[Chapter Size: 3400 Words.]
Third Person POV.
King's Landing.
...
...
The council of the current occupant of the Iron Throne had gathered in the room after the events involving the dragon and the box with the severed heads, or at least it should have gathered, for Pycelle had been expelled from that place at that moment.
Only the oldest members of the Lannister family remained, including the king, all positioning themselves around the table, while a horrible and hesitant feeling took hold of the atmosphere.
Kevan had red eyes. He had cried for his sister. He could not deny that he loved her, and seeing her with her head severed alongside her children was an image that shook him deeply.
Not even he could endure it, breaking down right there, while also thinking of his wife and his little daughter. His family was now reduced to Dorna, his little girl, and Lancel, and the latter was the only one in the capital with Kevan himself.
Tywin was silent, looking thoughtful. He did not even seem to have the strength to punish Tyrion for his audacity in answering him in front of everyone like that, and now the dwarf should be somewhere drinking at this very moment, drowning his sorrows, when he should be there with his family to debate how to get out of that situation and try to find a solution.
They had lost the alliance with the Tyrells, they had lost the West, they had lost Casterly Rock.
They were isolated and alone. The city was hungry, and the reserves the Tyrells had sent at the beginning of the alliance were running out quickly. They would no longer be able to distribute food to everyone. Soon riots would begin throughout the city. They would soon be held accountable by their enemies or even by the population itself.
Jaime was silent. He was not at all pleased with this; he was saddened by his aunt's situation. He might not have been the most loving nephew, but she was his relative.
In a few years, his streak of bad luck had begun with the death of Jon Arryn; he had lost his sword hand and now saw his family being destroyed little by little. His sister had become a cruel and cold woman. When he saw her upon arriving in the capital, after the Tyrells had fled, she clung to him like a bolt of hope and, at the first opportunity, took him to bed.
Jaime was excited; he could not deny that he loved his sister, but as they moved on to sex, he found only her cold and dry body. His gaze returned, curious, to his sister, who stared back at him, frustrated. He decided to help, placing his tongue between his sister's legs, but she made no moan, no sound. She did not even seem to be enjoying it, and as he looked at her, he realized she had only an empty stare.
He even penetrated her after he had moistened her with his tongue, but saw that she merely looked at him with frustration, feeling no pleasure at all. He stopped, and she began to cry.
So she told him what had happened. She told him that Daemon Targaryen had placed some kind of spell on her, a witchcraft that neither he nor anyone else could undo. Before leaving the capital when he caused the chaos back then, he had taken away all the pleasure she could feel in her body. She felt nothing anymore.
Jaime understood, then, what his sister had become because of that. She was cruel, frustrated, and even mad. She was growing more and more insane over time; he could even see the empty look, as if she had lost the joy of living... Even their father was having difficulty dealing with her, wanting to send her away, but Cersei was quite persistent in not letting that happen. After all, Jaime thought that she was only still alive because she still seemed to want to care for her children.
The news from the North about Daemon's conquest over the Ironborn, about the Boltons even making Roose Bolton flee upon learning that his castle, the Dreadfort, had been destroyed, after receiving the reports, already made it clear what would come next.
He brought the wildlings, made the Starks, the North, and even Stannis Baratheon himself kneel before him.
All the adult Freys of the male line had been killed; although the Twins would have had no chance against an army of 150 thousand, knowing that Daemon himself and only twenty people had conquered the Twins alone was something truly terrifying, which only proved that he was unbeatable with his powers.
He had already caused the greatest chaos in the capital in Jaime's absence, while Jaime himself was entering the Riverlands at that moment.
The news of Pyke and Riverrun also arrived later, two more conquests. And then, the lords of Riverrun knelt, and the fall of the Golden Tooth came.
Yesterday, they were receiving reports about the destruction of House Westerling, which had also played its part in the Red Wedding.
However, today... came the deaths of their relatives who were in Casterly Rock, which meant the fall of even the Westerlands. No one was stopping them.
