(Jon Arryn POV)
The Battle of the Bells as it is now known, was a full success. The loyalists under Jon Connington's command, were utterly crushed. And the reason for that is Petyr Baelish and his 'Spartans'.
The attack went swimmingly and we managed to surprise Conningston's forces and storm the walls. The battle was messy and unclear. Men fought on the streets, the walls and even the rooftops. The only thing saving us was the difference in colour of our armies. I observed the fight at first and tried to get some semblance of order into our troops, but that was soon discarded. I kept an eye on Petyr during the fight and I have to say, the poor lad is not made to fight himself. He is a good commander and planner of troop movements, but not a fighter himself.
His plan had worked and as soon as it looked like the loyalist would flee, the troops of Petyr arrived ... the Spartans. A very fast unit armed with very well-crafted armour and weapons and also horses for quick attacks. They are meant for fast fighting and are a true unit, with each man protecting the one on his right. They are hard men who look down on others for their weaknesses and lack of training. They despise weakness, for one weak link can break their chain in battle. That does make me wonder how Petyr managed to get their loyalty.
The Spartan unit smashed into the side of the loyalists and crushed them almost completely. Jon Connington managed to escape, but not unscathed from what I gathered. How he managed to survive with a spear impaled in his stomach, is beyond me. But he did and that might come to bite us in the back. Nevertheless, we managed to win this battle and tremendously increased our troops' morale. I am impressed with Petyr's work and geographical acumen. He has sent out scouts to gather as much intel as he could about the terrain and placed his troops in the best position for a surprise attack.
And war is not even his main area of expertise. He is a merchant and businessman at heart. He only helped us, because he supported us in this war. I wondered why he would help us and still believe that he is looking for political gain after the war is won ... if the war is won. He doesn't need money after all.
After Lord Tully woke up, he spoke among the lords present. Petyr wasn't there then, which was a good thing after hearing Lord Hoster Tully speak. He accused Petyr of letting him die and not helping him, but I saw him and know that the lad is not used to fighting a battle as chaotic as the Battle at the Bells. I am starting to believe Petyr and think that Lord Hoster has issues with him. I am also starting to believe his story, that he didn't bed Lysa Tully at all. Petyr has apologised for his mistake of challenging Brandon Stark and has since grown up into a formidable and successful young man. It is time for Lord Hoster to put the past behind him.
.
I was betrothed to Hoster's daughter Lysa Tully. She is a beauty and from what Hoster told us, she is fertile and will grant me heirs. Something House Arryn needs in these times. But now I am questioning his words since I am getting a good feel for Petyr's character as well and think he is genuine in his wishes to help us and support our cause.
As a noble house of the Vale, I will be able to use him in the future, should things turn out well for us. The Vale will rise to great heights in the future. I will make sure of it. And now, House Arryn will gain an heir, if things turn out well enough. We are going to have a very brief marriage celebration to secure our alliances. Hoster Tully is a smart yet desperate man. It is obvious by the way he is acting. I would not have allowed someone to see my desperation like that. He should know how to play the game by now, you would think.
"Lord Jon, there is news from the south.", Petyr says as he comes into my tent.
I have been preparing for the very brief wedding and haven't seen him for a while. So him coming here now, is interesting and also a good chance for me to see his reaction to the news.
"Petyr, please come in and tell me about it. What news do you bring?", I ask.
"It would seem the result of the Battle of the Bells a sennight ago, has aroused the suspicions of King Arys.", he tells me.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, the King was suspicious of the loss at the Stoney Sept and has exiled Lord Jon Connington, stripping him of all his land and titles. It would seem that he has only now started to see the threat Robert Baratheon poses the greatest threat to his dynasty since Daemon I Blackfyre."
"An interesting comparison. An interesting comparison indeed.", I murmur and think about the repercussions. I knew the King would react in some way, but for him to not use Jon Connington in a smart way, but to just punish him like that ... that I did not see coming.
"What else do you know?"
"Sadly, I don't have a very good spy network and only know bits and pieces. But from what I was able to gather King Aerys has named Lord Qarlton Chelsted as his Hand of the King in Connington's stead.
Ser Jonothor Darry and Ser Barristan Selmy of the Kingsguard were sent to rally what is still left of former Lord Connington's men, while their Lord Commander, Ser Gerold Hightower, was sent by King Aerys to do something I don't know sadly."
"Don't worry about it, Petyr. That is already more than enough and for you to tell us, will grant us a great advantage in the future plannings. Well done."
"Thank you. I will take my leave.", he says and then leaves the tent.
