A Dragonwolf
Chapter 2: Torrhen II/The Mad Kraken.
Normal Speech- "I am Torrhen of House Targaryen."
Thoughts- "I am Torrhen of House Targaryen."
High Valyrian- "I am Torrhen of House Targaryen."
The Sunset Sea
Of the Coast of Pyke.
Torrhen had been on the Balerion for three months, three fucking long months.
That's how much time had passed since Torrhen and his crew had set sail from King's Landing, their goal, to find Euron Crow's Eye and bring him and his followers the King's Justice. His ship, The Black Balerion was as magnificent as the shipwright that built her promised. So far it had faced off against over a dozen Ironborn long ships and it had come out on top, and the crew Torrhen had amassed were some of the best fighters the crownlands had to offer.
The wind was strong and the smell of salt even more so. The waves would make his ship rise and fall so much that Torrhen could hear some of the men, the ones not used to it, hurl and vomit what they had eaten earlier that morning.
Torrhen himself wasn't as unaffected as he appeared, he felt his stomach grumble and protest, either from the rough sailing or from nerves for the upcoming battle he wasn't sure, but still he didn't let it show. To his men he was a pillar of strength as he stood on the front of the ship.
Like the infamous Ironborn Reavers Torrhen was dressed from head to toe in his armor. His finely crafted and polished ornate black and red armor was like a beacon, a beacon that proudly proclaimed the might of House Targaryen.
He was ready for a fight and if the sight in front of him was anything to go by a fight he would get. The war with the ironborn was all but done, Great Wyk and Old Wyk had been taken and their Lords put to the sword, Torrhen and his crew had played a major role in the battle off Fair Isle where he had taken command of the royal fleet and destroyed the majority of the IronBorn fleet.
In the vowels of his ship lay a badly beaten and unconscious Victarion Greyjoy. Torrhen himself had taken down the great Kraken. The man was as dangerous as the rumors had painted him to be, it took Torrhen almost an hour before he could trip up the man and deliver a strong enough blow to daze him.
"It took four of my men to get him down and in chains." thought Torrhen as he gently touched his side, where Victarion's grizzly war axe had struck him, and if not for his armor he would have gotten more than some bruised ribs.
"My prince...The Silence has been spotted, it seems to be sailing away from Pyke" This piece of news made a grin appear on the Prince's face. They had been hunting the infamous ship for months but it always managed to slip them just when Torrhen and his crew were upon them, but not today.
"Finally." said Torrhen as he reached down to grab his helm, when he turned around he could see all his crew standing behind him waiting for his orders. From the corner of his eye he spotted smoke rising from where he knew Pyke was.
The Crown's forces were in the process of sieging the castle.
"Get ready men...we're going Kraken hunting." Today the Crow's Eye would die. His words had barely left his mouth before his men were running around, arming themself, strapping their weapons on, and if they were brave enough their armor.
At his side his squire Jace, of House Velaryon, had his sword and a Myrish eye ready for him. When he grabbed the Myrish eye his squire pointed him in the direction the Crow's ship had been spotted. And when Torrhen looked he could help the grin that came up on his face.
There she was, The Silence. One of the most infamous ships in the known world. Just the sight of its dark red hull was enough to cause terror in the hearts of pirates and sailors around the world. After today the Silence would be no more.
"Go to my quarters and stay there Jace, you don't want to be part of the fight to come." said Torrhen as he grabbed his sword from his squire's shaking hand and quickly strapped it to his side. It was a testament to the legend of Euron Greyjoy that his squire, who would have raged and whined at being sent away from a fight, just gave him a quick nod and all but ran towards the back of the ship.
"Your grace we're closing in on the Silence." yelled one of the crewmen.
"Get the hooks ready the second we're in position i want that shipped hooked and boarded, and remember men...NO MERCY FOR THE KRAKENS!" yelled Torrhen as he put his helmet on and unsheathed his sword and the dagger that was strapped to his side.
