Game of Alchemy 8 (Patreon)

I have to say, despite my expectations, Stannis managed to surprise me. The Battle of the Blackwater, as it would come to be known in my original world, didn’t happen at night. Apparently when a large scale, medieval army attacks, they don’t like attacking at night, who’da thunk it?

But instead, Stannis had his men attack during the day. The sun was beating down on both armies as they desperately fought for the walls of King’s Landing. I had mixed feelings about the order I was given the morning before Stannis’s forces were spotted approaching King’s Landing. On the one hand, being ordered to stay with Prince Tommen prevented me from giving my gauntlets a chance to really flex. On the other hand, I liked my blood remaining inside my body, where it belonged. I spent the next few hours reading over the various treatises on siege tactics, trying to glean any information I could. The problem was, the majority of the ones I found were written by people who had never fought in one, so their opinions were suspect at best.

The most I could hope for was that, Tyrion's plans and the trick with the wildfire worked as they did in the original works. The biggest concern was that the wildfire might not be as effective as it was in the book and show, but that was something I would have to deal with if it came to pass.

I looked up as I heard the sound of a knock at my door, and as I opened it, I saw Tommen. He shyly smiled and asked, “Can I come in?”

“Of course, Prince Tommen. What is it that you need?” I asked as I stepped aside, letting him into the room.

“It's nothing serious. I just wanted to talk to you,” he explained.

I closed the door behind him, and we both sat down on the couch, “What do you wish to talk about?”

He seemed to hesitate, and I decided to press him a little, “Prince Tommen, you and I both know why you are here. Do you wish to discuss it?”

“I know that Stannis will likely be coming for King's Landing, and I know that I am to be kept safe from him,” he said. “I am sorry, but when Mother told me to stay with you... you have stated that you are not a warrior, why would staying with you be so vital?”

I smiled at him, not offended by his question in the slightest. Leaning over my desk, I blew out one of the candles. Making sure that he was paying attention, I held up the flint equipped gauntlet and snapped my fingers. A stream of fire flowed from the spark generated and lit the candle I'd just blown out, Tommen's eyes wide in shock and surprise.

“I am a scholar not a warrior, that is true,” I said in response to his question. “But with sufficient preparation to ensure I have the tools I need, that becomes irrelevant. In a few years, provided you keep to our lessons, you will have the potential to develop a means of utilizing Alchemy that can devastate armies.”

“If you can do that, why…” he trailed off as I held up a hand.

“Why am I here and not helping with the battle?” I asked rhetorically, standing up and walking to the balcony. The view of the battle wasn’t particularly good from this perch, but it was enough that I could see a flank of Stannis’s army if I leaned out over. “Three key reasons: the first is that when I offered my assistance I was told to, and I quote, ‘stay out of the way and let the warriors fight.’ The second reason is that I haven’t actually used these gauntlets for the sort of large scale fires and I am nervous about it growing out of my ability to control.”

“Why? You are one of the smartest men I know,” Tommen said, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“Thank you, however intelligent I may be, I am still humble enough to readily admit when I do not know something. There are a number of factors that can influence a transmutation like this, and it becomes more difficult to account for all factors when the size and scale of a transmutation increases. The more complex something is, the more chances for something to go wrong.

“But as for the third reason,” I said, shifting back to the original subject. “I was given a specific order, My Prince. One that sees me remain here. If it seems that your uncle’s armies will come close to reaching the Red Keep, then I will step in. But until then, I will not be interfering.”

Tommen nodded slowly, seeming to understand my explanation. He was a bright boy, and one of the few who actually listened to my lessons with genuine interest.

“I see,” he said. “But what if the battle turns against us? What if we start losing?”

“That is a possibility, yes,” I said, turning back to face him. “But it is also a possibility that we will win. Your uncle Tyrion is one of the smartest men in Westeros, his trick with the wildfire also dealt a devastating blow to Stannis's forces and strategy. The effect that will have on the morale of both sides cannot be ignored. We have other advantages as well.”

“Such as?” Tommen asked, his eyes lighting up with curiosity.

I smiled, “Such as the fact that capturing a city is always harder than defending it. More than that, like I stated earlier, should they come close to the Red Keep, I will step in.”

He nodded, and with a smile, I put a hand on his shoulder and guided him back inside. I grabbed a few slates, some parchment, and other lesson materials, and led him to a different balcony. Specifically, one that afforded the best view of the streets that led to the Red Keep. If my hopes about the course of the battle turned out wrong, then I wanted to be in a location so that I could see it well in advance.

[hr][/hr]

The battle raged on, and I continued Tommen's lesson from where we'd last left off. Was it a dick move in general, possibly. However, it was needed for me to be in a spot where I could see whether or not I needed to act, and the lesson would help keep Tommen focused on something other than the battle.

As we continued with the lesson, the sounds of war grew louder and more chaotic. Screams of men and horses alike filled the air, and the faint smell of smoke and blood hung heavily over the city. But Tommen remained focused, his eyes glued to the slate in front of him as he solved equations and practiced his penmanship. Then, as the sun began to set, I saw something on the horizon that made me smile. Turning to Tommen, I pointed it out to him.

“Look, Your Grace. See those banners over there?” I asked, causing the young prince to squint before his eyes widened in happiness.

“Grandfather’s banners!” he cried out, pointing to them himself.

“Indeed,” I said. “They will most likely end this battle quickly. Stannis’s forces have been throwing themselves against the outer walls all day, and from the looks of it they are unprepared for an attack from the rear.”

A horn call from another direction cut me off, both of us turning to see another army approaching. This army appeared to consist almost exclusively of cavalry, and the banners depicted a rose. The Tyrells, I’d honestly forgotten about them. They’d reach Stannis’s forces long before Tywin’s would, and unless my presence meant they’d decided to throw their lot in with the actual Baratheon, they’d do a number on the attacking army before Tywin arrived.

Fortunately, they did smash into Stannis's army instead of joining them, much to my relief. A large cheer rang out as the forces of Highgarden attacked, and I looked over to see Tommen grinning broadly. The boy was old enough to understand what awaited him if Stannis won, so he was happy to see the Tyrells win.

The following hours mostly involved cleaning up the attacking army, and Tywin marching to the Red Keep to administrate from there. I continued Tommen’s lesson, until he had trouble focusing and I asked the Kingsguard who’d been present to take him to bed. I meanwhile headed back to my chambers. Tywin was going to want to talk to me, and I wanted to make sure that I was well rested when the time came.

[hr][/hr]

I woke up to a soft knock at my door, and after pulling on some pants, I answered it to see one of the many servants of the Red Keep. The man bowed and said, “Lord Tywin wishes to speak with you in the Hand’s Solar.”

Giving a nod, I said, “Please inform Lord Tywin that I will be there upon getting dressed.”

Once I was dressed, I made my way to the Hand's Solar. Lord Tywin was already there, seated at his desk with a scowl on his face.

“You summoned me, My Lord?” I said, bowing respectfully.

Lord Tywin didn't answer immediately, instead gesturing for me to take a seat across from him. I did so, trying not to let my nerves show.

“You are the one who can create new valyrian steel,” he said at last.

“Yes, My Lord. I can, though should he keep to his studies, Prince Tommen will eventually be capable of doing so as well,” I agreed, while adding the bit about my pupil to make sure he knew I was more valuable to him alive for the foreseeable future. I had no doubt that Tywin Lannister was well aware of my reasoning.

He remained silent for several minutes, reading and signing various paperwork. I suspected that this was one part test, one part power play. By giving his focus to his paperwork, it showed that he considered me to be of lesser importance. By not speaking, it let him see how long I could handle silence. I’m sure that the majority of people would be fidgeting by now, but I honestly preferred silence in general, so I was perfectly happy to wait. Finally, after at least ten minutes, he put his quill in its inkwell and turned his attention to me.

“I wish to procure your services, a valyrian steel blade for House Lannister,” he said bluntly.

“Of course, My Lord,” I answered with a nod. “May I inquire as to the type of blade you would like? Or do you have a sword that you wish turned into valyrian steel?”

We talked business for another hour or so, with me asking questions to ensure that I knew exactly what the head of House Lannister wanted and him giving short, curt answers. I suspected that he was silently testing and judging me, but if he’d drawn any conclusions, positive or negative, I couldn’t tell. It was more than a little bit unnerving. FInally, as our talk over the soon to be made valyrian steel sword came to a close, he shifted topics.

“His Grace has informed me that he has set aside Sansa Stark as his betrothed, and instead engaged her to you,” he said, his eyes piercing in their intensity.

“Indeed, he has,” I said with a nod. I didn’t say anything else, not sure how much else Joffrey had told him.

To my disappointment, he didn’t take the bait. Instead, he simply said, “Once the cleaning up of the battle has been completed, you will marry her. In two months time, you will depart for Winterfell to rule in His Grace’s name.In addition, I will be reassigning Ser Loras Tyrell to you as your personal guard. In a year's time, Prince Tommen will travel to Winterfell to foster and continue his tutelage in your...Alchemy.”

I nodded, “As My Lord wishes. Was that all?”

“For the time being,” he said, a hint of suspicion in his voice.

With a bow, I departed. Once I was three halls away, I let out a relieved breath. Dealing with Tywin Lannister was nerve wracking, I was glad it was over, and in a few months I wouldn’t have to deal with him in person except for extremely rare occasions. Though then I’d need to deal with Roose Bolton and his bastard. I’d need to work on plans for keeping them from killing me, and really the North would be a better place if they were pre-emptively removed from the board.