Chapter 28

King's Landing – Tywin

Tywin stood at the edge of his camp, his army at his back, paralyzed for a moment as he gazed at the capital. In the distance, he spotted the green flames, distinctive to wildfire, licking up one of the unique spires of the Red Keep. Even from where he stood, a league away, he could tell that something unholy was happening in King's Landing on this night. Just like Sansa had described, it appeared every nightmarish tale she'd shared from the future about King Aerys was accurate.

The King had set the capital on fire, uncaring that thousands upon thousands of innocents would be killed by his actions, convinced that he would rise from the ashes like the dragon he was.

Madness. Madness and stupidity, Tywin thought, shaking his head.

It was astonishing for Tywin to witness this event firsthand. From the time Sansa had told him what his son had prevented, Tywin had tried to imagine what would happen should they be unable to stop Aerys from enacting his wildfire plot. Tywin had known the moment that Jaime had fled King's Landing with Elia Martell, everything had changed. As they'd thundered down the Gold Road to the capital, he'd known that they'd be in a race against time to stop the Mad King from killing every man, woman and child in the city.

But even in his worst nightmares, Tywin had never imagined this. Somehow, he'd always imagined they would make it in time to stop Aerys the Mad from destroying the city. For that was the only way that Tywin would refer to him now. The Mad King Aerys. The foolish idiot had solidified his ignoble place in the history books with this single act.

While King's Landing was never a place that the Great Lion held dear to his heart, it was still the most populous city in Westeros. Many of the people that were living there were innocent – or at the very least did not deserve to die like this.

Tywin always found King's Landing far too crowded and dirty and filled with simpering fools for his tastes.

But, he had lived here for a time and called this place home. Tywin had essentially run the Seven Kingdoms up until two years ago, when Aerys had named his heir, Jaime, to the Kingsguard. Too enraged at yet another slight by the Mad King against House Lannister, Tywin had quit and ridden home to the Rock.

Casterly Rock had been his sanctuary ever since. Everyone knew it. Sansa from seventeen hundred years in the future had known it. Tywin loved his castle on the Sunset Sea.

He didn't stand here gazing at the Red Keep burning with anything close to sentimentality for he hated the entire city far too much. But it was an opportunity, and a golden one at that, to finally unseat the dragons from Westeros once and for all.

Aerys had handed him this chance on a platter and Tywin was not a man to waste such an opportunity.

In all the years that Tywin had served Aerys, he had known that his one time friend was descending into madness. He'd witnessed it first-hand. If that wasn't enough, had been told by Sansa that the king was known, even in her time, as a madman, and Tywin had heard his son speak in horror at what the King had become.

Still, even knowing what he did, nothing could have prepared Tywin for this.

To see such blatant and wanton destruction was genuinely horrifying. And in a place that had been the seat of power since the Targaryens had invaded Westeros some three hundred years ago, it made the King's actions baffling on so many levels.

What did Aerys think this would do? Kill the traitors he was sure were in his midst? How did he account for those that were just living their lives in the capital? And how did this solve anything?

In the end, those that would suffer the most would be the innocent – women, men, children, elderly. It was evening, and many would be abed, and all would be vulnerable.

There was a distant roar, and while others around him flinched, Tywin remained steady as rock and stone tumbled to the ground, those unholy green flames consuming the Red Keep. So far, the fire appeared contained to Aegon's High Hill, upon which the castle sat. But everyone knew how quickly a fire could spread and what was worse, water did not extinguish wildfire flames.

Tywin wondered if there would be anything left of the Red Keep by the time they reached the seat of Targaryen power. A part of him hoped there wouldn't be. It would make his and Sansa's plan easier to enact if the Mad King burned his own throne down to scrap. As long as it did not spread, for that would be truly nightmarish. Tywin knew the impact of this night would be felt for years to come. Whatever King's Landing was – dirty, crowded, and corrupt, it served as a vital port for trade in Westeros.

There wouldn't be a person in the Seven Kingdoms that would forgive Aerys for this transgression against those that he was charged with protecting. This was murder on a scale rarely witnessed in Westeros and indeed the stuff of nightmares.

