment the hall fell completely silent, as the young Ironborn waited for the King's answer.
"I know the man," the King finally said, his tone more serious now. "He is not here, but he serves my vassal, Lord Barris Vass. The seat of House Vass is Watersmeet, it's located under a day's ride to north from here. However, do you have any proof for your accusations?"
"I have a witness right here," Willem said, gesturing towards the older man beside him. "Aye, I was there to see how Carsen escaped from the scene of his crimes, Your Grace," Salladhor Longwaters confirmed. King Yorick stroked his chin with a pondering look on his eyes.
"Fine then," he finally spoke up with a decisive tone on his words. "The last thing I want is a vengeful Ironborn running around my kingdom. I shall invite Lord Vass and this Carsen, so the matter can be settled here in Yronwood."
"Thank you, Your Grace," Willem Pyke spoke with a genuinely grateful tone, before walking away from the King with his companion. For a moment the throne room was filled with whispers, until a young woman approached the King. She looked to be heavily bruised, and her eyes were red from crying.
"I recognize you, Lady Genna Marcant," the King said calmly, as the bruised lady kneeled for him. "I was in your wedding a few years ago. What brings you to Yronwood?"
Lady Genna stood up, and looked at Yorick with a timid and scared gaze in her brown eyes. "It's my husband, Your Grace," she spoke, hardly able to keep her voice together. "He has been mistreating me, beating me and shaming me in front of his people."
"And may I ask why he has been doing this?" The King asked emotionlessly, and Ortheg saw the Marcant lady's hands shaking. "He claims I've been unfaithful, but it is not true, Your Grace. By the Seven I swear, I have never laid with another man!"
"Lord Myles Marcant has always been a loyal and honorable bannerman of mine, why should I trust your word over his?" Yorick asked sternly, and the woman fell on her knees again, now breaking to tears. "You must believe me, Your Grace!" She pleaded, and Ortheg saw Queen Wenda giving a meaningful glare at her husband. However, King Yorick ignored it, just as he ignored Lady Genna's tearful words.
"You will return to your husband in Stonegate, and make sure to be faithful for him from now on," Yorick commanded coldly. "I will send two of my guards to escort you home, and make sure your husband treats you fairly."
Still crying, Lady Genna stood up and walked away with weak steps. "I think I've seen enough for one day," Ortheg heard Tanya say next to him. "Would you like to go train with the sword?" She asked with a friendly tone. Ortheg glanced at her, then at the King, considering his choice carefully.
[Go with Tanya] If he truly wants to be a knight, he better take every chance he gets to train. Besides, I doubt King Yorick would have much use for Ortheg at the moment.
Ortheg
"Loyalty, Your Grace," Ortheg answered King Yorick's question with uncertainty in his words. "Loyalty is the most important featur… moree of a knight in service of the King," he repeated, now with a more confident tone.
Yorick Yronwood clapped his hands together once. "Correct," he said smoothly, a smirk forming on his face. "You will train to be more skilled with the sword, and you will read to sharpen your mind. And whenever you will face my enemies, I expect you to be brave. However, none of that will matter if you are not loyal to me. I expect you to remember that, Ortheg Sand."
"I will, Your Grace," Ortheg assured with a deep bow. The King nodded with a subtle smirk still on his face. "You are dismissed," he said coldly, and quickly Ortheg turned towards the door and walked out, Maester Symon coming after him.
"You did well, Ortheg," the maester complimented calmly. "I was quite surprised actually. I half expected you to acc… [view original content]
Ah, Willem is back, I see! I wonder, if Kortney would have went with him, would she actually be here as well now? Or would her attempt at escaping have failed? Anyways, glad to see him back though, his little vengeance stuff seems to be part of Ortheg's storyline in this chapter. And well, Yorick is a dick. That Marcant woman might just die now that he sent her away. At the same time, she should have known better than to go to Yorick for help. If anything, he reacted as I thought he would. A dick he is, but at the same time, a character I am intrigued by. It was also nice getting a glimpse at the rest of the family, I look forward to learn more about them in Ortheg's future parts as well.
[Stay in the throne room]
Well, I am really conflicted here. I agree with Javier, another opportunity to train and getting a better relationship with Tanya could be a good thing as well. One thing I am not sure about though is, how would Yorick react if Ortheg just leaves here? He demands loyalty and likely counts attendance to his court sessions as such. I'd rather stay until he ends this session, especially since Ortheg still has to prove himself in his eyes. Tanya can do that, since she likely has already proven her loyalty to Yorick, but I guess leaving now could give the king a bad impression. But well, I definitely see benefits on going with Tanya as well, so I am relatively neutral here.
Also, I saw that you have updated the main post with titles for every future chapter! This is an amazing surprise, so I will try to speculate on them a bit:
Chapter 1: No King Above Me
Well, undoubtedly this will be a Manwoody-heavy chapter. I wonder if it might even mean that the Manwoody stuff with Albin will be resolved there. I could see him becoming an uneasy bannerman of Yorick in this chapter, but maybe he tries to regain his crown in this chapter, only to lose Yorick's support when Nymeria marches on Kingsgrave. At the same time, it could also mean that Yorick is crowning himself High King of Dorne, the one who literally has no king above him, demanding the surrender of Albin and of the other rulers of Dorne. This leads directly to:
Chapter 2: Birds of Prey
Not too surprisingly, I imagine this chapter to be Blackmont-heavy (if I remember correctly, it has even once been brought up by jorian as a possible Blackmont motto), which I am obviously not unhappy with. Maybe it means that Benedict will be disposed of in this chapter, with either Naemon or Gwendis taking over and assuring House Blackmont's peaceful surrender to Nymeria. Or, a bit darker, it means Yorick, the king above all, conquers them, forcing Benedict's loyalty to support his war against Nymeria. One thing I am intrigued by is that the birds here is a plural, indicating several. Maybe it means there will indeed be a chance for Gwen to be a bird of prey alongside Naemon and her father. Naturally, I am already hyped for that chapter
Chapter 3: The Boneway
Yeah, this is another one I consider quite clear, it seems the Battle of the Boneway will be a major part of this chapter. I doubt it will be the only event happening, but no doubt the most important one. I guess this could be one of the most important and major battle sequences in the entire story, so naturally, this might be one of my favourite chapters to come
Chapter 1: Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken
Here I wonder if you will do a timeskip after the battle, or if you will show the events of the rest of Nymeria's War over the entirety of the chapter, showing her attempts after the Boneway all the way to triumph in the final chapter. If there's a timeskip, I doubt it will be for long.
Chapter 2: A Crown of Blood
Hm... hmmmm, this might imply one of the kings is going to die in this chapter. Fingers crossed for Albin, but at the same time, the only one that I can see as not being banished to the Wall by then is Benedict as Yorick's vassal, if he is not defeated by Nymeria in Book 3. Or maybe I am wrong here and it's not a king dying. But I really wonder what it is. This is probably the chapter I have the least amount of speculation for, though I guess it will become more clear once the time has come.
Chapter 3: Burning Bright
Ah, I remember these words. I believe this is where you do a complete turn and it is revealed that the entire story is actually not about Nymeria's War, but about the founding of House Marbrand, whose words are, indeed, Burning Bright Nah, I guess this means the Martell sun and Nymeria's final victory over Yorick Yronwood. As the final chapter, I guess it will show conclusions to every storyline still going on by then, so I kind of hope it will take a long time to get there, because afterwards, NW will be over and that will be a bittersweet occasion
Ortheg
"Loyalty, Your Grace," Ortheg answered King Yorick's question with uncertainty in his words. "Loyalty is the most important featur… moree of a knight in service of the King," he repeated, now with a more confident tone.
Yorick Yronwood clapped his hands together once. "Correct," he said smoothly, a smirk forming on his face. "You will train to be more skilled with the sword, and you will read to sharpen your mind. And whenever you will face my enemies, I expect you to be brave. However, none of that will matter if you are not loyal to me. I expect you to remember that, Ortheg Sand."
"I will, Your Grace," Ortheg assured with a deep bow. The King nodded with a subtle smirk still on his face. "You are dismissed," he said coldly, and quickly Ortheg turned towards the door and walked out, Maester Symon coming after him.
"You did well, Ortheg," the maester complimented calmly. "I was quite surprised actually. I half expected you to acc… [view original content]
[Stay in the throne room] While I like Tanya and I want to know more about her relationship with her father, this could also be an opportunity to understand Yorick better, although he's clearly a dick in some ways.
Myles Marcant is the father or the brother of Myranda Marcant, the wife of Artos Jordayne?
He sounds like a piece of work, that we can certain about it.
This also makes me wonder who is leading the Yronwood army, probably a Wyl.
Well, we know Salladhor doesn't belong to house Longwaters of the Crownlands, since it was only officially established after the son of Jon Waters, bastard of Alyn Velaryon and Elaena Targaryen, achieved status and prominence.
Ortheg
"Loyalty, Your Grace," Ortheg answered King Yorick's question with uncertainty in his words. "Loyalty is the most important featur… moree of a knight in service of the King," he repeated, now with a more confident tone.
Yorick Yronwood clapped his hands together once. "Correct," he said smoothly, a smirk forming on his face. "You will train to be more skilled with the sword, and you will read to sharpen your mind. And whenever you will face my enemies, I expect you to be brave. However, none of that will matter if you are not loyal to me. I expect you to remember that, Ortheg Sand."
"I will, Your Grace," Ortheg assured with a deep bow. The King nodded with a subtle smirk still on his face. "You are dismissed," he said coldly, and quickly Ortheg turned towards the door and walked out, Maester Symon coming after him.
"You did well, Ortheg," the maester complimented calmly. "I was quite surprised actually. I half expected you to acc… [view original content]
Ortheg
"Loyalty, Your Grace," Ortheg answered King Yorick's question with uncertainty in his words. "Loyalty is the most important featur… moree of a knight in service of the King," he repeated, now with a more confident tone.
Yorick Yronwood clapped his hands together once. "Correct," he said smoothly, a smirk forming on his face. "You will train to be more skilled with the sword, and you will read to sharpen your mind. And whenever you will face my enemies, I expect you to be brave. However, none of that will matter if you are not loyal to me. I expect you to remember that, Ortheg Sand."
"I will, Your Grace," Ortheg assured with a deep bow. The King nodded with a subtle smirk still on his face. "You are dismissed," he said coldly, and quickly Ortheg turned towards the door and walked out, Maester Symon coming after him.
"You did well, Ortheg," the maester complimented calmly. "I was quite surprised actually. I half expected you to acc… [view original content]
Ah, Willem is back, I see! I wonder, if Kortney would have went with him, would she actually be here as well now? Or would her attempt at escaping have failed? Anyways, glad to see him back though, his little vengeance stuff seems to be part of Ortheg's storyline in this chapter. And well, Yorick is a dick. That Marcant woman might just die now that he sent her away. At the same time, she should have known better than to go to Yorick for help. If anything, he reacted as I thought he would. A dick he is, but at the same time, a character I am intrigued by. It was also nice getting a glimpse at the rest of the family, I look forward to learn more about them in Ortheg's future parts as well.
The escape would have been succesful even if Kortney would've gone with Willem, though some Manwoody men would've been sent after them, causing some trouble for them on the way. However, they would've eventually made it to Yronwood. And yeah, for Yorick it is much more important to keep Lord Myles happy and loyal, rather than be nice to Lady Genna. It's rough, but at least he was kind enough to give a couple guards to escort the lady and see that Myles treats her fairly. It's unclear how willing are these two guards to actually intervene if Myles decides to beat his wife again, but Yorick trusts their mere presence is enough for Myles to be a bit more careful with his behavior. And yeah, the Yronwood's are a pretty big family, but I'll try to show them off as much as I can in Ortheg's parts
Well, undoubtedly this will be a Manwoody-heavy chapter. I wonder if it might even mean that the Manwoody stuff with Albin will be resolved there. I could see him becoming an uneasy bannerman of Yorick in this chapter, but maybe he tries to regain his crown in this chapter, only to lose Yorick's support when Nymeria marches on Kingsgrave. At the same time, it could also mean that Yorick is crowning himself High King of Dorne, the one who literally has no king above him, demanding the surrender of Albin and of the other rulers of Dorne.
Manwoody-heavy indeed, this I can confirm. Albin has been in a tough place for some time now, and it seems the only way for him to survive is to rely on Yorick's help. Yorick though doesn't lend his help without getting something in return, and this goes completely against the words of House Manwoody, so any alliance between them is sure to be uneasy. That said, like you kind of speculated here, despite being the words of House Manwoody, this chapter title could refer to many other things as well.
Not too surprisingly, I imagine this chapter to be Blackmont-heavy (if I remember correctly, it has even once been brought up by jorian as a possible Blackmont motto), which I am obviously not unhappy with. Maybe it means that Benedict will be disposed of in this chapter, with either Naemon or Gwendis taking over and assuring House Blackmont's peaceful surrender to Nymeria. Or, a bit darker, it means Yorick, the king above all, conquers them, forcing Benedict's loyalty to support his war against Nymeria. One thing I am intrigued by is that the birds here is a plural, indicating several. Maybe it means there will indeed be a chance for Gwen to be a bird of prey alongside Naemon and her father. Naturally, I am already hyped for that chapter
Indeed, this is a nod to jorian's idea for the words of House Blackmont, and Blackmont's are sure to be a big focus on this chapter. At the same time, it's a title that could easily refer to many other things, but we'll have to see
Yeah, this is another one I consider quite clear, it seems the Battle of the Boneway will be a major part of this chapter. I doubt it will be the only event happening, but no doubt the most important one. I guess this could be one of the most important and major battle sequences in the entire story, so naturally, this might be one of my favourite chapters to come
Indeed, this one has a very clear meaning, which doesn't leave much room for interpretation. The Stone Way/Boneway will certainly be a big location in this chapter, with big things happening there. It is perhaps the chapter I'm personally looking forward to the most.
Here I wonder if you will do a timeskip after the battle, or if you will show the events of the rest of Nymeria's War over the entirety of the chapter, showing her attempts after the Boneway all the way to triumph in the final chapter. If there's a timeskip, I doubt it will be for long.
