Alyster Fossoway was one of the commanders of this army from the Reach. He wore a cloak bearing House Tyrell's golden rose, and the red apple sigil on his breastplate flickered in the torchlight.
He stood beside the battlements above the gate, his fingers gripping the cold stone tightly. His heart raced, but his face betrayed nothing.
Behind him stood more than twenty trusted men, all from collateral branches of House Red Apple Fossoway of Cider Hall. They had served Lord Mace alongside him for years.
A week earlier, however, he had received a letter from Highgarden. It contained only one sentence: "Open the gate and let Randyll Tarly's army into the castle. Your families are all in the Reach, and they are safe for now."
When he received the letter, a member of House Green Apple Fossoway from New Barrel had been beside him. Both Fossoway houses had always been loyal to House Tyrell of Highgarden.
There was bad blood between the Red Apples and the Green Apples, an enduring divide between the two houses that could never be erased. But when faced with an order from Highgarden, they still knew what they had to do.
Outside the walls, the torches began to move. Randyll Tarly's army was advancing, thousands upon thousands of torches merging into a sea of fire that surged toward the north gate of Storm's End like a tide.
As the sea of fire drew near, Alyster took a deep breath, then turned and nodded to the soldiers behind him.
Several soldiers rushed down from the walls and headed straight for the gate. Though the guards at the north gate were all men sworn to Lord Mace, most had already been persuaded to switch sides.
The soldiers guarding the gate saw them approach, but none stepped