The Great Hall of the Red Keep

[Lucius Malfoy]

The Great Hall of the Red Keep

The Great Hall is the throne room of the king. The Iron Throne sits on a raised iron dais with high and narrow steps.
A long carpet stretches from the throne to the Hall's great oak-and-bronze doors. The Hall itself is cavernous, and can sit 1,000 people.
It is oriented north to south, with high, narrow windows on the eastern and western walls. House Targaryen banners are seen hanging from the highest points of the hall.
On either side of the throne rest skulls of the great dragons that came before. Among those skulls are Meraxes and Balerion the Black Dread.

[Dirty Chai]

A raven arrives from the south, and bears a seal of a sunburst pierced by a spear,

Your Grace,

Congratulations and condolences on your ascension to the crown of your forefathers.
We must apologize for our lack of presence at your coronation, but our own heir and son is at your court under your very own eyes, so we do not consider it a slight.

The wartax will be paid in full, though you must give Sunspear time to survey, collect, and transport. The Narrow Sea is too dangerous for ships laiden with silver and gold, as we all know. So Dorne's contributions to this war, both sword and coin, will come by way of the Prince's Pass and up the Rose Road.
We ask for your patience in this time.

[Honors Bastion]

A few weeks after the coronation of King Aerys II, Ser Edmund Hightower appears before the iron Throne with a few of his Household escorts, one of which is carrying a small chest. He waits for a chance to speak with his grace.

[Pontifex Maximus]

(If we're talking a few weeks after in terms of timeline Aerys might be gone and Shaera might be acting regent of KL, I'll wait for Skylord to determine how he wants that timeline to play out before responding)

[The Mad Skylord]

((We'll take it as you holding the regency now, Pont, I'm going to be marching in the next few hours.))

[Pontifex Maximus]

The Queen Regent welcomes in the Hightower party. "Welcome back to King's Landing, Ser Edmund." The Court was much less populated than it normally would have been. Many of the Kingsguard were conspicuously absent as were the lords of the Crownlands. The unfilled space of the Red Keep allowed sound to travel more freely, and eerie echoes resulted as the Queen spoke.

(alright, fair enough)

[Honors Bastion]

"I've come before the Iron Throne today to personally hand deliver the Hightower's portion of the war tax as to the royal decree. 2,000 newly gold dragons just hand delivered by members of my family's retinue."said Ser Edmund before he indicated to one of his knights to bring the chest forth. "It is a small portion but one that I hope his grace will be able to use to fight the pretender."

[Pontifex Maximus]

"Very well, Ser. The King will be pleased that Oldtown has done its duty in this matter." Shaera motioned to a royal scribe who had been tasked with keeping track of who had paid and who had not. It was almost like keeping track of a list of those Houses still loyal to the Crown. "Will that be all?"

[Honors Bastion]

"Yes my Queen. I only wanted to ensure that crown knew that at least one House in the Reach was still under the sway of the King." said Ser Edmund. "Well at least it appears to be that way for now. Oldtown's allegiance is still nominally with the King unless Edwynd brings back any information to say otherwise." he thought. "Unfortunately my father has not given me any other emssage as of yet."

[Dirty Chai]

A raven appears in King's Landing, a little more than a week after the King had sent his message to the Dornish, for a rider had to return to Wyl to send their reply to the capital

Your Grace,
May your foe tremble at your reckoning.

We will do as you say, we will drive fire and steel into the heart of the Reach, if it will divide your many enemies.
We will do our best to inform you of what occurs along the Mander.

- Written in the Hand of Maester Goren, Doctor of Strategy, in the name of Beren Sand, Prince jure uxoris of Dorne. -

[Pontifex Maximus]

Shaera stood atop one of the high towers of the Red Keep, looking as battles closed in around her. Such a terrible and awesome sight to behold. Were she a man she knew she would be on the field but alas, her gender had rendered her role limited. Still, she would do her part. After some time as the armies drew closer, she could not bear to watch, yet this was no time to shirk from public sight. She descended into the Red Keep, the Lady Regent, who would either be the mother of the victorious King or the rape-thing of the triumphant usurper. She choked back tears, thinking not only of her own fate, but that of her son...

At long last she was among the folk gathered in the Keep. The ladies of the Cornwlands, prominent folk of the capital, and the septas. She descended the dais before the throne and knelt. "Setpa, please lead us in a prayer." She clasped hands with the other noble women as the prayer began. An anxious fire smoldered within her. She felt the weight of the dagger in her dress pockets, to either dispatch marauders or herself as the need arose. She would not be taken alive. Although not particularly religious, she prayed fervently, awaiting news.

[The Mad Skylord]

Bang. Bang. Bang. Roars, yells and howling filled the halls outside of the Great Hall. Suddenly a huge bang filled the room as the main doors jerked open loudly. A small horde of bloody lords surged into the room - sigils obscured by blood and gore. The nobke women seemed to tremor in fear, until the ranks of men opened. A tall and slim figure, helmeted and armoured marched through the ranks as they opened for him. The fear escalated, until the women saw what the black armoured man was holding. A dragon. A red dragon.

It suddenly became clear, and lords and ladies quickly moved to find their loved ones. The black figure, holding the legendary banner that was at the fore front if the cavalry charge ripped off his helmet and threw his arms around his mother.

