House Eagleheart

I'm currently working on a bit of fan fic (I know I'm just as ashamed of myself too) inspired by a back and forth I had with surrounding George RR Martin's series A Song of Ice and Fire, which has in turn spawned an equally great show you all know much better as "Game of Thrones."

The scenario is your standard "What would you do if you were dropped into Universe X carrying things Y." I'll go into further detail later, but this is just the hook to get started. By the by, this is going to be VERY SPOILER HEAVY, so back out now if you haven't seen the show or read the books. This is the Sigil of House Eagleheart, one of the newest noble houses of Westeros to emerge during the Chaos of the War of Five Kings...

PART 1
House Tyrell loved to brag about their service to the Greenhand Kings of the Reach at Highgarden, their words, "GROWING STRONG," and how readily they bent the knee to Aegon and his Dragons. They also love to brag about how they would have defeated Robert's Rebellion if not for this excuse and that excuse. Pathetic rationalists, who claim they "chose peace and prosperity over war and devastation," when in reality they turn tail and run the moment things get hard. In truth the Tyrells were opportunistic cowards, who spend more time concerned with keeping up appearances rather than the weight of action.

With King Robert Baratheon's death, the Tyrells, rather than support Robert's son King Joffrey Baratheon, sided with Robert's youngest brother, Renly, a good lad, but one with no experience with War. Perhaps the Tyrell's are more stupid than opportunistic. Renly's body wasn't even cold when the Tyrell's, specifically Margaery, left for King's Landing to hastily apologize for helping to start a civil war and then promptly asked to join their house with the Baratheons to make Margaery queen! As if to add insult to injury, the Tyrell's even tried to marry their eldest son to Sansa Stark, and lay claim to the North. Fortunately, Lord Tywin was wise enough to kill that union in its crib, but I still think he was far too generous to marry Ser Loras Tyrell off to his daughter Cersei, the Queen Regent no less.

The Lannisters ultimately paid the price for letting traitors under their roof. Margaery Tyrell and Lady Olenna Redwyne, her grandmother, conspired to poison King Joffrey at their wedding feast, and frame Tyrion Lannister for the murder. After a show trial where Tyrion made the wise choice of asking me Ser Harlon Eagleheart, Steward of Harrenhal, to stand as his Champion against the Mountain, Ser Gregor Clegane. Clegane faced me in full plate metal, wielding a greatsword that had cleaved men and horses in half. I had only a bit of armor covering my heart, one gauntlet, and a weapon unlike anything the people in King's Landing had ever seen, save Lord Tywin. The crowd laughed when I turned down the chance to take a sword. They must have thought I was mad to stand against one of the most feared knights in Westeros with no noticeable defense. In most cases they'd be right, but today, things changed. Ser Gregor moved to strike me down, and with the pull of the trigger, Ser Gregor fell. I fired once more into his head to make sure he stayed down.

With that Lord Tyrion was set free, and I stood before the Queen Regent and told her that I knew who really killed her son, King Joffrey. I presented the evidence against the Tyrells and the Queen promptly ordered they be taken to the dungeons to await their execution. The Tyrell flower would be cut down and left to die, and for clearing his son's name, uncovering the truth about the King's killers, and saving the Realm from the Tyrell's treachery, I was to be named the new Lord of Highgarden, and Warden of the South, IF I could take the castle with my small force from Harrenhal and unseat Mace Tyrell and the Queen of Thorns from Highgarden, so that they too may face the King's Justice. I know Lord Tywin doesn't seriously expect me to successfully take Highgarden, which is why he didn't grant me this title publicly. Lord Tywin believes my cannons will be perfect for lighting a fire under Tyrell's feet, and force him to negotiate for his children's lives. But with 500 riflemen I can cut down every knight in the seven kingdoms, and with two cannons I can cleave the highest walls in two. Highgarden will be mine, the Reach will be mine.

House Eagleheart would not make the same mistakes as the Tyrell's, we will remember that duty to the Realm comes first, as our words remind us that service breaks the chains of poverty that I would have been doomed to, had Lord Tywin not seen my potential. Our sigil: A white Eagle clutching a smith's hammer beneath a seven pointed star. Our words are, "Fly Free."

PART 2
Highgarden fell in an afternoon. Lord Mace Tyrell made the mistake of trying to meet my host in the field, and they were cut down by a hail of bullets and cannon fire. We took the castle, but the Queen of Thorns was nowhere to be found. We marched south and by the time we reached Oldtown the remaining houses of the Reach had learned which way the wind was blowing. The Hightowers were eager to open their gates and join us for the assault on the Arbor. Our reinforcements from Harrenhal and the local conscripts must have looked like too much for them. We put to sea after a few days rest in Oldtown, a few days I needed to mount our cannons to some of the Hightower fleet's larger ships. The Redwyne fleet put up a good fight, I'll say that much for them. Even as they watched their ships be torn to pieces before their archers ever got into range and had a chance to defend themselves, they managed to keep their lines together and sink with grace. Olenna Redwyne was captured by nightfall. We treated the traitorous crone with the respect of a lady of a great house, gave her the dignity she apparently deserved as she was transported back to King's Landing to meet the headman's axe. 

I returned to Kings Landing to receive a hero's welcome, King Tommen kept his Grandfather's promise and named me Lord Paramount of the Reach and Warden of the South, AND much to my surprise Master of War. Apparently Daenerys Targaryen had successfully conquered Meereen on the heels of a slave uprising, and Lord Tywin wanted to assure the other noble houses of two things: The Crown would raise a force capable of defeating dragonfire... and anyone foolish enough to stand against the Crown would face the fury that brought down the one of the most powerful families in Westeros. At my urging, and Lord Tywin's consent, King Tommen proclaimed the creation of the Army of the Realm, modeled on the force that I used to take Highgarden. Training camps were commissioned at Harrenhal and Summerhal before Olenna's head hit the ground the same day, and Lord Tywin even authorized the turning of the Dragonpit into an academy to train the Army's officers.

Lord Tywin's support, combined by the riches of the Reach, enables new possibilities I never would have dreamed possible even a year ago. My staff from Harrenhal are training countless tradesmen in the new ways of metalworking, while an endless supply of peasants are working to create foundries, textile mills, and sawmills along the Blackwater Rush, while the most promising smallfolk are shipped off to Harrenhal to work as gunsmiths. The dregs of Kings Landing now find themselves shipped off to work in the coal mines of the Reach and Riverlands. 

All is not well, however. Lord Tyrion's exoneration has not erased the harsh words said by his Lord Father during his trial. He remains exiled from the Small Council, without a wife, and apparently denied his right to Casterly Rock. One night, in what shouldn't be a surprise to anyone, the Imp apparently killed Lord Tywin in a drunken rage, and fled the city with the help of Varys. Queen Cersei seemed ready to blame me, but instead tasked me to find her brother and bring her his head. By the next small council meeting, I inform the queen that I believe Tyrion and Varys are going to attempt to defect to the Dragon Queen in Meereen. Lord Varys is from Lys originally and still has an extensive network of spies and allies in the East. I promise her to do all that I can to bring Tyrion to justice, and in the meantime the Crown must make ready to defend against the Targaryen girl and her Dragons.