JAENYX VII
Jaenyx went over the various sketches and texts that were related to Casterly Rock, or the best ones he could find. There were no surviving records of the mountain fortress from when House Casterly first settled there and anything related to the castle from when Lann the Clever took over couldn't be trusted, as there were many conflicting accounts of its design and even whether the progenitor of House Lannister ever existed. Can't people make up their fucking mind on who was who and what was what?
Jaenyx became familiar with the history of House Lannister thanks to Visenya. The most common version that people knew was Lann the Clever stripping himself naked and coating himself with butter, which allowed him to squeeze through an unknown gap in the wall. He then cause confusion among the sleeping Casterlys by whispering threats in their ear, causing a ruckus like a demon, switching their valuables from one room to another, and setting up traps. That supposedly caused the Casterlys to flee their castle out of a fear that it was haunted. Well, if that tale was true, the Casterlys never deserved that castle in the first place if they allowed themselves to be so easily fooled.
Jaenyx was also familiar with another version of Lann the Clever, who used that gap in the wall to fill the castle with mice, rats, and other vermin to drive the Casterlys out. One other version had Lann smuggle inside a pride of lions, which devoured Lord Casterly and his sons. Lann then claimed the lord's wife and daughters for himself. And the most infamous account saw Lann have his way with Casterly maidens while they slept and the women gave birth to golden-haired children while insisting they were never bedded. If I had to choose, I'd pick the one where he snuck in vermin to drive out his rivals. Lions are too big to not be noticed and there's no way that women would not know if they were bedded.
With no reliable information on Casterly Rock itself, Jaenyx switched directions and examined Lannisport, which the mountain fortress overlooked. Unlike with Casterly Rock, there were many detailed maps of the port and some of his vassals had firsthand experience from their visits to the city. But the actual city itself had no importance to Jaenyx. As it was close to Casterly Rock, there were bound to be pathways and roads that led from Lannisport to the mountain fortress. And sure enough, Jaenyx was able to find multiple avenues of entry into the castle.
As both Jaenyx and Visenya were plotting how they were going to enter Casterly Rock via Lannisport along with Chrass Rivers, who commanded a contingent of five hundred Blackwood men that remained with the main army when they retreated from Riverrun, a Darry man entered the solar. "My lords and lady," he dipped his head.
"What is it, Ser Forrest?" Chrass asked.
"Lady Argella Baratheon is outside. She wishes to speak with you."
Jaenyx, Visenya, and Chrass looked at each other with surprise. Orys' wife is here?
"Send her in," Visenya told the Darry knight. Soon after he left, in came the Lady Paramount of the Stormlands. She was wearing a yellow gown with red and black linings and her black hair was loose. However, there were dark circles around her fierce blue eyes and her face looked drained, pointing to her overall exhaustion incurred as a leader.
"My lords," Argella dipped her head to Jaenyx and Chrass. "My lady," she addressed Visenya.
"Please sit down," Visenya gestured to the chair in front of their table.
"I was wondering if I could speak with you and Lady Visenya in private," Argella said as she sat down.
Jaenyx turned to Chrass before writing down a message in nihongo, which Visenya also fully understood. "Chrass, please get this to Arata Haru. He'll know what to do after."
Chrass Rivers took the note and bowed his head before leaving the room. "My lord, my lady."
Visenya turned to Argella. "What do you wish to discuss with us, Lady Argella?"
"I heard from Lord Aegon that the both of you are plotting to rescue my lord husband."
Jaenyx nodded. "Yes. Orys is one of our best commanders and the Lord Paramount of the Stormlands. The longer we allow him to remain in captivity, the more likely the stormlords do not remain on our side and might switch their allegiances."
"Very perceptive of you, Lord Jaenyx," Argella replied. "Lord Dondarrion and Ser Bruze have been both a great help in keeping them in line in my husband's absence. However, the problems that I faced when I was still my father's heir have returned. No matter what my husband did and however he accomplished them, he proved himself a worthy leader over the stormlords. While we were able to hold the line at the Slayne, Cape Wrath, and the woods near the Blackwater Bay, there have been reports of… misconduct on part of our enemies."
"Such as?" Visenya cocked her head in curiosity.
