Stability & Violent Wonder

Well,
that was certainly been the most stressful month I've ever had. That we somehow came up relatively on top is nothing less than a miracle, and a weird enough one that the Stranger must be laughing his arse off somewhere. So to set the scene, this was where we stood at the end of the attack on Erenford:

• The tournament was cancelled, due to basically everyone hating us 
• The following relevant people were in our custody: 
• Black Walder Frey
• Edwyn Frey (1st son of Steveron, old Walder's heir) 
• Kleos Frey (not too significant, but nephew to Tywin Lannister) 
• Whalen Frey (minor Frey) 
• The following were dead: 
• Wendel Frey (19th son to Walder) 
• Hugo Wance (2nd son, married to a Frey) 
• Rumors of a Lannister fleet on its way north towards Seagard
• Frey reportedly had summoned all his banner men, no points for guessing his intentions
• Lord Jason summoned to Riverrun
• Fenton Pyke still about in the land 

So yeah, everything looked super swell and completely manageable. For the first time in a long while, I simply didn't have the time nor the energy to keep up with my diary. So in the interest of brevity and keeping my sanity this is the really short version of what's happened in the last month. 

• The Lannister fleet arrived in force at Seagard - but their only goal was to ensure Kleos' safety. We gave him up without a fight. 
• Jason instructed us to set Black Walder free. Reluctantly, we did. 
• Edmure acknowledged Creydon Strong [?] as the new official ruler of Erenford, which is now a banner house to house Mallister. 
• The Freys were commanded to stand down, which, amazingly, they did. 
• The Blackwood and Bracken fight is, if not over, at least simmering at a lower temperature than before. The Lannisters' plans to take a big chunk of the Riverlands put some fear into the lords. 
• Edmure showed some balls through all of this, though I suspect Lord Jason was a big reason for that. Edmure's now fully aware of Tywin's plans, and pretty pissed about them. 
• Fenton Pyke, unfortunately, is still nowhere to be found. 

Aditionally, we had the visions from that weird orb we found on the child of the forest. Rha, lady Joy and myself each had one: 

• Rha: dragon bones in the cargo hull of a ship, guarded by an undead guard clad in Blackfyre garb
• Joy: Very old, dusty hallway, dragon bones on the floor, guys in Blackfyre garb
• Me: a big weirdwood somewhere in the North, a child putting a crystal orb in the tree, cone of light streaming forth from the tree into the sky 

Through all of the political tumult, I had positively been aching to go check out the weirwood on the Isle of Faces...luckily, the rest felt the same way. So after just a few days, me, Lord Keith, my dear brother, Rha and Willard set out. Rha mentions that the person who found the child, one Anya of the mountain clans, could be useful as a source of information. And curiously, she apparently possesses the green sight. Given that Chafflok is basically on the way, we head there first. 

After a couple of days we arrive, bearing some gifts for the lowfolk. Rha is greeted as a kindred spirit, while us lords are naturally given the respect we deserve - as well as a healthy dose of  distrust. I don't blame them. Anya arrives in the village when nightfall approaches. Even more curiously, she's clearly got the blood of Valyria flowing through her veins, easily identified by the characteristic silver hair and purple eyes [...right?]. She could have been beautiful if not for the big scar running across her face. Given her knowledge of the forest and green sight, I ask her if she would be willing to accompany us. She agrees. 

After a couple of uneventful weeks by canoe, we arrive in Harroway's Town and set out for the lake. The first night, Anya apparently has visions about the isle which she shares with us the day after. She was clearly shaken, and the vision was (typically) vague - but she saw death surrounding the isle. Lovely. 

After four days, before we arrive at the isle the next day, I take out the stone to see if I can have a little vision of my own. I'm clearly at the isle, where I see a child approaching the weirwood. Suddenly, the child is attacked by a man-shaped figure in a cloak and the vision ends. I doubt peace is in our future. 

We arrive at the tiny village of Crery, where Rha buys a few boats. We row out towards the isle. There are a lot of trees out there, and even from a distance, the gigantic weirdwood is visible. We make landfall. Rha and Anya notice the eerie lack of animal life and sounds. We set out. After an hour, Bass notices a figure stalking us. We try to approach, circle back and so forth but the figure slips away each time. Well, nothing to do but to press on. 

An hour later, and we arrive at the Godswood. Now, I'm of the new faith (at least in theory), but the sight is stunning enough to feel the presence of the old gods anyway. The tree is humongous, ancient and beautiful enough to be the source of a poet's magnum opus, with the dying light of the sunset spilling through the leaves. 

For a place that's supposedly deserted, we notice a disturbing amount of human footprints in the clearing surrounding the weirwood. Additionally, there are mounds of earth spread around the tree. Hmmm, most curious. We approach the tree, searching for a spot to put the crystal ball. I take it out, and just as I do...hands reach towards the sky from the mounds, and we're suddenly surrounded by a swarm of undead, reminiscent of the ones from the valley of the dead in Braavos. Additionally, we saw the hooded figure near the edge of the clearing - it's a white walker. 

The fight is long and hard. But in the end we prevail [og Lars slapp opp for tid]. 

The Lady is a Tramp

Lord Caradog, Lord Willard and Rha are in the North

Lady Joy, Lord Barrett and Lord Bass are at Riverrun

Riverrun:

Lord Barrett pays the good Maester Cole a visit. The Maester is renowned for his skills throughout the Riverlands and beyond. Maester Cole is adamant that Lady Kiera’s so called Maester is a charlatan.

Meanwhile I am working his Grace and Lord Cole to try to find out more about the incident with Lady Kiera. His Grace finally says I can pay her a visit. I find this a bit odd, to say the least. She does not want to see her betrothed, but will allow me to pay her a visit? Some things are better discussed between ladies, but she has made no secret of her dislike for me.

Lord Bass will have to wait outside. As I enter the prechamber I feel very uneasy, my gut is screaming for me not to go on. But how can I refuse at this point? To my “surprise” Lady Kiera is sitting in bed looking rosy. I try to act along despite this; “Lady Kiera, you are looking well. You must have made a speedy recovery. Won’t you allow the Duke to see you, he is beside himself with worry.” She does not however, have any intention of keeping up appearances. “That fool, “ She replies “ I will deal with him as I see fit.” One of her guards draws his sword.

The North:

Ser Craydon Strong warns Earl Keath about the threat of Fenton Pyke and his Marionette Clegane. He claims their agenda is to manipulate Blackwalder to attack House Mallister. Ser Craydon asks for asylum. The Earl grants it, and Ser Craydon swears allegiance with bended knee.

Riverrun:

I scream for help and try to exit the chambers from where I came. I know Lord Bass is on the other side of the door, but there are two guards between us. It doesn’t take long before I see him coming to my rescue. Thankfully. The master draws a dagger and lunges towards me. I gather my skirts as best I can and with Lord Bass creating a distraction I manage to dart past the guards and out into the hall. I run towards the main hall screaming for help, it seems like it takes forever, but finally I see Lord Piper coming towards me. The maester is on my heels, but has a brutal encounter with Lord Piper’s blade. I can see the shock on his face when he realizes who he has just killed. I tell him I was attacked in Lady Kiera’s chamber and that we need to find His Grace. We find the Duke and return to the scene of events. I am relieved to see that Lord Bass has dealt with the situation with the help of Marrok. Needless to say the Duke is outraged. He has just realized how he has been held a fool by the Lannister vixen. He orders her arrest. I send her a smile as she is taken away. There is nothing like retribution at times.

The North:

Ser Craydon Strong’s army has arrived. He gives a stirring speech to the men. He informs them that he is pledging allegiance to House Keath. The men are free to go if they choose, but Blackwalder will not be merciful. Ser Craydon proclaims that he aims to take back Erenford as a vassal to House Mallister.

