Fire and Blood

Chapter 34: Political Scandals, New Players

Vale of Arryn ― Runestone...

Near the castle of Runestone, the ancestral seat of House Royce, a noble person donning bronze armor with black pebbles along her breastplate, rode out in the fields of the Vale before daybreak to embark on an early hunting trip. Lady Rhea Royce, the ruler of Runestone and estranged wife of Prince Daemon Targaryen, readied her bow while searching for deer. Ever since word arrived of her marriage being annulled, Rhea felt a sense of relief wash across her, finally freed from her unhappy marriage with Daemon, though some felt House Royce's honor had been slighted. Although she received an invitation to attend the Summer Festival in King's Landing, Rhea was one of the few who declined the offer.

"Good morning, Lady Rhea," arrived Ser Gerold. A fellow relative of House Royce, he was an older, stoic, and honorable man who wore armor like Rhea's.

"Cousin," Rhea acknowledged.

"What's today's quarry? Rabbit?"

"Deer."

"Oh, fine challenge. Care for some company?"

"I'd rather ride alone." Rhea kicked the sides of her horse, motioning the animal to ride off.

"Well... Good fortune to you then," Gerold conceded.

Indeed, Rhea was known in the Vale for her profound skills in riding and hunting. She didn't require any assistance from anyone if the Lady of Runestone knew there were quarries she could easily handle on her own, be they wildlife or other people. Rhea had already bagged herself some plentiful poultry which remained strapped to her saddle for eventual de-feathering. But once she rode to return home, Rhea encountered several individuals blocking her path. There were five of them, each of them wearing clothing that was not of Westerosi origins. They appeared... foreign. Rhea instinctively directed her horse's gallop to slow down to a stop. How are these men? And why were they trespassing on her lands? "You impede my path. What is your business here?" Rhea bluntly demanded.

None of them responded.

"Then I assume you have no reason for being in the Vale. Now stand aside."

Still, no one answered her and they steadily crept closer.

"Keep your distance, the lot of you," Rhea warned impatiently. "And one more time, I command you, as Lady of Runestone, to stand aside." The sound of rocks being moved behind her caused Rhea's attention on the people in front of her to break. Turning around, she saw there were six more. Now she had reason to be wary. They had effectively cut off her route. Five in front, six behind. An ambush... Her horse whinnies and slowly backs up; the animal sensed danger and was frightened. Rhea's gaze quickly returned to the five in front of her only to realize they had gotten too dangerously close. She reaches for her bow, but her sudden actions and the rush of the five startled Rhea's horse, causing it to rear its hind legs and stumble backward, falling on its back and inadvertently throwing her to the ground.

As the horse got back on its feet, it ran away in terror as the men closed in all around Rhea who remained helpless on the ground. Rhea's breathing trembled; she tried to reach for her bow to defend herself but found herself unable to move. Her neck was broken. Now seeing the men surrounding her, one pressed his foot on her arm to confirm her status.

"Cowards! Cravens!" Rhea shouted in defiance.

None paid her any heed, each of them taking turns beating into the helpless Lady of Runestone before one picked up a nearby heavy stone to finish her off. Once the deed was done, they gazed upon the unsightly Rhea who now ceased twitching.

"Our mission here is complete," one uttered in a thick Lyseni accent.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" spoke up another. "Let's head to their capital!"