This is my first story, please leave comments and suggestions in a review.
My name is Ezra Hagen my story is a long one, and a sad one, but it all began in my youth when I was a scrawny boy of fourteen, living with my father, in the high fells of Skagos, at our holdfast Highpass. Highpass is, if nothing else a sturdy castle if a little small, built with massive, tall walls of basalt that my long gone ancestors pulled down off the mountain, with the help of giants and mammoths if the stories are to be believed, the outer walls are so high, perhaps one hundred and fifty feet, that the inner castle is generally shadowed until high noon . With the outer walls barely four hundred feet across Highpass is more of a massive, squat round tower than a castle, nestled in an alcove on the shoulder of Rann the Mother Mountain. However, beneath the surface burrowing deep into the mountain there are tunnels, caves, and caverns, made by men, giants, children of the forest and nature. The cave system goes on for miles and miles they are what make Highpass virtually invulnerable to siege, for down deep in the dark there are deep, black, ice-cold, lakes, all manor of edible fungi and enough stashed firewood to build a small city. This is where I was born and this is where I hope to die, with a spear in my hand defending my home. Allow me to tell you a little of our history, first I must warn you, that we do not write anything down ours is a verbal history, hence it has a tendency to mutate. I believe that this is the first written recording of my peoples histories, so guard it well. I doubt that there will be another.
Anyhow how the Skagosi began, is very simple, we were born. Our mothers name is Rann she watches over us and protects us, gives us strength and courage, you see, in the dawn days Skagos was home to the children of the forest it was their last great stronghold against the giants who never willingly had any interactions with the sea, so when the children met a young girl of what to them was freakish stature, much larger than them but far smaller and less hairy than the giants, covered in dust and soaked through by the high mist they were suspicious, particularly due to the fact that she was heavy with child, however the children were a kind race and they helped her to birth her children, three sons she had, each would go on to do great things and found the houses Magnar (the proud) Stane (the honourable) and Crowl (the savage). After birthing three strong sons, her beauty seemed to grow every day until the greatest of the children took her for his wife. Nine times he impregnated her and Nine times she gave him still births, on the ninth time, after so much grief she walked into the mountains to lay her baby to rest. When she returned she had a baby on her hip, with the delicate features and glowing eyes of the children, as well as the stature of the Skagosi this son would found the house Hagen (called by some the treacherous, called by us the cunning), his three would be brothers, already men grown, rejected him, they banished him to the mountains, and renounced him, he walked away, anger in his heart. However in secret he his messengers crossed to the mainland and brokered a deal with the giants, he would see them onto Skagos, give them all his brothers choicest lands if they would but take them. After they accepted his deal, he spent three days and three nights making massive skiffs to bring the giants across from the mainland to Skagos. However as he was returning with the giants his mother discovered what he was doing, she asked the god of the waves, to carry the giants to the bottom of the sea, this he did, for most of them anyways. One skiff survived that which bore the fourth son, and a score of giants. After they landed the brother began a campaign of terror, destroying most of his brothers power, raped a lot of important people, until his mother had to stop him, threatening to take her own life if he killed any of his brothers. For the love that he bore his mother he surrendered after claiming dominion over his brothers. He accepted his "exile" which he interpreted as he would make his home in the mountains and go where he pleased, taking his giants with him he left to build Highpass, which controls the only trade pass over Skagos.
My line was long ago deposed as ruler of Skagos, though we have long nursed ambitions of regaining it. Now there is and uneasy alliance between the families was the current rule, though my grandfather lead the great rebellion against the north barely one hundred years ago.
These days we have the least power of all of them, though by no means minor we could not take on any of the other houses, in a fair fight. At least not alone, it was my fathers idea, Bealor Backbreaker, who fought savagely in Roberts rebellion despite his progressing age, though admittedly against Robert, was pardoned after holding Storms End and Stannis Baratheon captive for the best part of six months, after that he struck up a famous friendship with Robert himself, drinking, whoring, and wrestling late into the night. He thought of asking Robert to help us gain control of the houses, relying on my fathers friendship with him and Roberts general boredom with the lack of wars to be fought during the last 10 years to provoke him into another conflict. Father is already pounding out the war plan, though I have not yet left to King's landing. I have been called to his study, to discuss the final preparations of my trip, I presume. After a loud knock, and a grunted "Enter!" I pull open the heavy oak door, poke my head around the corner, and gaze upon my father in all his faded glory, propped up in bed. "Come closer my son, you need not fear me."
