The Golden Company' Main Camp. 292 AC.
Ser Axel Arryn. Lieutenant of the Golden Company.
"Has the old man run out of ideas?" I said, looking over at my cousins with sothing close to pity.
My father had tried many thods to bring back. First he had attempted to bribe the Golden Company, only to be refused, as Strickland had inford . After that ca dozens of letters, threats, blackmail, bribes, and proposals of every kind. I answered the first ten. The rest I used to start fires. Then ca the influential "envoys." Honestly, I could not understand what made my father think that would work, since I had never had any interest in the opinions of strangers. The so called important ambassadors tried everything at their disposal. They brought out their eloquence, appealed to my emotional attachnts, invoked duty, honor, and a dozen other sentints. None of it took hold. And now new envoys stood before .
Andar and Robar Royce, sons of Lord Yohn Royce, my uncle, which made them my cousins. I had t Andar and grown genuinely close to him during the Greyjoy Rebellion, while Robar I had only glimpsed on a couple of occasions. What was known of Robar was that he was a capable swordsman, eager to bring glory to his House through feats of arms. At eleven he had tried to march off to war alongside Uncle Yohn and Andar. A spirited boy.
"And hello to you too!" Andar tactfully ignored my question and seized in a bear's embrace. "We haven't seen each other since the Rebellion! Co on then, tell everything. What's been happening here?" He was not much of a negotiator.
"Andar, stop. It doesn't suit you." My cousin imdiately dropped the effort and let the forced smile fall away.
"Fair enough. Right, honestly, I was sent to bring you back." He stated the obvious. "Axel, please. Co back to Westeros with us."
"No."
"Please?" Was he asking or asking himself?
"No."
"Well, I tried." He sat down and drained his cup of wine in one go as I laughed.
"HAHA, that was the fastest negotiation I've ever been party to." I admitted it freely. "And you made the whole journey for this farce?"
"The main reason was to see you and Waymar, and besides, when your liege lord asks sothing of you, you cannot refuse without consequences." That was to be expected. "Speaking of which, where is our little brother?"
"He's sleeping off a night of negotiations." Had I known business was such a miserable headache, I would never have started. But now there was nothing for it except to see it through.
"Oh... And how are you holding up?" It was pleasant when soone actually asked after your health.
"Fine. Not the first ti." A slight increase in the flow of magic through the body and you got a charge of energy, though sleep was still preferable.
"Almost forgot." He produced a letter bearing the Arryn seal and handed it to . "Lord Arryn ordered to deliver this and wait for your reply."
"The old man's droning can wait." I set the letter aside and filled three cups with wine. "Right now I need to hear about your adventures in detail."
"If that's Arbor Gold, then certainly..." Robar spoke for the first ti, which drew laughter from both and Andar.
...
We talked for at least two hours. We traded old stories, shared what we had seen, and spoke of our plans for the future. Robar was intensely interested in everything to do with war. He asked about customs, traditions, battles, contracts. With every word I spoke his eyes grew brighter, and by the end he wanted to stay at my side. I did not refuse him.
Andar had gotten himself betrothed to Joanna Templeton, daughter of Ser Symond Templeton. Though their house held no lordship and were rely landed knights, they were one of the wealthiest and most powerful families in the Vale. A fine match for my cousin, and he was clearly delighted with the girl himself.
After a while Waymar arrived and relieved poor tired Aegon at his post. The brothers embraced, asked after each other's health, compared their adventures and experiences. While they caught up on the long months apart, I turned to my father's letter.
It opened pleasantly enough. A brother had been born to . Robert Arryn. I was genuinely surprised, since my father was no Walder Frey and had never distinguished himself by his activities in the bedchamber. It seed my flight had stirred the old man to rember that the dried-up fish was still there.
"He harbors hope that I will co to my senses, return to Westeros, and beco what I am ant to be... blah, blah, blah... A position will be found for suited to my skills and knowledge... Commander of the City Watch... not bad. The question of my marriage will be discussed with carefully, and my opinion will be taken into account... Passing down the experience of governance... Yes, I know how that goes... So... A lord is one who always knows he gives the orders and never doubts himself, but if he cannot submit to orders himself, he will never beco a good lord..."
For the first few seconds I failed to grasp the aning behind what seed like an empty platitude. No. I refused to accept it for what it was. My father was threatening ? He could be Hand three tis over and a Lord Paramount twice as many, but HE HAD NO RIGHT TO HOLD MY BIRTHRIGHT OVER MY HEAD AS BLACKMAIL. HAD THE OLD MAN LOST HIS MIND ENTIRELY? Did he think he could control with a spare heir from his stale fish? Never. He could do whatever he pleased with my brother, but I would not bend.
Having made my decision, I sat down and wrote my reply with a fury that drew curious looks from the Royce brothers. If he wanted to play with fire, he was welco to try. I did not mince my words. I said everything plainly and without a shred of ambiguity. To Andar's silent question, I told him the truth. About the Lannisters, the trial by combat, the political landscape of King's Landing, my father's betrayal, the reason I had fled to Essos, and the threat of disinheritance. In return I received his assurance that House Royce would always stand behind .
After that ca the usual farewells, and the following day Andar sailed back to Westeros and his future wife, carrying gifts from for their coming wedding. Robar stayed, and was appointed my bodyguard, though he soon rose to command a unit of ten on the strength of his undeniable talent for leading soldiers.
...
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