The Balerion came up on the Silence fast, from where he was standing Torrhen could see all the men of the Silence standing in its deck, all of them armed to the teeth and all staring straight at the Balerion and its crew. Any other men would have been intimidated by the silence of the enemy crew but Torrhen had heard the rumor of what the Crow's Eye did to his men.
And just as the Balerion got within hooking distance Torrhen spotted his prey, standing in the middle of his men stood the one and only Euron Greyjoy, the man was in full battle regalia, full plate armor, a helm in the shape of a kraken and a massive and grotesque pitch black battle axe, leanin on his left shoulder as the man stared back at him with an insane grin on his face.
"GET READY MEN! A HUNDRED GOLD DRAGONS TO THE MAN THAT KILLS THE MOST IRONBORN!" yelled TOrrhen as he watched the men in charge of the hooks skillfully throw their hooks onto the enemy ship.
The second the ships were hooked to each other and close enough Torrhen was the first man to jump over, his sword flashing, beheading a man before his feet could hit the wooden red deck of The Silence.
And the fight truly started.
Everything was a blur of blood, grunts and pained screams for Torrhen as he moved slashing, bashing and stabbing with his sword. At some point he had left his favorite dagger in the head of an enemy ironborn but had replaced it with a short and but wickedly sharp axe that he was using in tandem with his hand and a half sword to cut a blood and deadly swath through the enemy.
His stride was broken for a second when an Ironborn holding an iron war hammer hit him in the side, the exact spot where Victarion's axe had hit him, and Torrhen's vision went white for a second as the pain of the blow almost took him to his knees.
That second of distraction almost cost Torrhen his life. When the prince looked back up at the man that had hit him it was just in time to see the spiked end of the war hammer heading straight towards his helmeted face. The blow was seconds from landing before the ironborn attacking was suddenly stumbling and gurgling, when Torrhen took his eyes off the now lowering war hammer he was surprised to see an arrow sticking out of the man's uncovered left eye.
"GO MY PRINCE!" Torrhen heard someone scream from behind him. Torrhen took his eyes off his would be killer for a second to glance back towards the source of the yell.
It came from The Balerion and Torrhen could barely hold back his laugh when he saw the grinning face of his squire Jace, bow in hand and a quiver chock full of arrows strapped to his back, the boy waved at him for a second before grabbing another arrow and moving to shoot another ironborn trying to climb into the Targaryen ship.
"Gods bless that damn boy." grinned Torrhen as he took a deep breath before focusing back into the battle going on around him, half surprised none of the ironborn around him took the second of distraction to try and kill him.
That's when he saw the reason for his relative safety, five of his crew members had taken guard around him, surrounding and protecting him, their weapons bloody as they hacked and slashed at any ironborn scum that tried to get at their prince.
He knew each of them, sons of Houses sworn to Dragonstone, men who in the three months they had been hunting The Silence had become his friends. He would remember their loyalty when the time came.
Looking around Torrhen almost laughed when he saw how the battle was going. His men were making short work of the grotesque crew of the Silence, and from where he was standing he could see the furious look on Euron's face as the Ironborn madman came to the same conclusion as Torrhen had.
"We're going to win." muttered the Targaryen prince as he gripped his sword tighter and adjusted his hold on the axe before calling out to the men around him.
"MEN, THE KRAKEN SCUM IS MINE." yelled Torrhen and almost in unison, without having to talk the four men standing in front of him moved to the side, making way for their Prince. And as Torrhen moved forward he could sense them move with him, shadowing him and making sure no other Ironborn could attack him from behind.
"COME GREENLANDER, I'LL FEED YOUR CORPSE TO THE DROWNED GOD!" yell Euron as he cut down another one of Torrhen's crew that had made the mistake of taking him on. Around the Mad Kraken a litany of bodies were strung around. The man was just as dangerous as his brother VIctarion.
