9 Into foreign lands part 2

After arriving at Lannisport Gerion tried to convince Maximilian to take the myrmidons and ride to Casterly rock using the gold road. Saying that it was better than to risk the threat of pirates, but it was dismissed since there wasn't any reason for pirates to especially target them.

Later that day they saw a city carved on top of a massive stone hill, with hundreds of mineshaft in it, and sea carved caverns at the base. Every city in Westeros certainly have its own beauty, while sunspear may look ancient and noble and Highgarden may look elegant and beautiful, the rock just look imposing, a castle overlooking everything in its territory, a natural fortress.

After entering the city they directly rode to the castle where they were stopped by the guards.

"Who goes there?!" Shouts a guard from on top of the wall, wearing plate mail and a red cloak, the color of the men at arms of house Lannister. Just looking at them you could see how wealthy house Lannister is, not that many people would outfit their men at arms with armors that expensive. After seeing this Maximilian thought that maybe he could get from the Lannisters more money than he thought in the beginning.

"Gerion of house Lannister, the brother of your lord". Said Gerion looking impatient, you could guess he didn't liked being stoped at the door of his own house.

"You should try better next time, everyone knows that Gerion Lannister is dead, the man went in search of the Brightroar and disappeared in his try". Replied the guard with a hint of mockery in his tone.

"THEN BRING ONE OF MY BROTHERS HERE, TELL THEM THAT THEIR BROTHER IS BACK IN BROUGHT THE SWORD WITH HIM". Hearing what Gerion said and how pissed he sounded the guards stared for some time and then one of them started running towards the castle.

After some time the guard came with a man dressed in red and golden robes, the man was blonde with green eyes and a massive jaw.

"Where's the man who said he is my brother?". Yelled the man atop the wall.

Then a man walked forward from the group of riders. When Kevan saw the man he couldn't help but laugh loudly, specially when the man took a sword from his waist and lift it in the air, taking it out of its sheath, seeing the Valyrian steel sword in the hands of his brother Kevan rushed the guards to open the gate and let them in.

In the moment the gates were open and Kevan strode out of the gates, stood in front of Gerion and just looked at him for a second before embracing him, and then letting him go a few seconds later.

"We thought you were dead you idiot, you could at least send a raven or something but you let us believe you were dead for months, I don't care if you bring the da*m sword back. Now show me the thing". Said Gerion.

Then Gerion let Kevan take the sword, he took it and try balancing it looking at the marks and the pommel, being unable to take his eyes off the sword till Gerion coughed loudly, after that he finally noticed the group of knights that were behind his brother.

"Who are these men Gerion?. You paid them to bring you here?. Asked Kevan.

"Not exactly, they found me when my ship reached the coasts of Valyria, It turns out there's some kind of poison in the air and that's why no one ever came back from there, they save me, I was close to Brightroar but not enough, I just saw the ship, but before I could get there my crew started to fall, I didn't get the sword, they got it and offer to sell it to our family and ransom me back". Said Gerion while Kevan's smile stiffened.

"I see, well in any case we need to see our brother. Before that you need to know a few things, my brother renounce as hand of the king, he has humiliated our brother for years now, even when he rejected the marriage between Cersei it wasn't that bad, but now he took Jamie, he make Jamie a member of the Kingsguard, he is going to wait for a tournament held by lord Walter Whent to announce it". Said Kevan, making Gerion stare wide eyed. After all, not every day you hear that the king took the son of the man who keep the kingdom in one piece for him as a hostage, and not just any son, but his heir, it seems that a lot of things has changed since he was gone.

After that they entered a hall, in there was a man dressed in the colors of house Lannister with a balding head of blonde hair. At his side was a man similar to them, long blonde hair, Grenn eyes, a stern face with a few scars.

"My lord I bring our brother Gerion" when Tywin heard that, you could see the surprise in his expression before returning to normal as fast as it changed, leaving you wondering if his expression even changed in the beginning.

"Then he found it? And who are these men?". Asked Tywin.

"Yes he found it, well something like that, he was poisoned before taking the sword but these men save him and bring the sword, for a price of course, but I think it would be better if they say it themselves". Answered Kevan.