"Well… septons and members of the Faith Militant accompanied the armies of Prince Edmund Gardener and they've embarked on a rampage throughout the lands under their control. While all people of importance in my father's former kingdom are safely at Storm's End or in the mountains around it, many knights and smallfolk were not able to make it to safety. I heard that the septons began to subject those unfortunate to have remained to punishments 'befitting those of sinners.' I probably don't have to tell you what that means."
Jaenyx merely stared at Argella before he bobbed his head. "I've heard similar reports from the riverlands besides Seagard and Raventree Hall. From what I recall, a common punishment for so-called apostates is having their heads shaven, their clothes ripped from their bodies, and doing a 'walk of atonement.' Is that correct?"
"Yes, my lord," Argella confirmed.
Jaenyx scoffed. "As if we have enough reasons to hate the Faith right now."
"Why exactly are you here, my lady?" Visenya asked.
"I need my husband back, Lady Visenya," Argella admitted. "It's harder to deal with the stormlords without him and I don't know if I can placate them for long, now that I had many of them abandon their keeps."
"Those weren't your orders, my lady, and you displayed sound sense in military matters. The stormlords are in good hands."
"Yes, but they need their lord paramount back. Otherwise, who's left to pick up my father's legacy?"
Visenya sighed, proud that Orys used his time well in the stormlands but seeing the sense behind Argella's words. However, she could see that there was more to it.
"Any other reasons why you would want him back?" Visenya was curious.
Argella hesitated before nodding. "He's a better husband than I could ask for. He could've taken me on our wedding night, but he didn't because he respected me enough. And he could've easily boasted about killing my father in my face, but he chose to honor his memory and adopted my house's sigil and words as his own while adding his own additions to them."
Jaenyx had to be impressed with Orys' astuteness, as adopting the stag while adding dragon wings represented a coup amongst the stormlords.
"So what exactly do you want from us?" Jaenyx asked.
"Please, get him back alive. I don't think I can find a better man than your brother, Lady Visenya. And Lord Jaenyx, can you really afford to lose the stormlords?"
Jaenyx turned to Visenya, whose expression momentarily softened before it hardened again. "Are you asking that because you truly have affections for my brother, or is it because he's the best man by your side? There is a difference."
"I know I can't give you more than my word, other than the fact that I have maintained his hold of Storm's End in his absence and if Jaenyx can confirm, I've never done anything to suggest usurpation."
Jaenyx nodded out of affirmation. "She's telling the truth."
"And I am willing to hand control back to my husband. Is that not proof enough of my devotion to him?"
Visenya leaned forward and placed her hand on Argella's. "We'll get him back, my lady. We promise."
Argella smiled. "Kirimvose."
Jaenyx raised an eyebrow. "You know some High Valyrian?"
"Contrary to what the rest of Westeros thinks, I do hold those of old Valyria in high regard. And I am more than willing to accommodate for my good-family's origins."
Jaenyx offered a small grin. "That's good to hear. Now, I'm sorry, but I must ask you to take your leave. My wife and I have more to discuss regarding the rescue of Lord Orys." Argella nodded before she left the room.
"While we cannot know the full extent of Casterly Rock, there are several avenues of approach towards it. After we gain entry, it's a matter of being careful and not raising alarm while we get Orys out."
"Before we do that, Jae, we have to discuss what we saw at Gulltown."
"You mean the Braavosi ships?"
"It's clear that the Iron Bank is helping our enemies. Whatever reasons they have, we cannot let that go unanswered."
"We can't, but at the moment, we can do nothing."
Visenya was dumbstruck. "Why not?"
Jaenyx looked at her straight in her eyes. "There's no proof that they were officially sanctioned by the Iron Bank. Yes, there were Braavosi ships and yes, we fought against Braavosi sailors. However, we try to make them answer for that, they can simply deny that they sent them in the first place and claim that they were sellswords, hired by a third party to fight on behalf of the Starry Sept."
"That'll be bullshit, Jae," Visenya pointed out.
"Yes, but remember, we didn't destroy the Brackens' keep and burned their lands despite that letter until after they defected. We would need more concrete proof of their treachery before we can make them answer for it. Suppositions are not grounds for something as drastic as retaliation against the Iron Bank."
"So, we wait until the war is over?"
"That'll be the wisest course of action," Jaenyx switched to the common tongue. "Our focus right now is to rescue Lord Orys. After that, it's defeating the Faith. Once that's done, we will deal with any external issues."