It was like witnessing the death of a House before his very eyes, Tywin realized. And while the Targaryens had been in Westeros for a far shorter time than the Starks or Lannisters, they had been a force since their invasion with their dragons. They had united the Seven Kingdoms in blood and fire and ruled with an iron fist at that time.

Now all of that was burning, and none who stood and watched could say differently. None who heard about this night could dispute that the madness of the dragons was on full display.

House Targaryen was in ashes before their eyes.

Aerys was dead or dying. If he'd somehow survived, he would soon be dead, Tywin would see to that. Either he or Ned Stark would take his head.

Rhaegar dead at the Trident.

Viserys was trapped on Dragonstone and with few allies and fewer places to go where he'd be safe.

And the daughter not yet born, along with the child in the Tower of Joy that belonged to Rhaegar.

There was no way that Elia Martell would want her children associated with such wanton destruction of life – not after what Jaime had risked saving not only her but her children.

How could anyone build a legacy around such destruction?

The short answer was, one could not. No one would back House Targaryen after this night. This was beyond the pale. Even for a man such as Tywin, who had never balked at using violence whenever necessary to bring people to heel, he would have never done this. This was far too much.

"Tywin," Sansa cried, clutching at his arm.

The distress in her voice was evident, and Tywin knew she battled feelings of guilt and responsibility for how events had unfolded. But none of this was her fault, nor his. Neither one of them had control over the events that had brought them into each other's lives. And even if he could have controlled her coming back in time, even knowing what was happening, Tywin would change nothing. He loved his wife with a ferocity that was unmatched and knew her to be the other half of his very soul.

Drawn away from the horror that was unfolding in the capital, Tywin took a moment to look at those around him. All were watching with him – looking to him to guide them, to lead them, to be the Great Lion that he was. It was what had been expected of him his entire life, and tonight would be no different. The mantle of saving his proud house had fallen on his shoulders when he was only a few years younger than Sansa and had been his to protect ever since.

Just like the kingdom itself was now in his hands. This was yet another defining moment in a life that had been filled with them. And he did not mean to fail.

Tywin took a moment to gaze at those who stood with him, watching the fall of House Targaryen.

His eyes stopped on the beautiful woman clutching his arm.

Sansa, his beloved second wife. Now twenty-three years old, she was his soul mate. That might sound fanciful, but it was nothing short of the absolute truth.

They had been married just over three months, and she was already pregnant with a new Lannister lion. It was incredible how well-matched he and Sansa were, and Tywin loved her deeply. She was someone Tywin would wage war for.

He could see the pain in her eyes as the fire burned. Her empathy, which knew no bounds, was not determined by what house someone belonged to, nor the status of their birth. She was worried for the innocents caught up in a Mad King's cruel game. He wanted to promise that they'd save them, but even he did not know if that were possible. But he would try.

He tugged her closer, holding her tightly as the horror of the night washed over them both.

Tywin had never imagined allowing himself this vulnerability of loving someone else again. Not after the death of his first wife and the circumstances surrounding Joanna's death. He and Joanna had married almost a decade before the birth of a child that was not his had torn her apart on the birthing bed. That child, one conceived of through rape from the very King who now lit the capital on fire, had occurred when they'd been thirty-name days old. Aerys, as King, had taken what he'd wanted ans that event had destroyed Tywin's world.

Or so it had seemed.

For a decade after Joanna's death, Tywin had isolated himself from his children, his siblings, his entire House and his people, too mired in grief to function properly or even think of loving someone new. He had been resigned to spending the rest of his days alone and miserable, thinking he'd groom the next generation of Lannister lions to carry on the family name. But he'd vowed that he would never again love another as he had his first wife, and he would never remarry.

He had purposely cut himself off from almost everyone who attempted to care about him.

Until he'd begun to have visions a year ago.

Visions of a woman not from this time.

Visions of a woman from the future.

Visions of a beautiful woman with red hair, an intellect that rivalled his and a joy for life that he'd never experienced before.