Riverrun:

His Grace, Duke Tully, apologises at length for the actions that have occurred at his castle. He says that the fee he earlier had demanded I should pay, was no longer needed. I smile coyly, like I would ever pay the ridiculous fee. His Grace then goes on to invite me to stay at Riverrun for a few months to act as his advisor. This is an interesting proposal. I suppose I should check with my father, but I would think this a golden opportunity to influence the Duke and more importantly keep from anyone else exerting the same. I tell the Duke as much, that I need to go home to sort some business out, but that I am honored by his proposal and positive to accepting it. Lord Piper seems to think it is a great idea. Lord Barrett, Lord Bass and Brynden or whatever his name is are paying Lady Kiera a visit in the dungeon. I know it involves poison, and I know the Viscount, I needn’t know the gruesome details.

Lord Barrett later informs me that Lady Kiera provided the following information: Tywin is trying to take over control of the Riverlands. The Maester in Riverrun is actually the spymaster from Lannisport. Or was I should say. Tywin is also responsible for Fenton Pyke’s actions, in order to gain influence in the region. She also admitted that she was behind putting House Bracken and House Blackwood against each other.

Lord Barrett talks to the Duke, we are united in the ambition of uniting Riverrun and houses Bracken and Blackwood again. His Grace will call upon family members to help him through the transition.

Time to head home….

Seagard/Chaflolk:

Rha receives a letter, Lord Jason reads it to him. There is a strange thing in Chaflolk and they are requesting Rha’s help. He heads there to see what the fuss is all about. He is brought into the forest surrounding the village. There is a sort of hammock there, containing a cadaver. Rha assumes they have raised it to keep animals from getting to it. His first thought is that it must be a dwarf. The proportions of the being are not right, though. Could it really be… a child of the forest? They have been thought extinct for the last millenium! It has a loincloth and a pouch. Opening the pouch he finds a red, glowing stone. Rha senses the importance of the stone, but still something troubles him about it. He brings both the cadaver and rock back to Seagard.

Ah it is good to come home. Lovely Seagard. It is really good to see Lord Keath, Lord Willard and dear old Rha again. We learn that there is a rumour about Blackwalder going round. Apparently he is arresting the family members of the missing soldiers. That man is out of control. I think I speak for us all when I say that this cannot go on. Furthermore Fenton Pyke is in Erenford. Lord Keath wants to attack it and take it back. Or rather to let Ser Craydon Strong take it, with our blessing. This will cause some upheaval with our neighbors, and that is not ideal considering we have a tourney coming up. However, matters of war must be dealt with swiftly, we cannot let the scoundrels win. The tournament can be seen as something of a peace meeting, given that the tide of battle favors us.

Rha has interesting news from Chaflolk. They have found the most interesting corpse, sounds delightful. We all go to inspect it. It is small, like a dwarf, but somehow different. More delicate. Lord Barrett immediately says that this must be a child of the forest. At first the thought it preposterous, it can’t possibly be….? It is quite disturbing to look at. Lord Barrett and Rha are being very scientific and enthusiastic about the discovery, going on and on about the legends and what little knowledge there is on these beings. They think it died of old age. The stone i s fascinating, so pretty, I’ve never seen a glowing stone before. I bet it would look amazing if I could make it into jewellery. No one in the Kingdom would have anything like it. I reach out to hold it.

I see the child of the forest. It is travelling down river. It reaches an island. On the island is a gigantic weirwood. The child proceeds to the tree and inserts the stone into the trunk.

The vision, or whatever I should call it ends. I am back in the cellar. I tell them what I saw, and they look at me with a look of puzzlement. This stone feels almost energizing.

Battle stats:

Erenford: 2 units in the city, Fenton Pyke. 4-6 units in the woods.

Lord Keath has proposed to take with him 10-11 units; 3 cav, 3 inf, 4 arch and his own personal guard.

Stirrings of war and chaos in the capital

After hours of discussion, we all agree on a way forward. We won't actively oppose Edmure...yet. For the time being, we will gather support around House Mallister. First and foremost by taking an active role in the Blackwood-Bracken conflict, to show that our house is strong and capable of directing how the other minor houses conduct themselves. Indirectly, we also show that Edmure is weak and needs help in containing his liege lords. Furthermore, we will all cozy up to the various lords when it's time for the big tournament. Or cajole/threaten/bribe/intimidate/seduce/insert other favorite means of getting your way here.

Most of the information below on Erenford is second-hand, mostly from the most esteemed Lord Keith. As such, I have no doubt that the accuracy is...mostly accurate.

Apparently, the Freys used Keith's little adventure with dumping ironborns on shore as an excuse to take a direct hand in running Erenford. At least, that is the official explanation. And who other but our dear friend black Walder is now in charge? Not a popular move among the commoners, as BW's infamy is probably known even in Quarth. He is at the very pinnacle of sadism and cruelty, possibly accompanied by the Mountain and that insane manling bastard of Lord Bolton's.

Among my contacts, scouts and Keith + a small entourage moving into Erenford, we discover the following:

• There are troop movements into the forest in the north-west corner of Erenford
• The troops consist of roughly 800 Erenford soldiers. There are at least 2 archer units as well as one infantry and one personal guard unit [?]

After Willard dodges black Walder's entourage in Erenford, the crew heads into the forest. They're discovered by a guard, whom they subdue and drag south towards Ryger. After some friendly questioning, he reveals that they're probably building siege engines in the forest. The scout unit he's a part of was mustered roughly two months ago. After he reveals this, Keith engages in some not-so friendly murder. To add to the day's excitement, the black bastard himself appears with two units in tow...but does not cross the border into Ryger. Too late Keith remembered to antagonize the Frey arsehole by shaking Willard in front of his nose. I doubt it would have worked given that black Walder actually (and unfortunately) is pretty smart, but it couldn't have hurt to try. 

Some days later, Lord Mallister joins them in Erenford. It is decided that Keith will be responsible for getting more information on the goals of the Freys. There aren't really a lot of uses for siege engines besides attacking and well, there aren't a lot of other enemies within reach. Still, I'm generally all for more information before deciding upon a course of action. 

Rha and Willard manage to sneak unseen into the forest. They come upon siege engines being built under the careful instruction of Frey engineers. There's a variety of units there: infantry, cavalry and archers. It's hard to get an accurate count due to the dense forest though. 

Meanwhile, Lord Keith travels to Erenford proper under a peace banner to seek out black Walder. After some banter, black Walder claims, and sticks to the story, that the siege weapons are meant for the ironborn. ....[noterte ikke noe mer, solly]

Meanwhile, me, Bass, Joy and a small entourage head out for Riverrun along with two [?] units. We find it reasonable to pop by Lord Edmure before heading towards Blackwater to inform him of our plans. Additionally, we might gather some much needed information on how to proceed in how to play the game going forwards. 

After an uneventful journey, we arrive in Riverrun. Lord Edmure himself greets us at the gate, as is proper for a Lady of Joy's stature. As they make small talk walking into the great hall, I catch something about Edmure "having a plan for how to deal with Blackwater and Bracken" followed a cackle that makes me ill at ease. My stomach is practically churning when he reveals that he's got a new political advisor, who is, of course, none other than Lady Keira. It is clear he's already quite drunk.

As we enter the hall, it's apparent he's not the only one. Frankly, the state of the place is worse than the Rogue's Delight. Various lords lounge about the hall in various states of inebriation. Among them is Lord Mark Piper, who apparently is a decent enough fellow, if a little empty-brained. 

Lord Edmure and Joy move into a private chamber to have a word. Not much time passes before we hear loud voices and the sound of a scuffle. Naturally we run towards the side room, where a couple of guards are handling Joy quite roughly. I try to remain clam and ask what is going on. Edmure states that Joy is being disrespectful towards her liege lord and orders the guards to take her into a cell. Stranger take me, has he gone completely mad? 