Visenya stepped closer to Jaenyx. "What do you feel about Orys now?"
"Apart from the practical considerations of getting him back, I know you care for him very much. And I would not be keeping my promise that I made to your father to treat all of you with love and respect if I don't help rescue him."
"But besides that promise, what do you feel about him?"
Jaenyx pursed his lips. "There are many things that I should not have presumed with Orys and all of you are my family. This is my chance to set things right with him. I mean, he's going to have to talk to me about some things also, but I am taking the first step."
Visenya smiled before kissing him deeply. "I'm glad you see it that way, Jae."
Jaenyx grinned back. "Now, let's get back to planning the rescue."
The next day, Jaenyx, Visenya, Arata, and a few other Haru men rode onto Cloudwynd and Vhagar and flew above the riverlands and towards the waters west of Casterly Rock. Jaenyx looked upon the massive fortress of the Lannisters and he could see that the texts had woefully fallen short of capturing its characteristics. He saw that the cliffs were utterly massive, and the height of the Rock surpassed the Hightower of Oldtown many times over. The cliff had a natural cavern in it about two hundred feet high and big enough for ships to enter. The castle had its own port and there were quarters, granaries and storage facilities built down inside the actual Rock, the size of the structure extending far below the actual castle. It was a city carved into the mountain.
Looking towards the distance, Jaenyx could see the port city of Lannisport. A city of a quarter of a million, it could boast about having one of the best natural harbors on the Sunset Sea and was indeed a major destination for ships from all over the known world, even though it was more remote than many other ports throughout Westeros. The great wealth of the city attracted merchants selling all types of goods, including those that sold the Valyrian steel swords. The harbor had been improved over the centuries to include a large lighthouse and stone piers. Jaenyx could also see a part of the Lannister fleet as well as many merchant ships of all sizes docked or anchored in the harbor.
Jaenyx could also see the Great Sept of Lannisport atop a hill in the southeastern part of the city. The large dome was very prominent in the city's skyline. He read that the interior was opulently decorated and had a vividly colored painted ceiling and painted statues of the Seven. Several smaller septs were seen throughout the city, many for the middle class and poorer citizens of Lannisport, since the Great Sept of Lannisport was likely frequented only by the upper class and nobles. Well, one thing that Westeros and old Valyria shared in common. Dragonlords went to temples only fit for them while the other families went to more humble temples.
However, their goal ultimately was not approaching Casterly Rock via Lannisport. Jaenyx felt that it would have caused too many complications and that their Valyrian features would easily make them targets to the city's population. He took Visenya's suggestion in having the dragons fly low above the water close to the castle and they could swim towards the cliff face, but they would have to do it at night.
As Cloudwynd and Vhagar glided low above the Sunset Sea, Jaenyx gave the signal. They all let go of the dragons' spines and plunged into the water. Jaenyx swam hard against the high waves and currents of the sea, and anyone's anxiety could increase when the night resulted in the darkness of the ocean. Fortunately, he, Arata and the Haru men, and Visenya were hardened warriors and their minds could tolerate swimming in black waters.
The group swam closer to the mountain and as they did, Jaenyx saw a small cavern opening to his slight left. Increasing his pace, he motioned the others to follow and they found themselves inside the cavern soon enough. Thankfully, there were no torches or walkways, meaning that none of the Lannister garrison knew about this.
As they dried themselves and their weapons, Jaenyx moved around the cavern, which was dimly lit by the moonlight, and came upon an opening in the wall. Through it, he saw torchlight and the faint sound of men talking. Assessing the opening, he judged that it was wide enough for only one person at a time.
"All right, I think I found an opening," Jaenyx moved back to the group, all of whom were dressed in black cloaks and ready. "But, it can only fit one person at a time. That means we have to move quick so that all of us can make it to the other side. Who wants to go first?"
"I will," Arata said in High Valyrian. "I'm the quickest and we need to be fast, as you said."
Jaenyx clasped his shoulder. "Ki o tsukete (be careful)." Arata and a few Haru men squeezed themselves into the opening, which took much longer than he anticipated, before Arata peeked back through and gave the rest the go ahead. Soon, Jaenyx and Visenya were in a dimly lit corridor.
