The Lonely Lioness - Cersei Lannister Quest

Standing in the hallway, Edmure tapped his foot impatiently while staring out the window to the gardens of the Red Keep. It was the moments in which he had time to think when the grief struck him the hardest. As much as he tried to keep himself busy, and there was more than enough to do for him that he always found something to occupy his time with, there still would always be a lull in which he could not distract himself from his thoughts. Right now, it was because he was waiting for the Queen Regent to receive him. He had already read over his notes three times, memorized them in full, and now Edmure had nothing else left to do than to wait.

Ever since the news of Riverrun falling had reached him, he could barely sleep. The questions and gnawing doubts refused to let him sleep. Was there anything he could have done differently? He had kept to the plan, even when things went awry. His sister had come up with it. His own father had condoned it. And now he was dead. Died valiantly on the battlements according to the Freys, but anyone who had seen Hoster Tully in the last few years knew that it was a lie. Most likely, they had slit his throat the moment the keep had yielded. He had died alone. One daughter holed up in the Eyrie. One gallivating through the Seven Kingsdoms. His son and heir serving the daughter of the man he was at war with.

Absentmindedly he noted the men and women coming and going to the gazebo in the gardens that Olenna Tyrell had all but decreed to be her throne room. While Cersei was increasingly holing herself up in her study, the Queen of Thornes had spread her influence. It had been all for naught. Becoming the Hand should have helped his house. His family. His home. But now it was all gone. Only Seaguard and Darry still held out against Tywin Lannister and his servants. Lysa besieged by Targyans. And Catelyns family would not fare much better given the news from the North. A quiet sigh escaped Edmures throat as he saw Varys entering the gazebo and being greeted warmly by the Tyrell matriarch. He wondered if it was too late to join his uncle. Maybe he could have quieted his conscience that way.

"The queen will now receive you," some servant called from behind him, startling Edmure out of his dreary mood.

Entering the queens study, he was not surprised by whom he saw there with her. The Kettleblacks and Qyburn had been turning into the queens shadows over the last months. Always there. Always whispering into her ears. Always ready to enact her whims. More and more it seemed that they were the only four people in the entire city she was still willing to trust. And given how things were, Edmure was not quite sure if her suspiciouns were really unfounded. Cersei looked tense, even though she tried to lounge nonchalantly on a divan, robed in dark red silks and with that bright red lipstick she tried to cover up the blue edges of her lips with.

"I hope my Hand has good news for me," she said with an edge of anger to her voice. Not a good sign.

Edmure knelt befor her, very much hoping that today was not the day she decided he was a traitor. "I would prefer to bring only good news to you." It was not even a lie. He really would have preferred not to be the one to tell her, but Varys had insisted that the Hand should do it. The coward. Smart though.

Cersei jsut waved to one of the Kettleblacks and a cup of wine was poured and given to her. She drank half of it right away. "Proceed," she called before starting to sip the rest of it.

"We received a courier ship from Ser Woodwright. The fleet has done well against the pirats crepping into Blackwater Bay and managed to keep the shipping lanes into the Bay of Crabs open. However..." He hesitated and got an annoyed look from his queen for it. "The invasion of the Three Sisters failed. A sizeable fleet of pirates under Euron Greyjoy harassed our ships and managed to goad our cogs into sand banks and hidden rock formations. They also managed to take over a number of our warships that were escorting merchants to White Harbor."

She waited a moment, twirling her cup while staring at Edmure. "Redwyne ships or ours?"

He almost blurted out a question if that was not the same before stopping himself and just stammering a few syllables instead. "Redwyne, your majesty," he finally spoke clearly. "Our men though. About 4,000 foot."

"There are more where they came from. We have plenty of people in the city. Too many even." The queen mused to herself. "They are acting like beasts these days. Qyburn just informed me of the Great Sept of Baelor being plundered by a mob led by this Reacher septa Shay Waters. Can you imagine? The Faith plundering his own sept?"

She laughed as if it was a particularly funny jape and Edmure awkwardly laughed along. "Truly, the world has gone mad around us." He regretted his choice of words right away, though the queen did not seem to mind.

She just had another cup of wine brought to her, though into this one she added a few drops from a small flask she took from her sleeve. "The south then," she commanded while putting the small vessel back away.

Yes. The south. Edmure was wondering how to repay the eunuch for having to do this. "We have still not received answer from Stannis. He is not ambushing our couriers, but neither is he paying them any attention." He took a deep breath before coming to the difficult part. "I had send outriders to see what the situation at the Rose Road is. They report seeing banners with three flowers, Loras Tyrells personal insignia, and the crowned stag of Renly Baratheon. The road is blocked and riders patrol the region. There will be no more food coming from the Reach."

"We have the harbor still," she replied, but even then, Cersei looked worried. They all knew that with the Crownlands burned by the Old Lion and the Reach denied by Renly, the few shipments from Essos would not feed the capital. "And their main host?"

"Marching north towards Kings Landing," Edmure almost blurted out. "They will soon reach the Blackwater. We don't know exactly how many, but it is likely all the troops that the Stormlands and Reacher traitors can muster."

It was quite for a while as Cersei seemed lost in thoughts. Almost as if she was listerning for something. "How many men to we have in the capital?"

This time, Edmure actually had to unfurl one of the parchments he had brought. "About 15,000 foot and 7,000 cavalry. The rest of our troops are with Tarly. We are outnumbered two to one and it is unlikely that Tarly can return quickly enough to aid us. What should we do, my queen?"

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AN: Not many options left at this point. Even Kings Landing itself is slipping away.