The penitence of the wolf - Enemies of the dragon beware... (Patreon)

Elia Martell, the Red Keep, King’s Landing

"I don't understand how you can stand this," Cersei said with a disgusted face

Elia raised an eyebrow in amusement, as she sipped her tea

"It's an acquired taste, and since I can't drink wine by the king's order, neither will you when you're with me," Elia said with amusement, enjoying the face of agony on Cersei's face

"Besides, you drink too much, you know very well that the king will punish you as soon as he returns, and not in the way you enjoy," Elia said, taking a bite of the cookies that Maya had made for her

Oh how she loved her little pet, she would make sure to give her a nice treat one of these days

Cersei looked at the teacup as if it were her biggest rival, before taking another sip

"It's hard to put down wine when I have to deal with the usual morons, including my father," said the lioness with a sigh

And Elia nodded, understanding the pressure Cersei was feeling

Since her appointment, the entire Council questioned the choice of the monarch, including Tywin himself, all advised the king that Lady Cersei was not the right one for the position, that she was too young or that she lacked experience

And even so, the monarch stood firm, placing his trust in the young lioness

Something that, Elia knew, Cersei appreciated too much and cemented her loyalty to the monarch even more

And which, ironically, pressured her to do her duties perfectly

Normally, the monarch would calm Cersei's anxiety with a wild fuck, but months had passed and the stress was killing the young lioness, who needed her mature dragon to tame her again

Elia couldn't blame her, she was the same with Rhaegar, the month he was in Summerhall was the longest of her life, and the pregnancy didn't help, Elia was in a constant state of excitement and terrible mood swings

To be honest, she felt some pity for her beloved husband and the servants at the castle, the night before, Elia had an unbearable craving for cod spiced with blood orange juice

At the hour of the wolf...

The princess shook her head in embarrassment, remembering all the commotion in the castle the night before, and how poor Maya woke up to cook for her while her son Dalton ran around the fortress bringing her the necessary fish, oranges, and spices

"Where is the prince?" Cersei asked curiously

Elia smiled and spoke

"Flying with Sun Strider, he will spend the day supervising the construction of the Dragon Tower, so we can chat without any worries," Elia said, suddenly becoming serious

Cersei noticed this and discreetly pulled a scroll from her sleeve and handed it to the princess

“They are the names of the whores that the high Septon hires on a regular basis, he is a simple creature of habit, on the first day of the week, during the third bell, he always asks the ebony-skinned whore Chataya, a young woman from the summer islands who does not have much time in the city,  however, that is not what is really interesting, but, in the words of this Chataya, the imbecile enjoys being sodomized and all sessions end in the same way” Cersei said with a look full of cruelty

Elia nodded, that information had potential, although she had to be cautious

Even if he was a nuisance, the Septon was predictable, a man of excess who abused his power and position, but if he was disposed of, someone worse or competent could always come along to take his place

"It's a start, and it could be the final strike, but we need to weaken them even more," Elia said with a frown

Cersei just shrugged and took another sip, before answering

"I began to spread rumors about the Faith in general throughout the city, using the ego of the commoners," said the lioness with evident pride

Elia, obviously curious, made a gesture, asking her to give her details

"I sent some of my agents to the markets and ports to spread the rumor that the Faith misused the offerings, that the septas and Septons mock them and that they consider them stupid obedient sheep, the feeling of discontent is growing every day” said the lioness, pleasing Elia

“It's a start, now we must give real evidence, do you have any objectives?” asked the princess

And to Elia's disappointment, Cersei shook her head

"I have prospects, but no certainty, the important thing is that the royal house remains firm in its position, that the public opinion of the king and the prince remains in high esteem."

And in that, Elia agreed with her

"Still, we must have a backup plan, do you have any emissaries among the king's alchemists?" Elia asked, as she began to form a plan, a ruthless one, in her mind

Cersei focused all her attention on Elia, crossing one leg over the other and bringing her body closer to the princess, totally concentrated

“I have it, what do you want to commission?” asked the lioness

Elia was silent for a while, until she simply said

"Something simple, a controlled demolition tool and, one that, coincidentally, they lose it in the foundations of the Sept of Baelor, with all the believers inside, a prevention measure only, of course," Elia said in a cold voice

After all, she wouldn't leave any threat to her daughter unattended

Cersei, understanding the commission, looked at Elia with only one feeling in her eyes

Total respect

"It will be done, although the prince will be informed," Cersei warned

Elia nodded and replied

"I have nothing to hide, if he questions the order, send him to me, I will make him come to his senses," said the princess, caressing her belly gently

Her family's enemies would be exterminated, one way or another, the legacy that Aerys Targaryen was building would be the inheritance of her children, so Elia would fight with everything to protect it

To her last breath

Leaving the subject behind, Elia looked at Cersei, now with a sincere smile and asked