Well, the battle won't exactly be the last thing happening in Chapter 3 of Book 3. That said, while there will be a timeskip between every book, the one between 3 and 4 will most likely be a bit shorter than the other timeskips. Anyway, dealing with the consequences of that battle will certainly be a big theme in this chapter.
Hm... hmmmm, this might imply one of the kings is going to die in this chapter. Fingers crossed for Albin, but at the same time, the only one that I can see as not being banished to the Wall by then is Benedict as Yorick's vassal, if he is not defeated by Nymeria in Book 3. Or maybe I am wrong here and it's not a king dying. But I really wonder what it is. This is probably the chapter I have the least amount of speculation for, though I guess it will become more clear once the time has come.
Well, A Crown of Blood could imply death of a king, that's true. However, it could also imply many other things. Such as, a crown achieved by bloodshed. A crown inherited by lineage (thus, by blood). You get what I mean
Ah, I remember these words. I believe this is where you do a complete turn and it is revealed that the entire story is actually not about Nymeria's War, but about the founding of House Marbrand, whose words are, indeed, Burning Bright Nah, I guess this means the Martell sun and Nymeria's final victory over Yorick Yronwood. As the final chapter, I guess it will show conclusions to every storyline still going on by then, so I kind of hope it will take a long time to get there, because afterwards, NW will be over and that will be a bittersweet occasion
Ah shit, didn't remember this was actually a motto of some house Well yeah, it refers to the Nymeros Martell sun, and it's also a nod to an Arianne Martell quote from the books: "Do you see the white [star], Quentyn? That is Nymeria's star, burning bright, and that milky band behind her, those are ten thousand ships. She burned as bright as any man, and so shall I."
Anyway, though some of these titles are pretty locked already ('Boneway' and 'Burning Bright' for sure), my plans might still change for these later books, and thus the titles can still possibly change as well
Ah, Willem is back, I see! I wonder, if Kortney would have went with him, would she actually be here as well now? Or would her attempt at es… morecaping have failed? Anyways, glad to see him back though, his little vengeance stuff seems to be part of Ortheg's storyline in this chapter. And well, Yorick is a dick. That Marcant woman might just die now that he sent her away. At the same time, she should have known better than to go to Yorick for help. If anything, he reacted as I thought he would. A dick he is, but at the same time, a character I am intrigued by. It was also nice getting a glimpse at the rest of the family, I look forward to learn more about them in Ortheg's future parts as well.
[Stay in the throne room]
Well, I am really conflicted here. I agree with Javier, another opportunity to train and getting a better relationship with Tanya could be a good thing as well. One thing I am not sure about though is, how would Yorick react i… [view original content]
Myles Marcant is the father or the brother of Myranda Marcant, the wife of Artos Jordayne? He sounds like a piece of work, that we can certain about it.
He is the father of Myranda. However, as you can probably guess, Lady Genna is not the mother of Myranda. Genna is the second wife of Lord Myles, who is actually the man responsible for the destruction of House Serviene, the family of Raina from Myke's storyline.
This also makes me wonder who is leading the Yronwood army, probably a Wyl.
Yeah, since Gwen could see a lot of Wyl banners in the army marching towards Kingsgrave, we can safely assume it's a Wyl leading that army.
Well, we know Salladhor doesn't belong to house Longwaters of the Crownlands, since it was only officially established after the son of Jon Waters, bastard of Alyn Velaryon and Elaena Targaryen, achieved status and prominence.
Yeah, Salladhor comes from a minor non-canon house from the Riverlands. Had I actually remembered that Longwaters is an actual canon house, I probably would've changed Salladhor's last name, but oh well.
[Stay in the throne room] While I like Tanya and I want to know more about her relationship with her father, this could also be an opportuni… morety to understand Yorick better, although he's clearly a dick in some ways.
Myles Marcant is the father or the brother of Myranda Marcant, the wife of Artos Jordayne?
He sounds like a piece of work, that we can certain about it.
This also makes me wonder who is leading the Yronwood army, probably a Wyl.
Well, we know Salladhor doesn't belong to house Longwaters of the Crownlands, since it was only officially established after the son of Jon Waters, bastard of Alyn Velaryon and Elaena Targaryen, achieved status and prominence.
Ortheg
"Loyalty, Your Grace," Ortheg answered King Yorick's question with uncertainty in his words. "Loyalty is the most important featur… moree of a knight in service of the King," he repeated, now with a more confident tone.
Yorick Yronwood clapped his hands together once. "Correct," he said smoothly, a smirk forming on his face. "You will train to be more skilled with the sword, and you will read to sharpen your mind. And whenever you will face my enemies, I expect you to be brave. However, none of that will matter if you are not loyal to me. I expect you to remember that, Ortheg Sand."
"I will, Your Grace," Ortheg assured with a deep bow. The King nodded with a subtle smirk still on his face. "You are dismissed," he said coldly, and quickly Ortheg turned towards the door and walked out, Maester Symon coming after him.
"You did well, Ortheg," the maester complimented calmly. "I was quite surprised actually. I half expected you to acc… [view original content]
Ortheg
"Loyalty, Your Grace," Ortheg answered King Yorick's question with uncertainty in his words. "Loyalty is the most important featur… moree of a knight in service of the King," he repeated, now with a more confident tone.
Yorick Yronwood clapped his hands together once. "Correct," he said smoothly, a smirk forming on his face. "You will train to be more skilled with the sword, and you will read to sharpen your mind. And whenever you will face my enemies, I expect you to be brave. However, none of that will matter if you are not loyal to me. I expect you to remember that, Ortheg Sand."
"I will, Your Grace," Ortheg assured with a deep bow. The King nodded with a subtle smirk still on his face. "You are dismissed," he said coldly, and quickly Ortheg turned towards the door and walked out, Maester Symon coming after him.
"You did well, Ortheg," the maester complimented calmly. "I was quite surprised actually. I half expected you to acc… [view original content]
[Stay in the throne room] This is a great way to show Ortheg's loyalty toward House Yronwood. I am sure Yorick would notice as well if he left especially after the talk they just had
Ortheg
"Loyalty, Your Grace," Ortheg answered King Yorick's question with uncertainty in his words. "Loyalty is the most important featur… moree of a knight in service of the King," he repeated, now with a more confident tone.
Yorick Yronwood clapped his hands together once. "Correct," he said smoothly, a smirk forming on his face. "You will train to be more skilled with the sword, and you will read to sharpen your mind. And whenever you will face my enemies, I expect you to be brave. However, none of that will matter if you are not loyal to me. I expect you to remember that, Ortheg Sand."
"I will, Your Grace," Ortheg assured with a deep bow. The King nodded with a subtle smirk still on his face. "You are dismissed," he said coldly, and quickly Ortheg turned towards the door and walked out, Maester Symon coming after him.
"You did well, Ortheg," the maester complimented calmly. "I was quite surprised actually. I half expected you to acc… [view original content]
Ortheg
"Loyalty, Your Grace," Ortheg answered King Yorick's question with uncertainty in his words. "Loyalty is the most important featur… moree of a knight in service of the King," he repeated, now with a more confident tone.
Yorick Yronwood clapped his hands together once. "Correct," he said smoothly, a smirk forming on his face. "You will train to be more skilled with the sword, and you will read to sharpen your mind. And whenever you will face my enemies, I expect you to be brave. However, none of that will matter if you are not loyal to me. I expect you to remember that, Ortheg Sand."
"I will, Your Grace," Ortheg assured with a deep bow. The King nodded with a subtle smirk still on his face. "You are dismissed," he said coldly, and quickly Ortheg turned towards the door and walked out, Maester Symon coming after him.
"You did well, Ortheg," the maester complimented calmly. "I was quite surprised actually. I half expected you to acc… [view original content]
And Ortheg will stay in the throne room, showing his loyalty to King Yorick. Well, it's unclear how much would Yorick truly care if Ortheg left, or if he'd really even notice, but I suppose it's better play safe with this guy. And while Tanya would've preferred if Ortheg came with her, she is not going to hate him for it. They'll still have plenty of chances to develop their relationship as siblings, and perhaps one day talk about their father.
Next up, we'll have a double part with Nealia and Dianna PoV's. The Dianna part is already done, but I'll still have to work on the Nealia part. And since I will be spending several hours today driving back home from my parents, it will still take a while before it's ready. Anyway, as a recap, Dianna is still with Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew, having been stuck with them since the early Chapter 2 when she and Lysera were captured by them in the lands of House Granit, after losing a skirmish against them. Dianna fought alongside the ironborn in the assault on Lemonwood, sticking by Bjorn all the way through it, even if she had several chances to run. She did this of course because of Lysera, trying to gain Bjorn's trust, so she can rescue both herself and Lysera when the opportunity would present itself. As for Nealia, we already saw her once in this chapter, her first beginning from the burial of the fallen members of the Rose Company, Illor being one of them. After this, Nealia found her way to a tavern in Lemonwood, where she chatted with a few members from the White Elephant's small crew, who told them they'd be accompanying the Rose Company on their journey to Godsgrace, where they are planning to find a new gig. During the night, Lien Yu got up from the table, and hinted at Nealia to follow after her, and that's what you voted for her to do.
-
This time I have portraits of the women of Yronwood for you - them being Queen Wenda Yronwood, and Princess Jaena Yronwood:
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the city. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for captaining Lady Vengeance. Many of you have sailed with me for long, and there would be no bad choice among you. Well, maybe Qhored Three-Finger would be a bad choice," Bjorn quipped with a smirk behind his bushy beard, and his crew gave him a small laugh.
"Roryn Drumm," Bjorn said sternly, and the young Drumm raider stepped forward. "You have proven yourself to be a worthy ironborn warrior, a furious fighter and a raider to be feared by the greenlanders. However, you are the heir to Old Wyk, and your destination is not to captain one of my ships. You have a much greater future waiting for you, and once you inherit your father's seat and ships, you shall be feared all across the fourteen seas."
Roryn nodded to Bjorn. "I understand," he said calmly, and returned to the crowd. Now Bjorn turned his eyes to his half-brother. "Hargan," he said with his booming voice, and Hargan Harlaw stepped forward. "Brother," Hargan said with a humble tone on his voice, and Bjorn nodded.
"Time and again you have proven your loyalty to me, half-brother," Bjorn said with a small sigh. "Lady Vengeance was meant to be the ship I would one day give for my eldest son to captain. However, Ulfric has chosen another path for his life, whilst you have proven yourself to be a man of the Old Way, a true ironborn raider. Hargan Harlaw, you shall be the captain of Lady Vengeance."
Hargan bowed for his half-brother, clearly emotional about this announcement. Bjorn approached him, and they engaged in a brotherly hug. Dianna could've almost felt proud for Hargan, had she not known these men were monsters that killed innocents in their precious raids, and that Hargan held Lysera as his concubine without her consent.
As Hargan separated from Bjorn, the other members of the crew applauded and approached to congratulate him, including Roryn and Hilsgurd Drumm. Looking at this, Dianna realized that Hargan becoming the captain of Lady Vengeance meant that Lysera would be separated from her to the other ship. Fucking great, she cursed in her mind.
As the congratulations were over, the crew settled once again around their captain. "What's our destination now?" One of them asked. Bjorn took in a deep breath before answering. "That's what I've been thinking the last few days," he said sternly. "We can't go to the Rock, and the Reach lords have strengthened their defenses recently. We are already by the Narrow Sea, but it's always dangerous to oppose the Storm King."
This is my chance, Dianna thought. She stepped forward, and spoke up. "I have an idea," she said loudly, and the whole crew shifted their attention to her. For a while they were all quiet, until one of them let out a little laugh. "Why would we listen to your ideas, greenlander bitch?" He asked mockingly, and few of the ironborn close to him let out a chuckle. However, Dianna looked straight to Bjorn, and continued.
"You could fight beside Nymeria," she said confidently, ignoring the muttering of some of the raiders. "She is in war with King Lucifer, and could surely use help on Brimstone. Just sail to Sandship first, and make an alliance with her."
Now Bjorn walked closer to Dianna, a twisted smirk on his face. "Aye, if there is a war, we could surely benefit," he said calmly, getting right in front of Dianna and looking her straight to the eyes. "However, we don't need an alliance or permission from your princess to raid Brimstone." Bjorn turned to his warriors now. "We shall sail to Brimstone, and raid every village we find!" He yelled, and his warriors responded with their war cries. What have I done? Dianna thought grimly.
-
The sun was setting, and Bjorn Harlaw's two ships had already sailed out of the bay, away from Lemonwood. Dianna sat silently at the rear of the Sea Reaper, Bjorn a few feet ahead of her. She was still a captive, that much was clear, but the ironborn captain already trusted her enough to let her carry her weapons. Of course, he knew as well as she did that there was no way for Dianna to fight her way out of this. Even if she somehow managed to kill Bjorn, his crew would make sure to make her suffer for it.
Dianna turned to look behind her, seeing Lady Vengeance sailing some three-hundred feet behind them. As Bjorn walked away towards the bow of the ship, Roryn Drumm approached Dianna. "Captain Dianna," he greeted her with a mocking tone, and she just shot him a glare. "Not in a chatty mood, aye?"
"And what kind of mood are you in?" Dianna shot back. "Now that Bjorn didn't make you the captain of Lady Vengeance." Roryn grinned at her words, but his eyes remained cold and threatening. "You have a thorny mouth, lady greenlander," he said quietly, moving slightly closer. His intention was clearly to intimidate, but Dianna kept her composure.
"I wonder why Bjorn doesn't just make you his salt wife already," Roryn continued as Dianna stayed silent. "If he doesn't like you, perhaps I'll do it."
"Leave her alone, brother," Hilsgurd Drumm said calmly, without even turning to look at them. He sat a few feet away from them, his hands on the oar, and Roryn turned to him now. "Do you think you can command me, little brother?" He growled, and Hilsgurd shook his head. "Just wanted to warn you. Bjorn wouldn't like if you harmed his prisoner," he answered nonchalantly, which made Roryn chuckle coldly. "I doubt he gives a fuck about her," he said, turning his eyes to Dianna again.
