tales of the graugeld

[drack]

Beside a heavy wooden door two little girls smile polity and you that their lady is expecting you. Within one Alyssa Ray sits at a table upon which dornish wines, honeyed cakes, and an entire roasted stag are being served.

[Noedig]

Hugon Malwood strode into the room dressed in his finest attire, functional yet finely crafted leather breeches and a long sleeved tunic done up in the house green and black, and a significantly better mood than he had been in earlier in the day.

He surveyed the area with a keen eye and an easy smile, and when his eyes rested on the Lady Ray, he gave a polite bow.

"You keep a fine table, Lady Ray. I am honored to be invited to share it with you."

[drack]

Alyssa Ray, still dressed in the black of mourning for her king, gestured to a chair with an arm interwoven with more black gemstones then Hugon had likely seen in one place in his life. "Come join me your Lordship. I've called you here to discuss the present state of affairs with regards to your predecessor."

[Noedig]

Hugon took the offered seat, his face becoming slightly more somber as he did so.

"Dorian Graugeld was a decent man. He did not deserve the death he received."

After that, he was silent, clearly more interested in listening than speaking.

[drack]

"No, he didn't. He was an uncle and friend to my brother, he's taking that in his own way. Graugeld was an old man, and was going to die soon anyways, but it would have been better to have died in a glorious battle or sick in bed then to die like that... Or at least so I've heard. The truth is we were never really that close. I preferred the young knights, the gallant ones, and so I don't think I ever truly know the old man... I..." She begins before lowering her eyes. "I am sorry to call you here so quickly after their deaths, but the graugelds were our strongest allies, and with by father and brother consumed by grief, my other brother going to war, and the third unaccounted for, I fear that all of this... That there are still things to be settled."

[Noedig]

Hugon leaned forward, elbows on the table and hands clasped at his chin. He was silent for a long moment.

"I see. Please, voice your concerns. I am hear to listen. And have no worry of making offense. We have to set our own selves aside sometimes for the good of our people and the realm. We cannot allow personal feelings to cloud our judgments."

[drack]

"Firstly, I must ask why it is that you and your family of all the lords of the vale are to succeed the graugelds. Undoubtedly something you've grown tired of telling, but once more."

[Noedig]

"The Graugelds were my cousins, Dorian having known myself, my father very well and my grandfather passably. He was a boy then though, so that can be expected. When word reached us in Mistveil that they and the king were slain, my councilors and I deliberated as to the best course of action, and for the sake of the peoples of the Vale, we chose to take control. We may not look it, be we were the second most wealthy and powerful house in the Vale, chief banner men to the Graugelds and a chief supplier of their weapons, bows in particular. We also had plentiful wood for ships. The void they left had to be filled, especially with the North on the war footing. Are army wasn't as large, but it was skilled. Some of the houses took convincing, but eventually we were able to co-opt the resources of the Graugelds and add them to our own. After that, getting the other houses in the Vale to capitulate was a matter of course. Minimal bloodshed, no loss of peasantry, no loss of production. As clean a transition as could be hoped for."

[drack]

Alyssa listens to this all and nod at the end without questioning it. Slowly she reaches to one of the vacant chairs upon which a yellowing scroll lay, concealed from sight by the stag. Carefully she hands the ancient document to the new warden of the east. The document was a simple treaty signed by Dorian Graugeld and Marris Ray. In short it promised militant aid to the others nation when needed, and outlined a naval alliance through which the entirety of the narrow sea could be controlled by the two houses. "This too is part of what you are inheriting from your cousins, do you think you can honer these obligations in the future? Can you swear to it by the seven divine?"

[Noedig]

Hugon took the document and carefully unrolled it. He studied the contents swiftly but thoroughly. This helped explain where Dorian got his money from.

"Shared control of every shipping lane in the Narrow Sea and the assurance of allies when I need them. This treaty will benefit both of our houses. I would be an idiot not to agree to it. But before I do, there are some other things we should discuss. Who am I turning against me by agreeing, for instance. We are at a relative time of peace, for which I thank the gods, old and new. But we both know that won't last. Are you going to drag me into a war when things get ugly? And with who? You see my conundrum?"

[drack]

Alyssa appeared quite serious. She always seemed quite serious. "This is why it is that the graugelds were our closest ally. Just as you would not know who you might make an enemy of, neither would we. It is no simple decision, but it is one that must be decided on all the same."