“How is the construction of your fortress going?” she asks, enjoying how Cersei's face gained a look of satisfaction

And Elia understood her perfectly, outside of Dorne, that women ruled under their own name was not common, that the monarch had established that Cersei would rule her own lands and only answer to him was something really incredible and revolutionary for the kingdom

Which filled Elia with hope for her princess, it was evident that the monarch did not look down on women for not having a dick, so a crazy idea had been brewing inside Elia for months

That a princess of the kingdom was not growing within her

But a Queen, the first Targaryen Queen in history

At least recognized, Elia thought with obvious contempt, thinking of the fiasco that was the Dance

There was a lot to plan, but the future looked bright for the House of the Dragon

Ser Brynden Tully, the Twins

"Are you all right, Brother Brynden?" asked Ser Gerold, both dressed in their pristine white armor, guarding King Aerys, who was dining at the central table with Lord Frey

"Yes, brother Gerold, it's just that, I've never seen the Freys so...Civilized," confessed the white fish, as he observed the whole room

The huge and still growing Frey clan was behaving in the best way, there were no fights, there was no shouting, just perfection

“You know this is a ruse, right? They are trying to soften our king to try to convince him to remove the restriction," said the white bull, maintaining his impassive demeanor

"I know," said Brynden, however, even if he was prepared and knew his king's brilliant plan, the white fish had always had a dismal opinion of the present Lord Frey

"Do you want anything more than your grace? The hospitality of the Twins is at your complete service," said the old man in a sickly and complacent voice, while beautiful servants, who were clothed in revealing and scandalous garments, prostrated themselves submissively before the king, waiting for orders

The monarch elegantly made a gesture to indicate the refusal, although he observed the women quite carefully, an act that did not go unnoticed by Lord Frey

"I'll make sure they're bathed and ready in your chambers tonight your grace hahaha"

Brynden watched as the king smiled, showing his approval of the old man's actions, though Brynden had spent too much time with the monarch to identify a mask when he saw it

The king was smiling and his face was relaxed, but his eyes were cold as winter, watching Lord Frey like a dragon watches prey

Brynden watched as Lord Frey ordered the maids to go bathing and perfume to please the king that night, before turning his attention back to the great hall

"I must say, that your family's reputation is not the best My Lord, but so far, the education and attention has been pristine, perhaps the kingdom has misjudged you," said the king in a loud voice, causing several of the nearby Freys to puff out their chests in pleasure and a look of satisfaction to appear on old Walder's face

"I am glad to hear that, your grace, if you wish for anything else, do not hesitate to ask for it, and it will be done," said the old man with false solemnity

The king nodded calmly and leaned on the assigned throne, for anyone who did not know him, the monarch was totally "relaxed"

Alas, Brynden knew how cunning the dragon king could be, who, at this moment, was simply laying the bait and nothing else 

And noticing Walder's face, he was succeeding

"Your grace, I'd like to chat about a particular subject," said the old man with caution and simpering on his face

Brynden could tell that he hated it, which pleased him even more, to be honest

The white fish never liked the Freys

The monarch made a gesture of calmness, signaling the Lord to speak

"I would like to talk about the royal decree you imposed on the toll to use the bridge," said the old man cautiously

"What's with that? The stipulated amount is more than enough for a noble thing to live comfortably, besides that, with the new tariff, the number of merchants will also increase," said the king calmly

Brynden watched in amusement as Walder's smile seemed to transform into a grimace for a moment, before returning to normal

"I understand your grace, but I consider that the amount set is too low, I would like to appeal your decision" said the man cautiously

Brynden snorted at the pathetic sight, Walder Frey was a cowardly man and although he did not doubt for a moment that he spoke shit about the king and the royal family for weeks after receiving the news, the putrid being did not hesitate to lick the king's boots as soon as he had him in front of him

Utterly despicable, in Brynden's view

The king stroked his chin, "analyzing" Walder's words

"I understand your position, what do you propose my lord?" asked the king, and Brynden watched as the old man's eyes shone with triumph

Walder bowed to the king and said

“Adjust the rate your grace”

Quickly, Aerys responded firmly

“I will not accept the original rate, it is too high and you charged it for too long”

The old man raised his hands in a reassuring gesture and said

"Not anything like that, your grace, but maybe charge half the original rate?" said the old man, his hands trembled and he was quite tense, Brynden assumed that he was not happy with the amount imposed

The king seemed to consider it, until he began to nod slowly

"It might be possible; however, the house Frey would have to grant certain concessions," said the king, taking another sip from his glass

Walder made a triumphant look at first, which quickly died at the word "concessions"

“What kind of concessions?” asked the old man cautiously

The king simply smiled and something inside Brynden told him that he would enjoy the next conversation

