Chapter 5
King's Landing, 281 A.C., 9 days later…
The rest of the march went by without much happening. I met with Stannis and Ser Ealon a few times to finalize our proposal to the Small Council. The proposal was the creation of the Wayfinders Guild, a new guild controlled directly by the crown tasked with creating wayfinders for the new Royal Fleet. The guild would sell to everyone as a way for the Iron Throne to make money but the Royal Fleet would get priority over everyone else. The exception was the North, where House Seastark would get a monopoly on wayfinder sales on top of being the sole supplier of sticky-stone to the Iron Throne. The first grandmaster of the guild would be chosen by Robert (or more accurately, Jon Arryn) but I would choose his second-in-command, so I chose Dagwell.
Coincidently, Dagwell arrived yesterday after I sent him out to see if he could scrounge up any more sticky-stone. After five days of searching, he brought back enough for an additional six wayfinders, purchasing them from another woods witch. What are woods witches using magnets for? I have no clue and I'm pretty sure I don't want to know.
As we were leaving the Stormlands, I found out where some of the wyldfire was going when we encountered a small caravan guarded by House Buckler transporting several barrels of the stuff. We gave them a wide berth when we marched past them.
I learned later that night from Estermont that Robert was taking sole control of the wyldfire with the priority was getting the stuff out of King's Landing. Some of it was being sent to Storm's End and Summerhall to put pressure on Dorne. Normally ships would be the safest and fastest route but with the Targaryen loyalists still controlling the Narrow Sea islands and blockading the Crownlands with what remains of their navy, that's a no-go for the foreseeable future. When I suggested the Night's Watch would be a great place to send some, he thought about it for moment before agreeing to bring it up with his nephew.
When we arrived, King's Landing was a hive of activity as barrels were moved one at time either towards to docks to be ferried across the Blackwater or out one of the gates. The army was camped outside the city but the highborn rode to the Red Keep because, not surprisingly, it was the first place cleared of wyldfire. Prince Stannis and his uncle left for the Small Council chambers while I roamed the Red Keep until I found Wyman in the courtyard.
"Wyman! Thank the Old Gods you're alright!" I exclaim as I hug him. "I see you've been busy." I break the hug. "What happened after you found the wyldfire?" I ask.
"We marked the location and reported to Lord Arryn immediately, it was chaos after that. A city-wide search was ordered and the next day some Vale knights found a pyromancer named Beris who confessed to the plot and gave the details he knew." He said as we walked around the Red Keep. "The Kingslayer was imprisoned but the eunuch escaped. Tywin, of course, raised hell over it. I obviously wasn't there, I was moving wyldfire, but long-story short: The Kingslayer's on his way back to Casterly Rock!"
"What?! How?" I looked at my cousin in disbelief. He shrugged.
"They didn't want to put him on trial because he'd probably beat anyone in a trial by combat and Tywin saw his chance to get his son out of the Kingsguard, so a deal was made. The Mountain and Amory Lorch in the black cells and a big fat 'loan' to the crown for the Kingslayer, or should I say 'Ser Silence'." He replied.
I chuckle at the Jaime's new nickname. "That can't have been a popular decision."
"Oh, it's definitely not. There's already a lot of whispers that the Lannisters are getting off easy, this is only adding to that. But guess what?" Wyman stops and looks around. My eyes scan the surroundings to find we're alone. Satisfied that we won't be overheard, leans close and whispers with a smile. "I'm being rewarded for finding the wyldfire, the King's giving me a boon! It hasn't been announced yet but I asked for something our family has been seeking for centuries…"
My eyes widened as I whisper back "Wait. You asked for a…"
"City charter for Wolfsport!" he finished with a giddy look on his face and I hug him again.
"Ok. You're forgiven for the wayfinder fuck-up." I laugh as I break the hug. A city charter was a big deal. It meant that Wolfsport would become the sixth and newest city in Westeros and that the owners, House Seastark, would pay half taxes to both liege and crown and have the authority to set their own custom duties and mint their own currency among other benefits. When I told Wyman about the contract I set up with Stannis to be the sole supplier of sticky-stone to the capital, he somehow got even more giddy. We calmed down and continued our walk confident that House Seastark was going to get a massive boost to its income.
The Red Keep, a week later…
I stood proud next to Wyman after he had just received the city charter for Wolfsport to the astonishment of the courtiers in the throne room. I ignored the looks and whispers of confusion, wonder and envy as Dagwell stood with a wooden box containing the first three official wayfinders made by the Wayfinders guild.
With the crown throwing a good amount of coin and artisans my way, setting up the guild was pretty straightforward. I sent a raven to my mother, Brienne Seastark, updating her about the situation in the capital and the new contract with the crown. I ordered that the small quarry of sticky-stone that existed near the castle of Flatmire be expanded as soon as possible and to prepare ships from the Sunset Fleet for escort duty to Seaguard. I then commandeered a workshop and trained only Dagwell and the new Guildmaster, a merchant from Gulltown whose no doubt Jon Arryn's catspaw, on how to make the wayfinder and they'll train future workers.
"Your Grace, as Lord of Castle Warg and Wolfsport, I am most honored by your generosity and I would like to honor you with a gift. The first three wayfinders made by the new Wayfinders Guild for you and your brothers." I smile and gesture to Dagwell to give the box to the King. The King opened the box and took out the wayfinders and before long all three Baratheon brothers were looking at their new wayfinders impressed or in Renly's case, ecstatic.
The wayfinders in question were about the about the size of a fist, painted in the black and yellow Baratheon colors with the house sigil on top, though Robert's stag had a crown. They were made of wood with hinges in the back to flip open, where the holder would see a red needle that pointed North.
"Thank You Lord Seastark!" Renly beamed at me. Stannis gave me a firm nod and I could have sworn the corners of his mouth curled slightly upwards. Robert looked at his and laughed "Ha! Good to see that new guild is already producing results! Thank you, Lord Seastark for the wayfinders and thank you Lord Wyman for finding the wyldfire and alerting the realm of this dastardly plot by the Dragons!"
Wyman and I went to the sides of the room to spectate the rest of court. Not much happened until a messenger ran into the throne room.
"A raven from Sunspear, your grace, the Martells send word that Lords Eddard Stark, Howland Reed, and William Dustin were captured near the border making their way to Nightsong with a pregnant Lady Lyanna Stark. They were taken to Castle Wyl where she gave birth two days later to a boy. They are being transported to Sunspear as their 'guests'." The throne room exploded into chaos as lords and ladies whispered amongst themselves about the scandal of the most recent developments.
"TELL THE MARTELLS, IF THEY HURT A SINGLE HAIR ON NED OR LYANNA, I'LL USE ALL THE WYLDFIRE THE MAD KING MADE TO BURN SUNSPEAR TO ASHES!" Robert, red-faced, bellowed at the messenger before storming off screaming obscenities at the top of his lungs, mostly aimed at Rhaegar. Jon Arryn signed and awkwardly dismissed court for the day.
As I left the throne room with Wyman, I felt a sense of accomplishment in preventing the death of Lyanna Stark. That feeling evaporated when I looked at my cousin's confused and fearful face and I stiffened in realization. They didn't mention uncle's name!
A/N: Not gonna lie, deciding on Jaime's fate was hard and I'm not sure how realistic this is. Wanna hear your thoughts.
A/N 2: Tweaked the ending a bit. The more I think about it, the less sense it makes for Ned to drag his pregnant sister to Starfall instead of trying to get her to safety in the Stormlands