[Noedig]

Hugon sat back and studied his options. He needed allies; this treaty provided a powerful one. He needed trade; this treaty provided it. The Ray's were not to be trifled with, and so nothing short of a great house would call them to the field and hope to be victorious. How many great houses would be willing to commit to a war like that? Especially with the North's loyalties an open question.

"Done. I swear before the gods, old and new, that House Malwood will honor the treaty set forth by our shared kin. My House will die before we turn our hand against you, lest you first turn your hand against us. Alone we are strong, together we will be unbreakable. This is my word. Is my oath acceptable?"

[drack]

Alyssa nods sagely. She cared nothing for the savage gods of the north, and she knew that Marris would swear the words to an alter when he say the scroll, but it might reassure the newly raised high lord to swear the oath herself first, a honest symbol for an honest man.

"And I, Alyssa Ray, swear on the seven divine that house Rays will honor the treaty set forth by our shared kin. United may only the seas claim more ships upon the narrow sea then us, and may our housed remain united against all foes never seeking to betray the other. This is my oath."

[Noedig]

A small smile crossed Hugon's face as he sat back in his chair.

"It is done then. I am glad that something of worth has happened on this trip. I had not hoped to gain anything in King's Landing but a sore knee and a new monarch. Now I have an ally. Speaking of our dearth of royalty at the moment, what do you make of our choices? Neither are ideal, but they each have virtues."

[drack]

Alyssa set the scroll before her new ally as a servant arrives with a quill.

Smiling kindly Alyssa idly comments "The walls ever have ears, especially in kings landing, or so I hear. Still I can't say that I have too much a prefferance one way or another. The only hostilities between the shattered coast and the oron islands was our alliance with the Reynes. Togeather the Graugelds, Rays, and Reynes could repel attacks from north or south bottle necking the whole of the seven kingdoms when it became necessary. Still the Reynes had their skirmishes with the Blacktydes, and were they not dead too I'd have suspected them for the Reynes disappearance. Without the Blacktydes and Reynes there's little reason to object to their rule, especially with the targarian as such a black horse."

Considering the scenario for a moment Alyssa continues. "I wouldn't be too surprised were our former prisoner to be assassinated in the coming weeks, and the Rays have flourished under targarian rule, so I'd hate to see him die, but the throne is so dynamic that it's present occupant matters little, and more importantly is not something to be decided by lords no matter how high."

[Noedig]

Hugon flashed a gallows smile as signed the parchment.

"Hmmph, agreed. This whole mess is tiresome. And on top of it all, there is a war brewing on my doorstep. The North has me worried, and everyone else I imagine. What are their words? 'Winter is coming?' Maybe they should change it to 'Wolves are coming.' That's certainly what it feels like.

[drack]

"More like lone wolf howling, so far no other house has come forth to fight with them, and while it'd be tough to fight them, they'd be fighting a war at the twins and in moat calin, not to mention along the coasts were we to deploy our navies. I don't know much of war, but I think when you're outnumbered, surrounded, and cut off that you're hardly fighting from any position of strength." Alyssa frowns slightly. "None would willingly put themselves in such a position unless they had a trump card, and if they don't then the kingslayer may be among us... We're operating under the assumption that they are not, but it is a possibility that cannot be altogether dismissed."

[Noedig]

"That business with the Freys though...I don't know. It may be I'm jumping at shadows. It has been a very tiring month, as I'm sure you can also attest to. You mentioned your brothers. How do they fare?"

[drack]

Alyssa shrugs. "They're the same as ever. Ridkard is probably our drinking to the dead, and Harkard is bravely marching to war. He's been itching to ride knights bane into battle for some time now..." Pride swelled in her chest as she spoke of her eldest brother. "What of your own family?" She asked, ignoring Bardif Ray. Everyone ignored Bardif, or at least tried to. He was a half wit after all.

[Noedig]

Hugon frowned and waved at the air dismissively.

"My son continues to be a nuisance. He is a good lad, but he devotes too much of his time to frivolous pursuits. You know how young men can be, especially the nobles. More coin and c*ck than sense. I had hoped he would learn something on this trip but I may have made a mistake when I ordered him along. My wife wanted to come, as did my daughters, but she's too good at managing my affairs, and they're too mischievous. I do miss them though. I hate leaving them alone with so much uncertain in the world, but I didn't have much choice. I had thought a queen had already been chosen, and as the new Lord of the Vale, I had to make an appearance. I'll be much happier when we're all safe behind the walls of the Eyrie."

