Chapter 33. Hold them back!
The war to reclaim the Riverlands continued. Robb Stark and the northern-river coalition pushed west, taking castles, towns, and ground from the Lannisters wherever they could. On the eastern front, Arthur remained around Stony Sept and Newroot, quietly building strength while greater men chased banners across maps.
Newroot prospered. The brewery worked steadily. Caravans began reaching major towns in the Riverlands, and even tested routes toward the Vale and Crownlands when the roads allowed it. Small refugee settlements nearby became villages under Newroot's protection, paying symbolic taxes in coin, grain, labor, or information. It was fragile, but it was growing.
Then a raven came from Lord Jason Mallister. The message was short and urgent. Arthur was to bring troops to Riverrun immediately. He left necessary garrisons behind and took his main force of one hundred and twenty men north at forced pace. When he reached Riverrun, the reason became clear. Tywin Lannister's army was moving toward the Red Fork, trying to cross east and reinforce the Westerlands. Edmure Tully had ordered the Riverlords to hold the river line and buy time for Robb's campaign.
At the war council, Lord Jason pointed to several marked crossings on the map.
"The Red Fork is our barrier," he said. "There are too many fords to hold easily, so we hold what we can and bleed them where they cross. My house is assigned four adjacent fords. You, Ser Arthur, will command Stone Beach Ford."
Arthur studied the map. Stone Beach Ford was small but unpleasant. Shallow water, open bank, and a gentle slope behind it. Bad for defenders if the enemy crossed in strength, but too useful to abandon.
"I will give you fifty Riverlands militiamen in addition to your own men," Jason said. "I do not ask you to annihilate the enemy. Hold them back. Wear them down. Make crossing expensive."
"Yes, my lord."
The next day, Arthur reached Stone Beach Ford. The river ran waist-deep over pebbles, slow enough for infantry to cross in formation. On the far bank, red lion banners moved in the wind. Lannister vanguard units were already there, moving with the calm confidence of men who believed numbers made courage optional.
Arthur inspected the ground and began work immediately. At the narrowest part of the bank, he set obstacles: wooden stakes, stones, broken carts, and anything that would slow men coming out of the water. Behind them he placed the first line: thirty Clan Warriors and Chosen Warriors under Kator, shields and spears ready. Twenty Raiders and skirmishers formed the second line with javelins. Horgos and fifteen Old Wolves and Alpha Wolf Warriors took archery positions in the sparse forest atop the slope. Sicklemen and skilled warriors guarded the flanks. The fifty militiamen from Lord Jason held the second line and protected the archers.
Before the battle, Arthur walked the line. "We do not have open ground to retreat into. Behind us are Riverlands fields, villages, roads, and homes. The lions will cross because they believe numbers make courage unnecessary. Let them learn what Battania does when outnumbered."
The men answered with shields striking spear shafts. Not loud enough to impress singers. Loud enough.
For two days, they waited. Lannister scouts moved like vultures on the far bank, testing distances and watching the defenses. Arthur ordered restraint. No full volleys, no revealing everything. Loose arrows drove away those who came too close. Let the enemy believe the ford was weak. Let them commit.
On the third morning, the attack began. There were no feints. Tywin Lannister chose pressure over cleverness. Assaults began across more than a dozen fords, his army trying to crush the Riverlands line by forcing every crossing at once. At Stone Beach, five hundred Westerlands infantry advanced into the river under archer cover and the support of light engines.
They moved in rows behind tall wooden shields. Water rose to their knees, then thighs. They were not fast, but they were steady. That was worse. Undisciplined men died loudly. Disciplined men kept coming.
Arthur raised a hand to the two light ballistae brought from Riverrun. He waited. Eighty paces. Seventy. Sixty. Only then did he drop his hand.
"Ballistae. Fire."
The bolts flew with a shriek. One punched through a shield, the man behind it, and another man behind him before falling into the river. The second tore a gap in the front line, bodies collapsing into red water. The Lannisters closed ranks and kept advancing.
"Archers. Volley."
Arrows rose from the slope and fell into the river. Shields caught many. Some found gaps. Men stumbled, sank, or screamed as the current pulled at their legs. The Red Fork began to change color.
At fifty paces, Arthur raised his sword. "Javelins."
The Raiders threw hard. Heavy spears smashed through shields and drove into bodies with far more authority than arrows. The front ranks staggered. A few men fell and blocked those behind them. When the enemy reached thirty paces, Kator roared the order, and the shield wall braced. The Westerlands infantry hit moments later.