Luckily. a quite drunk (though perhaps not quite as drunk as he appears to be) Lord Piper appears, and manages to defuse the situation with some drunken ramblings. Joy is unhanded and we quickly retreat to our chambers. She is fuming with barely contained anger as she recounts what happens. Apparently Edmure accused the Mallisters of having plans to go against him (disturbingly accurate information...) and demanded a rather large tax [3 Wealth] from the Mallisters to show that we are deferent enough towards House Tully. Furthermore, he was still very angry that Lord Jason took command in his own hall last time we were here. I'm not surprised, as it was quite emasculating for him. On the other hand, I don't think Lord Jason had much of a choice, or there could have been a blood bath in the hall. 

Well. The situation seems to be much more grave than we suspected. Edmure is even weaker than we thought, and Lady Kiera seems to have her claws in him even deeper than we imagined. Meanwhile, Bass circulates among the guests and picks up some rumors: 

• The Great Hall is filled with revelers almost every day, and the alcohol flows freely
• Lady Kiera is, in practice, the acting regent of Riverrun - Edmure leaves all the "boring stuff" (i.e. almost everything) in her hands
• Apparently, Edmure's "plan" on how to handle Blackwater and Bracken is to execute both of the lords! Mother save us, is he being poisoned, or is he really that block-headed? 
• Lady Kiera isn't too well-liked. A party guest/servant [husker ikke] hints that he wouldn't be too unhappy if someone took care of her, permanently. 

Later that night, lady Joy gets a visitor - Lord Mark. To no one's surprise he tries to seduce her, and to no one else's surprise she rebuffs him (quite directly). He gets slightly miffed, but departs without further incident. We decide to send a raven to Lord Jason to warn him that the small council might be under surveillance, since we can't really figure out how else Edmure knows of our plans (though not all of the details). 

Next day, after eating breakfast (lord Edmure pointedly ignoring the lot of us when he appears much later in the day), me, Joy and Bass head out into the gardens where we notice Lady Kiera lounging with two of her ladies-in-waiting. After mere seconds of small talk, we are attacked - right in the godsdamned castle of our liege lord! - by five masked men. Note that they attacked us, not Kiera. With me and Joy being close to useless in a fight, we seem fairly doomed, but luckily Bass' keen eyes noticed a barely visible path that leads back into the castle. We run like mad, me receiving a pretty ugly stab wound in the belly, and manage to get back to Marrok and the rest of our men. 

Things get pretty chaotic. We form a tight formation and head out to the training area where Edmure and his cronies are up and about doing manly things. He is shocked when we tell him we where attacked on his own grounds (and he's not a good enough actor to hide his feelings from the three of us), and goes white when we tell him Lady Kiera was also present. We all move to the gardens, guards running ahead of us. The ladies-in-waiting are dead, but Kiera is alive - but only barely. Bass, being an extremely astute observer of his surroundings, later tells us he noticed Kiera quickly taking in the scene even though she was supposed to be unconscious...that's pretty much all the damning evidence I need at this point. The wench needs to die, or at the very least be removed from Edmure's circle. Might be kind of hard though. Just maybe. 

Edmure is very rattled, and it's clear that any ill feelings he felt towards Joy have, if not dissipated, then at least lessened. If Joy is to have a talk with him to try to steer him in the right direction, I don't think we'll get a better chance. Regardless, my mind is at least decided. Edmure needs to go. For the good of the Riverlands. And for House Mallister of course. 

Bits and pieces

Ser Mallister and his people are in King's landing, gathering knowledge on the new septon and the Avengers. Rummaging about the harbor talking to sea captains quite a bit of information is gathered. First, the Avengers can hardly be called mercenaries anymore, they are not for hire, and are so many that an army is a much more fitting description.

They are currently "protecting". They are a couple thousand strong in the city, and are staging for an invasion of Volantis. It also seems that their leader personally convinced the city council to let them into the city. Wonder how he scared/bribed his way into that? He reputedly emanate cold, enough to turn glasses of water into ice. Sounds like an exageration. But the things we killed in that crypt certainly felt cold. The Avengers use the symbol of Damon Blackfire, and he rules his men with an iron fist.

Regarding the septon, Ella and Willard visit the cathedral. The first person they talk to is a priestess who knew the septon. He was ordered to Seagard, and was not happy about it. He went to Lannisport first, and came back looking worried and scared. Later he was visited by a large guy with long haired, described as very similar to Pyke. She also says that the septon is very good at political games, that he could have had quite a career ahead of him. Not surprising to me.

Ella also 'talks' to another initiate, who has unusually high thoughts about himself, relatively poor self control and a strong dislike of polishing shoes. But talkative. At least to such a pretty thing. I would not mind talking to Ella myself. Anyway, the initiate knows that the first letter was from Tywin himself, and that the letter was sharp. He also knows more details about Pykes role; it seems fairly clear that he was there to ensure that the septon went to Seagard, and also that the septon performed whatever task he was given by Tywin when he got there.

The initiate goes on, and says that it is probable (how he gathered this I don't know) that he wants the parts of Riverlands west of Tully back, these belonged to Lannister some time back. Knowing about Tywin, you can be sure that his goals is ambitious, that is the only type of goal he bothers with. Finally, the initiate had gathered that Tywin probably fears Lord Mallister, that he has a lot of influence and can gather the lords to resist Tywins plans for the Riverlands.

With our knowledge of Pykes connections we then also know that Tywin and Walder somehow are in bed together, unless Pyke is playing two horses of course. It will be interesting times for us.

While all this is gathered and a lot of travelling is performed, I have gathered enough Ironborn effects and info to raid Harlaw. So we set out at night, find a suitable village/fort and sack it. It is fairly easy, my men and their sordid talents make short work of the small castle and its defenders, and we round up about 80 of them and two boats and set out. At sea we give 40 of them to the Iron God, and proceed to Ehrengard. I go ashore with the troops, we dress up in Ironborn garb, and we sack 3 little villages. at each place we live some Ironborn bodies and equipment, and at the last we leave one boat. Then we go home. Interesting to see how this will work out. Should at least spread some fear in Ehrengard, make it easier to 'discuss' things with them.

When all are back we meet in Seagard, with Jason. He instructs Barret to set up surveillance in Kings Landing: interview boats coming from Lys/Volantis to assess the situation with the Avengers. Regarding the situation in the Riverlands, we have 3 options now, Jason states:

• Bend to Tywins choice of leading house
• Try to become Tywins favourite
• Try to take power for ourselves

The last is my much preferred alternative. We start by supporting Blackwood against Bracken, and telling the Lannister neighbour about Tywins plans; he hates the Lannisters with a passion. Then we need a few more houses on our side...

Of Septons and Men

Riverrun (Ella)

Tempers are running high after the attempted murder of Lord Mooton. Several of the nobles demand Kiara held responsible for the assault. Of course the real motivation is not justice, but politics. Barrett sends Rha and myself to locate Lord Mallister. As we leave the great hall, Lord Bracken is trying to incite Lord Blackwood, guards intervening and all.

Lord Mallister comes down and starts to settle the crowd, judging by the murmuring they are not too impressed by Edmure’s response to the situation.

All of a sudden, a bolt surges through the air and strikes the Blackwood heir. His father screams out a heart wrenching “Nooooo!” as all others fall silent. A second later, the rattle and clank of metal resounds as the whole hall draw their weapons.

Lord Mallister and Lord Tully climb on top of the table and try to command the room. Lord Mallister urges everyone to remain calm; there can be no more bloodshed. Then Lord Tully commands us all to evacuate the great hall. On my way out, I hear Brynden giving Edmure a verbal beating for his lack of leadership.