He picked up a goblet and raised it to his lips but stopped.

"Your brother, Harkard. Is he marching north?"

[drack]

Yes. She replied openly. "He's gone to secure the king's lands as all the assembled lords decided to do. He's to take Harrenhall in order to prevent any foolish lords from thinking to flock to the wolf's banner. That one' he's got an unquenchable thirst for the gallant toils of war."

"How is it you intend to move against the north?"

[Noedig]

"That depends on the allegiance of the Twins. It's a natural choke point between my mountains and Ironman's Bay. If the Twins are unfriendly, it allows for an easy passage down the Kingsroad and a fortified seat for the tip of the spear plunge into the south. In that case, I would need to set up at the crossroads of Lord Harroway's Town and block that advance. If the Twins are friendly, I can set up there and guard the whole stretch of the Kingsroad. From there, you could push north to Moat Cailin and block the enemy from using the road again. The beauty and the bastard of the Vale is that you could bypass it and leave your rear unguarded or try to take it and smash yourself against the mountains."

Hugon set the goblet down, sat back and scratched his bearded chin.

"On the sea? White Harbor. House Manderly will side with the Starks if they go to war. Take that port, hold it and raze it to the ground if you can't, or get a few fleets in the bay to block trade and supplies from reaching any armies to the south. Oldcastle after that, then Ramsgate, the Dreadfort and finally Karhold. Like rolling up parchment, in theory at least. Once those ports are taken, the North would have to sail around the entire continent if they wanted to get a fleet to the Narrow Sea. And they'd have to go through the Saltcliffe's waters to do it. Not an appetizing prospect by any means."

[drack]

The twins isn't on the kings road. You only need to cross the twins to avoid passing by the vale when heading south =p See the map. moat calin is the only fort that need be taken and the twins are more a convenience for those arriving from the west in order to cross the river.


Alyssa looks hesitant, clearly wrestling with something. "Perhaps... Still I'm troubled that they might have an ace up their sleeve. I spoke with Nadia the other day, and she seemed guarded when I asked her who she considered a friend she became guarded and refused to speak further... You don't think..."

[Noedig]

Yeah, it's a ways off the Kingsroad, but it's a good spot to hole up, rest and regroup or to launch sorties from. And like you said that western route is something that people use. It does have to be guarded.

"Think what? That she's deceiving us? It would be a masterful ruse, but I doubt it. For the last month, she's been under the impression that she was going to be queen. And that was after the previous ruler was assassinated. She has probably been more than a little paranoid because of that. Talking about friends and enemies and the like could be more than enough to alarm her. Also, she's no older than my son, barely an adult, and she was nearly made queen of Westeros. She was probably genuinely afraid on top of everything else."

Hugon stared into space for a moment, considering.

"But you wouldn't voice these concerns idly. You were the one who mentioned ears. Did anything else happen to give you this impression?"

[drack]

Alyssa, younger then Nadia, and feeling her youth flushes slightly. "No... Not particularly... that is, it's more that I can't tell what she's thinking, and she uses words as a measter might, and she gave me some kind of look when I spoke up in the small council chamber. Not one of reproach or of refusal, but as if she were singling me out... And I'd think one might be eager to reestablish friendships in such troublesome times, not recoil from them..."


Yup, Alyssa would totally suspect Nadia and have taken a dislike to her. Anywho, to clarify some of the above nadia has crazy high diplomacy and bluff (20s and 30s I think, mighta been low 40s since diplo number wasn't actually given, just stated as over 37), so she's convincing and a good lier. This would only serve to make Alyssa more cautious.

[Noedig]

Hugon shrugged and smile flashed across his face. The situation reminded him of how his daughters would sometimes behave; like two angry she-wolves crossing paths. His tone softened slightly.

"She could have been. Singling you out I mean. Like a master fencer might study a dangerous opponent. You cowed Dagon Saltcliffe into leaving the council room. Appreciate that for a moment. I couldn't have done that. Nadia might have been able to, but you saw how he derided her. And you did embarrass her about having a weapon in the room. Maybe she resented that. Who knows? But you did make an impression, and I think it may have been one as a rival. I recall you shepherding the conversation very expertly in the direction of questioning her right to rule. And while I doubt she wanted to be queen, implying that she was unfit for the duty, however nicely put, could have rankled her. How would you react in her place after that? Much the same I should imagine."