"All right, we're in. Now, we have to find where the dungeons are and the best way to deploy the ropes," Visenya said.
The shinobi developed a system to extract their members from hostile castles, which relied on ropes shot by special crossbow bolts. Once the ropes were set and the bolts secured in the ground, the shinobi would use special hooks to slide down the ropes and towards their escape point. There was a small forest north of Casterly Rock that provided cover for their escape and for their dragons to land.
But before they could proceed further, they heard men approaching them while talking with each other. As there was no place to hide, Jaenyx and the rest prepared. Sure enough, there were two Lannister guards walking down the corridor towards them and stopped in their tracks when they saw the black-clothed group. Before they could react, Arata threw a knife at one's throat while Jaenyx and Visenya charged the other, disarmed him, and pushed against the rocky side. Visenya put her hand over the guard's mouth.
"Do not make a sound, and we might let you live. Do exactly that, we will stick you like a pig. Understand?" Jaenyx warned him. After he nodded, Visenya put her hand off of his mouth while pressing a dagger against his throat.
"Where are the dungeons?" Jaenyx asked.
The guard gulped. "Sixth level."
"Any way we can access them without alarming your friends?" The guard hesitated. "You better be truthful because if you're not, we'll kill you right now."
"There's a stairway at the end of this corridor, but it's only used by the maester of this castle of the castellan Ser Bailen Reyne. You won't be discovered there."
"Are there any windows near the dungeons?"
The guard was confused as to why Jaenyx wanted to know that. "Yes. The sixth level has a large opening that faces northwards. It's to allow the air to circulate in the cells."
Perfect. "Do you know the cell where Lord Orys Baratheon is?"
"No, no. I don't know where he is. I swear to the old gods and the new, that's all I know," the guard begged.
Jaenyx nodded. "Thank you for your cooperation. I hope that you meet your gods soon enough."
"What—" but before the Lannister guard could say more, Visenya cut his throat and he fell down bleeding.
"Let's move," Jaenyx ordered them as they went towards and up the private stairway. Thankfully, they didn't encounter either the maester or the castellan as they made it to the sixth level.
"Ropu o youi shi ro (you four, get the ropes set up)," Jaenyx said to part of the group while the others pressed further into the dungeons. Arata continued to throw his knives at unsuspecting guards while Jaenyx and Visenya finished off the rest with quick slices with Seablaze and Dark Sister.
"Where is Orys Baratheon?" Jaenyx asked the dungeon keeper as he pressed his dagger against his throat.
"Third cell, and this is the key," the dungeon keeper held out a large key. Jaenyx snatched it from his hand before cutthing his throat anyway.
"Got the key. Let's get him and get out," Jaenyx said to Visenya. They approached the third cell, placed the key in, and opened the door.
ORYS III
Orys slipped in and out of consciousness, as he remained chained to his chair. The last time he remembered anything vividly was when Loren Lannister's kennelmaster took out a knife and started to cut across his chest and back, not deep enough to touch major blood vessels but enough for blood to ooze out of them and for pain to be inflicted.
Orys gritted his teeth as each cut was made on his body, made more difficult to do when the kennelmaster pushed handfuls of salt on his wounds after the knife made its mark.
"Why don't you scream, my lord?" the kennelmaster asked him with a sick smile. "There is no shame in a beast making evident its pain, or you could end it all by simply signing the annulment documents and renouncing your claim to Storm's-" But before he could finish, Orys spat in his face, thus earning another cut and salt.
"Maybe you're confusing with someone else," Orys managed. "And I know that there is only one way that a beast dies: with my hands around your neck."
"Threats will not do you any good, my lord."
"Oh, it's not a threat. It's a promise," Orys answered. "Just like the promise I'll make next. My family will come get me, and after I recover, I will take great pleasure in smashing all of your skulls to dust. But hopefully, that can happen before the dragons burn you first, which would be a fate worse than death."
"I wouldn't dream of rescue, Lord Orys," the kennelmaster scoffed. "No army, let alone no man, as ever managed to get into this castle and out alive. Not since Lann the Clever. And I'm pretty sure that they wouldn't risk killing you with their dragons."
"You really don't get it, do you? My family have accomplished things that your king could never dream of doing. And you can be sure that they will find a way into this place. Especially my good-brother, Jaenyx Belaerys."