"I don't know brother, she gave us a great idea in raiding the Brimstone," Hilsgurd remarked with a relaxed tone, but Roryn shook his head. "She did it for her own reasons," he hissed. "She still thinks she can return to her own people, and to her precious princess." Roryn glared at Dianna, narrowing his eyes. "Tell me, Dianna, whom do you serve?" He asked with a quiet but threatening tone on his voice.
[Nymeria][Bjorn][Myself]
-
Nealia
She looked into Lien's tender mismatched eyes, her delicate face, and her full lips that formed a gentle smile. Lying next to her, Nealia could forget about yesterday and tomorrow, she could forget about her griefs and regrets, and just dwell on the moment.
Lien slid her hand on Nealia's arm, a playful smirk on her face. "I think I might like you, Nealia Sand," she whispered teasingly, and Nealia rolled her eyes. "What high praise, Lien Yu," she replied dryly, and Lien giggled sweetly.
"Do you think they are waiting for us?" Nealia asked, seeing the first light of the morning shining in from the window. Lien shrugged in a carefree manner. "Let them wait then," she said seductively, and climbed on top of Nealia, grabbing both of her hands. Lien lowered down to kiss Nealia. Guess they'll have to wait.
-
It was almost noon when the Rose Company rode out of the gates of Lemonwood, accompanied by the White Elephant's small crew. Their destination was Godsgrace, but the journey there would take several days. Luckily travelling by the Greenblood made it that much easier to bear the burning hot sun.
Nealia rode next to Manda Za and Sarina Tyrosos – the Bald Beauty from White Elephant's crew. Lien and Ying rode in front of them, and right behind them came Jacke and Edric Thorne – both of them coming originally from the Kingdom of Storm.
Sarina had a lot to say, leaving Nealia and Manda mostly in the role of listening. Right now she was explaining the rules regarding beards and hairs in the city of Norvos. Apparently only priests were allowed to have beards, but other men could still grow mustaches. All slaves and women had to be shaved bare, but many noblewomen wore wigs.
"Lots of rules about hair," Nealia commented with a raised eyebrow, and Sarina let out a hearty laughter. "It must seem so odd for you," she replied with a wide grin on her face. "Norvos is a beautiful city, and I have many fond memories there. But honestly, I'm glad to be out of there. There are just... too many rules there. And so little is expected of women there, and I want to be more."
"I understand how you feel," Manda commented with her strong voice, and Sarina nodded to her with a soft smile. "I'm very thankful to White Elephant, for taking me to fight beside him, and paying for it even," Sarina said, genuine gratitude in her voice.
"Does everyone just call him White Elephant?" Nealia asked curiously, and Sarina nodded. "He doesn't like to reveal his real name," she said with a small sigh. "I think Jinora is the only one from our group he has told it, and she refuses to reveal it to the rest of us."
"Must be an embarrassing name," Nealia said with a smirk, and Sarina giggled. "I don't really care, he is White Elephant to me, and that's fine," she said with a friendly tone.
They continued chatting about all the different cities and castles they had seen. Sarina and Manda had much more to tell than Nealia of course, since they had traveled around Essos, but Nealia had her moments describing Starfall, Kingsgrave and Yronwood. Before they knew it, the day had passed and the sun headed towards the horizon in the west. It was time to set up their camp on the dry green plains next to the river.
Nealia, Manda and Sarina found their place under one of the orange trees, along with Lien and Ying. "I'm glad we'll be fighting for the Rhoynar princess," Sarina said, taking a bite from one of the oranges. "What makes you so sure she'll be the one to hire us?" Manda asked quietly, and the bald Norvoshi girl shrugged. "From what I've heard, she has a strong army," she answered with a carefree tone.
"For what I've heard, many of her troops are women," Manda pointed out. Ying frowned for this. "And do you think that as a good or a bad thing?" She asked strictly, and Manda turned to look at her. "From all the women I've met over the years, very few have been warriors," she answered calmly. "And this Nymeria has a whole army of women warriors? I won't believe it until I see it."
"Manda is right," Nealia weighed in calmly. "We are the exceptions, not the norm."
"That is true, but you have to remember that thousands of Rhoynar men fell fighting against the Valyrians," Lien remarked. "The women were forced to survive without their husbands, fathers and brothers. In a situation like that, a warrior woman might well become the norm."
"I guess that makes sense," Manda admitted with a sigh. Sarina Tyrosos started talking about how in Norvos warrior women were shunned, looked down upon as freaks of nature. After listening to the young girl for a while, Nealia noticed Tryden approaching. He remained a dozen feet away from them, but gestured for Nealia to come to him. With a sigh Nealia stood up, and walked to him.
"Hi," she said dryly, and Tryden nodded as a response. "How are you feeling now?" He asked calmly, and Nealia shrugged. "Fine," she muttered, and Tryden narrowed his eyes.
"That's good to hear," he said after eyeing him for a moment. "I know what you're going through. I've lost many whom I considered good friends during my years as a sellsword. Eventually it got to the point I didn’t want to see my comrades as friends anymore, to make it easier to cope with when I saw them fall."
"I'm thankful for your concern, Tryden, but like I said I'm fine," Nealia said sternly, and a subtle smirk formed on the Reachman's face. "And what if one of them dies in the next battle?" He asked, pointing with his head towards the women under the orange tree. "Will you then be fine?"
Nealia hesitated a moment, glancing at Lien and Manda before turning her eyes to Tryden again. "I'll find a way to keep going," she said, but her voice wasn't as confident anymore.
"Most of us do this for a living, to get coin from what we're good at," Tryden spoke with a calm but serious tone on his voice. "Some of us enjoy it more than others, but nonetheless we need to do it to provide ourselves. But we all know that's not the case with you. You come from a royal family, you could have a much easier life in your father's castle. And I don't see you as someone who is doing this just to satisfy your bloodlust. Let me ask then, why?"
"It's none of your business," Nealia spat furiously, and Tryden raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps you're not sure about it yourself," he said calmly, and Nealia rolled her eyes. "I want to be more than a bastard princess who can't do anything useful for her family," she explained with a frustrated tone. "I don't want to just uselessly sit in Starfall, I want to see the world and meet new people."
"People you'll end up burying," Tryden said coldly, and Nealia turned her eyes down. "From what I've seen you're a great warrior, Nealia, and a fine woman who I'd gladly see fighting beside me for years to come. However, I want you to answer something honestly. What is more important to you, being a Dayne, or being a sellsword?"
Damn, two incredible parts with tricky choices... I really don't know what would be best in either part, so there's a good chance that I'll change my choices later on.
[Myself] Even though I feel like Dianna should show more spirit here and just say Nymeria outright, I think choosing "myself" is the best way to go. By saying this she'll avoid some suspicion and will even the able to show some spirit as well.
EDIT: [Dayne] Aaaand I've decided to change my choice here, at least for this one xD After reading Liquid's points I just had to make this change, it really made it hard for me to imagine Nealia having to fight against her own family and even though I like Tryden, I wouldn't want Nealia to become like him.
Dianna
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the c… moreity. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for … [view original content]
Dianna
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the c… moreity. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for … [view original content]
[Nymeria] Oddly enough in this case, I think Dianna would be better off being completely honest since I believe Roryn would see easily if she was lying to him.
[Dayne]
This one here is a very tough choice with cases easily being made for both sides but I have noticed in the past few parts that Nealia may not be truly enjoying the sellsword life anymore with her family being mentioned more and more. I believe Nealia has definitely proved her martial worth to her family I imagine and while this choice doesn't mean she is going home, I also believe it will make it more of an option for her in the future. Because with book 2 coming, I don't like the idea of Nealia fighting against her family.
On a side note though, I have a what if question from a long way back With this question, I am really curious about what would have happened if we would have chosen for Nealia to go to Starfall all the way back in the first part in the story? Admittedly, it is a long way back and I'm sure you didn't make big plans for it since it didn't come close to winning but it is still an intriguing thought since it was potentially possible for all three of Vorian's children to be in Starfall together at the same time!
Dianna
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the c… moreity. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for … [view original content]
On a side note though, I have a what if question from a long way back With this question, I am really curious about what would have happened if we would have chosen for Nealia to go to Starfall all the way back in the first part in the story? Admittedly, it is a long way back and I'm sure you didn't make big plans for it since it didn't come close to winning but it is still an intriguing thought since it was potentially possible for all three of Vorian's children to be in Starfall together at the same time!
Well, you're right in assuming I don't have any elaborate plans for that option, it being the very first choice in Nealia's story, IIRC That said, looking at it in retrospect, her story would've at first most likely been simply about getting to know her family again, after being gone for a few years. Then, her storyline could've possibly collided with Naemon's, or she could've gotten a mission of her own from Vorian. Anyway, it would've certainly been a much more Dayne-centric storyline, and by now Nealia would for sure identify herself as a Dayne, without any doubts about it.
[Nymeria] Oddly enough in this case, I think Dianna would be better off being completely honest since I believe Roryn would see easily if sh… moree was lying to him.
[Dayne]
This one here is a very tough choice with cases easily being made for both sides but I have noticed in the past few parts that Nealia may not be truly enjoying the sellsword life anymore with her family being mentioned more and more. I believe Nealia has definitely proved her martial worth to her family I imagine and while this choice doesn't mean she is going home, I also believe it will make it more of an option for her in the future. Because with book 2 coming, I don't like the idea of Nealia fighting against her family.
On a side note though, I have a what if question from a long way back With this question, I am really curious about what would have happened if we would have chosen for Nealia to go to Starfall all the way back in the first part in the story? Admit… [view original content]
Ah, I thought this much with Bjorn. I never thought he'd show an ounce of loyalty to Efran and through him, to Lucifer, so I really expected him to turn on both anytime soon. I must say though, I have hoped for an alliance with Nymeria, but upon closer inspection, it seems to me she doesn't really need allies like him. Loyal men like Varyn, or trustworthy sellswords such as Valor and his Fallen Dragons, or even at least men such as Forovos, who are loyal to their own goals, who happen to nicely align with Nym's for the time being, those are the ones she needs. Bjorn and his raiders are hardly loyal, barely controllable and come to think of it, by betraying Efran, the one thing I saw coming and hoped for a long while now, it actually just proved why they make for bad allies. It unfortunately severely lessened the chances of survival Bjorn has, which is a shame as I grew relatively fond of that bastard. It also made things a lot harder for Dianna and I start to fear for her live as well. As if I didn't have enough characters to be concerned for already
[Myself]
Now... I am really conflicted here, more than I am with the other choice, because I would love for her to say Nymeria just outright, into that asshole's stupid face. However, there will be consequences for that. Dianna has won Bjorn's trust, enough for him to let her speak and treat her somewhat decently. And I believe Bjorn would like to hear her honest opinion, he'd appreciate such loyalty. Roryn is no Bjorn though and I fear he could be angered by this, something that could threaten Dianna's chances of escaping, especially as they seem to grow quickly.
[Dayne]
This one was easier for me though, a lot easier. I like Nealia a lot, so I naturally don't want for her to remain a sellsword forever. How many in that profession get old? She has proven a lot over the years and while her time of proving stuff is likely not over yet, it has to be one day if she wishes a chance to leave that live before she becomes either like Illor, or like Tryden. While definitely preferrable over death, I start to think that Tryden's life is not a good one either, as he literally has nothing else but this profession. He is a sellsword, first, second and third and there seems to be no room for anything else in his life. Nealia should be more than that. On top of that, CM3434 brought up the best point here, I don't want Nealia to ever choose this sellsword life over her own family when the Rose Company inevitable fights against Dayne troops some day in the future. The other way 'round would already be harsh to read, but I don't want the long awaited Jamison-Nealia meeting to happen as enemies on the battlefield. That being said, now that I think about it, I fear she eventually has to fight against either her family or her friends. In that case, I'd still prefer her to be side by side with her siblings, though it will likely be a heartbreaking scene in general. Damn it, Nealia's Book 2 storyline holds so much potential to be the saddest of them all
Dianna
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the c… moreity. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for … [view original content]
Dianna
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the c… moreity. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for … [view original content]
Dianna
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the c… moreity. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for … [view original content]
Although it can diverge from what Nealia said earlier - she clearly told Trynden that she don't wanna be that "lady" sort of woman, but I think it's more than this. Saying that being a Dayne is more important to Nealia will definitely emphasize that she's still connected to her family, despite of her earlier decision of leaving Starfall. Of course - we could see over the last chapters of her that she has developed a lot of serious relationships in this sellsword "family" or "brotherhood" (more like the second one) etc. Illor, Trynden or Lien, I suppose she'd still value her family higher than that, even if she isn't a real, legitimate Dayne - I hope that we won't meet that sort of choice though.
Dianna
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the c… moreity. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for … [view original content]
[Nymeria] Saying Bjorn is not an option because I'm pretty sure Roryn will spot that lie. So it's either saying the truth or just lying to herself, which is arguably as bad for her as lying to Roryn in one way. She has came trough a lot with Nymeria and she is loyal to her, I don't want her to start doubting herself now. And also I just want her to spit that in Roryn's face, much better than pleasing him.
[Dayne] Oh god, this part struck me with the realisation that Rose company will probably fight Daynes at one point, and Nealia will have to choose a side. Even though that will be hard for both her and us reading that, I think this choice is actually one of the, well not easiest, but certanly clearest choices for me in the story. Family over recently made friends any time, and there is no reason to lie to Tryden about this.
Dianna
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the c… moreity. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for … [view original content]
Dianna
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the c… moreity. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for … [view original content]
Dianna
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the c… moreity. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for … [view original content]
Dianna will say that she serves Nymeria. Basically, she is staying fully honest with Roryn. While Roryn certainly wouldn't appreciate being lied to, he might not exactly be happy about the truth in this case.
And Nealia will say she is a Dayne, before a sellsword. This is mostly a character building choice, affecting Nealia's thoughts going forward, and possibly her relationship with the other members of the Rose Company.