Jason gives us the task of finding out what Kiara’s true involvement in the incident with Lord Mooton was.

Walys Mooton sadly passes, what a shame, he was quite the looker. His passing will certainly not improve the tension at Riverrun either.

We decide to go talk to the Lannister guards. They are after all the perpetrators, if not the brains behind Lord Mooton’s death.

Generally, there is a greater sense of apprehension, guards are more heavily armed, and more alert. There is more or less a human wall between Lords Bracken and Blackwood at all times, to prevent further escalation of the situation.

Claiming our cause, we get access to the two Lannister guards detained in the dungeons. In a matter of seconds it is clear that one of them has some sense, whereas the other is a complete moron.  We manage to convince the non-idiot we can have him take the black, with a fraudulent statement penned by Barrett. The non-idiot confesses that he has had a relationship with Kiara. He says further that Henry Bracken hates the Blackwood-heir and requested a scene be made, to provide an assassin the opportunity to take out the heir with a crossbow. Meanwhile, Kiara had been giving the halfwith grief over Lord Mooton wooing her. The two guards had made the ingenious plan that they could get Lord Mooton out of Kiaras hair, and at the same time benefit from doing Henry Bracken a favour.

We try to get this information to Lord Mallister, but he is with the dying lord in his last hours. We pass on a note to Jason. I stay outside the chambers waiting for him, while Barrett goes to Jason’s room. Rha, Marrok and Thugzilla keep guard in the basement.

After some time Lord Mallister exits the room and I fill him in on the latest development. We head down to the cellar. As we approach, we see Barrett is on his way down with guards. Seems there has been a skirmish on the lower levels. Barrett says casually that he expects that Lord Bracken will be coming up shortly, as we stand there puzzled.  Indeed lord Bracken comes up, showing signs of battle and several injuries. After some sorting out, Lord Bracken is ordered to be arrested. Our boys have certainly held themselves in battle against the knight and other henchlings of the Bracken lord. Marrok is clearly hurt, but Rha appears unscathed. He is not very impressed with the knight. Barrett gets the message across to the Tully guards that the prisoner has to be kept alive.

There is heavy chiming of bells. Old Lord Tully must finally have found his way over.

Barrett informs Lord Mallister that he has uncovered the true motives behind the guard’s actions. Lord Mallister tells Barett to elaborate and get to the point. Jason is not pleased with the fact that Lord Blackwood now knows about Lord Bracken’s plan. Lord Mallister says that we must contain the situation. He will honour the promise made to the guard that he will be able to take the black. It will be on Barrett to make sure he keeps quiet. I suspect Barrett will find a solution to that…

Lord Mallister orders us to wait in his chambers. After two hours, he enters again. He has had a talk with Lord Bracken, and released the prisoner. There will be an investigation into who killed the Blackwood heir. In all likelihood, a random guard will take the fall for it. Rather that, than civil war. Barrett is to secure transportation for the Lannister-guard to the Wall.

Barrett finds it easier to end the Lannister guard’s life, than to bring him to the Wall. We continue towards King’s Landing.

We enter through the Gate of Gods. This city is always a fine sight. Barrett chooses a nice inn for us and we start hunting for information. We are advised that the Black Goat is a convenient place to learn more.

Seagard (Joyeuse)

I hear a knock on the door to my chambers and go to open it. Outside I find our dear Septon to be. I invite him in, which I soon regret. He is aware that the materials for our sept have arrived, and that the building can begin. He is not, however, very pleased with the sept being outside the city walls. This is not news to me, of course, but in my naïveté I had not anticipated that the Septon, a holy man, would stoop to the level of actually threatening me. He has heard rumours about my promiscuity, and warns about what the consequences might be, if I do not follow his wishes. After all I am Castellan with my father in Riverrun. I am taken aback at first, his arguments and attack on me take its toll. I manage to resume my pose, and keep a calm exterior. Inside I am seething with the insolence of this maggot. Time to play. I ensure him that I am but a young woman led astray by my fellows. I confess that I have indeed have forbidden thoughts, and that I was tempted to fulfill the ideas put in my mind by wanton friends. However, in my prayers I found that this was not a path to that the Seven would accept. I prayed to the Maiden in particular to guide me and keep me pure. Surely, the Septon must believe me and not the evil tongues of those wanting ill fortune on my house and I? My pulse racing to see whether he would see the “truth”, he finally succumbs. The sept will be built on the outside of the walls as my father wanted.

I am invited to open the grounds for building of the Sept. It is important for the people to see the joint effort of House Mallister and the Church, so I attend, all smiles.

I receive a letter from my father. Lord Tully has passed. He instructs me to proclaim this and mourn the late Lord for three days and nights.

An unexpected detour

As planned, I head out with an entourage towards King's Landing. In addition to my own crew of Marrok, Ella and Braden, lord Willard and Rha decide to come along. We aim to find some dirt on our dear new Lannister septon, as well as gather information on where The Avengers might be located presently. I don't have a lot of connections in King's Landing, but enough to to at least get started.

After an uneventful week of traveling we arrive in Fairmarket. Hanging around the local inn we learn pick up some gossip:

• Brigands have been unusually active in targeting riverboats as of late. The local magistrate apparently doesn't give the matter a lot of weight, leading to speculation that he's in on it. 
• Holster Tully is on the brink of death. While his son Edmure is well enough liked, he's seen as rather weak, leading to some nervousness as to what will happen in the Riverlands when the old man finally croaks. 
• In King's Landing, rumor says that Cersei isn't quite as faithful as a good wife should be. King Robert is apparently too busy fornicating, drinking and hunting to give much of a damn. 
• From Seagard, there is word that the Mallisters are putting on a big tournament, and that a sept is finally being built. 

To get the more inside scoop, we go to meet my main connection in Fairmarket, Riley. He runs a store selling all matters of goods. I'm not too interested in his fish though - information is probably his most profitable trade. After exchanging initial pleasantries, this is what Riley tells us: 

• Fenton Pyke was here before we went to Braavos, but has not been since since. However, his henchlings were here around 10 days ago, asking after someone fitting Joy's description. Fair to say that Fenton probably knows, or will know, that Joy is back in Seagard. 
• The magistrate is indeed in cahoots with the brigands. Their leader is one Mumbling Arnold. I tell Riley that if he manages to get any info on the brigands' location or the magistrate's involvement, a big reward is in his future. Bigger than the 1 gold I pay for his not very good booze. If he needs some female charms to assist him, Ella can be of assistance. She has a way to get info out of males. Can't really see why...

Sure enough, after a couple of days, a couple of Riley's guys show up with a clerk of the magistrate in tow. Ella gets to work on the poor guy, and manages to get the info we need out of him without as much as a bruise. Well, besides the ones he already had. 

This is what she learns: 

• There is no proof that the magistrate is on the take in any books. 
• He uses a servant he trusts (one Rob) to collect the money from the brigands. Rob goes out to meet Mumbling Arnold every few weeks. 
• There were 3 bands in all, one was wiped out. The remaining ones are the Iron Laws (50-60 men) and the Discarded Brothers (80-100 men). 
• The magistrate has another weakness: apparently he's quite fond of young boys. 

Ella also pays the clerk another visit later that night, paying him a handsome sum (for a clerk) to stay on the take. She obviously makes it quite clear what will happen to him should he decide to be brave/run away/etc. 

All of this info leads me to believe that we should go to Riverrun before we head towards King's Landing. We know Edmure is seen as a weak leader. If he quashes two big bands of brigands and catches a corrupt magistrate as one of the first actions of his rule, he will surely be seen in a better light. Additionally, the Mallisters' star will shine brighter with the Tullys, since we provided the information he needed. And finally, twe definitely want Edmure (or preferably Blackfish, though that seems exceedingly unlikely) to take over the reins in Riverrun over any of the alternatives besides ourselves. Propping him up makes it more likely that his reign will be longer, and thus benefit us. All in all, enough to take detour. Our business in King's Landing can wait anyway. 