He'd been forty-one when the vision began, and Tywin thought himself going mad – thought perhaps that it was the gods attempting to bring him to his knees by stealing his sanity.

But it wasn't madness. It was magic, a twist of fate, or some unknown, unseen force that had pushed him and Sansa together, across time and space.

Tywin did not know what gods had been at work, but Sansa Stark, from seventeen hundred years in the future, had been the person to bring him back to life when she'd ended up back in ancient Westeros. She had been back in time for only four months and had come back as the eldest, unmarried daughter of Lord Hoster Tully.

Tywin had raced from his beloved Casterly Rock to secure a marriage with Sansa, which Lord Tully had gleefully accepted.

Now, at forty-two, Tywin was married to a woman as intelligent as anyone he had ever met. Sansa had a thirst for life and adventure and a vast capacity to love and more passion than any person Tywin knew.

And no one had ever understood him the way that Sansa did. She knew all his worst secrets, all his dark deeds – how utterly ruthless he could be and everything that made him a man to be feared. A man whispered about. A man that so few dared even approach.

And yet, she loved him.

Madly.

Passionately.

Completely.

Not even Joanna had loved him the way Sansa did – the way she could. She was his partner and his equal in so many ways, and a woman perfectly suited to him.

Now, with his marriage to Sansa, Tywin was finally in a position to remove the Targaryens from their throne and take it for himself.

Because everyone knew that a King needed and Queen.

And what a Queen Sansa would make. There was no one like her in the entire kingdom, and Tywin knew she was worthy of the title he would soon bestow upon her.

Not that he meant to rule the Seven for long or stay in King's Landing. His brilliant wife had given him the idea to return Westeros to what it once was – independent regions that governed themselves. Tywin had been mulling the idea over for days, and apart from loathing King's Landing, it was Sansa's assurance that the concept of the Seven didn't truly work that had most convinced Tywin that he would be best to break it all apart.

Some might think him as mad as Aerys for even considering such a thing. But at what cost did someone, even a man like him, attempt to hold something together that was never meant to be?

And when challenged by his wife on what he wanted, Tywin realized that everything he loved was within his grasp.

Tywin had his heir back, safe and away from the Mad King.

He had another child on the way with a woman he loved more and more each day.

He had his brother Tygett back in his confidence, their relationship the best it had been in years.

And he had more gold than any man could spend in ten lifetimes.

Why should Lannister gold prop up a rotten realm?

Tywin loved the Westerlands and the Rock in particular. It was there where he was happiest and where he already ruled like a King. The idea of what remained of his family, being happy and whole and in the West, with him, was a powerful motivator for Tywin to do things differently.

But first, he'd have to take the Throne to tear it all apart and build something new from the ashes that Aerys seemed determined to leave them. The idiot probably thought he'd won; when the reality was, this would only make Tywin and Sansa's claim to the Throne and their vision for the future stronger – to decentralize the realm and give each region back their independence.

Standing beside Sansa were his loyal brothers Kevan and Tygett. Both men adored Sansa, and her presence in his life had helped restore his fractured relationship with his younger brother to the point where Tywin trusted Tygett unequivocally. Tygett had indeed come into his own, dedicated to House Lannister in a manner he never previously had been, loyal and willing to work with Tywin and ensure their great House was truly the best in Westeros.

Kevan, always steady and always loyal, was the only person besides Jaime who knew that Sansa was a time traveller. His brother had found out before their wedding at Riverrun, and the bond between Sansa and Kevan was solid as the rock upon which their castle was built.

On Tywin's other side stood his beloved son and heir, Jaime. Jaime looked sickened by the flames that were consuming the Red Keep.

Tywin knew that inside his son's heart and head, he worried if he'd made the wrong choice by leaving King's Landing and the Mad King's side. In Sansa's timeline, Jaime had stayed in the capital and killed Aerys before he could enact his wildfire plan. His son had saved half a million people but had been named a Kingslayer, a moniker that would follow him for the rest of his life.

Sansa had told Tywin that Jaime had never recovered from that one brave act – had in fact hidden it from the realm, wearing the mantle of oathbreaker like an albatross around his neck.

