Tywin Lannister sat in his large war tent, the room dimly lit by a few flickering candles. The smell of parchment and ink filled the air, and maps of Westeros lay spread across the wooden table in front of him.
For days now, he had been waiting for a proper letter from King's Landing. His daughter, Cersei, had written before, but her letters were always filled with excuses, panic, and strange claims that seemed far from the truth. He did not trust her words entirely. He needed something more reliable. That's why when Pycelle's letter arrived, he expected reason and clarity. Only a few knew that Pycelle was his spy.
But even Pycelle's words were strange.
According to the old man, a mysterious warrior brought down lightning from the sky, struck down Lannister guards with ease, and helped Eddard Stark escape from his chains. Pycelle called it "a devil's spawn" and claimed that the people of the city now whispered Thor's name in both fear and wonder. Some called him a god. Others a demon.
Tywin, however, frowned. Not this nonsense again. This looked like it was written by his daughter and not Pycelle. Though it was possible that that exactly happened.
Still, Pycelle was not one to lie or exaggerate. And when he read that both the Master of Coin and Master of Whisperers had been found dead shortly after Thor's appearance—along with the disappearance of Eddard Stark and his daughters—Tywin knew he could no longer ignore the matter.
With a heavy sigh, he called for his son. Maybe his foolish son with all his eccentrics might be able to say what's going on.
Tyrion Lannister entered the tent a short while later, dressed in fine dark clothes, a wine cup already in his hand. He looked relaxed, but his eyes were sharp as ever.
"Ah, you calling for little old me, Father. It's either the stars from the night sky have disappeared or the shadow lands of Asshai have finally been conquered by men. Surely nothing less would make you call for me."
Tywin didn't look up right away. "Tell me everything you know about this man… Thor." Long he learned that directly getting to the point was the most time-saving and efficient way to talk with this monster.
Tyrion blinked. "Ah, the Hammer Lord," he said with a chuckle. "Why the sudden curiosity?"
"Tell me everything you know," Tywin said coldly. "I only want facts."
Tyrion set his cup down. "Very well. I've heard he came from the North, though no one knows where exactly. He traveled with Ned Stark and his daughters to King's Landing when they left Winterfell.
As I already told you, he was the one who captured the White Walker with his bare hands. He even defeated Sandor Clegane in combat in Winterfell."
"That's it."
"What's the point of asking that when you're not gonna believe me anyways?"
"Is that it?" Tywin asked again.
Tyrion looked at his father's eyes, like trying to search what he was hiding before he shrugged and replied. "That's all I know."
He knew that his father didn't believe a thing about the White Walkers. He tried, but he would rather believe a beggar with the Lannister vault over him.
Tywin's eyes narrowed. "And his allegiance?"
Tyrion shook his head. "Hard to say. He seems to care about the Stark family, but he hasn't made any political moves. My interaction with him was bare minimum, to say the least. However, I know that he didn't show any kind of allegiance while I was in Winterfell, nor did I hear of him doing so when I visited Castle Black."
Tywin leaned back in his chair, hands pressed together in thought. The capital was in chaos.
All major positions were vacant in King's Landing. It's completely fair to say that if those age-old walls of King's Landing weren't in the way, then even those filthy mountain bandits with their meager numbers could have besieged the Red Keep.
Robert—dead. Littlefinger—dead. Varys—dead. And both Stannis and Renly were missing from the capital. Cersei, in this case, had all the power of the capital if she could just put that horrid of a son on a leash.
However, Cersei...
She would lose control soon. In the absence of the little council, there was no one to stop her from doing whatever she wished. His daughter was many things, but a good leader she was not.
Tywin could practically see what could happen after this. In the absence of many of the players in King's Landing and with the crown's military power depleted, the scavengers of faith would grow strong. Especially now, when they had an excellent reason to rally the people.
Whether the stories about this man who can summon lightning were true or not mattered little—Tywin could see the Faith rallying people in these trying times, growing in power to push back the crown's authority.
It was a headache. None of his children were competent. In times like this, Jaime was hunting children's stories beyond the Wall. Cersei would draw all the ire of the people of King's Landing, and he had to fight a war on three fronts soon—perhaps four if the North declared war on the crown.
And that was when his eyes finally went to the dwarf caught stealing wine from his personal stash.
"Perhaps, I was wrong," Tywin finally said.
"Pardon." Tyrion blinked. He just thought that his father—his lord father, the Lord of Casterly Rock—had just agreed he was wrong.
"Prepare yourself. You're going to King's Landing."
"What! What... what will I do there?"
"Rule... You'll be the Hand of the King."
Tyrion was baffled.
Tyrion raised a brow. "You want me to be Hand of the King?"
"Acting Hand," Tywin said. "You will take control of the city, restore order, and keep your nephew in line. Most of all, you will find out the truth about this Thor. If he's an enemy, remove him. If he's useful… bring him to our side."
Tyrion was stunned, to say the least. Of all the things, he wasn't expecting this. "Why not Uncle Kevan? Why not someone else? Why me...?"
"Because you're my son."
Tyrion sat there, pondering what was just happening. Did this heartless man—who thought of him as nothing but a monster responsible for the death of his wife—just call him his son?
"You're dismissed," Tywin said after seeing no response from Tyrion, and went back to whatever other work he had.
"And keep an eye on those Faith servants," Tywin added just as Tyrion was making his exit.
xxx
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