[drack]

"So you do think she thinks of me as an opponent." Alyssa frowns. "In any case I'd never find myself in her place. I have no desire to be a queen, only to marry a brave lord and watch our children grow. To teach them their proper manners and council them when they're in need." Somehow despite her youth she seems older then her years, with more discipline and control then most, and with more a sense of realism about her fantasies despite her beliefs in valiant lords with brave knights.

[BelGareth]

Drack, could you rename this thread, its confusing.

Also, how much time has passed since the meeting?

[drack]

Will do. Anywho it's within a day or two of the meeting. Hopefully soon enough for nothing to have gone terribly array. =p

[Noedig]

"I wouldn't worry terribly. Remember though, that most conversations between high lords and ladies are not half as open or honest as the one we are having. You obviously know that already, but sometimes I find it infuriating. I'm a fairly simple man. I like simple answers to simple questions. This constant back and forth, implications and evasions, veiled threats and subtle innuendo. It's enough to drive anyone to madness."

[drack]

"As we have discovered." Alyssa replies solemnly.

[Noedig]

Hugon nodded and thumped the table lightly with an open hand.

"So, ally, I should leave this treacherous double speak behind for an evening at least. You invited me to dine with you; shall we then eat, and speak perhaps of simpler things? Otherwise, we shall prove once and for all time that such things are impossible for people of our stature."

[drack]

Chuckling Alyssa commands her servants to re-heat the meal.

[Noedig]

As the meal was prepared a second time, Hugon gestured to the stag with his wine goblet.

"That's a fine beast. Not as big as they get in the Vale, but very fine. Who shot him?"

[drack]

Watching the mean be served a second time, Alyssa takes a bite of a sweet plumb, chewing and swallowing before she replied. "One of my hunters or another. Plenty a strong young bucks grow in the stormlands inland a ways from the shattered coast. Still, tell me more of the stags in your lands. Are they as fierce as the shadowcats I hear tell of?"

[Noedig]

Hugon chuckled as he gnawed on a bit of bread.

"Shadow cats are little more than a nuisance if you know how to hunt them. I made one into a cloak for my wife. My master of the hunt killed its mate and made two cloaks for my daughters. Damn thing broke my arm with its jaws; got what I deserved for taking the prize before the battle was won. The stags though, are sometimes very large. Some you could ride as you would a horse, and those antlers are not just for show. I've seen men, professional hunters, killed by mountain stags."

Hugon cut a portion of the stag for himself and ate it. It was delightfully seasoned.

"Mmm, I will say though, these southern stags taste better. The meats softer as well. You have to boil mine or it's like chewing tanned hide. Do you and your brothers find much opportunity to hunt yourselves?"

[drack]

"Me?" Alyssa laughed. "I don't hunt silly, I sew and embroider." Proudly she gestures to the bright wall hangings and carpets, each coming alive with it's own vibrancy and color. Many seem to be different depictions of the Ray symbol, whilst others depict scenes of heroism from tales, and even a few depict young small folk at work, perhaps children of the wild?

Taking a small bite of tart she clears some invisible crumbs from her mouth with a napkin. "My brothers however have done more then their fair share. Riskard makes sure no bird in his domain is free, and Harkard as often as not rides knightsbane behind a stag until it practically impales itself on his spear, though the way he tells of it you'd think he was in the trenches fighting a war against the creatures." Laughter welled up from her at the thought. Harkard was a mighty warrior, the slayer of husbands and wives, the former captain of the vengeful tide, the most feared ship in all the narrow sea... or at least it had been before the storms claimed the ship far out at sea. It's said that Harkard had swam miles beyond count to shore in that heavy armor of his, battling off sharks the whole of the way, and the way he told it more then a few kraken too. Still to her he'd always be her brother, a man never caught without a joke, and perhaps he had seen horrors most men couldn't have imagined, but for her he'd always brought a smile that couldn't have been faked, and queer jokes and stories that made humor of the most gruesome of battlefields and the hardest won battles.

[Noedig]

Hugon stood and went to study the tapestries, goblet in hand.

"Impressive work, Lady Ray. I see in your work, skill, dedication, attention to detail, precision. You have quite a talent. And these will outlast any thrill of a hunt. I suppose that's one of the reasons we keep going out into the woods. The joy is over too quick."