The next part will be a Jamison PoV. He already had one part in this chapter, waking up after the battle for Vaith, a fresh scar on his face. We found out he had been healed by the mysterious old healer Wylie, and he had a little chat with Ser Laroy. Desirea also came to meet Jamison, asking him how exactly did he end up being controlled by Valerie. After this, Laroy suggested Jamison could go to Lord Kris' ceremony on the town square, to get some fresh air. Jamison decided to go. Later, in Kris' part we saw the ceremony, and in the end Kris saw Jamison among the crowd. He had a choice to either confront or avoid Jamison, and he decided to confront him. So, that is where we shall continue. The part will probably be ready tomorrow.
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And this time, a portrait of Sarina Tyrosos, the Bald Beauty:
Damn, this portrait is really great. I gotta admit that I was kinda skeptical about the whole "Bald Beauty" thing and thought she was just another Brienne, but the portrait revealed just how wrong I was
Voting is closed!
Dianna will say that she serves Nymeria. Basically, she is staying fully honest with Roryn. While Roryn certainly would… moren't appreciate being lied to, he might not exactly be happy about the truth in this case.
And Nealia will say she is a Dayne, before a sellsword. This is mostly a character building choice, affecting Nealia's thoughts going forward, and possibly her relationship with the other members of the Rose Company.
The next part will be a Jamison PoV. He already had one part in this chapter, waking up after the battle for Vaith, a fresh scar on his face. We found out he had been healed by the mysterious old healer Wylie, and he had a little chat with Ser Laroy. Desirea also came to meet Jamison, asking him how exactly did he end up being controlled by Valerie. After this, Laroy suggested Jamison could go to Lord Kris' ceremony on the town square, to get some fresh air. Jamison decided to go. Later, in Kris' p… [view original content]
The celebrated Lord of Vaith looked him straight into the eyes, and though the situation was awkward, Jamison didn't do him the favor of turning his eyes away. No, he would look the man who had wounded him to the eyes. Jamison expected Kris Vaith to turn away and walk out of the town square, but instead he did something that truly surprised Jamison – he approached him. With uncertain steps, and an almost apologetic look in his eyes, but he did it nonetheless.
"Prince Jamison," Kris greeted him nervously, and Jamison nodded tensely. "Lord Vaith," he replied quietly. For a moment they were both quiet, until Kris let out a sigh. "I'm sorry for what happened," he said with a sigh. "I did what I had to... you were being controlled by Valerie. I'm sure she did something horrible to get you there, and... I'm sorry."
"I understand completely," Jamison said coldly. "You're a warrior, and in that moment I was your enemy. You defeated me, no need for apologies."
"Well, it was mostly luck that I defeated you," Kris said with a nervous smirk on his face. "You were amazing with your sword... terrifying, but amazing. Perhaps the best fighter I have ever encountered. Oh, I'm sorry for breaking your sword as well."
"I'll get a new one," Jamison replied, giving the man a cold smirk. Awkwardly Lord Kris tapped Jamison on the shoulder. "I wish you good fortune in the wars to come," he said, before turning away. Looking at his distancing back, Jamison found himself having a bit more respect for Lord Kris. He had faced him like a man, instead of avoiding him like a coward.
"Looks like the ceremony is over," Ser Laroy said calmly, and Jamison nodded quietly. "I think I'll go for an ale," he muttered, and despite giving him a disapproving glare, Laroy followed Jamison to the nearest tavern.
-
Next morning Jamison stood on the walls of Vaith with Laroy and Aron, watching King Lucifer riding in with his army. Right beside the King rode Lord Gargalen, as well as a tall man in his late thirties, dressed in the colors of House Uller. The King approached his bastard daughter and the lord and lady of Vaith, who were waiting for him in the middle of the courtyard. The three kneeled for the King, but Jamison gaze traveled elsewhere. Looking towards the gate, he now saw Ser Rolan riding in with his nephew Lyreon and their small convoy of Dayne troops.
"Looks like we finally found Rolan," he said dryly, shifting Laroy's and Aron's gazes to Rolan as well. Rolan noticed them as well, and while King Lucifer spoke with his daughter on the courtyard, Ser Rolan walked up to the walls.
"My prince," the Nightfall knight greeted Jamison with a bow. "Ser Rolan," Jamison replied calmly, while Rolan and Lyreon eyed at his scar.
"Who gave you that scar?" Lyreon asked bluntly, and Rolan gave his nephew a disapproving glare. "It was Lord Kris Vaith," Jamison replied sternly, seeing a confused expression forming on both of the Nightfall's faces. "It's a complicated story," he added with frustration, and Rolan nodded.
"I understand, my prince," he said with a sigh. "I wish I could've been here to fight by your side, but Lord Jorvian told me he would march here with King Lucifer's army, so I decided to wait and march with them."
"Understandable," Laroy said calmly, and Jamison nodded as well. Rolan gulped, looking Jamison to the eyes. "There is something else," he said quietly. "I met your sister in Salt Shore when I first arrived there."
"Nealia?" Jamison asked, surprised tone on his voice. Rolan nodded. "She was travelling with a small sellsword company, hired by King Lucifer. She seemed to be in good health, but she was marching to a war in the east."
Jamison stayed quiet for a moment, unsure how to react. He hadn't seen Nealia in years, and now suddenly hearing about her again, it was strange. "I wish I had been there to see her myself," he said quietly, turning his eyes to Rolan again. "Did she have anything to say to me?" He asked, and Rolan nodded once again.
"She said... try to stay out of trouble, I believe were her words," Rolan said with a nervous chuckle, and a small grin formed on Jamison's face. "You're a tad late with that advice," he replied with a sigh, turning his eyes back to the courtyard. He saw the King handing some kind of letter to his bastard daughter, who once again knelt in front of him.
"Lucifer is legitimizing his daughter," Rolan informed them calmly, and Jamison raised an eyebrow. "He told you this?" He asked sharply.
"I heard him mention it to Lord Jorvian... so, you might be looking at the future Queen of Brimstone," Rolan spoke with a nonchalant tone on his voice. Jamison didn't know Dalia Sand well, but for him she came off more as a soldier than a ruler. Then again, it's not like Lucifer has much choice.
"See you at the feast," Rolan said with a small smile on his face, walking down from the walls with his nephew.
-
Lutes and flutes played cheerfully, wine flowed and the food was plentiful, but Jamison couldn't help but notice that the atmosphere on the great hall was tense. King Lucifer sat at the high table together with Lord Kris, Lady Myra and Dalia Sand, but the lower tables were separated to the men of Vaith, men of Salt Shore, and men of Brimstone. Jamison could only imagine how bitter sight it was for the people of Vaith to see a Dryland king above them.
"Finally, we're going home," Laroy said with a relaxed tone, taking a gulp of his wine. "We are," Ser Rolan confirmed. "However, before that we need to go to Hellgate Hall."
"Hellgate Hall? What in seven hells do we want from there?" Jamison asked with a frustrated tone, and Rolan nodded in a calming matter. "King Lucifer is to marry the young Lady Gwyneth Tiddle," he explained quietly. "For the sake of the alliance between Torrentine and Brimstone, I advise you to attend the wedding, my prince."
"Oh yes, I'd enjoy nothing more but to see the old bastard marry some girl less than half his age," Jamison muttered sarcastically, which was followed by a silence in his table. "How about Clearhaven?" He finally asked, looking at Ser Rolan again. "Did Lucifer tell you what's the situation with that?"
"Yes, my prince. Clearhaven has been handed over to the Dayne's, and the first ships from Starfall should've arrived by now, bringing with them supplies for the Dryland armies," Rolan explained, and a smirk formed on Jamison's face. "So, in other words I have already succeeded in what I came here for in the first place," he stated triumphantly, taking a sip of his wine.
"Clearhaven is ours, that is true, but that was not the only reason we came here for," Rolan pointed out. "Lucifer could take your absence from his wedding as an insult, and that is not a good way to start an alliance."
Jamison rolled his eyes in frustration. He could hardly even see Lucifer as an ally, even if not quite an enemy either – at least not right now. Jamison had no interest for pleasing the Dryland king by attending his wedding, he just wanted to go home, but at the same time he knew Vorian would want him to do everything he could to secure this alliance.
[Go to Lucifer's wedding][Head straight to Clearhaven]
Jamison has did more than enough as far as securing this alliance with Lucifer Dryland. He traveled halfway across Dorne to meet with him, traveled nearly to the other side of it to meet with the Allyrion's for him and because of all of this, he gained a scar on his face Of course Lucifer didn't make him go with Valerie to be brainwashed but he did indirectly have him end up in Vaith in the first place which led to that. As far as I see it, the supplies and gold that the Dayne's will be sending Lucifer along with what Jamison has done should definitely secure this alliance. As far as Lucifer potentially being offended goes, well he will have to deal with it He has more pressing matters to deal with such as the Martell army that is rapidly moving forward and will soon be on his doorstep. Lucifer seems like a reasonably smart man so while he may not like it, he needs this Dayne alliance so I don't think he will make a big deal about it. Jamison has succeeded in his task and Lucifer is in no position in bothering with Clearhaven especially since he needs the Dayne's more than they need him. Jamison has been through enough for someone he really couldn't care less about and he is ready to go home so I think he deserves to get that trip started. Also as far as the wedding goes, i think we will see it anyway through Dalia's PoV especially since she is now officially a Dryland and heiress to the Kingdom of Brimstone
On a side note though, I'm not sure why i never asked back then but the Lucifer mention makes me wonder what would have happened if we would have promised Dayne military aid for Lucifer all the way back then? I know this was a pretty long while ago but if you remember I am definitely curious to what would have happened
Jamison
The celebrated Lord of Vaith looked him straight into the eyes, and though the situation was awkward, Jamison didn't do him the f… moreavor of turning his eyes away. No, he would look the man who had wounded him to the eyes. Jamison expected Kris Vaith to turn away and walk out of the town square, but instead he did something that truly surprised Jamison – he approached him. With uncertain steps, and an almost apologetic look in his eyes, but he did it nonetheless.
"Prince Jamison," Kris greeted him nervously, and Jamison nodded tensely. "Lord Vaith," he replied quietly. For a moment they were both quiet, until Kris let out a sigh. "I'm sorry for what happened," he said with a sigh. "I did what I had to... you were being controlled by Valerie. I'm sure she did something horrible to get you there, and... I'm sorry."
"I understand completely," Jamison said coldly. "You're a warrior, and in that moment I was your enemy. You defeated m… [view original content]
[Head straight to Clearhaven] Yeah, Lucifer is in no position to feel insulted, he had already traveled all the way to Godsgrace and dealt with the Allyrion's (even if we now know it meant squat) and now is a good moment to return, mainly because Isabella is also moving to Starfall.
So Dalia is getting legitimized eh, wonder if we'll refer to her as Dalia Dryland in the future.
Jamison
The celebrated Lord of Vaith looked him straight into the eyes, and though the situation was awkward, Jamison didn't do him the f… moreavor of turning his eyes away. No, he would look the man who had wounded him to the eyes. Jamison expected Kris Vaith to turn away and walk out of the town square, but instead he did something that truly surprised Jamison – he approached him. With uncertain steps, and an almost apologetic look in his eyes, but he did it nonetheless.
"Prince Jamison," Kris greeted him nervously, and Jamison nodded tensely. "Lord Vaith," he replied quietly. For a moment they were both quiet, until Kris let out a sigh. "I'm sorry for what happened," he said with a sigh. "I did what I had to... you were being controlled by Valerie. I'm sure she did something horrible to get you there, and... I'm sorry."
"I understand completely," Jamison said coldly. "You're a warrior, and in that moment I was your enemy. You defeated m… [view original content]
It would look good if Jamison attends this wedding. Plus, it would probably make his father proud to see that Jamison is doing everything he can to make sure this alliance goes through. Plus, I really want to see how the wedding goes. Especially since Dalia might not even be there when it happens. If I remember correctly, she is going to go off with her daughter to find and defeat Valerie. She will eventually face Aisha as well. Therefore, we can't be sure that Dalia will even be attending this wedding.
Jamison
The celebrated Lord of Vaith looked him straight into the eyes, and though the situation was awkward, Jamison didn't do him the f… moreavor of turning his eyes away. No, he would look the man who had wounded him to the eyes. Jamison expected Kris Vaith to turn away and walk out of the town square, but instead he did something that truly surprised Jamison – he approached him. With uncertain steps, and an almost apologetic look in his eyes, but he did it nonetheless.
"Prince Jamison," Kris greeted him nervously, and Jamison nodded tensely. "Lord Vaith," he replied quietly. For a moment they were both quiet, until Kris let out a sigh. "I'm sorry for what happened," he said with a sigh. "I did what I had to... you were being controlled by Valerie. I'm sure she did something horrible to get you there, and... I'm sorry."
"I understand completely," Jamison said coldly. "You're a warrior, and in that moment I was your enemy. You defeated m… [view original content]
Jamison
The celebrated Lord of Vaith looked him straight into the eyes, and though the situation was awkward, Jamison didn't do him the f… moreavor of turning his eyes away. No, he would look the man who had wounded him to the eyes. Jamison expected Kris Vaith to turn away and walk out of the town square, but instead he did something that truly surprised Jamison – he approached him. With uncertain steps, and an almost apologetic look in his eyes, but he did it nonetheless.
"Prince Jamison," Kris greeted him nervously, and Jamison nodded tensely. "Lord Vaith," he replied quietly. For a moment they were both quiet, until Kris let out a sigh. "I'm sorry for what happened," he said with a sigh. "I did what I had to... you were being controlled by Valerie. I'm sure she did something horrible to get you there, and... I'm sorry."
"I understand completely," Jamison said coldly. "You're a warrior, and in that moment I was your enemy. You defeated m… [view original content]
Oh, this is a surprisingly hard choice for me to make. At first I thought, why should Jamison go there? He has done enough, should go home, enjoy the fact that he's in for a surprise wedding of his own once he returns and well, I cannot wait to see his reaction to that. Lucifer has no reason to be offended to that and if he is, so what? He's losing and every bit the Dayne's pump into him here will make it only harder for them later on. Supplies and gold will be wasted on him now that he is losing ground left and right. The only drawback would be that Vorian would likely be disappointed in his son not doing whatever necessary. However, this could be a serious drawback, because ultimately it is Vorian who decides on Garrison's proposal. He can just decide to discard it until Jamison is ready, or if he is truly disappointed, he could decide to offer Malcolm as a husband instead, which would undoubtedly be the worst outcome for Jamison.
