(Game of Thrones) The Weirwood Wolf

Bastard kings court

In the throne room of the Red Keep the entire Lannister Court had been assembled. Westerland Lords, both those with great holdfasts and those who had lost theirs to the Bloody Wolf. Chief amongst the Lords of the West was Lord Crakehall. He was Tybolt Crakehall, the Son of the Strongboar. The Strongboar had died in the Battle of the Camps outside the walls of Riverrun at the start of the War. Five Mallister knights he felled before falling himself.

When news of his fathers death reached Tybolts ears he was filled with fury. The new Lord of Crakehall rallied all the men he could, green-boys and greybeards, veterans and recruits, mercenaries and hedge knights. Other Lords of the Westerlands pledged their own men-at-arms to Tybolt in hopes of achieving revenge against the Starks for their own losses endured during the War of the Five Kings.

Two hundred heavy cavalry from the West, one hundred Pentoshi free-riders, three hundred heavy infantry that survived the Battle of the Camps and three hundred green boys with nothing but their fathers rusted sword and dreams of glory. Nine hundred they numbered when they set out from Crakehall. They rode hard and struck harder. They nipped at the heels of Robb Stark and his brothers  as he campaigned across the Riverlands until the Lord of Crakehall was summoned to his Lord.

Lord Tybolt spent the better part of a year disrupting the Northmen's supply lines and raiding the Riverlands but when news came from Tywin Lannister that he must make haste to Kings-Landing, as Stannis was readying his fleet for a siege, then who was he to refuse the call. It was in Kings-Landing Tybolt remained despite his urging the Old Lion refused to make any moves against the Starks before he was sure they could win. This nurtured a deep resentment in the Strongboars son.

Aside from the Westerland Lords there were also many Lords of the Reach present at court. When the Lords of the Reach arrived at Kings-Landing, after Renly's death at the hand of dark magic, they defeated Stannis at the Mud gate along with the Western Host. The Reach Lords also brought with them the South's great bounty. Grain and crop enough to feed the city ten times over. Mace Tyrell also arrived with sixty thousand Reachmen and a daughter he wanted as a Queen.

There were many Reach Lords assembled but one stood out amongst the rest. Lord Randyll Tarly, Lord of Horn Hill. He had a short white beard and a bald head. He was old yet stronger than a man half his age. His clothes presented the wealth of the Reach and of his Family, deep forrest green surcoat with a striding red hunter embroidered above the heart. Their families great sword hung at his back. The hilt is wrought in the shape of a bow and arrow, with the pommel fashioned as arrow fletching, and the crossguard forming the limbs of the bow. This reflects the sigil of House Tarly, the huntsman. Heartsbane is was called and many a heart it had claimed.

Usually the Lords second born son and heir would be at his side, Dickon Tarly was a strong lad, skilled with a blade but more skilled wiyy the his mind. Like his father he was said to have a back for warfare. However his only chance to prove his skill was during the War in the Kings Wood. It was between these trees and in these battles that Dickon Tarly's youth and inexperience shone. He was soundly defeated by the Blackfish, crippled by Lord Stormcloak and his army routed. Now the Lord of Horn Hill refused to allow his son to be seen at court. Disgraced by his sons failure and that he was now a cripple.

There were also houses from the Crownlands. Most of these Houses abandoned the Iron Throne and the Baratheon-Lannister rule after being subjected to the Mountains terror and instead offered allegiance to the Baratheon Brothers but after both were defeated they resubmitted themselves to the rule of King Joffrey Baratheon the First of his Name.

It was King Joffrey that the Lords stood facing. He sat upon the Iron Throne looking down upon his subjects with distain. His Grandfather Lord Tywin Lannister stood at his side and his mother on his other side. At the base of the steps stood four Knights of the Kings Guard, Ser Loras Tyrell, The White Rose. Ser Meryn Trant and Ser Boros Blount. The largest and most imposing was Ser Sandor Clegane, the Hound. He wore the silver and white scaled armour and the white cloak like the rest but he also had a large steel helm, depicting a snarling hound. Sandor was also the only Kingsguard to use a large greatsword instead of a longsword.