The sight of one of his men being cut down before his eyes made something snap deep inside Torrhen's chest, a anger, a rage so deep and so strong that before Torrhen could even contemplate what he was doing he had flung the stolen axe at Euron aiming for the center of the Kraken's forehead.
The mad man saw the weapon and managed to side step it but not before the axe cut a deep gash just over the left side of Euron's face, the axe also ripped away the eyepatch that covered the left eye of Greyjoy's face.
The red eye underneath the eye patch was something Torrhen would remember for the rest of his days.
In the seconds before Torrhen's sword clashed with Euron's axe the Targaryen prince couldn't help but take stock in his opponent. Euron Greyjoy was, if you ignored his angry red eye, a handsome man with pale skin and hair as black as night and a beard that was trimmed and well maintained, he was also tall and well-built.
The Crow's Eye was also strong, so much so that it was almost a match for Torrhen's own strength. Something that made the Dragon Prince grin in anticipation. Torrhen was always one for a good fight. This Wolve's blood as his mother would say whenever he got lost in the haze of battle in the training yard.
"Come Dragon scum." growled Euron as he parried the blow from Torrhen and backhanded the young prince with the back of his gauntleted hand, the blow was strong enough to knock Torrhen's helmet off his head and slip his lip open. Torrhen not one to take a hit lying down spun around and landed a powerful kick right in the center of Euron's chest plate, the blow forced the Ironborn to take three steps back before he caught his balance and lash out with a powerful swing from his axe.
"After I kill you I'm going to take your ship and make it my personal vessel." grinned Torrhen as he ducked under the axe swing and came up and tried to stab his sword into the unprotected neck of Euron. Unfortunately for Torrhen his opponent was not a novice and used the back of his axe to redirect the blow to pass by the left side of his face harmlessly.
As Torrhen straightened back and and parried another swing from the man's axe he could see out of the corner of his eye that his men were almost done dealing with the Crow's Eye men, apparently they only looked scary, they weren't all that well trained. He could see the deck of The Silence was covered in dead ironborn, and those that hadn't been killed had been subdued by his men.
"Look around Greyjoy, all your men are either dead or captured, you've lost." taunted Torrhen as he leaned back to evade a blow from the gasly looking axe the man wielded. The mad Kraken only snarled before he grabbed his axe with both hands and swung it straight down looking to cut the Dragon Prince right down the middle.
Torrhen seeing what the man was going to try and do, used the flat of his blade to intercept the blow and redirect it to the side. And as he did that two things happened that would almost cost Torrhen the fight and his life.
First as Torrhen deflected the blow his sword, which was made of high quality steel by one of the best smiths in King's Landing, shattered into two pieces shocking Torrhen and all the men around them and second Euron released one hand from his axe and once more smashed the back of his hand into Torrhen's, now unprotected, face.
The blow was so strong it almost rendered Torrhen unconscious, and while he managed to remain conscious it did knock the prince off his feet and to the floor between his men and the Mad Kraken.
As Torrhen shook his head he couldn't help but look from the remains of his sword, both on the floor and the piece he still held, which was just the hilt and a sharp piece of metal, and the war axe held by the Crow's Eye in shock. And that's when he saw it, dark grey ripples, almost black, running up and down the head of the war axe. 1*
"Valyrian Steel." grunted Torrhen in shocked surprise as he stared at the weapon. Valyrian steel weapons were almost legendary they were so rare, and this Ironborn cunt had almost killed him with one.
Before Torrhen could try and get back on his feet and before any of his men could reach forward and either help the prince to his feet or try and get between him and Euron, said Mad Kraken roared in victory and once more lifted his axe intending to drive it into the Prince's head.
The move was so sudden Torrhen could only stare in shock, and if he was being honest terror, as the axe was lifted all the way up. And just when Euron was about to swing down and end the life of said prince an arrow came out of nowhere and stuck itself into the right side of Euron's chest plate.