"Ah, the Blue Dragon," the kennelmaster recognized. "I've heard tell about him, especially from Edmyn Tully. He called him a bigot and a stubborn fool, insulting those he considers beneath him."
"Edmyn Tully's the fool," Orys spat back. "He's just upset that his friend got the favor instead of him, and you can count on House Tully not living to see another year on this earth."
"Maybe so, but let's get back to the topic on hand. Just sign the fucking papers and you shall go free."
Orys knew it was a lie. The moment he signed the annulment forms, he would be killed. "Go fuck yourself."
The kennelmaster nodded. "I was actually waiting for you to say that, because I have something else planned for you." He walked behind Orys and he could hear metal scraping across the floor, but it felt… warmer. "We can do this all day, all night, or onto the next day if necessary. Your choice," were the last words he heard before he placed a red-hot blade onto Orys' chest, finally prompting a scream from Orys. "See, no shame," the kennelmaster chuckled while Orys screamed loudly in his face.
The kennelmaster continued to brand Orys all over his torso before he slipped into the blackness. He couldn't tell how much time had passed or what else the kennelmaster did to him. But given that he was enjoying some peace in his tiny cell, he could only think of the memories he had shared with his family before all of this happened.
Orys remembered the first time Aegon approached Balerion, the biggest dragon he had ever seen, and he remembered being afraid for his brother. The dragon's jaws were much taller than Aegon and even while he stroked his snout, Orys was still nervous. It was until Balerion bent his neck and Aegon began riding him through the sky that Orys felt at ease.
Orys thought back to when Visenya first bested him. She was three and ten and holding a training sword before she got Dark Sister. She was stumbling and her arms struggled under the force that Aegon and himself could muster, but after Quenton Qoherys pulled her aside and taught her a few tricks, Visenya kicked him in in the shin and pushed the pommel of her training sword against his chest, knocking him down.
Orys took himself back to when Rhaenys celebrated his twentieth name day with him. It was a great day and their father went out of his way to make it a memorable one for his son. While Orys was going back to his chambers, Rhaenys, who was only eight at the time, took him to the cliffs near the castle and together, they watched the clear night sky with all of its constellations. It was probably the best night Orys had before the winter set it.
Orys recalled when Jaenyx first arrived at Dragonstone. He didn't know what to think of the last scion of House Belaerys, but as he spent more time with them, he began to see that he was the man best suited to make Visenya happy and confident as a woman. Their argument from six moons ago showed that they were right and wrong about each other in many ways, but Orys regretted saying those things about his family. Fortunately, Jaenyx was not as stubborn as he thought and him not dwelling on their heated exchange spoke something about his character.
Lastly, Orys thought about Argella. He hated having to kill someone like Argilac, who despite his insults to him personally fought with honor and died like a warrior. Besides his sisters, the last Durrandon was easily the most beautiful woman Orys had laid eyes on. Her flowing black hair and fierce blue eyes, colored like the sea of Shipbreaker's Bay, were the features that most stood out to him. While most men would have lusted over her graceful form, Orys found that there was more to her than her looks. She knew military matters, how to deal with recalcitrant lords, and was very kind to her household. The memory of killing her father was a wound that would never completely heal, but Orys wanted to make his union with Argella a loving one and that was part of the reason why he didn't bed her. Apparently, his efforts including the adoption of a new sigil that paid homage to House Durrandon and his Valyrian origins paid off and his only regret was that he might not see her again. Father wanted me to find love and I might live to see it happen.
Orys' hazed vision fell onto his left hand, or what remained of it. He had only three fingers left and the only comfort that he could draw was that Loren Lannister didn't get his good hand. If he got that, it would've been more than what I could bear. His father told him that he had a good mind, but Orys knew that he paled when compared to Aegon, Rhaenys, Visenya, or Jaenyx. The only thing that he could was fight and that was largely the reason behind why the stormlords followed him even after he killed their king. To them, he had inherited King Argilac's legacy by personally fighting with his troops and was a demon with his Valyrian steel war hammer, which he had named Thunderfist. He might not have ridden a dragon like his siblings, but to the stormlords, his prowess told them that he didn't need to. And now… his only worry was how his lady wife was doing in his absence. I hope that she's safe from whatever machinations they have in motion.