"I do not fear you, father, I am simply unsure as to why called me here on the eave of my departure." Somewhat formal, with a hint of annoyance leaking into my voice.
"Worry not I have my reasons."
"And they are?"
"Patience, a temper will win you no favours in court."
"Fine. But your reasons, speak or allow me to be on my way."
"To give you this." He said reaching out to the other side of his bed where a long shiny black bow was resting and holding it out to me.
I simply stood, amazed, this was Callidus. The ancestral weapon of our family made from the bone of the dragon, one of my many illustrious ancestors had apparently pushed a boulder off a mountain and killed it (There is quite a lot of debate between us and the Crowls as to who actually killed the dragon, and wether it was killed with sword, spear, rock, or according to some of the stranger Crowls, the heel of a boot.), I had always assumed that it would be passed to my older sister Thara, who was the more brutish of the 2 of us, as well as the more picturesque with raven hair, powerful arms, and storm grey eyes and pale skin compared to me being stick thin, brown as anybody anyone had ever seen, with dark thin flyaway hair and eyes so brow they were almost black, yet here was my father offering it to me.
"...What about Thara? Won't she?" I left unspoken what I thought Thara might do, we both knew what she was capable of especially when angered.
"Don't worry about her, she will abide by my decision. For now at the least, however I am sending Crail with you if you want to keep Callidus you will have to learn to use her. Let me see you string her. Or at least try."
"Are you sure?"
"Before this venture is done you will be embarrassed in greater places than my bedchamber. Just remember what I taught you, use your whole body, keep your feet and you shall be fine."
"Yes, of course." I said, reaching out to take the bow which felt oddly warm to the touch, rubbed smooth by the hands of my forefathers. I brought my ankles together, threaded one end of the bow, with the string my father offered me, locked it between my calves, reached over my right shoulder to gasp the top with both hands, in such a way that I could bend it across my back, which I did now, grunting and growling with effort in an attempt to bring the top down within rang of the string, I managed it, but as I was bringing my left hand down to pick up the string, my right arm cramped and the power of the bow began to lift me off of my feet, forcing me to straiten up, stumbling.
"That was better than I excepted, to be honest, you'l be stringing and firing by the end of the year."
"A pleasant thought." Father is full of pleasant impractical thoughts.
"Your to hard on yourself. You have the potential to be great." Like that one.
"Hah, every time we spar Thara knocks me on my ass, as easily as I might eat an apple."
"She is two and a half years your senior, and a fully grown woman, you are still a boy, if in three years she can still land you on your ass then you will have reason to worry. Until then be content and train hard. You are intelligent, fast and when it comes down to it you have a tactical and cunning mind, Thara has none of that."
"Be that as it may, brute strength generally counts for a lot in a fight."
"Anyways I did not call you here to argue and give you toys, you will have your last Skagosi meal for the coming months with your family."
"Will I? I was rather...a...eager to depart."
"You can't spend your whole life running from your own sister, one day you will have to confront her."
"Easy for you to say, you didn't spend your life surrounded by savage older siblings."
"No I didn't all my brothers died in fathers rebellion, all seven of them. And my only sister was carried off for a "marriage alliance". I grew up wild with no guidance at all, Thara can help you, as an ally and a sister."
"Yes of course father I will be at supper."
"Thank you that is all I ask."
After excusing myself from my father I moved deep down into the tunnels to find my favourite hidden alcove and think, as well as to prepare myself for battle, or as some call it, dinner.
Hope you enjoyed that, hot off the block. As anyone who has read this story before Feb 7th will know I have decided to rewrite this story and have hence deleted the first 2 chapters to be rewritten if you would like to see my first 2 and a bit chapters from the original, pm me and I will send them to you. Also I am currently fighting a debate, should Ezra be presented with a snow leopard, a lynx, or stick with a unicorn, or even a large aggressive goat? Right now I am leaning towards Lynx
If you have an opinion leave it in a review I will reply by pm.
Thank you for reading.