Erryk Grafton

Ser Erryk Grafton is the son and heir to Lord Triston Grafton, current lord of Gulltown. Born in 417 AC to Lord Triston and Mary Coldwater. He has a legitimate younger sister Lyanna and two illegitimate siblings. He is the current heir to Gulltown and Captain of his ship The Waverider.

Appearance and Character
Erryk Grafton is younger than he looks. His dark brown hair is tinged white white at the temples and his hazel eyes are the small tired eyes of an insomniac. At 182cm tall he is slightly taller than average but not exactly noticeably so. Where he distinguishes himself from others though is in his sheer strength having spent most of his youth aboard ships sent away to travel the world to be safeguarded from the troubles that plagued his family. His years rigging ships and fighting off pirates has given him very broad shoulders and an incredible upper body strength. He has grown accustomed to leaving his beard to grow having been essentially raised at sea where such trivialities hardly matter.

He used to be humorous as a child but life took care of that  through his a troubled upbringing. The loss of his mother aged five has made him Cynical and the fear of forgetting the few living memories he has of her troubles him greatly. He has always been dutiful, conscious of his responsibilities as sole male heir to one of Westeros' major cities. As such he has increasingly devoted himself to the duties of Lord seeking to lighten the load his father has to deal with. By taking on more duties he has become increasingly reclusive burying himself in ledgers and hosting foreign dignitaries.

As an escape from this he has several pastimes that would be considered improper for a knight which he turns to when he needs to escape his responsibilities for a while. His love of the sea is something he has been neglected since he took up his responsibilities save for when Erryk has been tasked to lead the occasional delegation of Gulltown merchants to Pentos, Volantis and further afield. To counter this, Erryk has become a prodigious planner and has often disappears for weeks on end after clearing his responsibilities to take his Waverider out to the narrow sea and plunder passing ships leaving no survivors. By doing so he secures himself a healthy extra income from the seized goods which he often sells to smugglers via a proxy in ports on either side of the narrow sea. Erryk is also a great amateur of Bloodsports and enjoys viewing and betting on fighters in duels and pits from around the narrow sea. his generosity with his wealth has made him various trusted contacts and friends among customs officials and harbour masters.

Early Life:417-424
House Grafton has been under a lot of strain since 400 AC. Since his birth in early 417 Erryk has borne his fair share of troubles. Erryk nearly died in infancy being born a less than a year before the winter of 418AC. Fortunately due to his family wealth he was afforded protection from the cold and hunger behind the walls of Grafton Keep. His father was often absent in his youth spending much time in campaigns serving house Arryn against the threat of the resurgent clans.Shortly after his father left, his mother Mary gave birth to a healthy younger sister who she named Lyanna.

When Erryk was aged 5 his mother Mary Coldwater travelled with her retinue to Coldwater keep to attend her father who had fallen ill but was captured on the way by clansmen after her entourage was massacred. She would not have left her son alone in Gulltown had she not thought it would be safest for him there to be raised by his uncle Rhys with his parents both absent. When the news finally made it back to Gulltown some 4 weeks later after a survivor made it home Rhys Grafton led an expedition to try and rescue his captured sister in law. Erryk was once again left alone. Unfortunately the expedition failed to bring back his mother, who had already been abused and killed by the men of the clans. Rhys Grafton had tried to reassure Erryk that his father would be back soon and that all would be well again but that night he had made an oath that he would never forgive the clans for what they had done and would never show them mercy. It can be said that his heart hardened for the first time at age 5. In 422 AC his father returned from the battle of Shadow Gorge after Lord Arryn sent him home with vague instructions of securing Gulltown from clansmen. In truth this had not been necessary as the plains near Gulltown and Runestone were some of the safest areas in the Vale offering little natural cover for wildlings and great terrain for armoured knights. It was clear that Lord Arryn had given Triston the task out of sympathy for his loss and out of pity for Erryk who was growing up alone. Whilst Erryk appreciated the presence of his father it was clear that the conflict and the news had taken his toll on him. Triston had been wounded both in body and his mind. A minor leg wound causes by a bronze spear that had pierced his calf had left his father with a limp and years of fearing a night attack had left him unable to sleep. Erryk was often woken up at night by the sounds of his father screaming in his sleep. Indeed his father had not been much of a warrior and had performed his duty to his lord satisfactorily and had never performed great deeds in his service yet had suffered grievously for it nonetheless.