Hearing that Tywin narrowed his eyes slightly before looking at the group of people once again six knights, three of them women and a kid in the middle, the only sign of surprise he showed was a slightly raised eyebrow.

"My name is Maximilian Holswig, prince of the Nicene empire, my men found your brother and the sword, and I brought them back to you, I heard the Lannister always pays their debts, so I came to see the prove of that". Said Maximilian.

"We always do, now tell me, how much is this going to cost me?" Said Tywin with a indifferent look on his face.

"Of course, since this is our first meeting I would try to take as less gold from you as possible, it will only cost you half a million gold dragons". Said Maximilian with a grin on his face.

"What!? With that amount of money I could buy an army" Said Tywin with an angry look on his face.

"Yes and still you won't be able to get your brother or the sword back, still I think I'm being very generous with this offer, from what I heard you're the wealthiest man in this continent, so half a million to get a Valyrian sword and not just any sword but your house ancestral sword should be dirt cheap for you, and of course we're not even going to speak about your brother, I don't think there could be any price for your own kin". Said Maximilian with a grin in his face.

Hearing this you could see tywin's eye twitch and his lips curled from anger, even if he was willing to pay a huge amount to buy a Valyrian sword from other noble houses the most he was willing to pay were hundred thousand gold dragons, and now he have to pay five times that sum.

"Fine, I will make sure to prepare the money, it will probably be ready in a few days, I will tell some servants to get some rooms ready for your people for the time being, I'm sure you will have other things to do so after getting my money I will make sure the guards escort you out of the town, now leave, I'm going to speak with my brothers". Said Tywin with a slightly higher speech tone.

Maximilian just smiled and left with the myrmidons.

"So not only you escape to the other side of the world but fail when you are about to get your objective and get capture, and now I have to pay half a million gold dragons to get you and the sword back". Said Tywin staring directly to Gerion, who surprisingly maybe even to himself, didn't back down from his brother's gaze.

"I said I wouldn't come back without the sword and so did I, so what if you have to pay hundreds of thousand for it, you and I know that you won't be able to buy a Valyrian sword from no one especially not now that it's obvious that the king is at odds with you." While saying this Gerion looked directly into Tywin's eyes, making the later widen his eyes almost imperceptibly.

"We could just make sure they suffer an accident after getting paid, traveling by road is dangerous after all, there're always bandits, that way we get the sword and the money". Said Tygett from the sidelines, getting him glances from the rest of the Lannisters.

"You are certainly a genius in your own stupidity, Kevan would you tell Tygett why is that such a stupid idea?". Said Tywin after looking at Tygett with narrowed eyes for a second and then looking at Kevan.

"We already lose too much reputation, the other houses know we are weakened right now, the king is suppressing us, and you are asking us to attack people after they just leave our guest right, people who brought not just our brother but also our family ancestral sword, I don't think we need that blow to our reputation, and that's without even thinking of any possible retaliation from their part, the boy said he is a prince but we don't have any information from where he is from, besides the fact that they now rule the summer islands and use them to sell the same products they did before and new ones even more expensive, but I guess you didn't even knew that, I say before we take any action we heard what Gerion has to say, he stayed with them after all". Answered Kevan.

"Even then I don't know that much brother, they never took me to their country, Sothoryos, but even then I saw the fleet they used to invade the summer islands, hundred ships, at least twice as fast as any ships we use, and of course the swan ships they captured, probably around fifty or so ships, so no, I don't think it will be a good idea to send men after them, even letting harm come to him while he is in our lands is a bad idea, from what I saw their people are warmongers, they would see it as a provocation, and would send their ships to cut our trade routes, maybe even attack Lannisport, with the superiority of their ships it would be pretty bad to say the least, and I don't think with the current situation we could get any sort of help from the crown, if something we should try to get close to then. From what I could gather from their sailors and knights they don't follow lines of succession, instead those who gain more merits in battle get the position, so while he isn't the crown prince he might still get the crown, after all from what I heard non of his brothers or sister have done anything more valuable, of course that is if you believe in what they say, but even if half of what they say is truth I still believe it would be in our best interest to seek an alliance with them instead of making them our enemies". Said Gerion without breaking eye contact with Tywin.