Orys wasn't used to brooding, but being stuck to that cursed chair and in that dank cell prevented him from taking any other recourse. Thinking too much… was harmful to even the strongest of minds, as Orys saw from their father, who would have entered an early grave had it not been for those rings. That was also why he decided to become a man of action, as he didn't want his insides to rot from the stagnation that brooding caused.
Before Orys continued to stew on his current predicament, he heard the cell door open and expected either the kennel master or Loren Lannister to continue their "conversations" with him. But to his surprise and joy, he saw nine figures that were all dressed in black and armed with swords and daggers. The joy came when he recognized Dark Sister on one of them.
"Vis?" Orys called out. The figure carrying Dark Sister pulled off her black hood, revealing that she was indeed his sister. "My gods. It is you," Orys felt tears roll down his cheek, elated that she was here to rescue him.
"You thought that we were going to leave you behind, Orys?" Visenya took out some keys and unlocked his chains. Meanwhile, two of the black-clothed figures, whom Orys recognized as men belonging to Konno Haru, helped him and put his arms over their shoulders.
"Vis, I don't know how to thank you-" Orys said before he heard one of the figures, who was carrying that he recognized as Seablaze, interrupt him.
"Leave your thanks for when we get out, Orys," Jaenyx spoke while still covered in his black hood. "We're not out of danger yet."
"You came to rescue me?" Orys was shocked that he would do such a thing, considering what had happened between them.
"You're family, Orys, and Vis loves you very much. I would be offending my wife if I didn't help get you out of this place."
Orys didn't know if he should be happy that Jaenyx was willing to go so far for his family, or that he loved Visenya enough to help rescue him. In either case, Orys wasn't going to delay them any further. "How are we getting out of here?"
"We got that covered, Orys," Visenya whispered to him as they all moved out of the cell and into the dimly lit corridors. "The dungeons are located in the middle of Casterly Rock, too high up for us to jump safely but low enough for us to set up ropes towards a safe point north of the castle."
"And from there," Jaenyx continued. "We ride on our dragons back to the Blackwater Bay."
"Um, how are we supposed to go north on these ropes?" Orys was a little concerned, which Visenya detected.
"The ropes are angled to allow all of us to get to a safe distance away from Casterly Rock, but to do that, we have use hooks and slide along the ropes on a downward angle to where the dragons will be waiting. They're flying above us until we call for them."
Orys gulped, not liking the prospect of sliding down ropes. However, he knew that they didn't have much of a choice at that point. They didn't need to get out of here.
But before they left, Orys had to get something. "Wait, my war hammer."
"What about it?" Jaenyx asked.
"I need to get it."
Jaenyx shook his head. "No time. We have to get out of here. I'll have Aevor make you a new one."
"It's not that simple, Jaenyx," Orys emphasized.
Jaenyx sighed. "There's no time to argue. The longer we wait in this castle, the more likely we'll be discovered. We cannot delay."
"Hold on, Jae," Visenya stopped him. "Where do you think it will be? The armory?"
"Could be," Orys nodded. "Can you please check?"
"My gods," Jaenyx shook his head. "We don't have time for this, Orys. You're risking our lives over a thing that easily be replaced with our resources."
"Not just a thing, Jae," Visenya replied. "You think Blackfyre and Dark Sister could easily be replaced? It's not about the weapon. It's about the meaning behind it and the stormlords saw him fight with his war hammer. If they saw him fighting with a different one, the image that they would have might not be beneficial to his hold on Storm's End. After all, part of the reason why Argella bent the knee and agreed to marry Orys was that we returned her father's son."
Jaenyx exhaled before nodding. "Do you what you can, Vis. I'll have Arata go with you. But be at the ropes quickly."
Visenya nodded and kissed him through his black hood. "Will do," she said before she and Arata ran down a corridor while Jaenyx, Orys, and others went down another.
Eventually, they made it to a room where there were windows situated to the north and with ropes already fastened. But Orys could see that they were extended all the way downwards towards what he assumed was their escape point, where the dragons would pick them up and fly them out of there.
"I know you're a little weak right now, Orys," Jaenyx said while holding up a hook. "But you have to hold on to this and the rope tying you to it for just a moment. And it'll end quicker than you think, so keep legs folded they're near the ground. Once they're close, starting moving legs as if you're running to ensure a smooth landing. After everyone gets off the ropes, we'll call Cloudwynd and Vhagar and we'll go home. All right?"