After some days, we arrive at Riverrun. Most of the noble families have gathered in and around the castle, though notably there are no Frey representatives present. We're escorted into the keep to a room where Lord Jason is engaged in a conversation with Lord Blackwood, a staunch ally of ours. After some short introductions, we get Lord Jason to ourselves and present our (or should I say my...) plan. Lord Jason does indeed like it, and agrees that we should try to implement after the current situation with Lord Holster is resolved. He then asks to speak to me alone...

...and it becomes readily apparent why. Edmure has become quite smitten with a young lady. Wonderful, except she's a Lannister. Very much not wonderful. We discuss Lord Jason's ambitions for Joy, seeing as how she would be a more than appropriate match for Edmure. However, Lord Jason is loathe to see House Mallister lose some of its status, which it surely would given that there are no other heirs. As such, he would prefer Joy to stay in Seagard and build her own fortune. 

Anyway, Jason asks me to somehow break up the budding relationship between Edmure and this Kiera Lannister. Stranger take me...not an easy proposition, but I suppose there's always a way. I discuss the matter with Ella, lord Willard and Rha. We don't really have any stellar ideas and discard a bunch of suggestions. We decide on a fairly risky plan: have lord Wyllis Mooton charm the Lannister girl. In exchange, he will get to champion for Joy in the coming tournament. I find quite a bit of amusement in the fact that he could have gotten that favor for free, but hey, I like taking advantage of a sucker as much as the next guy. A charming and nice sucker, but a sucker nonetheless. 

We learn a few facts about Keira: 

• Second child of Kevan Lannister, Tywin's younger brother
• 17 years old
• Very beautiful
• Unfortunately, no dirt to be found as she's been quite anonymous.   

After some convincing, I manage to have Wyllis do this favor for us. Or rather as I explained to him, for the safety of Joy, the Riverlands and indeed the kingdom itself. I almost convinced myself of that last part. 

So for the next few days,we hang back and observe, letting lord Wyllis work his considerable charms on the Lannister girl. This is what we observe: 

• Keira tries to stay close to Edmure much of the time, but not always. It seems unlikely that she's quite as smitten with him as he is with her. Not surprising that she's received instructions from the family. 
• The pro-Tully camp is not at all pleased about Keira's presence 
• Some of Edmure's closest friends might be an in. These are the very young Robb Stark (14), Lucien Blackwood (early 20s) and Lord Desmond Grell (50s). Even more advantageous, lord Desmond has a beautiful daughter of his own, Serena Grell. Lord Willard tries to convince Edmure to consider Serena as a potential match, but mysteriously fails. 

Meanwhile, Ella spreads rumors among the serving staff (which she poses as one being part of) that Keira apparently isn't a maiden. Heavily disguised, I spread the same rumor among the guards. After a short while, one Gregor, a mean-looking man from the Lannister party, starts aggressively chasing the rumormongers. We decide to have Ella disappear as a serving girl for her safety, figuring the work might be done. 

After 3 nights, it's apparent that Edmure is growing increasingly, well, pissed off at Wyllis. Lord Willard notices that a pair of thugs from the Lannister party seem to be following Wyllis' every move. Concerning...unfortunately, both Wyllis and the tugs disappear while we are otherwise occupied. Myself, lord Willard and Ella rush after them, hearing muffled screams of pain from a room. Lord Willard opens the door, and we see the two thugs on top of lord Wyllis, one of them choking him, the other stabbing him in the belly with a wicked-looking knife. Apparently the Lannisters do not appreciate the competition. 

Ella cries for help from the guards, while lord Willard and I engage the thugs. I do my best to simply stay alive until Willard can come save me, which he luckily does quite handily. I quickly check on Wyllis: he's alive, thank the Mother. The guards arrive and take the two unconscious thugs to the dungeon, and bring Wyllis up to the maester. While it's unfortunate that the young lord was injured, I do believe this might work out for the better for our side...

Business as usual

So with Lady Joy in the front, we return to Seagard. Not all that triumphant, really, but the welcoming comitee certainly looked like we had succesfully sacked Braavos and crushed the ironborn in one go. The first i hear is that those god forsaken Ironborn has broken into my castle, killed my men and freed that thrice cursed bastard we caught. I was ready to head right out and try for that crushing of the Ironborn. But I don't have the means. Yet. So I have to think of something a little more involved, and painful. And maybe enlist som help. Maybe those useless Freys will help out. Anyway, it's going to take some time, but as they say, revenge is a dish best served in many helpings.

When we get into town the party pretty much starts, I try to start a fight with someone, but getting a fistfight going is for once difficult, it is hard when everyone knows exactly who you are. All of a sudden people think fighting is so serious when there is a lord involved. We find out that the new septon is in place, a second cousin to Tywin the cold hearted himself. Cannot possibly be good news. I should have picked a fight with him...

Barret talks to the septon, he wants the sept in town, but Jason wants him outside. Can't blame the septon for wanting to be inside the walls, and if it was me deciding he would be installed outside the walls on the harbour side. We'll have to see what happens. Barret also talks to Maester Osmond, he says that the septon is tight with the Lannisters still, and a manipulative little bitch. And has managed to get into Jasons good graces. My oh my, the surprises keep pouring in. The last one was, I must admit. Manipulative all right.

We talk to Jason in the morning, he is shocked with the Bittersteel story. Figures we need more knowledge before taking it to King Robert. I guess. By my reckoning we will all be well dead by the time the undead Targaryen even starts sailing in this direction. Find dragon eggs first? That sounds like the great grandmother of all detours too me. But Jason thinks it is serious, and his judgement is usually sound. Of course, there is that business with the septon.

Also Hoster Tully is very ill. Jason and Sir Rickard will go there shortly. That means that Edmure will take over. That is a sweet morsel for Joy. Interesting to see how that plays. One thing to be sure of is that he does as he pleases, unless Robert himself decides something.

Barret is told from one of his minions that some Frey has been around asking if we killed Mikken. And there are Frey raiders on Mallister land. Not good. We are still not strong enough to match them man for man, so we have to be a little less blunt than that. And get going on raising some troops. Generally the natives seem restless all around, both the Ironborn and the Freys getting frisky. And speaking of Freys: word in Seagard is that Feyton Pyke owed big in some way to Black Walder. We need more allies.

Shortly after Barret leaves for King's Landing to find dirt on the Lannister Septon. Dirt should be easy enough, but of the right kind? Jason and Richard leave in the same direction, for Hoster Tully, leaving Joy to take care of business. That might turn out good, she has a good head. Needs a little more tolerance for dirt, blood and gore, but that might fix itself real easy the next couple years.

I get home. Talk to the captain of the guard, he's ready to resign. Could have taken that, but any replacement I can think of is worse, and in a way it is fun with a real personal grudge. A grudge against the Harlaws that can't be settled with killing a few of his peasants. Must plan a bit. Talk to some traders, who go to the Isles. Start making a map, and looking for some angles. Sent the scouts over into the open territory to keep lookout for roaming stray dogs of any color, and start collecting Ironborn parnaphelia. Thinking of clearing the streets a bit, and emptying the dungeon to put together a penal legion. Guys with all kinds of weird talents.

We'll turn this around, and it will be great fun.

