The All-Crushing Storm-Emperor or Argall the Father Of Omni-man In ASOIAF
Lord Bryce Buckler. Lord of Bronzegate and Stormlord.
As the old Maester read the letter to me for the third time, I could only listen and feel a great deal of concern about what I was hearing. Hearing it again didn't help me come to terms with what the letter said, if anything I felt worse about the situation.
Because Princess Argella was the only daughter of King Argilac, the ruler of the Stormlands, many powerful men, both within the kingdom and beyond, sought an alliance with her noble house via marriage.
They did this by offering up a second son or a young brother, in the hopes that the lad would be able to marry Princess Argella and thus tie their noble house to King Argilac's family.
Since it had become clear that King Argilac wouldn't be having any sons the desire of the lords to have the princess marry a member of their houses had only increased. The man who could win her hand in marriage would one day become king as would their son. As the Stormlands would never accept a queen.
They would have to take the Durrandon name, but that was to be expected, and despite the honour of having a future king in the family the change of name was why few lords would be willing to offer up their own heir, as it might see their line disappear.
Tensions within the kingdom had been growing over time as none wished to see their rivals become more powerful and influential by having a member of that house become the husband of the princess.
Due to this instability, King Argilac was careful not to be seen as enabling any one house by showing them special attention.
To tell the truth, I found it hard to believe the words of the letter, which was informing me, one of the prime candidates for Argella's hand in marriage, that she had been engaged to another.
It might be considered good news, sure I was worthy of the princess, as I had proven myself as a warrior and I had become a battle-tested commander, and my lineage was prestigious, but I simply didn't wish to become the next king.
Of course, being the ruler of Stormlands would have been glorious and to have a product of my loins become rulers of a kingdom after me would be an honour few could imagine, only I was anything but stupid.
As the only living member of House Buckler, the marriage would allow me too much power compared to my rivals, and the other lords would not suffer the insult of having their suitors rejected in favour of myself.
For me, this could have become a messy and dangerous situation, although it was likely to anyway.
Argella was one of the primary reasons why I was against becoming part of the Durrandon family as while she was certainly a beautiful woman, with her silky black hair, pale blue eyes, and attractive figure, her attitude left much to be desired.
She was far too independent, even for a princess, not knowing her place as a woman in this world. I will feel a great deal of pity for the man who will have to handle her as a husband, and I certainly wasn't willing to be that man. Anyone who married her would be king only in name and he would be seen as a weak fool.
When the letter came and my Maester informed me that King Argilac was marrying his daughter to some nobody named Argall, I was beyond shocked, truly not knowing what to think at that moment and even now thoughts swirled in my head.
For once, I wished that I could properly read so I could examine the letter for any insight, but I banished that thought almost instantly. What use was reading and counting coppers to a true lord? That was what stewards and Maesters were for.
My first thought was that had Argilac simply gone insane, he must be to have thought that this match would be a good idea. I knew for certain that many of the great Stormlords would be enraged and that the kingdom would become the laughingstock of every other realm once this news was spread.
This was a worrying situation, to say the least. The conflict I'd dreaded was all but certain now and most terrible of all was that I expected the trouble to come from inside the kingdom itself.
It would be a civil war, and of course, the other realms will move to take advantage.
Something had to be done, but what?
(big thanks to awesome Gothicjedi666 who proofread this chapter )
