When Garlan Tyrell's ship docked at Valyria again, nearly two months had passed since his last departure.
This time, Margaery was not at his side. Instead, several knights from Highgarden accompanied him.
In the Council Chamber of Dragonwing Castle, Viserys sat at the head of the table, listening to Garlan's report.
"Your Majesty." Garlan Tyrell was far more deferential this time. "Highgarden accepts all your terms. Moreover, whenever Your Majesty requires it, we will provide an army of no fewer than fifty thousand men, and House Redwyne's Arbor fleet will help transport troops when the Empire attacks Westeros. The family has also granted Margaery full authority to represent House Tyrell in all negotiations with Valyria. All of us are to follow her orders."
As he spoke, he handed over a letter.
"Furthermore, my grandmother instructed me to report that, on our way here, we happened to hear that the Hand of the King, Jon Arryn, had died. They say it was a sudden heart attack. King's Landing is in complete chaos now."
He paused and glanced up to gauge Viserys's reaction, only to find an unruffled expression on that handsome face.
After all, he did not know that Viserys had learned of the news several days earlier. Two letters from King's Landing had arrived on his desk almost simultaneously.
He also knew that the main storyline of the original work should have begun by now. That meant the time for his great counteroffensive was not far off.
He simply wondered whether the plot beginning two years early would change anything.
After Arryn's death. King's Landing, the Red Keep.
Cersei Lannister stood by the window of her bedchamber, gazing down at Blackwater Bay. Her hands gripped the balcony railing, and her face held a complicated mixture of pleasure and irritation.
That