The news took a week to arrive; the ravens from Casterly Rock had not even arrived and it had already been conquered. Possibly ravens in desperation from his aunt asking for help, or cursing everyone.
Jaime could not help but look at Cersei beside him at the table; she still kept the same frustrated face full of anger, just as during all the meetings they held.
When she began to shout and express her irrational thoughts, she no longer thought clearly at times, and their father often expelled her from the meetings so they could continue. Jaime could feel that she was suffering, suffering as he had never seen her before.
So unhappy, so mad.
He felt anger toward Rhaegar's son. He had abused his sister in the worst possible way.
He still remembered when he saw him at the feast of Winterfell, during one of the last banquets. He was there, laughing and speaking loudly like a bandit at a banquet. Some people were bothered by the noise coming from the table he was at, but all it took was a look and a brief exchange of words, and people fled from there, afraid of him.
He proved to be an excellent singer, with his father's talent. Jaime should have seen that in him back then. He fled from the king... The king ordered him to be searched for, not knowing that in the future, the king would be mutilated by that same man.
The next day, he appeared in the courtyard, openly mocked the prince, challenged him, and hurt him. He challenged the Kingsguard, anyone. Some thought it was madness, a bard, albeit a muscular one, wanting to fight the Kingsguard to the death. Jaime grew angry and wanted to kill him; he suggested it to the king, but the king merely mocked him and sent an ordinary knight.
Daemon, Jon Snow, or Dovahkiin, whatever name he had at that time, accepted the fight and did not fight as everyone imagined, no... He threw his sword like a spear or an arrow, struck the man's chest with a perfect shot, and killed him by piercing his armor and heart.
It was staggering. It was not an honorable fight, but it was efficient for that man. Jaime always wondered, if he had fought... Would he have come out alive?
The answer was clear. No one could deal with him. No sword had ever been a challenge, whether with magic or not. Daemon Targaryen was unstoppable, and Jaime Lannister would have been killed if he had fought.
'Draw your sword. Come on, show me that you are one of the greatest knights of the Seven Kingdoms. Because the moment you remove that weapon, you will have only a few seconds to try to react. Trust me, Jaime, you will be dead within the next two seconds.'
Jaime still remembered Daemon's words to him when he tried to avenge the men of the Lannister guard that the man himself was killing.
He feared nothing and no one. At that time, no one understood where his confidence came from.
'I know very well why you killed the Mad King.'
'Your honor or an entire city to burn. I do not blame you for your decision.'
Jaime had frozen at the time.
'However, not everything is flowers, Ser Jaime. You sat on the Iron Throne while you let children die.'
'You stood still and did nothing while Elia, Aegon, and Rhaenys were slaughtered with atrocities. You failed miserably as a Kingsguard and allowed your father's men to commit injustices against children and a mother. What kind of knight are you? Even more so, a royal knight? To me, you should not even be called that. But that does not matter now.'
'Your punishment will come, Ser Jaime Lannister. When I march from the South and turn all my enemies to ashes while I burn the Seven Kingdoms, I will destroy all those who caused the fall of House Targaryen more than sixteen years ago. I will punish all with death, and according to their crimes, they will suffer beforehand, whether they were involved directly or indirectly. So, the next time you cross paths with me, Ser Jaime, you had better be prepared, because I will have no mercy for you.'
Jaime still remembered every single word Daemon had spoken to him the last time he saw him... They were not empty words, and now Jaime understood what each of them meant.
That made him look for similarities with his father, Rhaegar... Jaime believed in the prince and knew he would have been a great king, different from his father, Aerys. That was how he and the Kingsguard had hoped back then.
But even so, Jaime could not stop feeling anger toward Rhaegar's last son. He was practically murdering his entire family now in pursuit of his vengeance, even people who had nothing to do with the conflict.
