Stannis' mistake

Stannis' mistake

Tyrion POV

King's Landing was a busy city with a grand wedding in a month. The war beyond the city's wall was not forgotten, however. Thousand of refugees from the Westerlands seeking refuge in the city would remind us that we were still losing the war. My father found Stannis' mercy foolish as it let him recruit more men into the city watch or his army.

Quite a few young men were easily riled up to pick up a sword and fight against the usurper Stannis. Some older men were taken as they had no work in the city and no coin to feed their families. With the previous efforts and new blood coming to King's Landing, the city's watch bolstered their numbers to seven thousand, and Lannister's army reached twenty thousand.

The Tyrells still have at least ten thousand of their forces in King's Landing. So, my father has already considered sending another host to the Riverlands or the Westerlands. I wasn't informed of the details as it didn't concern me. I would have fought against that if I wasn't swarmed by other work.

"Podrick, the wine is gone," It was already late at night, but I was still buried under work.

My faithful squire heard my pleading and came with a new bottle of wine and some cheese to snack on. There was much to do. At least the Tyrells would take care of the most expenses for the wedding. They would hire chefs and servants to provide food for all the guests. But we still needed gold.

With the blockade of Stannis' fleet still underway, we didn't have much trade that I could tax. It wasn't easy to bring new products to the city too. Iron for swords and armor was scarce in King's Landing, almost all used up by the armies. Yet smallfolk needed it too. From cooking wares to tools for artisans, everyone required iron.

Good thing that winter has not yet come. I couldn't even imagine how we could provide enough coal and firewood for all the smallfolk. We should have to start cutting down Kingswood. It was already too much to let people hunt in the forest. I doubted that either Joffrey or my father would agree to cut down the symbol of power to the crown.

"My lord, mayhaps you should rest?" Podrick looked at me with concerned eyes.

"Mayhaps you know how to feed more than half a million people?" I asked but regretted my words immediately. "No, you're right. I am too tired to do any meaningful work."

Podrick doesn't deserve my ire. He was the only one I could trust in this damn city. The boy was too honest to lie to me, too ready to please to be conspiring behind my back. He was meant as an insult to my achievements, but he became integral to my day-to-day life. He was always there when I needed him and always helpful.

I was angry and frustrated that I needed somehow to feed the ever-growing population of King's Landing. The Tyrells have already started raising grain prices, and the smallfolk began to blame me for the increase in coins they must spend to eat. I did not doubt that it was the work of the Tyrells to spread false rumors about me.

We needed more gold for the city to function as it should. We have been cut off from the Westerlands, and even if we chased Stannis from our lands, it was already too ravaged to demand support from lords. The pressure was tremendous, but I knew I could handle it. There has to be a way to turn everything around. At least without Theon Greyjoy around, the Ironborn seemed to have calmed down.

"My lord, my lord," Before I could finish today's work and get some shut-eye, a man barged into my solar.

"Who are you, and what do you want?" Podrick intercepted the man before he could get through the doors.

"My apologies, but lord Hand has summoned everyone for counsel. It is of the most import that everyone gathers in the Throne room."

So much for my rest. I sighed in annoyance and motioned for Podrick to follow me to the throne room. If it was that urgent, it was probably related to the war. Another battle lost, maybe? We needed to start winning some. We were already weakened too much. It is only a matter of time before we start losing the loyalty of our lords and knights. And now we can't even buy their loyalty.

…

The small council commenced late at night, so it took time for the rest to arrive. The last to come was lord Mace Tyrell and Maester Pycelle. It looked like Jaime hadn't gone to sleep either, as he didn't look like he was just woken up. The King decided not to show up as he was too tired, and it could wait until the morning.

"I have gathered everyone to inform them of a critical report I received from lord Varys," My father didn't bother with courtesies. "It seems we were wrong to asses that Stannis will march straight to King's Landing."

"But what else is he going to do?" I asked. "I'm sure he has sent some spies with the refugees. If he isn't going to siege King's Landing, will he return to help lord Edmure in the Riverlands?"

"No, we assumed by the way he was marching through Gold Road that he would give another chance at the siege of the city," Varys, the spider, answered. "But I received a report from one of our spies that he has turned south rather than go east along Gold Road."

"South?" Mace Tyrell asked. "Is he marching to the Reach?"

"The report states that he is cutting through the planes between Gold Road and Roseroad," My father informed us.

"That makes no sense," Jaime commented. "Does he want to march through Kingswood? But it would mean we would have Blackwater Bay between him and us. It isn't an advantageous position. Unless he doesn't have any intention to strike."

"Does he wish to use Roseroad to get into the Stormlands?" Mace asked, concerned. "Could it be that he wants to gather all the men left in his home before he turned to us?"