The Blue winter 425-428 and service as page at the Gates of the Moon:

This three year winter brought devastation to Gulltown and its people causing many storms and Erryk learned both to pity the common folk and to question the cruelty of gods. Maester Tobias and Septon Matthis seeing the effect this exposure was having on the child's state suggested to Triston that perhaps he would well to have Erryk fostered in a keep with more children.Seeing the loneliness of his son and the need for him to spend time with other children besides his sister he agreed. For a while things went better for Erryk as he was taken on as a page at the Gates of the Moon by Artys Arryn. It was seen as a sensible decision as Artys Arryn was known to be a good and sensible man with a young son of his own and was married to Erryk's aunt Alayne Arryn (nee Grafton). Here his uncle taught him a great deal about life taking him on hunting trips where Erryk learned to ride properly, to track deer prints in the snow to make a fire in wild. In many ways he learned much more from his uncle than he had from either parent who had long been too absent to participated much in his upbringing. More importantly whilst at the Gates of the moon he learned a small measure of peace even in the depths of winter and learned to be happy again. As the Winter began to be felt The Arryns of the Eyrie descended to join their kin in the Gates of the moon as was the custom and Erryk met children of Osric Arryn for the first time.

Meeting the Arryns and trouble on the home front :

Erryk found the two siblings very different, Jon seemed to be a reflection of his time spent at the gates of the moon as a squire, the less serious of the two and one who seemed more happy, whereas Godric,the elder, was more studious and focused on his responsibilities. This served to remind Erryk that part of of the reason he had been sent away was to learn more about the responsibilities of being a lord from a more capable man than his father had become. Indeed letters from his uncle Rhys had told him that his father had increasingly turned to bad habits such as gluttony and drink. He had even found himself a mistress who bore him two bastards. it was clear that the loss of his wife had ruined Triston and that he no longer was the man he had been. However, it was also clear that sending his son away for his education was one of his best achievements in a long time. Worse still there had been rumours that Gerold Grafton, his father's Elder Brother who had 'controversially' abandoned The Seven to worship the eastern fire God R'hollor had began losing the favour of the citizens of Gulltown. There had been always rumours of popular anger at the 'Demon God' but it seemed from Rhys' letters that things were slowly coming to a head as the Gulltowners started resenting too much eastern influence. Nevertheless, Erryk was told that as long as Gerold, Triston and Rhys were all present to run things at home that he should not be concerned and instead should focus on learning as much as possible during his tutelage under Ser Artys Arryn and then to seek and opportunity to squire under another lord for a comparative experience and new lessons. So Erryk listened and did his duty.

Squiring for Ser Godric Arryn:429-435

In a struck of luck, winter ended just as Erryk's time as a page was coming to an end.He had learned many of the skills that turned boys to men and would have an even better opportunity to grow further as Godric approached him about continuing his education at his side atop the Eyrie. This offer had surprised Erryk as throughout the entire winter he shared little more than a few words with Godric spending time instead with the more outgoing Jon and Robert Arryn. Nevertheless, recognising what an excellent opportunity it would be for him to spend years alongside the future Lord of the Vale he accepted. From atop the Giant's lance he felt he could oversee the entire Vale yet he knew that this was only a fragment of it. Godric Arryn was not exactly the most talkative of knights to squire for but this gave him a lot of time to learn and grow for himself. He became close with the few attendants who resided in the Eyrie, he climbed every outcrop there was to be found and drank from the pool atop Alyssa's tears. He also devoured every book in the castle's small library and would often observe the work of old Maester Corwyn. Most of the time Godric Arryn was not to be disturbed but when Erryk was summoned there was always a vital lesson to be learned about how to lead, how to govern justly, how to behave oneself in the presence of foreign dignitaries. The lessons were infrequent but this made the Grafton boy value them all there more. He had learned all the sigils of all houses of the vale both Andal and first man and identify the members of several clans from their appearances and outfits. The times Godric spoke the most with Erryk was when the two men travelled from the Eyrie to Ninestars or to Runestone as the nature of travel often meant that the future lord paramount of the Vale could not attend his daily duties and was freer to engage with his squire. Here Erryk found that his lord could open up and discuss matters that were personal to him such as his upcoming marriage to Lady Lysa Templeton. These trips also gave Erryk some much needed riding experience as there wasn't much need for the activity during the blue winter nor was there a great opportunity for it atop the Giant's lance. He often wrote to his family from the Eyrie,particularly to his uncle Rhys and his sister who both warned him of the worsening situation at home. The highlight of his time with Godric had been his attendance of the Silver wedding in King's landing.At the capital his discovered wonders he had only ever previously read about. This royal wedding was Erryk's first real exposure to the ruling Targaryen Dynasty that had colonised Westeros so long ago. However, as eye opening as the trip to the capital had been it heralded the end of Erryk's time spent squiring for Ser Godric. As the summer came around again Jon and his sister Alyssa returned to the Eyrie from their own fostering and it would soon be time for Eryk to return to Gulltown to apply what he had learned. He started feeling less needed at the Eyrie like a guest who had overstayed his welcome, particularly after Lady Lysa's tragedy in 434. The news from home had also gone from bad to worse and Erryk would have to try and see what he could do to help.Unfortunately before Erryk had the chance to do so the news  of 'The Gulltown Massacre' made it's way to him.