Now, on the wedding side of the argument, we got the fact that it would strengthen the alliance. It could also make for an interesting read. Since I am campaigning hard for Dalia to accompany Desi instead of staying with her jerk of a father, I am not sure whom else could be our PoV there, though I got the feeling it might be Kris. What I expect right now is that either Dalia or Kris will stay behind, with the other one facing Wesley, though I could see there being different outcomes depending on whom we choose. Or maybe there will be a surprise and the wedding will be seen either way, maybe even through Dalia's PoV before she leaves to kill the witch bitch and her dog.
However, this is about Jamison and I am really uncertain which is the better choice for him. Heading straight to Clearhaven obviously means he'll learn of the betrothal a bit earlier. Staying at the wedding however, it might mean a more pleased and proud Vorian, who sees that Jamison is capable and responsible, as well as worthy of Isabella's hand in marriage. The few days he loses there ultimately seem like an acceptable price for his father's respect and the increased chances that his own marriage to Isabella actually happens, so I am going to go with [Go to Lucifer's wedding], albeit with a bit of uncertainty left and I start to think, maybe not voting at all would be the better choice.
I also see that old figurative bastard is going to legitimate his literal bastard and well, I do not like it. It could be an argument for her to stay by his side, which obviously would not be a good thing. Being near Lucifer when the Martell army arrives is not a good thing, so I am glad Jamison will leave, either before or after the wedding. I hope the same goes for Dalia, whom I am sort of willing to give a chance at winning me over by killing Wesley. And though it might be less likely, I hope Kris will go with her, as much as I disapprove of their relationship. Lucifer can either die or be sent to the wall, as long as he drags as few characters as possible down with him.
EDIT: Blasted phone and atrocious internet I have to settle with for this weekend prevent me from giving a longer explanation, but after thinking about it for a while and having a growing uneasiness about this wedding, I would kindly like to change my vote to [Head straight to Clearhaven]
Jamison
The celebrated Lord of Vaith looked him straight into the eyes, and though the situation was awkward, Jamison didn't do him the f… moreavor of turning his eyes away. No, he would look the man who had wounded him to the eyes. Jamison expected Kris Vaith to turn away and walk out of the town square, but instead he did something that truly surprised Jamison – he approached him. With uncertain steps, and an almost apologetic look in his eyes, but he did it nonetheless.
"Prince Jamison," Kris greeted him nervously, and Jamison nodded tensely. "Lord Vaith," he replied quietly. For a moment they were both quiet, until Kris let out a sigh. "I'm sorry for what happened," he said with a sigh. "I did what I had to... you were being controlled by Valerie. I'm sure she did something horrible to get you there, and... I'm sorry."
"I understand completely," Jamison said coldly. "You're a warrior, and in that moment I was your enemy. You defeated m… [view original content]
Comments
[Agree with Trentan]
So Yorick is going to intervene eh, I doubt he will lead the army personally, but it makes me wonder who is, after all his eldest son is merely 16 years old.
This could mean we'll be introduced to the Wyls of Wyl, the family of Queen Wenda Yronwood.
Even if the Yronwood forces drive away the Fowler-Blackmont army, I seriously doubt Albin will agree on any terms Yorick is offering, and it didn't seemed they went to siege Kingsgrave.
[Agree with Trentan] The Yronwood's are coming to Kingsgrave to potentially save the Manwoody's? This is very interesting! I look forward to seeing how this potential alliance has taken shape!
So it seems indeed. We'll have to see how much we can learn about the details of this alliance without actually having a PoV in the councils of either houses. Well, perhaps Albin will slip something to Kortney
Voting is closed!
A very clear voting once again, Gwendis will agree with Trentan, keeping up the positive spirits
Sure, Trentan might be a bit naive here, but it's probably better to stay hopeful and positive here, considering that the road ahead for them is sure to be hard, and being all defeated won't make it any easier.
Next we'll have Ortheg PoV, and it's done already!
As a reminder, last time Ortheg started training swordplay with his half-sister Tanya, and briefly met his half-brother Artos and his cousins Olyvar and Addam. After this, he went to meet King Yorick for the first time, which was also Yorick's first appearance in the story. Yorick recognized Ortheg as his late brother Andrey's bastard son, and thus welcomed him to the court and gave him an opportunity to prove himself. By the end of their meeting, Yorick asked what is the most important feature of a knight in service of the King, and you voted for Ortheg to answer "loyalty". We'll see what does Yorick think about this answer. We'll also see Ortheg start learning to read, and get some more of Yorick 
As said, the part is ready and will be posted right after this message.
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Oh, I also have an Ortheg portrait for you:
Ortheg
"Loyalty, Your Grace," Ortheg answered King Yorick's question with uncertainty in his words. "Loyalty is the most important feature of a knight in service of the King," he repeated, now with a more confident tone.
Yorick Yronwood clapped his hands together once. "Correct," he said smoothly, a smirk forming on his face. "You will train to be more skilled with the sword, and you will read to sharpen your mind. And whenever you will face my enemies, I expect you to be brave. However, none of that will matter if you are not loyal to me. I expect you to remember that, Ortheg Sand."
"I will, Your Grace," Ortheg assured with a deep bow. The King nodded with a subtle smirk still on his face. "You are dismissed," he said coldly, and quickly Ortheg turned towards the door and walked out, Maester Symon coming after him.
"You did well, Ortheg," the maester complimented calmly. "I was quite surprised actually. I half expected you to accidently insult the King with your words. After all, common folk are not taught the manners of court like they do with noble children."
"I know how to be respectful," Ortheg replied with a sigh, and a small smile formed on Symon's face. "Indeed, you do," he agreed quietly. "We'll meet next morning in my office. It's time for you to start learning how to read."
-
Ortheg's eyes ran quickly through the symbols on the page, symbols he couldn't understand. His eyes naturally turned to the picture above the symbols. It was a picture of a warrior, a knight, stepping out of his boat to a rocky beach. In the knight's white shield was a red seven-pointed star, and his sword was shining steel. This book had been written by Maester Ondrew for noble children almost fifty years ago, to tell a simplified version of the Andal invasion – or so Maester Symon had told Ortheg.
Symon tapped his wooden wand on the first letter under the picture, the one that was bigger than all the rest of the symbols on the page. "What letter is this?" The maester asked strictly, and Ortheg scratched his head. They had gone through all the letters a few times already, but it was hard to remember. "Is it... T?" Ortheg asked hesitantly, and Symon shook his head.
"It's M, like mountain," he said with a small sigh. "This reads, 'Morgan Martell lead the invasion to Dorne'." Orhteg nodded, interested to learn more. "Did the Yronwood's come with the Andals too?" He asked curiously, but Symon shook his head.
"No, the Yronwood's are descendants of the First Men, and have ruled these lands since the Age of Heroes. The first Yronwood kings claimed to be descendants of gods," the maester explained with a dry tone on his voice. "And... is that true?" Ortheg asked, fascinated by the possibility of having blood of the gods running through his veins.
"There is no way to disprove it," Symon answered with a sigh. "But most likely it's just a story, something the Yronwood kings of old used to justify their power over the people on their lands. After the Andals came, the Yronwood's eventually converted to their Faith of Seven. That is also the time when they started to write down their stories, which is why we know much more about the Yronwood kings after the Andal invasion."
"So, it wasn't the Seven whose blood the Yronwood kings claimed to have?" Orhteg asked, and Symon shook his head. "No, those kings hadn't even heard of the Seven when they made their claims," he said with a subtle smirk on his face. "Anyway, back to..."
The maester's words were cut off by a knock on his door. Taking in a deep breath, Symon stood up and walked to the door of his small chambers. As he opened it, Ortheg saw Tanya standing on the other side of it.
"Lady Tanya," Symon greeted her respectfully, and she responded with a nod. "I've come to fetch my brother," Tanya said nonchalantly, and Ortheg stood up from his chair.
"What for?" Maester Symon asked with a slightly irritated tone on his voice, and Tanya smiled. "King Yorick is about to hold a court session," she answered calmly. "I figured it would be good for Ortheg to see it." Symon turned to Ortheg, and let out a sigh after eyeing him for a moment. "I suppose you're right," he admitted. "It's good for the boy to see how the King's justice is served. Go then," he urged Ortheg, and he obeyed, walking out of the maester's chambers with a grin on his face.
"Did you learn anything?" Tanya asked after they closed the door, and Ortheg nodded. "A little," he answered, which made Tanya chuckle. "Maester Symon is a good teacher, he even managed to teach Olyvar to read, the bullheaded boy," she spoke with a warm and friendly tone as they walked down from the tower and into the courtyard. "And he knows more than any other man I've ever met. Ask him anything and he almost always has the answer."
"He taught me a little about the history of the Yronwood's," Ortheg said, and Tanya nodded. "And I'm sure he'll teach you more in the future," she said softly, as they arrived to the doors of the main keep and walked in, past the guards standing by it. The castle was more crowded today than it had been yesterday. People had arrived to give their pleads and requests for the King. Quietly Ortheg and Tanya walked into the large throne room, and took their place from the sidelines.
Looking around, Ortheg saw a young man about his age standing close to the throne. He had a short blonde hair, and was dressed in flamboyant dark silks, with a golden cloak over them. That must be Prince Trevyr, Ortheg thought, seeing the proud expression on the boy's face. Next to him stood a girl, a couple years older than him, dressed in an equally flamboyant gold-and-black silk dress, a silver tiara on top of her long golden hair. Princess Jaena, Ortheg deduced. He had heard stories of her beauty, but he had to admit that those stories didn't do justice for how beautiful the princess truly was. At the moment on her face was a calm and cold expression, as she eyed the people flooding into the hall.
On the other side of the throne stood a tall and lanky man, at least on his early forties. He had a short dark hair, under his long nose was a mustache, and under his mouth a goatee. He was dressed in a simple dark green vest, with a lighter green tunic under it. Ortheg had no idea who this man could be, but probably he was a close adviser of the King. "The man next to the throne is Quentyn Jordayne," Tanya told, apparently noticing that Ortheg was looking at him. "The younger brother of Lord Terren Jordayne of the Tor. Quentyn isn't much of a fighter, but he has other ways of serving the King."
After a few minutes of waiting, the King himself arrived to the hall, escorted by his guards, and with him Queen Wenda. All the chatter stopped immediately, and the people bowed deeply when the royal couple walked past them. Queen Wenda was a woman on her late forties, but she had still a certain mature beauty to her. She had a strong presence, and her long dark hair was majestic, as was her crimson dress and golden jewelry.
The King was dressed in dark blue silks, and on his head was a magnificent golden crown. As he sat down to his throne, Ortheg felt the same strong presence he had felt yesterday on the King's office. This was a man who was aware of the power he held, and wielded it unapologetically.
Soon the first man approached the King, kneeling in front of him. Quentyn Jordayne announced King Yorick with all his titles, and everyone listened in silence. As he was done, Yorick himself spoke up. "You can stand up," he said with a calm and emotionless tone, and the man obeyed. The man looked to be on his late thirties, a healthy-looking man with short dark hair and clothes that seemed too simple for nobleman but also too good for a farmer or a miner.
"Your Grace, my name is Podrick, and I have traveled here from the Tor," the man spoke with a humble tone on his words, and the King nodded. "Are there problems in the Tor?" Yorick asked calmly, glancing silently at Quentyn. Podrick gulped, considering his words for a moment. "I am an owner of a smithy, Your Grace. We are the biggest in the Tor, and arm the troops of House Jordayne. However, lately there has been a... shortage of materials. Less and less iron has been transported to the Tor in the last few months. These days we're hardly able to make half of what we used to."
"There is a reason for this shortage," King Yorick said calmly. "There was an accident in our biggest iron mine a few months ago, a cave-in that killed dozens of miners and blocked the way in," he explained with a cold and bored tone. "It will take a couple more months before said mine will be fully functional again. I assume you can wait a couple more months?" The King asked sternly, and Podrick was quick to bow for his words.
"Of course, Your Grace," he said obediently, and took his leave. Having worked in a mine himself, this kind of stories about cave-ins were terrifying for Ortheg. He imagined the King himself had never been in a mine, for being able to talk about something like that so lightly.
Next the King was approached by two men, who looked foreign. They were pale skinned, or slightly sunburnt in case of the older one. The younger of the two was clad in a leather armor, and carried an axe on his belt. He was a tall young man, and had a stern expression on his face, dark brown hair almost covering his eyes. The older man was much shorter, and had a much calmer expression on his face. They both bowed to King Yorick.
"And who might you be?" The King asked lazily, and the younger man spoke up. "I am Willem Pyke, bastard son of Lord Garvy Saltcliffe, and the man next to me is my guard, Salladhor Longwaters."
"Ironborn?" Yorick asked, his voice much more interested now. "Aye, I come from the Iron Islands, Your Grace," Willem answered calmly, and a smirk formed on Yorick's face. "And what in seven hells is an Ironborn doing in my halls?" He asked.
"Seeking for justice," Willem answered sternly, which made Yorick frown. "Justice for whom?" He asked now.
"For the man who raped and murdered my sister," Willem answered, which made the lords and ladies in the throne room gasp. "A man named Carsen, a sellsword with a burn under his left eye. I heard he served King Albin, so I traveled to Kingsgrave to find him. There I heard he has traveled here, to serve you, King Yorick." For a moment the hall fell completely silent, as the young Ironborn waited for the King's answer.
"I know the man," the King finally said, his tone more serious now. "He is not here, but he serves my vassal, Lord Barris Vass. The seat of House Vass is Watersmeet, it's located under a day's ride to north from here. However, do you have any proof for your accusations?"
"I have a witness right here," Willem said, gesturing towards the older man beside him. "Aye, I was there to see how Carsen escaped from the scene of his crimes, Your Grace," Salladhor Longwaters confirmed. King Yorick stroked his chin with a pondering look on his eyes.