In this timeline, Jaime had escaped King's Landing with Prince Rhaegar's wife, Elia, three weeks ago, after learning of his twin sister's death, along with the deaths of his uncle Gerion and his closest friend, Addam Marbrand. Aerys had refused to allow Jaime to come home for their funerals, and unable to stay in the capital any longer, Jaime had made his escape.

Kevan and Tygett had found Jaime defending Elia and her young daughter just outside Deep Den on the Gold Road and sprung into action, killing the few men that Aerys had sent after Jaime.

Which brought Tywin to the issue of Elia Martell. She had been married to Prince Rhaegar, a man her same age, for three years, and at twenty-seven, and had now given him two children. Two legitimate children.

When Jaime had rescued Elia from King's Landing, she had been pregnant with the Prince's son and heir. Elia had recently given birth in the Lannister camp to her son, named Aegon, and was resting, protected by Tywin's loyal army.

Her brother, Prince Oberyn Martell, stood beside Jaime in shocked disbelief as he, too, watched the Red Keep begin to burn.

A raven from Tywin had Dorne marching to Storm's End to liberate the second Baratheon brother, Stannis, from the nearly yearlong siege that Houses Tyrell and Redwyne had the Stormlands under. After that, Dorne and what was left of Stannis's men had marched North, to King's Landing, instead of joining Rhaegar at the Trident, as they'd promised to do.

Tywin wasn't ignorant of the game Oberyn Martell played. The man thought he'd win the game of thrones by declaring Elia's newborn son the rightful heir to the Seven and then make himself regent and rule in his nephew's stead.

Tywin had no intention of letting that happen. He'd see it all torn apart before he'd ever knee to House Martell.

"Seven hells," Stannis Baratheon, the new Lord Paramount of the Stormlands, muttered, shaking his head as if he couldn't quite believe what he was witnessing. Tywin knew the feeling well and could only grunt in agreement as he looked at Stannis.

It has been Stannis's brother, Robert, along with Lords Ned Stark and Jon Arryn that had started the rebellion. A rebellion that Tywin had chosen to sit out for the first year as it raged in the Stormlands and Riverlands. Until the visions had begun and Tywin had realized the opportunity that was before him to ensure the dynasty he was desperate to leave behind was secured. And all of that was because of Sansa.

Because of the visions and Sansa, Tywin had been able to negotiate a better outcome for this rebellion against House Targaryen – one that didn't include sitting Robert Baratheon on the Iron Throne. Robert was a loathsome pig of a man who had threatened Sansa on their wedding night. They had just received word that Robert had succumbed to his injuries at the Trident when the Red Keep had erupted in flames. Had he not died at the Trident, Tywin had been well prepared to ensure he did not live long.

Stannis was the new lord of Storm's End and someone Tywin hoped would be a loyal ally in the months and years to come. In Tywin's estimation, Stannis was far better suited to ruling than Robert ever was, and he found their personalities suited one another. There were several young men, Ned Stark, Jaime, Stannis that were all of a similar age, twenty-one, that would need guidance in the upcoming years to rule their regions well. Tywin meant to provide that guidance in spades.

"Madness," Stannis whispered, shaking his head in disbelief. Tywin could only grunt his agreement.

There was a soft cry, and Tywin's head swivelled to see Lady Catelyn Stark, the same age as Jaime and Stannis, standing there, eyes wide as she covered her mouth in shock. Sansa's 'sister' in this timeline had become a loyal ally of House Lannister.

Tywin knew from Sansa that it was Catelyn's husband, Ned Stark, who was beside Robert at the Trident. And it would be Ned that would race down the King's Road with Robert's vanguard, to add to their numbers to take King's Landing.

In Sansa's timeline, House Lannister had marched to King's Landing under the guise to 'aid' Aerys and instead sacked the city. While his army ravaged the city, Jaime had killed his King to stop the wildfire plot. When Ned Stark had arrived, all he could see was that his vengeance against the man that had killed his father and his brother had been stolen from him. It had been Ned Stark that had called Jaime a Kingslayer and Oathbreaker, thus sealing Jaime's reputation and fate.

