Title: The Ice, The Fire and the Eye
Spoilers: everything from the Lord of the Rings and the Game of Thrones.
Author's note: the world of Tolkien meets the world of Martin. The struggle between light and dark continues, between ice and fire and without anyone realizing it, everyone is a puppet, commanded by the Eye, the Master of puppets.
Grey Havens, Middle Earth
ELDARION ELESSAR, KING OF THE REUNITED KINGDOM OF ARNOR AND GONDOR, MIDDLE-EARTH
Grey Havens
Something caught his attention: wreckage, wood splintered, several debris flooding the shore.
Eldarion used to go there once in a while, to the place where the heroes of the War of the Ring had departed: Gandalf the White, Frodo Baggins, Bilbo Baggins, Gimli and Legolas left Middle Earth for the deserved rest they needed. People who became legends of a past long gone.
He grew up, fond of that place, courtesy of his father, King Aragorn who taught him the importance of that place: Usually that shore was clean, water transparent and crystalline, the sand with a brilliant yellow which looked like gold something he admired but that day, it wasn't. The waters from the sea had brought something far more sinister: bodies of men.
The sand was then, much more pale and the water was turbulent, revolt and mixed with dirt, wreckage. - "Attend to every men, women and children." – Eldarion spoke clearly.
"Yes, my King!" – His several guards replied, dismounting their horses.
Soon they began checking everyone laying down on that shore: Eldarion also dismounted and began looking carefully at that wreckage: similar but different in most of their belongings such clothes, customs and other pieces of furniture.
Clearly they weren't around there and it seemed there were only men, which immediately meant they were either pirates or explorers who lost their way. Slowly he and his guards began to realize life had left them and hope seemed to vanish from Eldarion who wanted to know more: his hand were about to reaching a piece of clothing when suddenly, one of his guards yelled.
"There's one alive here!"
Eldarion ran to meet his guard who was down on his knee trying to help, to the general surprise, a struggling woman, desperate to find air.
"Clear… let's give her some air to breathe."
Everyone followed Eldarion's order and waited for any sort of explication from that woman, who apparently was the sole survivor of all that chaos of debris.
Eldarion took the initiative once he saw her more calm. – "Don't be frightened, we wish no harm." – He could see how defensive she was. Clearly she needed some sort of security or comfort. – "We were simply passing by when we saw all this commotion. Was it a storm?"
"Yes." – She was few in words.
"Are there more of you?"
She looked to the entire shore and the guards around here, stood aside, clearing her view. – "Maybe. Not sure…"
"I've never seen these clothes before. Where are you from?"
The woman didn't reply, becoming mute.
"My intentions towards you and what's left of your companionship is to help, not harm." - Eldarion could see how the woman was being defensive: she had already put eyes on every guard and himself. She was going to try to escape. If he wanted answers, he needed her trust.
He bent his knee, lay down his sword and extended his hand. – "We mean no harm, we'll help in what we can."
"I don't know your name." – She replied, still hesitant.
"I'm Eldarion, son of Aragorn, King of the reunited Kingdom of Arnor and Gondor. And who you are?"
She took his arm and both got up. – "I'm Arya Stark. From House Stark, Westeros."
To be continued…