"Fine then," he finally spoke up with a decisive tone on his words. "The last thing I want is a vengeful Ironborn running around my kingdom. I shall invite Lord Vass and this Carsen, so the matter can be settled here in Yronwood."
"Thank you, Your Grace," Willem Pyke spoke with a genuinely grateful tone, before walking away from the King with his companion. For a moment the throne room was filled with whispers, until a young woman approached the King. She looked to be heavily bruised, and her eyes were red from crying.
"I recognize you, Lady Genna Marcant," the King said calmly, as the bruised lady kneeled for him. "I was in your wedding a few years ago. What brings you to Yronwood?"
Lady Genna stood up, and looked at Yorick with a timid and scared gaze in her brown eyes. "It's my husband, Your Grace," she spoke, hardly able to keep her voice together. "He has been mistreating me, beating me and shaming me in front of his people."
"And may I ask why he has been doing this?" The King asked emotionlessly, and Ortheg saw the Marcant lady's hands shaking. "He claims I've been unfaithful, but it is not true, Your Grace. By the Seven I swear, I have never laid with another man!"
"Lord Myles Marcant has always been a loyal and honorable bannerman of mine, why should I trust your word over his?" Yorick asked sternly, and the woman fell on her knees again, now breaking to tears. "You must believe me, Your Grace!" She pleaded, and Ortheg saw Queen Wenda giving a meaningful glare at her husband. However, King Yorick ignored it, just as he ignored Lady Genna's tearful words.
"You will return to your husband in Stonegate, and make sure to be faithful for him from now on," Yorick commanded coldly. "I will send two of my guards to escort you home, and make sure your husband treats you fairly."
Still crying, Lady Genna stood up and walked away with weak steps. "I think I've seen enough for one day," Ortheg heard Tanya say next to him. "Would you like to go train with the sword?" She asked with a friendly tone. Ortheg glanced at her, then at the King, considering his choice carefully.
[Go with Tanya] [Stay in the throne room]
[Go with Tanya] If he truly wants to be a knight, he better take every chance he gets to train. Besides, I doubt King Yorick would have much use for Ortheg at the moment.
Ah, Willem is back, I see! I wonder, if Kortney would have went with him, would she actually be here as well now? Or would her attempt at escaping have failed? Anyways, glad to see him back though, his little vengeance stuff seems to be part of Ortheg's storyline in this chapter. And well, Yorick is a dick. That Marcant woman might just die now that he sent her away. At the same time, she should have known better than to go to Yorick for help. If anything, he reacted as I thought he would. A dick he is, but at the same time, a character I am intrigued by. It was also nice getting a glimpse at the rest of the family, I look forward to learn more about them in Ortheg's future parts as well.
[Stay in the throne room]
Well, I am really conflicted here. I agree with Javier, another opportunity to train and getting a better relationship with Tanya could be a good thing as well. One thing I am not sure about though is, how would Yorick react if Ortheg just leaves here? He demands loyalty and likely counts attendance to his court sessions as such. I'd rather stay until he ends this session, especially since Ortheg still has to prove himself in his eyes. Tanya can do that, since she likely has already proven her loyalty to Yorick, but I guess leaving now could give the king a bad impression. But well, I definitely see benefits on going with Tanya as well, so I am relatively neutral here.
Also, I saw that you have updated the main post with titles for every future chapter! This is an amazing surprise, so I will try to speculate on them a bit:
Well, undoubtedly this will be a Manwoody-heavy chapter. I wonder if it might even mean that the Manwoody stuff with Albin will be resolved there. I could see him becoming an uneasy bannerman of Yorick in this chapter, but maybe he tries to regain his crown in this chapter, only to lose Yorick's support when Nymeria marches on Kingsgrave. At the same time, it could also mean that Yorick is crowning himself High King of Dorne, the one who literally has no king above him, demanding the surrender of Albin and of the other rulers of Dorne. This leads directly to:
Not too surprisingly, I imagine this chapter to be Blackmont-heavy (if I remember correctly, it has even once been brought up by jorian as a possible Blackmont motto), which I am obviously not unhappy with. Maybe it means that Benedict will be disposed of in this chapter, with either Naemon or Gwendis taking over and assuring House Blackmont's peaceful surrender to Nymeria. Or, a bit darker, it means Yorick, the king above all, conquers them, forcing Benedict's loyalty to support his war against Nymeria. One thing I am intrigued by is that the birds here is a plural, indicating several. Maybe it means there will indeed be a chance for Gwen to be a bird of prey alongside Naemon and her father. Naturally, I am already hyped for that chapter
Yeah, this is another one I consider quite clear, it seems the Battle of the Boneway will be a major part of this chapter. I doubt it will be the only event happening, but no doubt the most important one. I guess this could be one of the most important and major battle sequences in the entire story, so naturally, this might be one of my favourite chapters to come
Here I wonder if you will do a timeskip after the battle, or if you will show the events of the rest of Nymeria's War over the entirety of the chapter, showing her attempts after the Boneway all the way to triumph in the final chapter. If there's a timeskip, I doubt it will be for long.
Hm... hmmmm, this might imply one of the kings is going to die in this chapter. Fingers crossed for Albin, but at the same time, the only one that I can see as not being banished to the Wall by then is Benedict as Yorick's vassal, if he is not defeated by Nymeria in Book 3. Or maybe I am wrong here and it's not a king dying. But I really wonder what it is. This is probably the chapter I have the least amount of speculation for, though I guess it will become more clear once the time has come.
Ah, I remember these words. I believe this is where you do a complete turn and it is revealed that the entire story is actually not about Nymeria's War, but about the founding of House Marbrand, whose words are, indeed, Burning Bright
Nah, I guess this means the Martell sun and Nymeria's final victory over Yorick Yronwood. As the final chapter, I guess it will show conclusions to every storyline still going on by then, so I kind of hope it will take a long time to get there, because afterwards, NW will be over and that will be a bittersweet occasion 
[Stay in the throne room] While I like Tanya and I want to know more about her relationship with her father, this could also be an opportunity to understand Yorick better, although he's clearly a dick in some ways.
Myles Marcant is the father or the brother of Myranda Marcant, the wife of Artos Jordayne?
He sounds like a piece of work, that we can certain about it.
This also makes me wonder who is leading the Yronwood army, probably a Wyl.
Well, we know Salladhor doesn't belong to house Longwaters of the Crownlands, since it was only officially established after the son of Jon Waters, bastard of Alyn Velaryon and Elaena Targaryen, achieved status and prominence.
[Stay in the throne room]
[Stay in the throne room]
The escape would have been succesful even if Kortney would've gone with Willem, though some Manwoody men would've been sent after them, causing some trouble for them on the way. However, they would've eventually made it to Yronwood. And yeah, for Yorick it is much more important to keep Lord Myles happy and loyal, rather than be nice to Lady Genna. It's rough, but at least he was kind enough to give a couple guards to escort the lady and see that Myles treats her fairly. It's unclear how willing are these two guards to actually intervene if Myles decides to beat his wife again, but Yorick trusts their mere presence is enough for Myles to be a bit more careful with his behavior. And yeah, the Yronwood's are a pretty big family, but I'll try to show them off as much as I can in Ortheg's parts
Manwoody-heavy indeed, this I can confirm. Albin has been in a tough place for some time now, and it seems the only way for him to survive is to rely on Yorick's help. Yorick though doesn't lend his help without getting something in return, and this goes completely against the words of House Manwoody, so any alliance between them is sure to be uneasy. That said, like you kind of speculated here, despite being the words of House Manwoody, this chapter title could refer to many other things as well.
Indeed, this is a nod to jorian's idea for the words of House Blackmont, and Blackmont's are sure to be a big focus on this chapter. At the same time, it's a title that could easily refer to many other things, but we'll have to see
Indeed, this one has a very clear meaning, which doesn't leave much room for interpretation. The Stone Way/Boneway will certainly be a big location in this chapter, with big things happening there. It is perhaps the chapter I'm personally looking forward to the most.
Well, the battle won't exactly be the last thing happening in Chapter 3 of Book 3. That said, while there will be a timeskip between every book, the one between 3 and 4 will most likely be a bit shorter than the other timeskips. Anyway, dealing with the consequences of that battle will certainly be a big theme in this chapter.
Well, A Crown of Blood could imply death of a king, that's true. However, it could also imply many other things. Such as, a crown achieved by bloodshed. A crown inherited by lineage (thus, by blood). You get what I mean
Ah shit, didn't remember this was actually a motto of some house
Well yeah, it refers to the Nymeros Martell sun, and it's also a nod to an Arianne Martell quote from the books: "Do you see the white [star], Quentyn? That is Nymeria's star, burning bright, and that milky band behind her, those are ten thousand ships. She burned as bright as any man, and so shall I."
Anyway, though some of these titles are pretty locked already ('Boneway' and 'Burning Bright' for sure), my plans might still change for these later books, and thus the titles can still possibly change as well
He is the father of Myranda. However, as you can probably guess, Lady Genna is not the mother of Myranda. Genna is the second wife of Lord Myles, who is actually the man responsible for the destruction of House Serviene, the family of Raina from Myke's storyline.
Yeah, since Gwen could see a lot of Wyl banners in the army marching towards Kingsgrave, we can safely assume it's a Wyl leading that army.
Yeah, Salladhor comes from a minor non-canon house from the Riverlands. Had I actually remembered that Longwaters is an actual canon house, I probably would've changed Salladhor's last name, but oh well.
[Go with Tanya]
[Go with Tanya]
I honestly don't think Yorick would care or notice if he left with her to train. Plus, training some more, is always a good thing.
[Stay in the throne room] This is a great way to show Ortheg's loyalty toward House Yronwood. I am sure Yorick would notice as well if he left especially after the talk they just had
[Stay in the throne room]
Voting is closed!
And Ortheg will stay in the throne room, showing his loyalty to King Yorick. Well, it's unclear how much would Yorick truly care if Ortheg left, or if he'd really even notice, but I suppose it's better play safe with this guy. And while Tanya would've preferred if Ortheg came with her, she is not going to hate him for it. They'll still have plenty of chances to develop their relationship as siblings, and perhaps one day talk about their father.
Next up, we'll have a double part with Nealia and Dianna PoV's. The Dianna part is already done, but I'll still have to work on the Nealia part. And since I will be spending several hours today driving back home from my parents, it will still take a while before it's ready. Anyway, as a recap, Dianna is still with Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew, having been stuck with them since the early Chapter 2 when she and Lysera were captured by them in the lands of House Granit, after losing a skirmish against them. Dianna fought alongside the ironborn in the assault on Lemonwood, sticking by Bjorn all the way through it, even if she had several chances to run. She did this of course because of Lysera, trying to gain Bjorn's trust, so she can rescue both herself and Lysera when the opportunity would present itself. As for Nealia, we already saw her once in this chapter, her first beginning from the burial of the fallen members of the Rose Company, Illor being one of them. After this, Nealia found her way to a tavern in Lemonwood, where she chatted with a few members from the White Elephant's small crew, who told them they'd be accompanying the Rose Company on their journey to Godsgrace, where they are planning to find a new gig. During the night, Lien Yu got up from the table, and hinted at Nealia to follow after her, and that's what you voted for her to do.
-
This time I have portraits of the women of Yronwood for you - them being Queen Wenda Yronwood, and Princess Jaena Yronwood:
Dianna
Bjorn Harlaw's ironborn crew was gathered at the harbor of Lemonwood, few of them having new salt wives they had stolen from the city. Dianna stood silently close to them. Of course she did, she had to, Bjorn had made that much clear. Lysera was there too, standing beside Hargan Harlaw with a sullen expression on her face. The ironborn had got their reward from the treasury of the Dalt's and were now turning their gaze to the future.
"As you all know, Arfast Stonetree fell in the battle," Bjorn spoke with his strong and booming voice, a hint of grief in his words. "He fought beside me for many years, and captained Lady Vengeance with firm and strong hands. He was a man I could always trust, a loyal man, and iron to the core." Bjorn stopped for a moment, and the ironborn mumbled their respecting words for Arfast, while the Harlaw captain eyed them all. "Few of you have approached me the past few days, indicating your interest for captaining Lady Vengeance. Many of you have sailed with me for long, and there would be no bad choice among you. Well, maybe Qhored Three-Finger would be a bad choice," Bjorn quipped with a smirk behind his bushy beard, and his crew gave him a small laugh.
"Roryn Drumm," Bjorn said sternly, and the young Drumm raider stepped forward. "You have proven yourself to be a worthy ironborn warrior, a furious fighter and a raider to be feared by the greenlanders. However, you are the heir to Old Wyk, and your destination is not to captain one of my ships. You have a much greater future waiting for you, and once you inherit your father's seat and ships, you shall be feared all across the fourteen seas."
Roryn nodded to Bjorn. "I understand," he said calmly, and returned to the crowd. Now Bjorn turned his eyes to his half-brother. "Hargan," he said with his booming voice, and Hargan Harlaw stepped forward. "Brother," Hargan said with a humble tone on his voice, and Bjorn nodded.
"Time and again you have proven your loyalty to me, half-brother," Bjorn said with a small sigh. "Lady Vengeance was meant to be the ship I would one day give for my eldest son to captain. However, Ulfric has chosen another path for his life, whilst you have proven yourself to be a man of the Old Way, a true ironborn raider. Hargan Harlaw, you shall be the captain of Lady Vengeance."
Hargan bowed for his half-brother, clearly emotional about this announcement. Bjorn approached him, and they engaged in a brotherly hug. Dianna could've almost felt proud for Hargan, had she not known these men were monsters that killed innocents in their precious raids, and that Hargan held Lysera as his concubine without her consent.
As Hargan separated from Bjorn, the other members of the crew applauded and approached to congratulate him, including Roryn and Hilsgurd Drumm. Looking at this, Dianna realized that Hargan becoming the captain of Lady Vengeance meant that Lysera would be separated from her to the other ship. Fucking great, she cursed in her mind.
