WILOW-Ch.319: Lyra Learns the Latest News
Dreadfort, Bolton Lands
POV of Lyra the Spymistress
"The King is dead," Chataya said, and Lyra stopped combing her hair to look at Chataya incredulously. Then her eyes narrowed.
When her lord had told them some time ago that he had seen a dragon dream and that the King would soon die, she had frankly found it hard to believe.
Most likely, many others who heard this news felt the same way. Not that she didn't believe her lord, but even though her lord constantly surprised her with unexpected things, seeing the future was something he had never done before.
Nevertheless, she and everyone else had accepted the tasks her lord had assigned them and begun preparations for the aftermath of the King's death.
And now Chataya was telling her that her lord's dream had come true.
"How." She asked.
"Grand Maester declared that King Robert died from a heart attack." Chataya said, "But I'm sure that it was a poison from the Queen."
"Do you have proof?" she asked.
Chataya nodded, "No proof, but my spies heard her planning the death of King Robert with her brother. She has every reason to kill the King. I'm sure it was her."
"What else?" she asked.
"Lord Renly was seen leaving from the Dragon Gate with 200 horse riders an hour after King Robert's death. Lady Catelyn was also seen in his company." Chataya said.
"What of Sansa Stark and the Stark guards?"
"They tried to escape with the ships through the port, but someone had already informed the Gold Cloaks about this. The Stark guards and all their servants are dead, and Sansa Stark is back in Red Keep. And…"
"Continue."
"And I heard that Sansa Stark was almost raped. If the Commander of City Watch hadn't arrived in time with his Gold Cloaks, Sansa Stark most likely wouldn't have lost her maidenhood. But this information isn't coming directly from my own spies. It's what my girls overheard from conversations among the Gold Cloaks themselves."
"I see. How unfortunate for her." She drawled, "Any news on when Lord Stannis will depart from Dragonstone with his fleet? And did Prince Joffrey become the King?"
She knew that Sansa wasn't the real Sansa Stark, but Chataya didn't know that, and a little acting wouldn't hurt.
"No news about Lord Stannis' departure. His ships are still returning from up North." Chataya said. "And yes, Prince Joffrey Baratheon was crowned the King of the Seven Kingdoms a few hours after the death of King Robert Baratheon."
"Westeros really has a habit of choosing fucked up kings, doesn't it?" She said, and Chataya nodded, then she said. "There's one more thing."
"Speak."
"Do you remember the report I gave about Lady Catelyn Stark spending a night in Lord Baelish's office in his brothel?" Chataya asked.
"Yes. You didn't have definite proof about whether anything actually happened between them. You only have some people who heard the sound of intercourse. Did you obtain any new information?" she asked.
"Yes. That night, Lord Baelish ordered everyone to stay away from his office. My spies only got close enough to hear the voices. But we're still not sure if the voice really belonged to Lady Catelyn Stark, or if Lord Baelish used someone else to frame Lady Stark." Chataya said.
"You've said this before. Get to the point. What new information have you acquired?" she asked.
Usually, a little gossip wouldn't hurt, but now she had information she urgently needed to relay to her lord. She couldn't waste time gossiping.
"My spies have learned that on the morning after Lady Catelyn Stark spent the night at the brothel, Lord Baelish obtained Moon Tea through one of his girls," Chataya said.
"Moon Tea? That raises the possibility of something having happened between him and Lady Catelyn Stark. But I'm sure someone like Lord Baelish would have a stash of Moon Tea. Obtaining it from outside sources like this could be a tactic to tarnish Lady Catelyn's name," she said while analyzing the information.
"That was my initial thought. But then my spies learned that what Lord Baelish supplied was Fake Moon Tea. That tea has a very short shelf life and needs to be served fresh to really fool someone. This means…"
Before Chataya could finish her sentence, Lyra interrupted and completed it for her.
"…Lady Catelyn Stark might currently be carrying Lord Baelish's bastard child."
"Yes," Chataya confirmed it.
"Very well then. Keep your ears open and tell me if anything important happens." She said.
"I will, milady."
With that, Lyra cut the connection and tried to call her lord.
As expected, it didn't work. Magic was not able to cross the Wall.
But her lord already knew about this and had prepared contingencies in case something went wrong.
She went to her drawer and took out a steel ball with the word 'Wall' on it.
Then she wore some of her warmest clothes and held the steel ball tightly.
"Take me to the Wall." She said.
The portkey activated and did its task. A moment later, she was standing on top of the Wall and looking at the vast expanse of icy land in front of her.
The air went through her clothes and left her shivering in the cold.
She huddled down in a corner and then called her lord. A few seconds later, he picked up the call.
She could see that he was wearing his full-body armor and tracking through the cold forest with his small unit.
"Lyra." He said and halted to talk with her; the men walking behind him also stopped. "This better be important."
"It is my lord." She said and then took a deep breath, "The King is dead."
Her lord remained silent for a good while and then said, "So it finally happened. Let me guess. It was the Queen."
"We don't have concrete proof, but we're pretty sure it was her." She said.
"What about the Starks in King's Landing?"
"Lady Stark was seen leaving through the Dragon Gate with Lord Renly. Whether she did so of her own volition or was forced to do so is not known." She said, "Ser Rodrik Cassel and the other Stark guards tried to get to the port but were ambushed by the Gold Cloaks. Everyone except Sansa was killed. She is now a prisoner of Queen Cersei. And she was most likely almost raped, but the Gold Cloak Commander of the City Watch rescued her from the other Gold Cloaks at the last moment."
He nodded and stayed silent for a long moment. "We'll not get any support from Prince Joffrey. He's not a reasonable boy and a coward on top of that. We need someone else on the throne. Preferably someone with experience in military matters, but Stannis is really not someone with the makings of a King. He would break before he could bend. And to top it all off, it has almost no allies. Renly, however, has no military experience and is completely inexperienced in both ruling and commanding a war."
"Are you thinking of taking the Iron Throne for yourself, my lord? You informed us in advance that the King would die and assigned us various tasks for preparations, but you never told us what your real plan was," she asked, barely able to hide the eagerness in her voice.
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Next Chapters' Name:
Ch.320: Domeric's Ambition
Ch.321: Calling for the Banners
Ch.322: Sending Men to the Campaign