That was not a battle for honor. Honor had already been destroyed. His father had managed to do that, and Jaime was not hypocritical enough to say that this was not a response to his father's decisions...
From the moment the game changed and turned against them, he also began to feel a certain anger toward his own father. Tywin had started all of this; he just did not have the courage to be as frank as Tyrion, who had spoken openly to him.
The last member at that table was the king... Joffrey sat at the head, the crown upon his head. He seemed thoughtful, but also anxious, as he looked with disgust at his own grandfather. Jaime already knew that this meeting would end very badly.
"So are we just going to stand here while we are destroyed?", was how the disaster began. Joffrey wasted no time and continued. "What is your great solution to stop that damned bastard? Why haven't you killed him yet?!"
Joffrey hated Daemon, hated him for having hurt him during that sparring at Winterfell, hated him for the chaos he caused in the capital, hated that he had come through the Wall and invaded Westeros with a giant army, hated that he had more power than he did, and that the realms were bowing one by one to Daemon Targaryen.
Tywin stared at him with anger. Kevan still seemed lost. The queen mother seemed to agree with her son, while Jaime pressed his lips together.
Jaime wanted to curse that pit of arrogance that did not understand even a little of what was happening there.
He was acting like a spoiled child, simply shouting to kill the enemy, as if this could be solved with nothing more than a command.
Kevan ignored the king and turned back to his brother. "We have a problem, Tywin. They will find out what happened here. Our men are already restless since the Westerlands were invaded. They no longer even know why they are fighting...", Kevan spoke cautiously.
The situation was horrible. It was not enough that they no longer had allies; the confidence of their own men and their morale were collapsing. There was no longer a reasonable reason to fight while their lands were being devastated and all they were doing was holding King's Landing, with a massive army marching toward them. None of them loved Joffrey; quite the opposite. The vile personality of the boy had been openly discussed ever since the Tyrells left the capital and turned their backs on them.
Joffrey constantly challenged Tywin himself, to the point that many questioned why he still allowed his grandson to live when he was doing more harm than good, playing a pathetic role as king.
"They must not know, so kill everyone who saw the box," Joffrey said simply, making Kevan choke and even Jaime stare at him in shock. Was that his solution? Kill the witnesses? Half the castle had seen it.
"And if they want a reason to fight, then they should fight for their king," he continued, triumphant. Once again, Jaime felt the urge to strike his own son.
"I do not think it is possible to hide this fact anymore, Your Grace," Kevan said, clenching his teeth. The anger he felt toward his grandnephew was obvious.
"No. They have to obey me," Joffrey continued to insist.
"Things are not that simple, boy. Do not speak if you do not know what you are saying," Tywin's voice cut through Kevan, who was about to retort to the king. Everyone looked on, alert.
Tywin had spoken for the first time in the meeting.
Joffrey stared at him, stunned for a moment, before narrowing his eyes in anger. "You dare speak to me like that, grandfather? Remember, I am the king, not a boy!" he said, placing a finger on the table and leaning toward his grandfather, who now had a dangerous gleam in his eyes as he stared at Joffrey himself.
"We are fighting a war, and we are losing. What do you understand about war?" Tywin replied. His patience had reached its end at that moment.
"And you understand it? Mother always said you were unbeatable... But where are your victories? We are losing the war when we could be winning. You cannot even save your own house. The Lannister who lost Casterly Rock," Joffrey mocked.
Even his mother, who was cold and almost always agreed with her son, could not help but widen her eyes upon hearing that. The atmosphere of the meeting grew cold, as if Daemon Targaryen's own white dragon were there, unleashing its freezing flames.
"Joffrey..." his mother tried to intervene.
"Do not say anything, woman. I have the entire realm divided, and it is because of your father's actions. He has proven to be nothing more than a man with an empty reputation," Joffrey mocked.
Jaime was about to say something, but the king continued sharpening those words the way the Mad King liked to mock Tywin, while his voice also sounded frustrated. He had chosen someone to attack to relieve his frustrations, but Jaime and everyone knew he had chosen the wrong person.