Tywin did not mean for history to repeat itself. Now it wasn't about sacking the city but saving it and as many innocent people as they could. If they found the King alive, Tywin would arrest him so that Ned Stark might have his revenge, knowing it would gain him the trust and loyalty of the Northern lord, something Tywin was coming to place a high value on – building proper alliances that would ensure a smooth transition of power and a Westeros that would prosper.

With the numbness fast wearing off, Tywin was now compelled to act.

He turned to face the small group assembled, his voice intense with his eyes matching in their urgency. No one who saw him doubted the power and force of the Great Lion.

Tywin was surrounded by some of the most influential men of the realm, and yet, he was clearly the one they all deferred to. Sansa had explained all about alpha personalities when she watched the cubs, Augustus dominating Alexander on many occasions.

It was the same with people.

Tywin knew he was the true alpha of Westeros. He was the one they would all follow – tonight and for the foreseeable future.

"Mobilize our army. This is now a rescue mission. We will need dirt to extinguish the flames. Start a bucket line once we are inside the city gates. Prince Oberyn, you will open the King's Gate and evacuate as many people into the Kingswood as possible. Lord Stannis and Ser Kevan, you are with me. Send a runner to Varys and Pycelle and tell them to open as many gates as they can and get the people out of the city immediately!"

All three men nodded.

"Make it clear to anyone who enters the city – this is a rescue. No rape. No plunder. No pillaging. We are here to liberate King's Landing from Targaryen rule. Anyone found contravening these orders will forfeit their life."

Both Oberyn and Stannis exchanged a look before agreeing, while Tywin noted the look of relief on Sansa's face, along with the small smile she gave him.

What did it say that pleasing his wife was something that Tywin took a tremendous amount of pleasure from? Did it make him weak? Or did it make him stronger to have the love and support of a woman such as her?

So far, her advice had never led him astray, and he trusted her implicitly. No one had ever loved him as she did, even knowing all the worst parts about him and what he was capable of. And no one had ever understood him as she did. There was no denying that, in his estimation, Sansa made him a better man and a better ruler. She tempered the harshest parts of his personality, but she never wanted him to be something he was not.

As Stannis, Oberyn, and Kevan hurried to do Tywin's bidding, barking out orders and readying their men, it left Tywin with two angry lions, along with the two Tully sisters who looked at the burning city with something akin to horror.

"Father, I can help," Jaime said, his hand resting on the golden lion pommel of his sword.

There was a determination in his son's eyes as if he'd take on the entire City Watch himself to atone for leaving Aerys' side. That would not be necessary.

Taking Jaime in close, Tywin cupped the back of his son's neck with one hand while the other rested on his son's cheek. Tywin knew what it would cost Jaime to enter back into that city, and he was determined to save him that pain while at the same time acknowledging how much he trusted his son.

"I know, Jaime. I know what you would do. I know how many you would save. You are one of the best swordsmen in Westeros. That is why you are needed here."

Jaime's mouth opened to protest, but Tywin shook his head, almost vehemently, and brought their faces even closer together, so green Lannister eyes met green eyes.

His eyes, Tywin thought. His son. He finally had him back. And he would not lose him or Sansa to the madness of this night.

"Think, son. You know how precious Lady Sansa is. Not just to me, but to our House, to our future, to our legacy. You must guard her and ensure she is safe. With the chaos of King's Landing, it would take nothing for someone to slip away from the rescue and strike at the heart of us. To take her from me. I trust you with her, and only you, Jaime. You will keep her safe."

Jaime frowned as if assessing if his father was simply placating him. But he must have seen something in Tywin's eyes, for he nodded, remembering what Sansa meant to Tywin. This was no jape to Tywin. He was not giving Jaime this task because he didn't have faith in him, but the opposite. He knew of everyone here; Jaime would keep Sansa safe by any means necessary. Jaime would die to defend her if needs by.

"If things turn, if you receive word that I am lost or dead, you take Sansa, and you ride hard for the Rock. There is five years' worth of provisions and enough gold for a lifetime or more. I left half my army in the Westerlands. You will both be safe there. You are my heir Jaime and the future of the West is you and her. Together, the two of you will ensure that I am avenged, that our House remains strong."

Jaime's eyes widened, and he swallowed hard as he saw the pride and love that Tywin had for him. The trust he was placing in him. The absolute faith that Tywin had in him.

"Father ---"

"Swear it to me, Jaime," Tywin demanded, the scent of burning now reaching them on their hill. "Swear you will keep her safe if things go badly inside King's Landing."

They had no time to waste. Tywin needed Jaime's vow, for he knew his son would hold to it. If the unthinkable happened, Tywin had to know that Jaime and Sansa would be safe. And the only place they would be safe was at Casterly Rock.

Jaime swallowed hard and nodded once. "I swear it, Father."

Tywin cupped Jaime's cheek, gazing at his beloved son. "You are a Lannister, a true lion of the Rock, and I am so very proud of you, Jaime."

Tywin could see he'd startled his son, who appeared deeply touched by the sentiments.

Jaime swallowed hard and then nodded. "I am proud that you are my father. I am proud that I am a Lannister."

Tywin clasped him close and then released him, turning to Tygett.

His brother had overheard their exchange, and he held out his hand as the brothers clasped each other's arms, drawing the other in close.

"We will do our duty," Tygett said. "No harm will come to those in this camp, Tywin."

It was a testament to how much their relationship had improved that Tygett knew how much Tywin needed him here – and understood much trust he was placing in him.

"Keep Elia Martell close," Tywin muttered so only Tygett could hear.

Tywin was well aware that Elia Martell would be considered a prize by many and that her son would be considered the true heir to the Iron Throne. Tywin did not debate that. Elia had indeed given House Targaryen a proper heir. But they were staging this rebellion to overthrow the rule of dragons – not seat another one on the Throne. The last thing Tywin needed was to lose a valuable bargaining chip in the chaos of this night.

Tygett grimaced but nodded. "We will."

"If this turns, you make for the Rock. With Jaime, Sansa, Catelyn and Elia. There are another twenty-thousand men that will be loyal to you, brother, in the Westerlands, and the Rock can withstand a siege for five years. We both know it has never been breached. I entrust my family to your care," Tywin told Tygett.

He saw his brother's eyes widen, both astonishment and confidence there. It was a monumental task that Tywin had given Tygett, but he knew his brother would not fail him. Tywin knew that Tygett was loyal to House Lannister, and he trusted him implicitly.

"I will keep your family safe, brother."

Tywin went to pull away when Tygett drew him close, so their foreheads touched.

"Come back to us, Ty. The Westerlands needs their King," Tygett said, a plea in his voice that Tywin had never heard before.

Deeply moved and knowing that Tygett would do everything in his considerable power to ensure that Sansa and Jaime survived this night, Tywin could only nod. His throat felt thick at the bonds of love and family that had deepened between himself and his brother.

With that, Tywin turned to Sansa, who was pale, her blue eyes impossibly huge. He couldn't hold her as close as he liked, for he was in full armour, but she clung to him, nonetheless. Tywin could feel her shaking and knew he could give her no promises that he'd survive this upcoming battle. Wildfire changed everything, and they still needed to secure Aerys or confirm he was dead. It would be a hellish ordeal and dangerous for any who entered the city.

"Come back to me, husband," she whispered into his ear.

"I will do my best. Listen to Jaime and Tygett. If I am captured, if I die, you need to get yourself to safety if this goes wrong. The King is already obsessed with you, Sansa, and you will not be safe here or anywhere he can get to you."

She shuddered as if she couldn't bear the thought of what the King might do to her. Tywin didn't blame her in the least. If Aerys ever got his hands on Sansa, he would inflict horrible torture on her. Because she was Tywin's and because Aerys lived to destroy everything that Tywin loved. And everyone knew that Tywin loved his new wife.

"Promise me, love," Tywin demanded, needing her vow.

He could not do what was required if he were worried she would do something stupid to save him. He had to know that she, Jaime and his unborn child were safe if the worst were to happen to him.

"Tywin, I cannot ---" she began to say before he kissed her swiftly, taking her lips bruising hard.

Tywin carded his hands into her hair.

"Sansa, please," he said, almost begging, something the mighty Tywin Lannister never did.

But this was Sansa. His entire heart. His entire world.

"I promise," she whispered against his lips as he kissed her once more and then handed her to Tygett, who held her gently. Tywin heard her sob, but he turned and strode away, preparing himself to lead his men into the capital, focused on the task at hand and not the woman he was leaving behind.

Gods, her tears and her worry ripped at his heart, but he steeled himself against them. Now was not the time.

As he left the small group standing on the hill, he heard Tygett say, "Not to worry Sansa, my brother, does not know how to lose a battle. It's why his name is Tywin."

Tywin heard Sansa's hysterical laughter before his wife thanked his brother for making her smile, and then Tywin was out of range from them. From this moment on, Sansa's safety rested entirely with Tygett and Jaime. Tywin entered his tent to find his page waiting, and he hurried to don the rest of his armour, including his lion's helm.

When he emerged from his tent, organized chaos reigned in the Lannister camp.

While his commanders barked out orders, men were racing for their horses, repeating what Tywin had decreed. All those in the capital would know that House Lannister came as liberators and not conquerors. On the edge of where the warhorses were staged, Tywin found Kevan and Stannis waiting for him.

"Have we received word from Pycelle?" Tywin demanded, allowing his page to help him onto his mount. It was a tricky thing in full armour, but there was no way Tywin would enter the city in any other manner. He didn't trust Aerys to not have staged this entire event, to lie in wait for him and strike when he thought Tywin might be vulnerable.

"We have. The Lion's Gate, the Dragon's Gate and the King's Gate will be open. In fact, Pycelle says that most of the City Watch are attempting to flee, along with the common people. No one has seen the King, and we know there is not a single white cloak guarding him."

"And the damage?"

Kevan cocked his head.

"So far, contained to the Red Keep. It appears that even this was too much for Lord Varys to stomach. Word is his little birds ensured that the wildfire plot only consumed the castle."

Tywin scoffed, shaking his head.

"Madness and stupidity," he snarled again, still having a hard time reconciling the idea that Aerys believed himself somehow immune to fire. Dragons.

Sansa was right. Targaryen rule had gone on far too long in Westeros. Tywin didn't care that Elia had given the realm a proper, true-born heir. Their reign ended once they doused the last flame. He was prepared to tear it all down and build something new out of the ashes that Aerys had left him.

"We are by your side, My Lord," Stannis said, his voice commanding and firm.

Tywin took a moment to observe him, this new lord of the Stormlands.

Stannis was so different from his rude and arrogant brother that Tywin could scarcely believe they were from the same family. Except that Stannis looked every inch a Baratheon, just far slimmer than Robert and much more circumspect. Tywin had been right when he'd decided that he and Stannis would suit one another, and he felt it a good sign that Stannis was by his side as this nightmare unfolded.

Stannis was a man ruled by duty, justice, law and the truth, and he'd speak of Tywin Lannister's orders here tonight – that they were to liberate and save King's Landing and that this wasn't to be a sacking. Tywin could see that pleased Stannis, for Steffon's second son had never understood wanton violence or the need for it.

"There are caches of wildfire under the guildhalls, the Sept of Baelor and all the major thoroughfares. When we are through the gates, we will make for the Red Keep and attempt to secure the King," he said to Kevan and Stannis. "If Varys is correct and his spies have stopped the wildfire from spreading, we might still find the King alive."

Both men nodded.

"This will be a hellish night," Tywin warned them.

Both men merely nodded.

"I am, as ever, in your service, My Lord," was all Kevan said.

"You are the King the realm needs," Stannis added.

Tywin held their gazes and then, with a mighty roar, Tywin led his men out of their camp and down into the valley below, towards the Lion's Gate to save the people of King's Landing from Mad King Aerys, who wanted to burn them all.