Big Trouble in Little Gulltown

You'd think we'd be able to avoid trouble in Gulltown right? With Lord Gerald Grafton ruling the town, while not exactly a staunch ally (he did support the Targaryens after all), you'd think we'd be safe for a quick layover? Apparently, buying horses in Gulltown ranks up there with being attacked by the undead in the valley of the dead on the danger scale. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Predictably, once he's given leave by Joy, Rha takes off towards the nearest whorehouse. Probably about time he gets a volume discount at the Rogue's Delight back in Seaport when we get home. We leave Marrok and Ser Oswald at the ship to guard the gold. I doubt the Gentle Men will be tempted to make off with the gold given their reputation, but you never know if they'll decide that this, this is indeed the time to strike out on our own! 10,000 Gold Dragons sounds like a decent way to start our new and independent lifestyle.

The rest of us head for a decent inn [noterte ikke navnet], keeping up our disguises at least for the time being. I suggest we head out to the ranch to buy our horses right after finishing our meal, which meets with some grumbling but everyone acquiesces eventually. Somewhat surprisingly, the ranch actually has 40 horses for sale, and we get a decent price for the lot - 1500 silver stags is right on the money. We agree to have the horses delivered in two days at the crack of down at the harbor. Which, as it turns out, was about 1 hour too late...but more on that later.

We swing by the ship when we get back to town. At first nothing seems amiss - but when we go to check on the gold, we notice that the lock to the storage room has been tampered with. Marrok noticed one of the workers down in the ship but was unable to stop him. After asking around some, we get a vague description of the guy: around 35, tall, grey-haired, woodsman-y with two shortswords in his belt. I talk to the foreman who says he's one of the many at the docks looking for work and not familiar to him. Apparently he's been asking around after someone matching Joy's description (young, blond, amazingly beautiful etc) for the last month or so. Very interesting indeed. I give him some silver and ask him to check around town.


To be on the safe side, we decide to forego the pleasures of civilization (again to the consternation of a select few in the group) and stay at the ship. Joy, Caradog and 5 of the mercenaries head towards the inn to get our gear. The inn is in quite the uproar when they get there. Apparently one of their fine serving wenches were killed and the innkeeper himself suffered from a nasty head wound. Someone who from the description sounded very much like our unknown thiefling has apparently kidnapped lady Joy's lady in waiting/pleasure thing Velena!

In classic "we must have justice and we must have it now" style, some poor fellow has been pointed out as the guilty party by the town guards, on no other grounds that he was conveniently nearby and is a nobody. Lord Keith ventures to try to talk to the man, but the guards are having none of it. Apparently our dear lord lost his temper (most shocking, I know) and revealed who he was, which obviously made things much easier - at least in the short run. Having jumped ahead again, they now learned from the fellow that the greyhaired man was the one who spirited Velena away. Rha manages to track some blood trails found on the scene, and an old lady informs him that the greyhaired man handed Velena over to two accomplices who set out on horse and cart.

Rha and the rest follow the tracks after the cart, which they find left abandoned in an alley by the city walls. Tracks lead from there into a courtyard nearby - where our much sought after bad guys are found. The grey haired man is there, as well as three compatriots and Velena. Greybeard runs away at once, and after a short fight the two remaining thugs decide that yes, discretion is indeed the better part of valor, and take off as well. Given that the mercs are in heavy armor and they are not, they manage to give their pursuers the slip.

Luckily, lord Keith briefly manages to contain his wrath against all things in life and question the one man who survived. By contain I obviously mean that he smashes the fellow's hand when he doesn't start talking at once. After this friendly reminder to spill his guts, the thug says that he and his friends was hired by captain Grey to look around town for Joy a month ago. He's fairly sure that Grey wanted to kill Joy. He's got no clue who he is (besides a name, Horgan Trent) or who they were supposed to kidnap. His usefulness spent, lord Keith sends him off into the not-so-loving arms of the Stranger. Velena is obviously in a state. Joy does her best to comfort her, and manages to calm her enough to get a better description of Grey. Apparently, she's seen him in Seagard...though with black hair.

On the way back to the ship, Joy bumps into Rhaena Grayton, the lord's eldest daughter. She obviously invites Joy to the castle, but our girl manages to convince the airhead noblegirl (are there other kinds?) that she's on some sort of undercover mission or the like and slips away without giving offense.


When they arrive back at the ship, I offer to tend to Velena's wounds and get some info out of her at the same time. Given that I know the seedy underbelly (such as it is) in Seagard better than anyone else in our party, I manage to connect her description of Grey to a name: Fenton Pyke. Indeed, Fenton's done a few jobs for me...he's a freelancer and pretty much a thug, though admittedly quite talented at thugging. Most interesting.

We also decide that discretion is the superiour way to go through life and make ready to leave a day early. A lot of the mercenaries are out on shore leave, and one is nowhere to be found. I go out with lord Willard, Marrok and a few mercs to the local pleasure establishment. We eventually find him, killed and tortured in a back alley.

It's time to find our foreman, who might have more info on Fenton's whereabouts. Apparently he's found at the Shattered Sail...where Fenton hired the thugs. Veeeery interesting...Me, lord Keith, Marrok and 6-7 mercs go there. The foreman is surrounded by 6-7 guys. After some deliberation we walk right in, only to discover that the two thugs who gave us the slip are also there. Lord Keith tries acting friendly/non-aggressively and fails spectacularly, leading to most of the bar reaching for their weapons. Luckily, he's also very good at shouting and being intimidating, so after revealing his identity everyone calms down.

After talking to the foreman some, I'm convinced he's innocent. He's seen Fenton in here, but without his grey-haired woodsman disguise. Keith talks to the hired thugs (giving his word that he won't kill them, which might actually mean something coming from him). One of them saw Fenton talking to one Dameon Shett, the knight of Gull Tower, lord Grafton's right hand man. Mother save us...if Grafton himself, or at least Shett, is behind this, we are in grave danger indeed.


Everything happens quickly now. We decide we can't wait for the dawn to leave. Lord Willard, the captain and two mercenaries goes to wake the harbormaster. He's understandably slightly upset at being woken up in the middle of the night, but curiously mollified when he receives 5 gold for his troubles and hands us his best navigator [los].

Meanwhile, Rha and Marrok ride out to the farm to get our horses, paying the rancher a small fortune to get them down to the harbor at once. Riding back to the ship, they spot Daemon Shatt rounding up his personal guards. Apparently we are know wanted by the law as known criminals/troublemasters or the like.

The rancher arrives with the horses, we start loading them unto the ship as fast as humanly possible. Shaett and his guards come rushing down the harbor towards us, forcing us to abandon six of the horses - but we get away! We might not be welcome in Gulltown anymore, but we, and more importantly Joy, is safe. The captain is nearly in tears, cursing us for making him unwelcome forevermore in Gulltown. Given Joy's status his rudeness would be enough to cost him his head, but being a Braavosi he's either oblivious to this fact or more likely doesn't give a damn.


We decide to head for Maidenpool instead, deeming Saltpan to be too unsafe a goal. The journey home will be longer, but likely safer. As well, we are on relatively friendly terms with the Mootons of Maidenpool. Luckily, the journey there is uneventful. As we disembark the captain is up in arms about how little we paid him for his troubles (apparently 50 gold is not enough), dropping a crate of gold in the sea and so forth. Joy pays him back by quite accidently dropping the 50 gold into the sea as well. Sputtering, he just sails out (while Rha dives back down for the gold of course).

By now, we've caused quite a stir at the harbor, enough for one of the Mootons to arrive. It is none other than Wallis Mooton, the heir apparent and judging by Joy's barely concealed lustful gaze, quite the stud. We are, obviously, invited to the castle. Let us hope no more assassins lurk in the shadows...

Dark Nights – Dark Deeds

Afternoon in the city.