The Bleeding and the Gulltown Massacre:434-435

Towards the end of 'The Bleeding' a movement within Gulltown emerged rejecting the influence of R'hollor and the presence of 'Embers' the red priest who had converted the Lord of the city. The death of Ser Criston Templeton had exacerbated the situation and The Grafton family found themselves beseiged in their own household as Ser Darryn Shett new Lord Captain of Gulltown led a mob of religious fanatics against his liege. As the rioters grew out of control they successfully seized Erryk's Lord uncle Gerold who had forsaken th Seven in favour of the Red God he had found in Pentos.Rhys and Triston's families had been spared as they had kept true to the Father. Yet Darryn Shett and his acolytes did not show the Mercy of the Mother to the Lord of Gulltown and had him judged,sentenced and barbarically executed in his own home. Never had Erryk felt so powerless before, he had served for years alongside the most powerful men of the Vale and had ridden to the Gulltown alongside the gathered forces  of the Vale, yet he could do little to help his family  and people as a zealous mob led by a madman ruled Gulltown. His heart weighed heavy when he saw so many men of the Vale die throwing themselves at the defenses his ancestors had spent generations building and developing. No deaths had marked him so much as that of Lady Saera and her Dragon Blue who had both been slain by Shett the turncoat.He had participated in the first assault of Gulltown only to be thrown back like so many others the few men at arms he had hired to represent the banners of house Grafton on the field that day had neither shamed themselves nor showered themselves with glory, yet Erryk's first battle had nonetheless resulted in a failure to retake his home. There was also a sick sense of pride in the work of his forebears that even manned by only a fraction of the full garrison, the walls of Gulltown had turned away the pride of Westeros's greatest knights. But he kept such thoughts to himself.

What Erryk could not keep to himself was his incredulity that the surrendered Ser Darryn was not to face immediate justice. Erryk Grafton had been all too ready to carve Shett apart inch by bloody inch for the agony inflicted upon his uncle but Lord Arryn had decreed otherwise. Shett would be sent to the capital for punishment. Eventually Erryk would see the wisdom in this but as he had first walked through the burned out city where he had grown seeing bloodstained cobblestones,emaciated townsmen and the wreckage suffered upon the proud city, he had little room for patience. What he witnessed that day as he walked through the gates of Gulltown was al lthe proof he needed that civilized men like Lord Shett and his followers were just as capable of atrocity as the clansmen who had taken and killed his mother years back. This had been the final lesson of his education alongside Lord Arryn, and a most important one to recall, the world was not black and white, there was no great struggle between good and evil as his uncle had beleived. Evil and good were within every man and woman and only man could chose which he would nurture to suit his needs and values. After gaining Lord Arryn's permission to return to his family for good Erryk did what he could to balm the wounds faced by the people of Gulltown and to reclaim the faith they once held in their Lords so badly bruised by recent events. Much hoarded Grafton wealth was spent buying food from accross the sea and feeding the starving population. 7 days of vigil were held for all those slain in the massacre and 7 more for those slain in the assault. Erryk would personally help in the efforts to rebuild the city in the months and years after the massacre seeking to restore the pride of the city and the honour of his family. His father Triston Grafton had been shaken by the brutal execution of his own brother and remained heavily affected by the events his sleepless nights became worse and his health deteriorated rapidly. Even cheerful uncle Rhys no longer sported the smile that Erryk had seen everyday before leaving for the gates of the Moon so long ago.His sister and cousin fared better but it was not until Erryk returned with news of Ser Darryn's execution that any form of normality really returned to Gulltown. Even thereafter Erryk would have to assume more and more responsbilities from his father who despite inheriting Lordship of the city from his brother was not fully capable of performing his duties.

With more power comes more responsibility435-438: