Celestial Hymn 36 (Patreon)

Celestial Hymn

Chapter 36

-VB-

Just like in canon, Jon had sent both Stannis and Renly the information about his suspicions about the royal siblings.

Renly, obviously, was incensed by this - according to him in the letter I received two days ago - because one of his vassals was getting married to an incestous bastard without knowing about it.

Of course, he bade me to be calm and patient so that he may fix this issue before it bears fruit.

Whatever he meant by that.

Of course, Renly had no idea that I intended to become my own man once the War of the Five Kings breaks out. Though he had been good to me, Renly was also someone who would plunge Westeros into an unnecessary civil war for his own ambition. His ambition was not, in and of itself, the reason why I wasn’t going to help him.

No, the reason for my future rebellion would be his inability to be his own person. He would be Reach’s puppet.

And, well, a bit of the Stormlander pride might have infected me.

I wouldn’t leave the Stormlands. When Renly died and Stannis showed that he was puppet to someone else, I would rise up and claim Stormlands for my own.

But to do that, I first needed to make everyone think that I was on their side.

So, after two days of deliberation, I began to write a letter to Renly.

In it, I wrote about my anger, the betrayal, and so on and so forth, all of which were written to sway Renly that I was indeed very upset at this accustaiton and potential truth of the matter. However, I asked that he keep this information close to his bosom and not let it out too early, lest the “treacherous” Lannisters act before they were ready.

Now, I could have gone and created this network of letters, both signed and anonymous, that would so easily trigger the War of the Five Kings right off the bat.

However, I did not because I needed more time to get my spaceship ready.

No, I had to do the opposite. My ship could be completed within the year, but a year was far longer than what I possibly had with Eddard Stark’s brash accusation after Robert’s death.

So I needed to do two things.

One, ensure Robert, my “friend,” did not die to a boar, which meant that some kind of healer had to be ready to help him in King’s Landing, or even directly within the Red Keep.

Two, Cersei may need to die. It was her insistence on Robert’s death that sparked the war.

Three, Eddard needed to be kept in the dark.

Now, did I do that? He was the Hand of the King while I was a “lowly” lord.

… Yeah, that’s bullshit. I was one of the richest lord of the realm. If I wanted to meet the Hand of the King with the excuse of wanting to help my “soon to be related” royal family with their finances, then I’m sure he was going to meet me.

-VB-

Lord Paramount Eddard Stark did not expect to meet the mysterious and rather unorthodox Stormlander Lord Alan Marris.

The talks about magic had reached far up north as Winterhold, yes, and Robert showed off more than a few trinkets he’d received from Lord Marris.

“I heard that you were in your lands in the Stormlands.”

Lord Marris, a dark haired young man dressed in fineries that no one in the North, save the Manderlys, could afford, blinked.

“Did you not hear from your friend? I have a magic road that connects my land to my institution here in King’s Landing. It allows for near instantaneous travel.”

Eddard blinked in surprise and then shock as the young lord’s words set in.

“... Truly?”

Soon, they descended into talks of magic, and he was very interested if this new kind of magic could be used to better the lives of his people up north.

Alas, he learned quickly that very few people possessed what Lord Marris called “mana fount.” Whether this fount came in the form of a “core” or other means did not matter; as long as one had such a fount, then they would make mana in their body to fuel magic with.

He explained that this lack of mana fount was one of the reasons why fountless magicians of the past and present often used live sacrifices to achieve the same result through sacrificial rituals; “life force” could substitute mana.

To hear that dragons were such mana founts also made the tales of Valyria and its greatness make sense; the dragon lords had literal magic on their side.

Eventually, Lord Marris began to speak of the reason why he was here to talk.

“... Lord Stark,” he began after a pregnant and anxious pause. “I am unsure as to how to treat you.”

Eddard looked at the man for a bit before he replied. “What do you mean? I am the Hand of the King.”

“You are, you are,” he replied. “You are also an honorable man.”

“I have been called such, yes,” he replied with a small bit of pride at the recognition.

“But honor has no place in Southern Westeros.”

Irritation gripped him. This was not the first time he’s heard this. “Yet honor and law are what keeps men from killing each other.”

“That is objectively false, Lord Hand.”

“... How so?”

“Honor nor law are not what keeps people from killing each other. It is opportunity. Robbers and murderers live inside King’s Landing. Roaming bandits exist outside the city’s walls and within Crownlands itself. I’m sure that you have your problems with outlaws in the North as well. The only reason why they persist when the lawful authorities arrest and kill them for their crimes and yet are constantly replaced is that there is an opportunity for them.”

“What are you suggesting?”

“The same applies to lords, milord. And when you, as the Hand of the King, come across information that may be damaging to the entire kingdoms, sometimes doing the honorable thing would give people opportunities to cause chaos to our kingdoms. So I must ask you, Lord Hand. When you come across such information as you do in a position like yours, will you stand for the kingdoms… or for honor?”

They didn’t talk much after that. Lord Marris left after leaving that cryptic warning.

Four months later, when he knelt before the new illegitimate king and the executioner’s swinging axe, he understood.