[drack]

Alyssa laughed. "Oh come now my lord, I've seen hunters enjoying their hunt for a fortnight afterwards, and every time the game gains ten more pounds and three more rows of teeth!"

[Noedig]

Hugon half turned and gave a wolfish grin.

"No offense to your brother, but I've been told the longer a man tells a tale, the larger his tale will become. I don't tell tales; I make cloaks. They speak louder than any words I could say. I should like to hunt with him some day. You make him out to be quite the champion."

[drack]

"I'm sure he'd enjoy that, though I hope I have not given you false hopes. After all my brothers are only mortal, why Treemore Monray gives Harkard a run for his money every year that they fight for the title of champion of our fine realm." Still, Treemore Monray was a very different man. The way it was told, if Harkard Ray reveled in and savored battle, Treemore Monray gorged himself on it, believing that the highest honor he could do for the warrior was to hack his enemies along the field until their blood stained him as the great dragon's blood had bathed his ancestors. It was not any house that could claim dragon slaying in their house history, and if rumors were true Treemore Monray was the sort of man who'd willingly fight any dragon placed before him, and, depending on the dragon, it's said he might have a chance, the bloodthirsty scoundrel.

[Noedig]

"I've never participated in a tourney before. Perhaps I shall rectify that when a new monarch is crowned. They usually have them for that sort of event, correct?"

[drack]

"Sometimes, though the last tourney began with the death of the king and his family, so I'm not too sure when they'll have another."

[Noedig]

"They'll be better guarded this time, I hope. For my own wedding, my father organized tournament of sorts. Three days before the ceremony, I was taken from my room in the middle of the night, bound, gagged and blindfolded. Then I was placed over the back of a horse and carried sixty miles away into the mountains. My father told me that if I could make it back to the godswood of the castle in three days time, I could be married."

[drack]

Half expecting the man to say he hadn't made it back and had to wait or choose a new wife, Alyssa asks. "And you made it back in three days?"

[Noedig]

Roric turned back to Alyssa with a wolfish grin.

"Two. My father liked Corenna, so he armed his best legion, some twenty five hundred men, with wooden weapons and blunted arrows and sent them to harry me through the wilderness and make sure I made it in time. He was a...traditional sort of man. When I reached the godswood I had a broken hand, several broken toes, cracked ribs and a broken nose. Corenna and I were married a day early though, so I considered it worth it. I think I shall do the same to Roric when he marries."

He walked back to the table and took his seat. He refilled his goblet and took a sip.

"If he marries."

[drack]

"You don't think he has prospects?" Alyssa asks, somewhat concerned.

[Noedig]

Hugon gave a derisive snort.
"Mere mention of the word 'marriage' sends him scurrying to the nearest brothel. I keep trusting him to grow out of it, but each year he proves me wrong. I haven't quite given up hope though. I married when I was twenty, so maybe he'll come around this year."

[drack]

"Is the problem not then the brothel?" Alyssa inquires. She had always found the notion vulgar. There were no brothels along the shattered coast, and even the gods themselves counted whoring among the sins.

[Noedig]

Hugon drummed the table with his thumb and was silent for a long moment.

"Not entirely. I think he does it to spite me. Things have been...difficult between my son and I. This last month especially."

[drack]

"Because of the graugelds?"

[Noedig]

Hugon was silent for a full minute, warring internally .

"Well, no....and yes. To have the responsibilities and problems of a nation of people thrust upon you so suddenly is hard. Harder than I anticipated, if I may be frank. You have to set yourself aside, your wants, your needs, for the good of the people you rule. My transition from banner-man to leader has not been easy for my children to accept. My daughters merely miss me. My son resents me, I think."

[drack]

"Resents you? Has he any reason to?" Alyssa asks, shocked at the thought.

[Noedig]

Hugon frowned. Roric had several reasons.

"Children are often in error whether through willful disobedience or ignorance. It's no more than that. It is of no concern."

He continued to dine in silence.

[drack]

Alyssa allows the silence to drag on for a time. When it comes time, however, that the horse is taken away, and the elaborate pies and cakes are set forth she casually inquires as to how well the newly elevated malwood lordship has taken to him.

[Noedig]

"The only differences now is the scale of what I rule, and the company I keep. In all other respects, my duties have remained the same. The challenges are harder, but then the tools I have to solve them are better. I travel more, but that isn't all bad. I always make it back."