[Pontifex Maximus]

Shaera arose as she heard the banging. "Fear not!" She drew her blade and with what blessedly few guards remained, took her position at the front. It was not out of duty to defend those present, but that she would not allow herself to be taken alive. If her son was dead, then so soon would she be. "Steel your resolve!" She commanded of the teenage boys surrounding her. When the doors burst open she gasped. Aerys lived, and what's more, he had been victorious. She dropped her dagger and accepted his embrace, a single tear streaming from her eye. "What does this mean? What has happened?" She looked about, looking for an answer.

[The Mad Skylord]

Aerys grinned, a grin crazed from bloodlust and glory. "We routed them! So much Reach traitor blood was spilled that I imagine black fruit will grow along the Kingsroad! Maelys himself was slain in the fighting! House Blackfyre is destroyed!"

[Pinkerton]

Arthur Fowler joined the general cheering and celebrating. What a glorious day, the Usurper had been slained and his armies routed!

[Pontifex Maximus]

Shaera seemed momentarily to faint, held aloft by her son. So much of herself had been poured into this effort, so many close calls, the siege of the capital in the previous year...all the lost battles. But she dare not weep. She kissed her son on the cheek and then pushed him away. "My son, the King. King Aerys II, the Second of that Name, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men and Lord of the Seven Kingdoms." She knelt before him. He had retained the rule of House Targaryen by force of arms, the best possible reminder of the power of House Targaryen and right to rule. As she knelt, so did any others present in the Red Keep. If Shaera herself bent the knee, so would any Crownland ladies present. She kissed his hand and looked up to him. "You have saved us all, and the Kingdom. I have never been prouder of you than in this moment."

[Poach]

[OOC: RP is moving forwards and Victorius isn't online so I'm going to assume he's ok with my request for Adamat and myself. If he refuses, I'll delete all my posts, but I think he'll be cool with it. The Leffords were secretly loyalists, after all, feeding Aerys information on the Westerlands.]

Donnel was among the army that entered King's Landing after the victory. Having failed to reach Lord Brax early enough to inform him about Lord Lannister's movements, the mission was quickly overtaken by the army advancing into battle, a battle Donnel and his retinue, among them 'Jeyne Waters', now Ilsa Corbray, had joined Lord Brax for. He had witnessed Aerys' epic charge, as he was among Lord Brax's troops trying to force their way towards the embattled wedge. "The Battle of the Wedge" some of the men had taken to calling it, as just one of many dramatic episodes played out in the titanic battle that was the final meeting of the two Dragons.

He entered the keep among the other victorious loyalists, being a small minority as much of the Westerlands had sided with Maelys. Ilsa was assuredly the only Vale representative here, as none in the Vale had betrayed the Arryns when they sided with Maelys the Monstrous.

Along with the rest, he wearily dropped to one knee, as the adrenaline that fueled him through the battle began to abate.

[The Mad Skylord]

((As the room began to kneel, Aerys smiled at his mother and walked to the Iron Throne. He marched up the dias, where he slipped on wet blood and slit his throat on the throne. So mich for health and safety))

Smiling, Aerys ascended the dias. In one hand he held a bloody blade, and in the other a standard of House Targaryen, a standard he had personally carried into battle. He looked to the skulls o either side, before fitting the banner in a small hole in the bone on the skull of Balerion. Sheathing his sword, he looked upon the kneeling lords and ladies, and sat upon the Iron Chair.

Silence, until a Goldcloak howled "Long Live the King!

[Lucius Malfoy]

Silence, until a Goldcloak howled "Long Live the King!

Shaera replied "Long live the King!"

At some point during the festivities, a guard would be sent to fetch the Dowager Queen and the King. The guard indicated that Ser Aenarys had returned from surveying the battlefield and mopping up the routing forces of the Blackfyre-aligned hosts. The guard, however, indicates that the Kingsguard wished to speak with Shaera and Aerys alone, subtly pointing to a hallway that was to the right of the Iron Throne and behind it. After that was said, the guard would escort the pair to see Ser Velaryon who stood in the hallway, his armor battered and bruised, yet his facial expression was not one of happiness for victory, but concerned for something else.

Aenarys had searched the battlefield for hours with scores of riders, but in the end, it could not be found. The corpse of Maelys Blackfyre had been inspected and the immediate area around him, yet the greatsword of Aegon the Conqueror and the very symbol of Blackfyre legitimacy and claim to the Iron Throne was nowhere to be found. Ser Velaryon had hoped to find the blade and return it to the King so that the sword would, once more, be held by the first Targaryen since Aegon the Unworthy. The search yielded no results nor brought clues to where the sword may have gone.

The Velaryon would get on one knee before the Dowager Queen and His Grace, keeping his head bowed for a long time before speaking to them. He knew that in this hallway, away from preying eyes and ears, he could speak the truth of his search and the unfortunate results that it had yielded. Despite the great victory achieved, the greatest prize had slipped from the fingers of the Targaryen victors.

Your Graces... I am sorry to report that the greatsword, Blackfyre, was not with the corpse of Maelys nor found anywhere on the battlefield. It has gone missing.

[Pontifex Maximus]

Shaera replied "Long live the King!" and then rose, ascending the dais and taking her place the the King's right side. She whispered into his ear. "Soon the STarks will be here...I have made them a number of promises for their support..."