Joffrey had been celebrating his grandfather's victories just a few days ago... now he simply said that all his actions had been wrong. Jaime could not say anything, because Tywin was already walking toward Joffrey, who did not even notice, too busy shouting at his mother.
When he finally looked, his grandfather was already on top of him. He barely had time to react when Tywin grabbed his head and slammed it against the table, smashing his nose directly into it. Joffrey staggered backward, stunned, feeling searing pain as blood streamed down his face.
"Joffrey!" his mother tried to intervene immediately, grabbing her father, but Tywin simply drove an elbow into his own daughter, making her fall backward with a groan of pain.
"Do not interfere, Cersei. I am already tired of you and your useless son. You failed to raise him and turned him into someone who is good for nothing. I may have made many mistakes, but we should have had a king who united the realms. Instead, he made everyone flee because we have a king as cruel as the Mad King." He said before turning back to Joffrey with the same cold tone.
"Did you know that the Tyrells were planning to kill you because they thought you were too cruel to rule and for the Tyrell girl?" Tywin began, not caring about his daughter lying on the floor.
He stared at the young man trying to recover, with his nose broken and bleeding, looking at his grandfather with hatred and fear.
"The plan was perfect. You would die at the wedding, and Tommen would take the crown in your place, someone I would teach how to rule. You would be removed from the way. But it seems the Tyrells gave up in the end," Tywin continued, before knocking Joffrey to the ground.
Before he could react, Tywin was already on top of him, delivering a punch straight to his face.
"Do you understand anything about ruling? I may be cruel and make harsh decisions for the sake of the family, but you are useless. You should be dead. And if we want any chance of survival in this war, I will have to get rid of you," he said, while punching his own grandson, blood gushing.
Cersei ran to try to stop him, but was restrained by Kevan, who looked at Jaime.
"Do not interfere," was Kevan's warning.
Jaime stood there, stunned, watching his father beat his own grandson to the brink of death, while Cersei begged him to stop, consumed by hatred and despair. It did not stop Tywin.
Jaime remained frozen, wondering how things had reached that point. He wished Tyrion were there. Perhaps Tyrion would even appreciate the chaos his family had become, but he would calm things down.
In the end, Tywin did not kill him, but Joffrey was nothing more than an unrecognizable mass of blood, groaning on the floor, unable even to move. The old man stood up, took a cloth from the table, and began to clean his blood-covered hands and face, then looked at his daughter.
"I will not kill him. But understand one thing: he is going to the Night's Watch. If they want to kill him there, it is not my problem. But from today onward, Joffrey is no longer king. Unless you want all of us to die, because whoever is coming here will not care and will kill your two sons. Tommen will have the same fate as Joffrey. At least we can have some chance by reversing the situation, placing a worthy king, rebuilding our scorpions, and using the wildfire that still remains in the city," Tywin declared.
Cersei only cried and sobbed, being released by Kevan. She moved closer to her son, touching the blood-covered face as he struggled to breathe.
"And you, Jaime, well... you are leaving. You are going to Essos," Tywin continued, making even Cersei look at her father in surprise.
"What do you mean?!" Jaime said, startled, unable to believe what his father was suggesting.
"What does that mean?" she said, in shock.
"You are the last of my line," Tywin simply ignored everyone else. "I want you to at least live. You will receive money and stay in Essos until we manage to deal with that bastard. If we fail and all die, at least our family will continue with you," he concluded, having already decided.
"No. I will not do that," Jaime put his foot down. "I would never leave you behind."
"You will do it one way or another," was all Tywin said, beginning to leave. "Kevan, come with me."
Kevan followed him, speaking to the guards outside, while they simply seized Joffrey by force and took him to the black cells.
From that moment on, Joffrey was no longer king.
Cersei looked desperate. Jaime was still lost, trying to understand how things had fallen so far for his family.
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