Orys wanted to ask more on how he and the Haru men were able to come up with such a simple yet elegant escape system, but he knew that it would have to wait. "Yes," Orys nodded.
"Good. Stay here. I'll go check for Vis and Arata," before Jaenyx went to check the corridors.
Orys couldn't believe that this would soon be over, that his short but painful time in captivity was going to end. He looked forward to the moment when he would be healed enough to fight back against their enemies, and he would savor the moment he crushed Loren Lannister's skull with Thunderfist.
However, Orys heard Jaenyx shout. "Move! Move!" Orys peeked into the corridor, to see Jaenyx, Visenya, and Arata running back towards them. Chasing them were at least a dozen Lannister guards armed with swords and axes. While they could easily take them on especially in a enclosed space, they were grievously by the Lannister garrison and they had to move quickly.
But before all were able to make it back, Orys saw Arata get pierced in the back with several crossbow bolts. Jaenyx turned around and saw him go down, alive but bleeding profusely from them. "ARATA!" he yelled as he ran back and dragged him back to the room. Visenya helped him as the others bolted the door behind them. Orys knew that the door would not buy them valuable time.
Orys watched closely as Jaenyx and Visenya tended to Arata, but he never saw Jaenyx looked so frightened and so worried before as he pulled the crossbow bolts out and tried to reassure him in his Yi-Tish tongue. Gone was the Jaenyx who led men into sneak attacks and conducted ruthless interrogation on their enemies, replaced with one desperate to save his close friend.
Orys didn't know what Jaenyx and Visenya were saying with Arata, but he knew when a man was dying, and the crossbow bolts must've hit Arata in his vital areas. From what he had seen, Arata was the kinder of the Harus, as he jested with Rhaenys and treated her much better than his father. But from what little he could understand of his tongue, he made out, "Tell… father… died… honor." He could see Jaenyx shake his head in denial and Visenya could feel his pain, but with the door close to breaking down, they were running out of time fast.
Jaenyx unsheathed Arata's swords and tied them to his hands before helping him up. He and Visenya gave Arata one last hug before they tied themselves to the rope that would take the rest to freedom.
"Jaenyx, what's going on? Why is he not tying himself?" Orys asked as he was tied to the rope with a hook.
"Arata's a dead man either way," Visenya spoke for him, even though he could feel her pain. "He wants to die fighting the enemy and he'll buy us enough time to escape."
"You're going to leave him like this?" Orys was shocked.
"It's his choice, Orys," Visenya replied. "We'll avenge him."
Before Orys could protest at someone close to Visenya and Jaenyx dying for him, he was pushed out of the window and felt a strong gush of air push against his face as he slid rapidly on a downward angle. He looked behind and saw the great mountain that was Casterly Rock become smaller as he slid further from it. Looking forward, he saw that they were coming upon a grouping of trees and that the rope was just ahead of the tree line. Remembering Jaenyx's instructions, Orys moved his legs as if he was running and that smoothened his landing.
Orys turned around and saw Jaenyx, Visenya, and the rest follow, with the last ones having to stumble once the ropes fell to the ground, indicating that the Lannister guards cut them. Orys collapsed on the dirt, still weak from his ordeal and overwhelmed with guilt that one of the people Jaenyx was close to had died for him. Before he could think some more, two Haru men picked up by his arms and shoved into the forest.
"You… better worth it," one of the Haru men told him, and Orys could detect a hint of anguish in his voice. At the moment, Orys felt resolve surge through his weakened form and he made a promise. Our enemies will pay for this.
They came to a clearing in the trees before looking up and seeing Vhagar and Cloudwynd emerge from the sky and onto the ground. Jaenyx mounted his dragon along with five men while Visenya guided Orys and the rest towards hers. Orys held onto Visenya tightly as Vhagar jumped into the air and climbed.
As Casterly Rock grew smaller and they were moving towards the Blackwater Bay, Orys could make out Visenya crying despite the strong airs brushing past them.
"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry," Orys kept repeating as he buried his head in Visenya's hair.
"Not your fault," Visenya simply replied, but Orys knew that she was in too much grief to say more. Besides Jaenyx, she was closest one to the Harus out of them and he could only imagine how Konno Haru will react once he knows that his son is dead.