As the congratulations were over, the crew settled once again around their captain. "What's our destination now?" One of them asked. Bjorn took in a deep breath before answering. "That's what I've been thinking the last few days," he said sternly. "We can't go to the Rock, and the Reach lords have strengthened their defenses recently. We are already by the Narrow Sea, but it's always dangerous to oppose the Storm King."
This is my chance, Dianna thought. She stepped forward, and spoke up. "I have an idea," she said loudly, and the whole crew shifted their attention to her. For a while they were all quiet, until one of them let out a little laugh. "Why would we listen to your ideas, greenlander bitch?" He asked mockingly, and few of the ironborn close to him let out a chuckle. However, Dianna looked straight to Bjorn, and continued.
"You could fight beside Nymeria," she said confidently, ignoring the muttering of some of the raiders. "She is in war with King Lucifer, and could surely use help on Brimstone. Just sail to Sandship first, and make an alliance with her."
Now Bjorn walked closer to Dianna, a twisted smirk on his face. "Aye, if there is a war, we could surely benefit," he said calmly, getting right in front of Dianna and looking her straight to the eyes. "However, we don't need an alliance or permission from your princess to raid Brimstone." Bjorn turned to his warriors now. "We shall sail to Brimstone, and raid every village we find!" He yelled, and his warriors responded with their war cries. What have I done? Dianna thought grimly.
-
The sun was setting, and Bjorn Harlaw's two ships had already sailed out of the bay, away from Lemonwood. Dianna sat silently at the rear of the Sea Reaper, Bjorn a few feet ahead of her. She was still a captive, that much was clear, but the ironborn captain already trusted her enough to let her carry her weapons. Of course, he knew as well as she did that there was no way for Dianna to fight her way out of this. Even if she somehow managed to kill Bjorn, his crew would make sure to make her suffer for it.
Dianna turned to look behind her, seeing Lady Vengeance sailing some three-hundred feet behind them. As Bjorn walked away towards the bow of the ship, Roryn Drumm approached Dianna. "Captain Dianna," he greeted her with a mocking tone, and she just shot him a glare. "Not in a chatty mood, aye?"
"And what kind of mood are you in?" Dianna shot back. "Now that Bjorn didn't make you the captain of Lady Vengeance." Roryn grinned at her words, but his eyes remained cold and threatening. "You have a thorny mouth, lady greenlander," he said quietly, moving slightly closer. His intention was clearly to intimidate, but Dianna kept her composure.
"I wonder why Bjorn doesn't just make you his salt wife already," Roryn continued as Dianna stayed silent. "If he doesn't like you, perhaps I'll do it."
"Leave her alone, brother," Hilsgurd Drumm said calmly, without even turning to look at them. He sat a few feet away from them, his hands on the oar, and Roryn turned to him now. "Do you think you can command me, little brother?" He growled, and Hilsgurd shook his head. "Just wanted to warn you. Bjorn wouldn't like if you harmed his prisoner," he answered nonchalantly, which made Roryn chuckle coldly. "I doubt he gives a fuck about her," he said, turning his eyes to Dianna again.
"I don't know brother, she gave us a great idea in raiding the Brimstone," Hilsgurd remarked with a relaxed tone, but Roryn shook his head. "She did it for her own reasons," he hissed. "She still thinks she can return to her own people, and to her precious princess." Roryn glared at Dianna, narrowing his eyes. "Tell me, Dianna, whom do you serve?" He asked with a quiet but threatening tone on his voice.
[Nymeria] [Bjorn] [Myself]
-
Nealia
She looked into Lien's tender mismatched eyes, her delicate face, and her full lips that formed a gentle smile. Lying next to her, Nealia could forget about yesterday and tomorrow, she could forget about her griefs and regrets, and just dwell on the moment.
Lien slid her hand on Nealia's arm, a playful smirk on her face. "I think I might like you, Nealia Sand," she whispered teasingly, and Nealia rolled her eyes. "What high praise, Lien Yu," she replied dryly, and Lien giggled sweetly.
"Do you think they are waiting for us?" Nealia asked, seeing the first light of the morning shining in from the window. Lien shrugged in a carefree manner. "Let them wait then," she said seductively, and climbed on top of Nealia, grabbing both of her hands. Lien lowered down to kiss Nealia. Guess they'll have to wait.
-
It was almost noon when the Rose Company rode out of the gates of Lemonwood, accompanied by the White Elephant's small crew. Their destination was Godsgrace, but the journey there would take several days. Luckily travelling by the Greenblood made it that much easier to bear the burning hot sun.
Nealia rode next to Manda Za and Sarina Tyrosos – the Bald Beauty from White Elephant's crew. Lien and Ying rode in front of them, and right behind them came Jacke and Edric Thorne – both of them coming originally from the Kingdom of Storm.
Sarina had a lot to say, leaving Nealia and Manda mostly in the role of listening. Right now she was explaining the rules regarding beards and hairs in the city of Norvos. Apparently only priests were allowed to have beards, but other men could still grow mustaches. All slaves and women had to be shaved bare, but many noblewomen wore wigs.
"Lots of rules about hair," Nealia commented with a raised eyebrow, and Sarina let out a hearty laughter. "It must seem so odd for you," she replied with a wide grin on her face. "Norvos is a beautiful city, and I have many fond memories there. But honestly, I'm glad to be out of there. There are just... too many rules there. And so little is expected of women there, and I want to be more."
"I understand how you feel," Manda commented with her strong voice, and Sarina nodded to her with a soft smile. "I'm very thankful to White Elephant, for taking me to fight beside him, and paying for it even," Sarina said, genuine gratitude in her voice.
"Does everyone just call him White Elephant?" Nealia asked curiously, and Sarina nodded. "He doesn't like to reveal his real name," she said with a small sigh. "I think Jinora is the only one from our group he has told it, and she refuses to reveal it to the rest of us."
"Must be an embarrassing name," Nealia said with a smirk, and Sarina giggled. "I don't really care, he is White Elephant to me, and that's fine," she said with a friendly tone.
They continued chatting about all the different cities and castles they had seen. Sarina and Manda had much more to tell than Nealia of course, since they had traveled around Essos, but Nealia had her moments describing Starfall, Kingsgrave and Yronwood. Before they knew it, the day had passed and the sun headed towards the horizon in the west. It was time to set up their camp on the dry green plains next to the river.
Nealia, Manda and Sarina found their place under one of the orange trees, along with Lien and Ying. "I'm glad we'll be fighting for the Rhoynar princess," Sarina said, taking a bite from one of the oranges. "What makes you so sure she'll be the one to hire us?" Manda asked quietly, and the bald Norvoshi girl shrugged. "From what I've heard, she has a strong army," she answered with a carefree tone.
"For what I've heard, many of her troops are women," Manda pointed out. Ying frowned for this. "And do you think that as a good or a bad thing?" She asked strictly, and Manda turned to look at her. "From all the women I've met over the years, very few have been warriors," she answered calmly. "And this Nymeria has a whole army of women warriors? I won't believe it until I see it."
"Manda is right," Nealia weighed in calmly. "We are the exceptions, not the norm."
"That is true, but you have to remember that thousands of Rhoynar men fell fighting against the Valyrians," Lien remarked. "The women were forced to survive without their husbands, fathers and brothers. In a situation like that, a warrior woman might well become the norm."
"I guess that makes sense," Manda admitted with a sigh. Sarina Tyrosos started talking about how in Norvos warrior women were shunned, looked down upon as freaks of nature. After listening to the young girl for a while, Nealia noticed Tryden approaching. He remained a dozen feet away from them, but gestured for Nealia to come to him. With a sigh Nealia stood up, and walked to him.
"Hi," she said dryly, and Tryden nodded as a response. "How are you feeling now?" He asked calmly, and Nealia shrugged. "Fine," she muttered, and Tryden narrowed his eyes.
"That's good to hear," he said after eyeing him for a moment. "I know what you're going through. I've lost many whom I considered good friends during my years as a sellsword. Eventually it got to the point I didn’t want to see my comrades as friends anymore, to make it easier to cope with when I saw them fall."
"I'm thankful for your concern, Tryden, but like I said I'm fine," Nealia said sternly, and a subtle smirk formed on the Reachman's face. "And what if one of them dies in the next battle?" He asked, pointing with his head towards the women under the orange tree. "Will you then be fine?"
Nealia hesitated a moment, glancing at Lien and Manda before turning her eyes to Tryden again. "I'll find a way to keep going," she said, but her voice wasn't as confident anymore.
"Most of us do this for a living, to get coin from what we're good at," Tryden spoke with a calm but serious tone on his voice. "Some of us enjoy it more than others, but nonetheless we need to do it to provide ourselves. But we all know that's not the case with you. You come from a royal family, you could have a much easier life in your father's castle. And I don't see you as someone who is doing this just to satisfy your bloodlust. Let me ask then, why?"
"It's none of your business," Nealia spat furiously, and Tryden raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps you're not sure about it yourself," he said calmly, and Nealia rolled her eyes. "I want to be more than a bastard princess who can't do anything useful for her family," she explained with a frustrated tone. "I don't want to just uselessly sit in Starfall, I want to see the world and meet new people."
"People you'll end up burying," Tryden said coldly, and Nealia turned her eyes down. "From what I've seen you're a great warrior, Nealia, and a fine woman who I'd gladly see fighting beside me for years to come. However, I want you to answer something honestly. What is more important to you, being a Dayne, or being a sellsword?"
[Dayne] [Sellsword]
Damn, two incredible parts with tricky choices... I really don't know what would be best in either part, so there's a good chance that I'll change my choices later on.
[Myself] Even though I feel like Dianna should show more spirit here and just say Nymeria outright, I think choosing "myself" is the best way to go. By saying this she'll avoid some suspicion and will even the able to show some spirit as well.
EDIT: [Dayne] Aaaand I've decided to change my choice here, at least for this one xD After reading Liquid's points I just had to make this change, it really made it hard for me to imagine Nealia having to fight against her own family and even though I like Tryden, I wouldn't want Nealia to become like him.
[Nymeria]
I don't think anyone would believe her if she said Bjorn
And if she said she was loyal to herself , it would rise some doubts , and people could think she hides her intentions
Saying outright nymeria might not please some of them , but it's the truth , and taht could even help them go with nymeria
Dayne]
[Nymeria] Oddly enough in this case, I think Dianna would be better off being completely honest since I believe Roryn would see easily if she was lying to him.
[Dayne]
This one here is a very tough choice with cases easily being made for both sides but I have noticed in the past few parts that Nealia may not be truly enjoying the sellsword life anymore with her family being mentioned more and more. I believe Nealia has definitely proved her martial worth to her family I imagine and while this choice doesn't mean she is going home, I also believe it will make it more of an option for her in the future. Because with book 2 coming, I don't like the idea of Nealia fighting against her family.
On a side note though, I have a what if question from a long way back
With this question, I am really curious about what would have happened if we would have chosen for Nealia to go to Starfall all the way back in the first part in the story? Admittedly, it is a long way back and I'm sure you didn't make big plans for it since it didn't come close to winning but it is still an intriguing thought since it was potentially possible for all three of Vorian's children to be in Starfall together at the same time!
Well, you're right in assuming I don't have any elaborate plans for that option, it being the very first choice in Nealia's story, IIRC
That said, looking at it in retrospect, her story would've at first most likely been simply about getting to know her family again, after being gone for a few years. Then, her storyline could've possibly collided with Naemon's, or she could've gotten a mission of her own from Vorian. Anyway, it would've certainly been a much more Dayne-centric storyline, and by now Nealia would for sure identify herself as a Dayne, without any doubts about it.
Ah, I thought this much with Bjorn. I never thought he'd show an ounce of loyalty to Efran and through him, to Lucifer, so I really expected him to turn on both anytime soon. I must say though, I have hoped for an alliance with Nymeria, but upon closer inspection, it seems to me she doesn't really need allies like him. Loyal men like Varyn, or trustworthy sellswords such as Valor and his Fallen Dragons, or even at least men such as Forovos, who are loyal to their own goals, who happen to nicely align with Nym's for the time being, those are the ones she needs. Bjorn and his raiders are hardly loyal, barely controllable and come to think of it, by betraying Efran, the one thing I saw coming and hoped for a long while now, it actually just proved why they make for bad allies. It unfortunately severely lessened the chances of survival Bjorn has, which is a shame as I grew relatively fond of that bastard. It also made things a lot harder for Dianna and I start to fear for her live as well. As if I didn't have enough characters to be concerned for already
[Myself]
Now... I am really conflicted here, more than I am with the other choice, because I would love for her to say Nymeria just outright, into that asshole's stupid face. However, there will be consequences for that. Dianna has won Bjorn's trust, enough for him to let her speak and treat her somewhat decently. And I believe Bjorn would like to hear her honest opinion, he'd appreciate such loyalty. Roryn is no Bjorn though and I fear he could be angered by this, something that could threaten Dianna's chances of escaping, especially as they seem to grow quickly.
[Dayne]
This one was easier for me though, a lot easier. I like Nealia a lot, so I naturally don't want for her to remain a sellsword forever. How many in that profession get old? She has proven a lot over the years and while her time of proving stuff is likely not over yet, it has to be one day if she wishes a chance to leave that live before she becomes either like Illor, or like Tryden. While definitely preferrable over death, I start to think that Tryden's life is not a good one either, as he literally has nothing else but this profession. He is a sellsword, first, second and third and there seems to be no room for anything else in his life. Nealia should be more than that. On top of that, CM3434 brought up the best point here, I don't want Nealia to ever choose this sellsword life over her own family when the Rose Company inevitable fights against Dayne troops some day in the future. The other way 'round would already be harsh to read, but I don't want the long awaited Jamison-Nealia meeting to happen as enemies on the battlefield. That being said, now that I think about it, I fear she eventually has to fight against either her family or her friends. In that case, I'd still prefer her to be side by side with her siblings, though it will likely be a heartbreaking scene in general. Damn it, Nealia's Book 2 storyline holds so much potential to be the saddest of them all
[Nymeria] While it would be easier to lie, Roryn is far from a fool, so its easier to demonstrate her loyalty.
[Sellsword]
[Myself]
[Sellsword]
[Myself]
Sounds badass af, I think that's enough.