I wanted to call him back and ask him to join the festivities, but there won't be any. Just one short night of consummating the wedding and that is it. I understand that he will not attend our future ... wait.
"Petyr!"
"Yes, my Lord?"
"What are your plans now? You will stay and fight in the war, will you not?"
"Aye, I will fight, Lord Jon, but not in the way you think. As you might have noticed, I am not very gifted in the art of the sword and therefore have to find other ways to be useful. I have heard some disturbing news of House Tyrell laying Storm's End under siege from land and from the sea. If this continues like it apparently has already, they will starve most likely."
"And what do you plan to do about it?", I ask curiously, "Are you going to attack the blockade from the sea?"
"Nothing as drastic as that, my Lord. I will have to think of something. If Storm's End falls, the rebellion will collapse most likely and that can't happen. So I will have to do something ... anything. I will think of something."
"Aye, I'm sure you will. I wish you luck in your endeavours."
"Thank you, my Lord, I wish to congratulate you on your upcoming wedding."
.
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(Petyr POV)
I walk out of the tent and towards the few men of the Spartans that still remain and wait for me. This was a rather risky move I pulled here at the Stoney Sept. Things have been going rather smoothly for me in terms of business and connections with Essos and the Free City of Braavos. But there is still the real to consider and I knew that rising to wealth using merchandise was not a feasible plan. I had to do something else, something to gain the trust of the winners of this rebellion.
I know that Robert and his friends will win this rebellion. Not because I read about it or saw the series, no. I know they will win because I will make sure they do. I am pulling a Sosuke Aizen here and manipulating those that need to be manipulated. I was aware that the best way to show my 'good' intentions was to officially show where my loyalties lay. That meant I had to fight alongside them. But there was the problem of Hoster Tully to consider.
I had a grudge against the man and he had one with me. The fucker thought himself as a great man and that I 'insulted' or 'hurt' his House's honour, by challenging Brandon Stark. Bollucks, I did no such thing. If anything, I fought for the woman I 'loved'. Thankfully that is no longer the case and I can start fresh, but doing that is not insulting his House at all. He kicked me out with nothing to my name and that was not going to be taken in stride by me. He would suffer for that.
So I killed two birds with one stone and told the rebels about the Stoney Sept and Jon Connington forces. I sent the Spartans on their way to have them arrive at the right time and make it appear as if they helped win the battle tremendously and played the foolish 'boy' who learned his lesson and was now a better man. I provoked Hoster Tully with my words and then during battle with my smile, when he was about to die. I saw that was about to be saved but smiled and turned around to anger him. At the same time, I acted like I was new to this. I stayed close to Jon Arryn and played the 'scared but brave' role. I didn't outright run away, but I fought smartly and didn't cut down all those who stood before me.
That allowed Jon Arryn to act like a 'father figure' and console me. And all of this to discredit Hoster Tully and his words. I wouldn't want to be known as the sucker who simped for Catelyn Stark, bed her sister and was then kicked out of Riverrun. This way I can make Hoster look like a liar and at the same time prove my worth to the next rulers of Westeros. A simple but good plan nonetheless, in my opinion.
.
I didn't tell Jon everything I knew about the realm. I had no interest in using my clones to fight their battles for them, so I told him a lie with truth mixed into it. I can now leave the war effort on land and leave the rebels to it, while I have done enough already, can now do what I want and smuggle some food into Storm's End, when I want to.
The crown prince has finally returned from the Tower of Joy, where he bedded Lyanna Stark and shot 5cc of liquid dream killer into the poor girl. F*cking cunt ... well that's this world for you. It isn't even special really. The only question is now, what I should do about the situation? Should I let her die and leave things as they are to profit from then in the future and blackmail Eddard Stark, or should I save the damsel, or maybe even an abortion ...? Nah, that's too much even for this wo- ... who am I kidding, it's really not.
So Rhaegar returned and convinced Aerys to ask Tywin Lannister for help, just as the rebels had or would do, at one point. What an idiot. I don't understand why Aerys still trusts a word that comes out of Rhaegar's mouth at this point. Varys told him that Rhaegar planned to overthrow him using the Tourney at Harrenhal and then after Rhaegar started a war, he just dips and f*cks the girl only to then reappear and give the King suggestions. I mean how far gone is Aerys? Well, I do know, so this is a rhetorical question. But all his paranoia the king has and he doesn't even kill the one reason for the war.
Additionally, Aerys commanded his alchemists to place caches of wildfire in multiple locations in King's Landing. Don't mind if I take those. I don't really need more than one cache, but who am I to complain? Limitless wildfire cache, obtained!