I will consider what you said". Said Tywin while calling for a servant "bring Cersei here".

"Why are you bringing her here?".Asked Tygett.

"You will know when she gets here, now tell us what else you know about them Gerion". Said Tywin without even looking at Tygett.

"I didn't have the chance to see them in combat, so no information in that front. They visited Dorne and the Reach before I saw the sailors bringing some crates with them so I guess they make some sort of agreement, but before reaching here they didn't let me out of the ship, you will probably know more about it than me". Said Gerion.

"I see, so they didn't trusted you enough to let you out of the ship, but they let you speak with everyone on the ships so you could gather information, it's clear why they are so comfortable after telling me to pay a fortune, they know we won't do anything to them, or better said, we are not in a position in which we could do anything, which of their six knights is their leader?". Said Tywin.

"It's none of them, the kid is the leader, he gives the orders, the others are just counselors, it is some kind of test, the only one who could take decisions instead of him is a old maester who said he was his tutor, but he isn't here". Said Gerion.

"So he may actually be as smart as he looks" Knock knock. "Enter". After Tywin said that, a beautiful golden haired and emerald eyed girl entered, from her looks and her graceful figure you could see she would be a beauty in the future. "Cersei we have guests, one of them is close to your age, you will entertain him for the next days" Said Tywin to the confused Cersei.

"Uncle, when did you got back? Finally you run out of money and stopped searching for that stupid sword?". Said Cersei with a cocky smile on her face, but Gerion simply ignored her.

"Cersei did you heard what I said?". Said Tywin who now looked directly at Cersei.

"Yes father… but who is he? And why is he so important that you send me to entertain him?". Answered Cersei.

"He's the one who brought your uncle and our family ancestral sword back, he is a prince from another country, so treat him well, now go and show him the castle". Said Tywin.

After that Cersei get out of the room and Gerion stared at Tywin.

"What's with her? She is meaner than before?". Asked Gerion.

"She is like that since Aerys took Jamie as part of the Kingsguard, you know they were always very close, it devastated her". Said Kevan.

After that they started informing Gerion about the general situation of the seven kingdoms, while Gerion tells them the rest of the information he could gather while in the ships, mostly of the trades they were doing with Dorne and the reach.

Meanwhile Maximilian, the myrmidons and Cassius when suddenly they heard a voice behind them.

"Stop there, my father told me to show you around, now come with me" Said a blonde girl with a haughty tone, but they just looked at her for a second and then ignored her.

The girl kept yelling but no one bothered enough to even look at her, then she stormed off to find her father and tell him of the people who defied her orders and kept ignoring her.

"What did you expect? That they will bow before you and follow your every whim? He is a prince and even being so young he lead the conquest of the summer islands, a country two thirds the size of Dorne, you thought he will simply follow you because you are the daughter of the lion of the rock?, if you want people to follow you, you will have to give them a reason to follow you". Those were all the words her father gave her to her anger.

Next day Tywin summoned Maximilian and told him that Cersei would be his guide the time he stays in Casterly rock while Kevan and Tygett were going to show around to the myrmidons and Cassius, and that it would be good to discuss business, and Maximilian agreed, but it would take a day for the cargo to be ready.

After that Maximilian went to meet Cersei who saw him with eyes seething with anger.

"In the end you still came and have to hear what I say, won't that make you look foolish for what you did yesterday?" said Cersei with a smirk in her face.

"You see it like that?, as I see it even after ignoring you yesterday you had to swallow your pride and be my guide even if you don't want to" said Maximilian with a sly smile on his face while staring directly into Cersei's eyes.

Hearing what he said Cersei smile disappeared and her lips started to curl, and she too stared at his eyes, and after seeing him this close she had to say he was very handsome maybe if he was older he could be as handsome as prince Rhaegar, and his blue eyes, his sky blue eyes seemed to shine with their own light when she looked at them, and his golden hair, if she didn't know better she might think he was a Lannister, even if it was kept short it somehow make him look manly, even while he was a kid, maybe it won't be that bad to be his guide, besides, she understood what her father thinks, how could she not, it is obvious, he won't accept nothing less than a king, or someone who will become one, and since Rhaegar is already married her options are limited, even if her father may be hoping for Elia to die he isn't the kind of man who will put all his eggs in the same basket, especially if the other basket is occupied and it doesn't seem it would change any time soon.