"Neither," It all came together for me. "He wants to starve the city without a siege."

"What? How?" Lord Mace Tyrell asked.

"Bitterbridge," I answered, and it seemed Jaime and my father understood what I meant, but I continued for lord Mace. "He will take Bitterbridge and block all resources coming from the Reach. Without the Riverlands, we will only have the Crownlands to feed the city."

"And we have an army we need to feed at the Riverlands," Jaime added.

"That is why he has spared and sent all the smallfolk to the city," My father concluded. "He knows he doesn't have enough men to take the city yet, but taking one victory after another and forcing the city to sustain itself with all the additional people inside would weaken us and our hold over the people."

"Then he only needs to wait for the riots to intensify in the city before marching to take it," Jaime added. "No matter how many men we have, if we have to divide our attention towards the inside of the city, Stannis will use our weakness."

"Then we must stop him!" Mace Tyrell shouted. "Enough time we have spent doing nothing. Let's march and meet him in battle."

"Where?" Jaime asked. "Even if we took all the men we have in the city if Stannis manages to take Bitterbridge, he will have an advantage. We could send support for Lord Tarly and help him take the Riverlands. But again, even if we win, it will take too much time with the defenses Lord Tully has built."

"We shall retake the Westerlands," Tywin Lannister spoke. "Stannis might think he pushed us into a corner, but his actions gave us an opportunity. We shall gather twenty thousand men from my army and yours, lord Mace. We shall liberate Lannisport and let your son join us, and then we shall meet Stannis on the Battlefield."

"He might anticipate our actions," I said.

"He will, but he has split his army too many times," Jaime stated. "He cannot coordinate with all his forces efficiently, especially in foreign lands."

"We have been waiting for this mistake," Father stated. "Now that we were provided one, we shall take the opportunity."

It was what we had been waiting for a long time indeed. If it works as my father thinks it will, we will finally gain a decisive victory over our enemies. No matter how much Stannis schemes, my father isn't a slouch. We still have numbers, no matter how much they are split. And once the remaining forces with Garlan Tyrell join with our men, Stannis won't have a choice but to retreat or be defeated.

"Who shall lead the host?" Jaime asked.

"How is your leg?" Father asked Jaime.

"Good enough to ride."

"Then get some rest. We shall gather the host tomorrow and march as soon as possible," Father stated. "We have no time to lose."

I was concerned for Jaime, no matter how often he said his leg was fine. I haven't seen him not limp. It might have improved, but was it enough for him to be active? Yet who was better to lead a host? Mace Tyrell? He couldn't defeat Stannis in Robert's rebellion, and I don't think he can beat him now, no matter how many men he has.

"The question is if we will manage to clear the roads for supplies to arrive in the city in time," I said. "Even now, we barely are holding on. If we stop getting supplies even for a moment, the food situation will turn horrible. And with reduced manpower, the riots will start."

"You don't need to worry about it," Mace Tyrell replied proudly. "Stannis might have defeated us on the land, so it is time we strike him from the sea."

"What?" I asked, shocked.

"The Redwyne fleet is already approaching King's Landing as we speak. It's only a matter of time before we strike Stannis' fleet blocking our waters," Mace said.

I looked at my father and didn't find him surprised. Was I the only one who didn't know of it? The Tyrells have already started to exclude me from such important information. Damn them all. Did they deem me not essential for the court to know about something like this? What else were the Tyrells planning?

"Then everything is decided," Father didn't care about me and finished the meeting. "Maester Pycelle, please inform the King of our discussion first thing in the morning. The meeting is over."

I wanted to ask my father why I had not given critical information but decided against it. He wouldn't give me a straight answer, and I would have better luck by comforting Mace Tyrell, but he would probably tell me nonsense and bumble out of it. So, I turned to one person that would answer me.

"Are you sure you will be fine, Jaime?"

"Don't worry about it, Tyrion," He answered me as we walked through the halls of Red Keep. "On horseback, I will be as good as I ever was."

"You knew of the Redwyne fleet," I stated.

"I did," Jaime replied honestly.

"Yet it was the first time I have heard it," I stated again.

"I thought you knew it," Jaime replied. "And to be honest, it was a secret, as the Tyrells feared that the Ironborn would launch a full invasion if they found out that their last Fleet was leaving the Reach's coast. Or Stannis' fleet could counterattack if they knew of the attack."

"And I could not be trusted with that information?" I was getting angry.

"It was our father who decided who would be informed."

So, my father couldn't trust me with this information. And after all, I have done. Holding the city while Stannis besieged it, getting gold from arses to let it function. To my father, it meant nothing. I should have realized sooner that no matter what I did or what feat I accomplished, it would not be enough in my father's eyes. And I knew the reason why. It was because I was a dwarf. I was born as a dwarf, and I will die as one.