[Dayne]
Although it can diverge from what Nealia said earlier - she clearly told Trynden that she don't wanna be that "lady" sort of woman, but I think it's more than this. Saying that being a Dayne is more important to Nealia will definitely emphasize that she's still connected to her family, despite of her earlier decision of leaving Starfall. Of course - we could see over the last chapters of her that she has developed a lot of serious relationships in this sellsword "family" or "brotherhood" (more like the second one) etc. Illor, Trynden or Lien, I suppose she'd still value her family higher than that, even if she isn't a real, legitimate Dayne - I hope that we won't meet that sort of choice though.
[Nymeria] Saying Bjorn is not an option because I'm pretty sure Roryn will spot that lie. So it's either saying the truth or just lying to herself, which is arguably as bad for her as lying to Roryn in one way. She has came trough a lot with Nymeria and she is loyal to her, I don't want her to start doubting herself now. And also I just want her to spit that in Roryn's face, much better than pleasing him.
[Dayne] Oh god, this part struck me with the realisation that Rose company will probably fight Daynes at one point, and Nealia will have to choose a side. Even though that will be hard for both her and us reading that, I think this choice is actually one of the, well not easiest, but certanly clearest choices for me in the story. Family over recently made friends any time, and there is no reason to lie to Tryden about this.
[Nymeria]
[Sellsword]
[Nymeria]
[Dayne]
[Nymeria]
[Sellsword]
Voting is closed!
Dianna will say that she serves Nymeria. Basically, she is staying fully honest with Roryn. While Roryn certainly wouldn't appreciate being lied to, he might not exactly be happy about the truth in this case.
And Nealia will say she is a Dayne, before a sellsword. This is mostly a character building choice, affecting Nealia's thoughts going forward, and possibly her relationship with the other members of the Rose Company.
The next part will be a Jamison PoV. He already had one part in this chapter, waking up after the battle for Vaith, a fresh scar on his face. We found out he had been healed by the mysterious old healer Wylie, and he had a little chat with Ser Laroy. Desirea also came to meet Jamison, asking him how exactly did he end up being controlled by Valerie. After this, Laroy suggested Jamison could go to Lord Kris' ceremony on the town square, to get some fresh air. Jamison decided to go. Later, in Kris' part we saw the ceremony, and in the end Kris saw Jamison among the crowd. He had a choice to either confront or avoid Jamison, and he decided to confront him. So, that is where we shall continue. The part will probably be ready tomorrow.
-
And this time, a portrait of Sarina Tyrosos, the Bald Beauty:
Damn, this portrait is really great. I gotta admit that I was kinda skeptical about the whole "Bald Beauty" thing and thought she was just another Brienne, but the portrait revealed just how wrong I was
hi im back
Jamison
The celebrated Lord of Vaith looked him straight into the eyes, and though the situation was awkward, Jamison didn't do him the favor of turning his eyes away. No, he would look the man who had wounded him to the eyes. Jamison expected Kris Vaith to turn away and walk out of the town square, but instead he did something that truly surprised Jamison – he approached him. With uncertain steps, and an almost apologetic look in his eyes, but he did it nonetheless.
"Prince Jamison," Kris greeted him nervously, and Jamison nodded tensely. "Lord Vaith," he replied quietly. For a moment they were both quiet, until Kris let out a sigh. "I'm sorry for what happened," he said with a sigh. "I did what I had to... you were being controlled by Valerie. I'm sure she did something horrible to get you there, and... I'm sorry."
"I understand completely," Jamison said coldly. "You're a warrior, and in that moment I was your enemy. You defeated me, no need for apologies."
"Well, it was mostly luck that I defeated you," Kris said with a nervous smirk on his face. "You were amazing with your sword... terrifying, but amazing. Perhaps the best fighter I have ever encountered. Oh, I'm sorry for breaking your sword as well."
"I'll get a new one," Jamison replied, giving the man a cold smirk. Awkwardly Lord Kris tapped Jamison on the shoulder. "I wish you good fortune in the wars to come," he said, before turning away. Looking at his distancing back, Jamison found himself having a bit more respect for Lord Kris. He had faced him like a man, instead of avoiding him like a coward.
"Looks like the ceremony is over," Ser Laroy said calmly, and Jamison nodded quietly. "I think I'll go for an ale," he muttered, and despite giving him a disapproving glare, Laroy followed Jamison to the nearest tavern.
-
Next morning Jamison stood on the walls of Vaith with Laroy and Aron, watching King Lucifer riding in with his army. Right beside the King rode Lord Gargalen, as well as a tall man in his late thirties, dressed in the colors of House Uller. The King approached his bastard daughter and the lord and lady of Vaith, who were waiting for him in the middle of the courtyard. The three kneeled for the King, but Jamison gaze traveled elsewhere. Looking towards the gate, he now saw Ser Rolan riding in with his nephew Lyreon and their small convoy of Dayne troops.
"Looks like we finally found Rolan," he said dryly, shifting Laroy's and Aron's gazes to Rolan as well. Rolan noticed them as well, and while King Lucifer spoke with his daughter on the courtyard, Ser Rolan walked up to the walls.
"My prince," the Nightfall knight greeted Jamison with a bow. "Ser Rolan," Jamison replied calmly, while Rolan and Lyreon eyed at his scar.
"Who gave you that scar?" Lyreon asked bluntly, and Rolan gave his nephew a disapproving glare. "It was Lord Kris Vaith," Jamison replied sternly, seeing a confused expression forming on both of the Nightfall's faces. "It's a complicated story," he added with frustration, and Rolan nodded.
"I understand, my prince," he said with a sigh. "I wish I could've been here to fight by your side, but Lord Jorvian told me he would march here with King Lucifer's army, so I decided to wait and march with them."
"Understandable," Laroy said calmly, and Jamison nodded as well. Rolan gulped, looking Jamison to the eyes. "There is something else," he said quietly. "I met your sister in Salt Shore when I first arrived there."
"Nealia?" Jamison asked, surprised tone on his voice. Rolan nodded. "She was travelling with a small sellsword company, hired by King Lucifer. She seemed to be in good health, but she was marching to a war in the east."
Jamison stayed quiet for a moment, unsure how to react. He hadn't seen Nealia in years, and now suddenly hearing about her again, it was strange. "I wish I had been there to see her myself," he said quietly, turning his eyes to Rolan again. "Did she have anything to say to me?" He asked, and Rolan nodded once again.
"She said... try to stay out of trouble, I believe were her words," Rolan said with a nervous chuckle, and a small grin formed on Jamison's face. "You're a tad late with that advice," he replied with a sigh, turning his eyes back to the courtyard. He saw the King handing some kind of letter to his bastard daughter, who once again knelt in front of him.
"Lucifer is legitimizing his daughter," Rolan informed them calmly, and Jamison raised an eyebrow. "He told you this?" He asked sharply.
"I heard him mention it to Lord Jorvian... so, you might be looking at the future Queen of Brimstone," Rolan spoke with a nonchalant tone on his voice. Jamison didn't know Dalia Sand well, but for him she came off more as a soldier than a ruler. Then again, it's not like Lucifer has much choice.
"See you at the feast," Rolan said with a small smile on his face, walking down from the walls with his nephew.
-
Lutes and flutes played cheerfully, wine flowed and the food was plentiful, but Jamison couldn't help but notice that the atmosphere on the great hall was tense. King Lucifer sat at the high table together with Lord Kris, Lady Myra and Dalia Sand, but the lower tables were separated to the men of Vaith, men of Salt Shore, and men of Brimstone. Jamison could only imagine how bitter sight it was for the people of Vaith to see a Dryland king above them.
"Finally, we're going home," Laroy said with a relaxed tone, taking a gulp of his wine. "We are," Ser Rolan confirmed. "However, before that we need to go to Hellgate Hall."
"Hellgate Hall? What in seven hells do we want from there?" Jamison asked with a frustrated tone, and Rolan nodded in a calming matter. "King Lucifer is to marry the young Lady Gwyneth Tiddle," he explained quietly. "For the sake of the alliance between Torrentine and Brimstone, I advise you to attend the wedding, my prince."
"Oh yes, I'd enjoy nothing more but to see the old bastard marry some girl less than half his age," Jamison muttered sarcastically, which was followed by a silence in his table. "How about Clearhaven?" He finally asked, looking at Ser Rolan again. "Did Lucifer tell you what's the situation with that?"
"Yes, my prince. Clearhaven has been handed over to the Dayne's, and the first ships from Starfall should've arrived by now, bringing with them supplies for the Dryland armies," Rolan explained, and a smirk formed on Jamison's face. "So, in other words I have already succeeded in what I came here for in the first place," he stated triumphantly, taking a sip of his wine.
"Clearhaven is ours, that is true, but that was not the only reason we came here for," Rolan pointed out. "Lucifer could take your absence from his wedding as an insult, and that is not a good way to start an alliance."
Jamison rolled his eyes in frustration. He could hardly even see Lucifer as an ally, even if not quite an enemy either – at least not right now. Jamison had no interest for pleasing the Dryland king by attending his wedding, he just wanted to go home, but at the same time he knew Vorian would want him to do everything he could to secure this alliance.
[Go to Lucifer's wedding] [Head straight to Clearhaven]
[Head straight to Clearhaven]
Jamison has did more than enough as far as securing this alliance with Lucifer Dryland. He traveled halfway across Dorne to meet with him, traveled nearly to the other side of it to meet with the Allyrion's for him and because of all of this, he gained a scar on his face
Of course Lucifer didn't make him go with Valerie to be brainwashed but he did indirectly have him end up in Vaith in the first place which led to that. As far as I see it, the supplies and gold that the Dayne's will be sending Lucifer along with what Jamison has done should definitely secure this alliance. As far as Lucifer potentially being offended goes, well he will have to deal with it 
He has more pressing matters to deal with such as the Martell army that is rapidly moving forward and will soon be on his doorstep. Lucifer seems like a reasonably smart man so while he may not like it, he needs this Dayne alliance so I don't think he will make a big deal about it. Jamison has succeeded in his task and Lucifer is in no position in bothering with Clearhaven especially since he needs the Dayne's more than they need him. Jamison has been through enough for someone he really couldn't care less about and he is ready to go home so I think he deserves to get that trip started. Also as far as the wedding goes, i think we will see it anyway through Dalia's PoV especially since she is now officially a Dryland and heiress to the Kingdom of Brimstone
On a side note though, I'm not sure why i never asked back then but the Lucifer mention makes me wonder what would have happened if we would have promised Dayne military aid for Lucifer all the way back then? I know this was a pretty long while ago but if you remember I am definitely curious to what would have happened
[Head straight to Clearhaven] Yeah, Lucifer is in no position to feel insulted, he had already traveled all the way to Godsgrace and dealt with the Allyrion's (even if we now know it meant squat) and now is a good moment to return, mainly because Isabella is also moving to Starfall.
So Dalia is getting legitimized eh, wonder if we'll refer to her as Dalia Dryland in the future.
[Go to Lucifer's wedding]
It would look good if Jamison attends this wedding. Plus, it would probably make his father proud to see that Jamison is doing everything he can to make sure this alliance goes through. Plus, I really want to see how the wedding goes. Especially since Dalia might not even be there when it happens. If I remember correctly, she is going to go off with her daughter to find and defeat Valerie. She will eventually face Aisha as well. Therefore, we can't be sure that Dalia will even be attending this wedding.
[Go to Lucifer's wedding]
[Go to Lucifer's wedding]
Oh, this is a surprisingly hard choice for me to make. At first I thought, why should Jamison go there? He has done enough, should go home, enjoy the fact that he's in for a surprise wedding of his own once he returns and well, I cannot wait to see his reaction to that. Lucifer has no reason to be offended to that and if he is, so what? He's losing and every bit the Dayne's pump into him here will make it only harder for them later on. Supplies and gold will be wasted on him now that he is losing ground left and right. The only drawback would be that Vorian would likely be disappointed in his son not doing whatever necessary. However, this could be a serious drawback, because ultimately it is Vorian who decides on Garrison's proposal. He can just decide to discard it until Jamison is ready, or if he is truly disappointed, he could decide to offer Malcolm as a husband instead, which would undoubtedly be the worst outcome for Jamison.
Now, on the wedding side of the argument, we got the fact that it would strengthen the alliance. It could also make for an interesting read. Since I am campaigning hard for Dalia to accompany Desi instead of staying with her jerk of a father, I am not sure whom else could be our PoV there, though I got the feeling it might be Kris. What I expect right now is that either Dalia or Kris will stay behind, with the other one facing Wesley, though I could see there being different outcomes depending on whom we choose. Or maybe there will be a surprise and the wedding will be seen either way, maybe even through Dalia's PoV before she leaves to kill the witch bitch and her dog.
However, this is about Jamison and I am really uncertain which is the better choice for him. Heading straight to Clearhaven obviously means he'll learn of the betrothal a bit earlier. Staying at the wedding however, it might mean a more pleased and proud Vorian, who sees that Jamison is capable and responsible, as well as worthy of Isabella's hand in marriage. The few days he loses there ultimately seem like an acceptable price for his father's respect and the increased chances that his own marriage to Isabella actually happens, so I am going to go with [Go to Lucifer's wedding], albeit with a bit of uncertainty left and I start to think, maybe not voting at all would be the better choice.
I also see that old figurative bastard is going to legitimate his literal bastard and well, I do not like it. It could be an argument for her to stay by his side, which obviously would not be a good thing. Being near Lucifer when the Martell army arrives is not a good thing, so I am glad Jamison will leave, either before or after the wedding. I hope the same goes for Dalia, whom I am sort of willing to give a chance at winning me over by killing Wesley. And though it might be less likely, I hope Kris will go with her, as much as I disapprove of their relationship. Lucifer can either die or be sent to the wall, as long as he drags as few characters as possible down with him.
EDIT: Blasted phone and atrocious internet I have to settle with for this weekend prevent me from giving a longer explanation, but after thinking about it for a while and having a growing uneasiness about this wedding, I would kindly like to change my vote to [Head straight to Clearhaven]