Then following Cersei's lead he visited the hall of heroes, where she explained the exploits and histories of the different Lannisters there, but what really interested him were their armors, after all who could say those histories were true, the only ones who could tell them were their family.

Even when he thought she was needlessly arrogant he had to say she knew what she talked about, and she said everything with confidence and pride, almost making him believe what she said.

After that she showed him the gardens, halls and courtyards, he was getting bored till she showed him a room full of cages in which they used to keep lions, she started telling him of how she used to climb the cages with her brother and them seemed a little sad, and he started trying to make conversation to distract her but in wasn't working, so he just close the gap between them and hugged her, he didn't know why he did that, he just felt the need to make her stop crying, and he did, for a second she was stunned but in the next moment she hugged him back, after all her guard wasn't up against him, he is a kid, but even being younger than her he is almost her height. He started feeling weird after being so close to her, he couldn't help but in a completely subconscious move hug her waist with his arms and bring her closer to him, so he could feel more of her warm, being so close he could perfectly smell her scent, her sweet and creamie scent, he felt an indescribable sensation every time he breathed her fragrance, that light but intoxicating fragrance, to think such a fiery girl could have such a sweet and homely fragrance, he buried his face in her neck, wanting to get more of her smell, feeling his heart beating faster, his face getting hotter and his thoughts getting clouded he could think in nothing more than the beautiful girl in front of him, and that sweet smell of vanilla that came from her, he was so focused that he didn't see her doing the exact same thing he was doing and after seconds that seemed to last forever he took a little distance from her, knowing that what he did wasn't right, but after seeing her looking right at him all those thoughts vanished, he couldn't even think, the only thing in his mind in the moment were those beautiful emerald that were looking at him, as if asking him to act, so he did, with one hand he hold her waist and the other somehow found its way under her dress and was already grabbing and massaging her a*s, while her hands were on his chest, both their faces were getting closer, their breathes getting shorter and hotter each time and finally their lips touched, they felt a electric current through their bodies for a second, then he took the hand which was holding her waist and started bringing it up, touching every curve of her graceful figure, while in some point Cersei's mouth opened and her tongue entered his mouth, full of arrogance, trying to dominate his, but he didn't back down and soon both their tongues were caught in a struggle, while his hand found its way to her ti*s and he started kneading them and her hands were holding his head, and one of them started making its way down, but at that moment they heard a sound and stopped, their lips parted leaving a trace of were their tongues were fighting for dominance before, both with looks of reluctance in their faces, but they knew better than to keep doing it even when someone was coming for them.

A few moments later a servant came and told them that lord Tywin wanted to talk to Maximilian, there Tywin told him that in two days the gold would be ready and if he was fine with Cersei being his guide and if he wasn't he could ask for a servant or one of his brothers to entertain him, but Maximilian answered that he was enjoying his time at the rock and that since he was getting to know Cersei already it would be better to continue with her, of course not knowing anything of what happened earlier Tywin just nodded his head.

Then Maximilian got out of the room and started thinking that he needed Aurelius there, he needed someone to explain him why he did all that earlier.

Next day his cargo arrived and he had to make some sort of agreement with Tywin, and they did, and he spent the rest of the hours following Cersei from one place to another, getting close just for a few moments to star their make up sessions, but they never get alone for enough time to get further than they did before.

And so the day of his departure arrived.

He was leaving in the morning, with a much heavier purse than when he came, but now he didn't wanted to go, the worst is that they didn't even had time to have a goodbye kiss, but before going he gifted Cersei a baby brown bellied wyvern and a book of how to raise it, getting him a hug from her and questioning looks from all the people present there.

So he boarded his ship and departed while looking at Casterly rock, hoping to be able to come back, but after a few moments he silenced that thoughts, now he had more important things to do, and other places to go, if most of the nobility of the seven kingdoms were going to that tourney then he would be there.