Rah has come back with info about Theodon that suggests he put a contract on us. As I am told this means at best that he has hired someone that will try to steal the coin and skull from us, or kill us. It was quite apparent that he was very interested in the items we presented, but I had not anticipated that he would go to such drastic measures. He barely waited till we had left! This does provide a bit of problem, as these contracts can only be cancelled by the person who initiated it. By what I am told, it is not even possible to bribe the Faceless men.  They are an order with almost knight-like virtues, in stark contrast to the service they provide.

So… we could kill Theodon, but we would not escape the contract. We could actually trade him the coin. I don’t think I could live with aiding in necromancy. This means we will have to deal with possible assassins.

Theodon’s shop has been under watch, and as we are pondering how to deal with the situation, Rha comes to the hotel room almost out of breath. Theoden has got a Justicar visiting, and closed the store. He urges us that we must hide the coins, skills and other questionable items. Of course he is right. We decide to rent another hotel room in the noble quarters, buy a secure chest and keep the items there with Marrok as guard.  We are keeping a guard at all times outside Theodon’s shop; Rah and Caradog are stationed there. The next news we receive is that there are three groups of justicars fanning out in the direction we left in. They target inns and other obvious places. It is time to move on to an establishment more fitting for a Lady.

After much discussion we decide to take down Theodon, he is too much of a liability for us. Rha and Caradog return to the shop. I have asked them to see whether it is possible to also search the premises. When they return things have not gone according to plan. Theodon left the shop and Rha followed him yet again to the Faceless men. Theodon tried to dispatch a pigeon to an accomplice, but it was efficiently taken down by our master archer. Caradog collects the bird when night falls. The message reads “I have had a breakthrough. Come to the shop. We are almost there.”

We make another attempt at Theodon’s life. We all go to the shop. We post guards up and down the street. Barrett and I stand by as Rha and Willard scale the wall and climb onto the roof. This time Rha takes out Theodon, with four arrows as he is reading in his courtyard. The bodyguard goes for cover, as Rha and Willard make their way into the courtyard. Then she dashes for the window and jumps straight through it. Remind me to pray more to the Stranger. I call off the attack and we return to our new inn. Rha roams the streets, keeping an eye on the activities of the justicars. After a while we deem it safe enough to return to the shop. The broken window has been boarded up, and the justicars have left. Searching Theodon’s chamber, we find 1500 G and some interesting books, which we take. The belongings of the bodyguard we leave be. We uncover a secret door underneath the desk in the front room of the shop. The sight that meets us is grueling. Jar upon jar with body parts, and on a slab in the center of the cellar; a corpse. Barrett examines it and informs us the body has passed due to disease. There are many books, and some journals. The latter seem to cover experiments Theodon has been performing here. Reading it we discover the reason for Theodon’s zeal and impatience. The body is that of his own son.

We destroy information that can aid in necromancy, and then jam the entrance so that it cannot close. Back at our inn we indulge in a lavish meal, and a 50G wine. The staff almost performs a ceremony around presenting and pouring the ruby liquid. Maybe the excitement of our adventures is coloring my mind, but it is truly the best meal of my life.

The next day…

We still have business to attend to. Some research into the Iron Bank as revealed that they use the Gentle Men as sell swords. They are renowned for being honorable and pricey. Getting home with the gold we have borrowed is a priority, and we book passage on a boat bound for Gulltown leaving in four days. We also secure the services of the Gentle Men, 20 of them, to secure our freight. That means we don’t have much time to look into the lair of the Avengers. As we know the Golden Company were founded by Aegor Bittersteel Rivers, later to be led by his son. The latter was killed by a cloaked figure, who took over the guild and renamed it the Avengers.

Our best strategy is to go in when the prostitutes are visiting, so we wait for their next arrangement. It comes in the neck of time, the night before our boat leaves. We climb up onto the roof and into the battlements. From here we can enter all sides of the building; we go through them one by one, starting with the ones furthest away from the custodian. Alas, there is not much to be found, and we move on to the building he is sleeping in. He is sleeping heavily, flanked by empty bottles. There is nothing of interest here either, we must move into the lower levels.

A few nerve-wracking rooms into the lower level, we come upon a vault filled with books. It seems the Golden Company, under the founder Aegor Bittersteel Rivers and his son, kept records annually. Thankfully they are penned in the Common tongue. We focus on the first and last years, while Barrett scours the room for other books of value.  The last five years are not on record, there was no natural heir to take over the Golden Company after the death of Aegor’s son. The records are all very official and state the basic statistics of the company; as such they are not very useful. Then Rha stumbles upon a hidden compartment. In it are the personal diaries of Aegor.  We bring them along. We hear people coming closer and decide not to push our luck, we return to the inn.

After a very short rest, it is time to get our delivery home. The Gentle Men, and the Iron Bank are very good to do business with, and we find ourselves safely installed on the boat.

The passage is without trouble, and we finally arrive in Gulltown. Ah, to be back in Westeros. The diaries of Aegor have been a nice pastime on our journey. He was a bastard of house Derry, who was loyal to the Targaryens, after the battle. It confirms the rumor that the body of Daemon Blackfyre was switched. Aegon brought the body of Daemon with him to Braavos and buried it in the crypt he had built in the Valley of the Dead. To preserve it, and eventually resurrect it. Aegon was clearly cynical, he would use any means to achieve his goals. His aim was to restore the Blackfyre dynasty – the Targaryens. He searched for dragons, and sent men to Assai to investigate the Black Arts. There was a breakthrough just before he died; he was able to resurrect a body. With the help of Lo, a warlock from Assai they performed a ritual in 293 AL. By sacrificing his own sons inscribing the scull of Daemon and placing the infamous coin it. They apparently achieved his goal approximately five years ago. There is also mention of dragon eggs being found about two decades ago in Valeria.

Journey to Braavos - en oppsummering

[Fikk dessverre ikke tid til å skrive en ordentlig logg pga flytting - kommer sterkere tilbake. Derfor skriver jeg bare oppsummering]

Voyage across the Narrow Sea 

• Skipet heter Valena, styrt av kaptein Orelo
• Bra medvind frem til dag 6 
• Natt til dag 8: angrepet av Yunkai slavers
• Barrett har historien om Daemon Targaryen memorisert [Dole - må få denne for å skrive inn]. Long story short: Daemon gjorde opprør mot broren sin, hadde det fete sverdet, ble slått, Bittersteel stakk av fra Westeros med sverdet. 
• Hard fight hvor vi blir stående i døra ned til lugarene, vinner til slutt 
• Slipper å betale reisa siden vi forsvarte skipet
• 3 dager --> Braavos

Braavos

• Tar inn på det House of 7 Lamps (15 ss/night for hele gjengen)
• Braavos er i bra stand, rent i gatene, lite vold
• Rike folk: gray + purple
• Keyholders (admins): brown
• Justicars (dommere + politi): black
• 3 dager hvor de sårede leger sårene
• Barrett og Joy researcher på biblioteket: 
• Det finnes en gammel lærd kalt Theodon som har peil på Bittersteel/Daemon Targaryen
• Aegor Bittersteel Rivers flyktet til Braavos hvor han kalte seg selv Devas
• Ble ettersøkt av assassins hele livet men klarte å holde seg skjult
• Startet opp et mercenary company og ble rik
• Fikk 3 barn, 2 sønner og en datter
• Visstnok begravet med sverdet i the Valley of the Dead , hvor de som tror på the seven i Braavos gravlegger sine døde. 1 dags reise til hest sør for Braavos. 
• Graven hans har sannsynligvis merket til Daemon (3-hodet svart drage på rød bakgrunn, motsatte av standard Targaryen)
• Snakker med Theodon: 
• Daemon sitt lik ble i følge historien delt opp og brent - men noen sier at liket hans ble stjålet/byttet ut med et annet
• Theodon hadde en relevant profeti fra Asshai i en bok som ble stjålet for 5-6 år siden - the prophecy on the rise of the three-headed dragon and the dragonmaster. Har noen linjer med brudd i en kopi (brudd markert med ...): 
• Men shall spill their blood in his tomb, and the vessel will rise from the grave with his essence....men must of the....blood and they will forever...between this life and.... ..... ....the vessel will search the land for the....unborn....and claim them
• Mer research på biblioteket på dragonmaster [Barrett feilet første heal test på Caradog og han trengte mer tid]
• Targaryen bloodline har visstnok en innate ability til å lære seg magi og kontrollere drager
• Å være dragonmaster betyr å ha sin egen drage

Valley of the Dead

• Drar 6 om morran, 8 timer senere kommer vi til avstikker til the Valley
• Ved inngangen er the stranger risset inn i klippene, 50 m høy (a la Mount Rushmore) 
• Et berg med graver
• Rike: mausoleum
• Fattige: stappa inn i sprekker i berget o.l. 
• Leter etter korrekt epoke først, finner korrekt område etter en stund
• Finner mausoleumet til Bitterbro til slutt, lurt gravd ut i berget
• Smal trapp fører ned til et lite rom (5x5 m), hvor en dude ligger død - vært caca i ca 5 år. Har ikke Braavosi klær, noen snåle tattiser som ingen kjenner igjen. Blitt drept av et sverdslag som nesten delte ham i to på skrå fra skulder til hofte. Ringfingeren er borte. 
• Plaque over en av gravene på High Valyrian (ingen som snakker) 
• Hører lyder utenfra - ned kommer walking corpses, det blir kaldt i rommet
• Kledd i ring mails med daemons sigil 
• Hard kamp - Barrett kommer etter hvert på at de kanskje ikke tåler ild så godt (bingo!). Skade = degrees of success med mindre man bruker powerful weapons. 
• Kroppene brytes raskt ned når de "dør"
• Hver av dem har en silver coin inne i skallen (datert sånn ca til Bittersteels tid), hvor det også er symboler av noe slag som ligner på tattisene til den døde kisen
• Alle har en tattis på ryggen av en trehodet drage (gjort mens de var i live) 
• Alle er Westerosi 
• Barrett antar at det er 2 fedre og 3 sønner 
• På gravene deres finner vi navnene: Aegon, Benfred, Clement, Gareth og John Bitterbro 
• Inskripsjon i gravene på high valyrian 

Back to Braavos

• Får oversatt plaque: "The champion of the true king of Westeros, Aegor Bittersteel" 
• Tekst fra veggen i mausoleumet: "his sons shall reclaim the throne in the true king's name, for so is their birthright" 
• [Theodon vet muligens noe om tattisene tror jeg, litt dårlige notater]
• 3-4 dager på biblioteket igjen, resten jakter rykter: 
• Rykter om et mercenary band som fikk nytt symbol, en trehodet drage, for 5-6 år siden
• De het the Gallant Men, men skiftet navn til The Avengers. Ikke overraskende gjengen til Bittersteel. 
• Navneskifte skjedde etter at en ny leder drepte den gamle. Like etter dro hele gjengen sørover av [en eller annen grunn]
• Besøker barracks til The Avengers, som viser seg å være en walled estate bevoktet av justicars - som er noe uvanlig for mercs
• Snakker med custodian, som er grinete og avvisende men tydelig (for enkelte...) skjuler noe. 
• Vaktene har fått beskjed av kapteinen sin om å vokte estaten. De skjønner ikke helt hvorfor men ordrer er ordrer. 

A First for Everything

29 ^th  June

At nightfall in Seagard, we have agreed on our plan. We will ride through the wetlands and cross the Green fork to make it to Fairmarket. It should be possible to get a boat from Fairmarket to the Saltpans and then on to Gulltown from there. We assume it will take about four weeks to get to Braavos, in the best case.

We have set off a week for the necessary preparations. I am excited and somewhat anxious about the journey. I have never travelled for long without a carriage. It will be interesting to see what life is like on the road for the common folk. I have been very prudent with packing, and am only bringing one trunk. After all, I will be travelling as a commoner. Velena, will of course accompany me, it will be nice to have her company when we have the time to rest at a proper inn and to be able to clean up.

As we ready to depart, my dear father sees us off. We have been tasked with lending 10 000 gold thrones in Braavos.

After one day on the road, my spirits are low. How to people endure these saddles for weeks? The tents are a travesty as well; I am shocked to hear that these are considered good quality items. My rear is aching incessantly. I am suspecting the travelling garb I bought for the occasion was sold to me by someone who travels just as little by horseback as myself. I swear I can feel every seam in this trouser, even when I take it off for the night. Thank the Gods for Velena; she gives the best massages...

30 ^th June

Rha has covered himself in mud now… I choose not to ask, and hope it serves some purpose and that the man is not losing his mind. The people we encounter on our way are not very courteous.

3 ^rd August

Life on the road is not much to talk about, I find. I can hardly separate one day from the other. The positive thing is that my derriere, after first getting even worse, now seems to be accommodating to the new situation. I feel more content with this revelation.

6 ^th July

After a week, we reach Fairmarket. Although it is beyond me how it was given this name, at least it shall be nice to sleep in a proper bed for the night. Velena will have to give me a right scrubbing down as well!

It seems that the options for accommodation is somewhat limited, and the only decent inn seems to be fully booked. Barret manages to convince the manager that some guests could be prompted to leave, luckily. Alas, we only see fit to pay for such a service for myself, Velena, Barret and Marrok. After all the ruse of me being his wife, must be kept up. The rest find lodging at another inn. The room is disappointing, even with my low expectations. Oh well, it will have to do. I find that after the last week, even a simple comfort as a hot bath and proper bed is a luxury. Wait - did I say proper bed?

We meet up to hit the docks. By the looks of it, Willard has managed to get in a hefty bar brawl. I should only hope the opponent looks even worse for wear. There is a boat going to the Saltpans, it leaves in the middle of the night it turns out. Great, so much for my night of sleep. Barret chats to the captain about taking us with him. He says that we will have to sleep on the deck! Do people really…? At the question of whether the captain has any rooms to spare, he replies that he could always find room for me and Velena and winks at us. How forward of him! It is appalling! Barret takes on the role of husband and makes it clear that such behavior will not be tolerated. Meanwhile Lord Caradog is roaring with laughter, and I can see Rha is finding the situation humorous as well. At least Rha has the decency to try to hide it.

We head back to the better of the inns, and treat ourselves to the best they can offer in food and drink. I receive a romantic poem, courtesy of a rather dashing gentleman at the bar. I must admit it is quite amusing. I have never been the subject of such direct flirtation before. He would not have the gall if he knew my station. Being a commoner seems to have some benefits. I do not indulge his advances, though. Barret does a rather good impression of a jealous husband, I find. I take Velena back to the room and make good use of the bathtub and short time we have.

7 ^th July

We meet the rest in the early hours of the night. Lord Caradog seems rather inebriated. The others make themselves useful by building some shelter on deck.

Sleeping on the deck is even worse than the tents, the things I am learning. Had I known the discomfort this travel would bring even in the first fortnight I probably would never have left. Might haps it was good that I did not. I see the reaction my fellow travelers have at my complaints; they respect me too much to say anything but I am not blind. None of the other seem to complain about any of this, not even Velena. I shall have to endure.

The night is eventful. A band of thieves attacks us; about 13 strong, I reckon. My comrades fight them down, and the captain is very grateful. He offers us free passage. It is only fair.

12 ^th July

Another four days and we enter Saltpans. Lord Caradog suffered wounds in the fight on the boat and needs to rest. Barret, effective as always, secures passage on a vessel bound for Braavos. He manages to secure a stateroom as well. One, mind you; he says we must keep up appearances. I suppose he is right.