The next full hour, Brynden listened as the monarch approved the change in the bridge fee, in exchange for the Freys agreeing to produce certain tons of food and sell them at a fixed price to the Crown, as well as the repair of the King's Road from the beginning of the neck till the end of their land, plus the new fee could not be implemented until Lord Frey's part was complete

It was a restrictive and extremely favorable deal for House Targaryen, but it was one that would allow the Freys to return to their abusive prices, in theory, Walder Frey would spend a large amount of gold to buy royal approval to continue imposing his exorbitant toll

Poor Walder Frey, he did not know that, by royal order, a system of rafts was being built at Maidenpool, run by House Mooton, to connect the Riverlands with the Vale, and worse, that another bridge was being built at Castle Darry, which would give the rest of the continent something they had never had to cross north

Options

The old man had wanted to deceive the king and turned out to be the deceived one, much to Brynden's pleasure

And apparently, the second part of the plan was about to begin

"It seems to be time," Gerold whispered, as he watched as one of Lord Frey's oldest children, Aenys, entered the room, his face contorted with fury, in his hands was a scroll and, to Brynden's amusement, an intimate garment

Walder and the monarch watched the interruption, watching as Aenys Frey walked towards Lord Frey's eldest son and heir, Lord Stevron

"HOW COULD YOU!! IDIOT!!" Aenys blurted out furiously, as he pounced on his surprised brother

Stevron quickly stood up and pushed Aenys away from him and blurted out

"What the hell are you talking about, you fool?" totally offended by his younger brother's audacity

“YOU FUCKED MY WIFE! YOU FUCKED THE WHORE THAT ONLY I COULD FUCK!” shouted the man starting a scandal in the place

Brynden looked at Stevron's face, who looked confused and stunned by the accusation

The aforementioned woman stood up in anguish and ran towards Aenys said

“My love, what are you talking about? that didn't happen…AAAHGH” screamed the woman as she fell to the ground when she received a slap in the face from her husband

“SILENCE BITCH! I FOUND YOUR SCROLL, ABOUT HOW YOU WOULD GET ME DRUNK TODAY AND THAT YOU WOULD GO RIDE MY BROTHER'S DICK IN THE STABLES! BESIDES FINDING YOUR DAMN SMALLCLOTH IN HIS ROOM!!” Aenys roared out of his mind, causing the controlled and false environment of the dining room to begin to be warned

Suddenly, screams and curses began to fly around the place, and then the blows followed

The monarch, furious, looked at Walder Frey and said

"What a pathetic spectacle is this? Control your family Frey," the monarch looked utterly offended to the point that, if Brynden wasn't familiar with the plan, he would have believed the outrage was real

And not just a calculated piece of the plan

Walder nodded, looking at his family with obvious contempt and shouting

“CONTROL YOURSELVES, EVERYONE!” trying to take control of the situation, however, the wine had flowed and the blood was burning, so he was unsuccessful

Suddenly, the blows began, Aenys hit her brother in the face, causing Stevron to fall and out of nowhere, a tumult was born among the "civilized" great hall of the Twins 

"Furious" at the pathetic spectacle, the king stood up and roared

"SILENCE" at the same time as Rhaegar roared outside the castle shaking the whole place and stopping the fighting

And then, tragedy struck

“Stevron!!” shouted a woman, whom Brynden assumed was the wife of the aforementioned Stevron, as she ran towards the body lying in the center of the room

Stevron Frey was lying on the ground, drowning in his own blood with a stab in his throat, as he raised his arms to his brother Aenys, who was shocked, but visibly furious, with a sharp bloodied knife in his hand  

“I didn't do it; I DIDN'T DO THIS!!” roared the altered man

Aerys quickly took control of the situation and began to give orders

“GUARDS, A murder has occurred, arrest Aenys Frey, NOW!” order the dragon

And they all obeyed

The aforementioned Aenys was dragged into the cells, screaming and swearing that he was not responsible, while the maester confirmed the death of Lord Frey's eldest son and heir

"Enough for tonight," said the monarch, his face impassive and evidently disgusted

Walder was upset, but tried to speak again

"Your grace, I..." but the king raised a hand and said

"I don't want to hear it, a nobleman died in this hall my lord, watch over your son and tomorrow I will prosecute the person responsible, prepare everything, I will retire for today," said the king and without waiting for an answer, he left the hall, escorted by Brynden and Gerold

The last thing Brynden noticed was the look of fury and helplessness on his face as he watched his son's body being covered, while he looked at the rest of his family with obvious contempt

The night was just beginning for the weasels, Brynden thought

The plan had gone perfectly, two of Walder Frey's three eldest sons were out of the way, leaving Emmon Frey, the husband of the King's mistress as direct heir

Something told Brynden that Lady Genna would be a widow pretty soon

He was not wrong