Euron's chestplate was thick enough to stop the arrow from penetrating but it did shock the man into stopping his swing and looking towards the source of the arrow. Torrhen, not willing to lose the chance to end the fight, jumped to his feet in one swift and brutal motion stabbed the remains of his sword into the unprotected neck of the Crow's Eye.
"Almost had me you squid cunt." grunted Torrhen, the left side of his face, where Euron had hit him, already a dark purple, his left eye was already swelling up and his left eyebrow split open and bleeding.
Torrhen couldn't help but grin at the shocked look on Euron's face, blood gushing down and spraying all over. Euron took one pained breath before falling to his knees before the Dragon Prince.
His valyrian steel axe clattering to the floor next to them. Euron couldn't help but look down at his axe as Torrhen reached down to grab it.
The axe was surprisingly light considering how big it was. The head was shaped like the famed Kraken's of House Greyjoy with two red gems for eyes, the handle seemed to be made with a mixture of ironwood and castle forged steel. All in all it was a magnificent weapon, one Torrhen would put to good use.
"Don't worry mate, your axe and your ship will be well taken care off." grinned the Dragon prince before he grabbed the axe with both hands and with a might swing separated Euron's head from his body.
Before the head could hit the floor Torrhen's men were already celebrating, their cheers and yells of victory so loud the Prince wouldn't be surprised if the people of Pyke could hear them.
As Torrhen watched the head of Euron roll across the deck of the Silence he head quick steps running towards him, he turned around in time to catch his squire run towards him, his bow still in hand but his quiver empty of any arrows, as the boy reached him and had to stop to catch his breath Torrhen had an idea of where the arrow that saved his life had come from.
"My Prince, we did it, the Ironborn are defeated." yelled the exuberant boy as he cheered with the rest of his men. Torrhen couldn't help the smile that came upon his face as he reached out and gripped the boy, young man really, shoulder.
"Twice today you and that bloody bow saved my life." said Torrhen and the crew around them quieted down to listen to their prince speak. Torrhen's word brought about a second wave of cheers, this time aimed at the young man from House Velaryon that had more than done his part, if all the ironborn bodies littered with arrows were anything to go by.
"Now i can't give you a Knighthood because I'm not a Knight myself but I promise you Jace of House Velaryon, before we get back to King's Landing you and a few others here will be knighted." said Torrhen as he patted the young man in the back before he reached down and grabbed the severed head of Euron Greyjoy.
"NOW MEN, SET SAIL TOWARDS PYKE WE STILL GOT IRONBORN TO KILL." yelled Torrhen as he started making his way towards the cargo hull of the ship, the Silence was rumored to be stuffed to the brim with treasures from all over the world and he was dying to set eyes on it.
Before he reached the stairs that led to the bowels of the ship Torrhen stopped and turned back around, catching the attention of his men and the prisoners that they had captured.
"Oh and we're not to take any prisoners, send the Ironborn scum overboard so they can meet their Drowned God." said Torrhen ignoring the panicked whimpers from said Ironborn and the cheers of his men as they started following his orders.
The Sunset Sea
Shore of Pyke.
A grinning Torrhen stood on the deck of the Balerion as it and the Silence made their way towards the shore of Pyke. The grin had been stuck on the Prince's face since he had walked out of the hold of the Silence. For once the rumors had not been exaggerated.
The Silence was brimming with gold, gems and all kinds of treasure. Half of it had been moved to the Balerion since it would go straight to the royal vault in King's Landing, the other half would be split evenly between the members of his crew.
In truth Torrhen had taken two items from the Silence Hold, the first was hanging from his waist. A sword.
His new sword, like his old one, was a hand and a half sword, the pummel was a round piece of dragon glass that was polished to a bright sheen. When Torrhen held it out to the light he could see different veins of Dragonglass, all different colors, inside the polished round stone.
The grip was made of a dark red wood that was wrapped in glossy black leather and the cross guard was a simple bar of steel. The thing that made the sword special was the blade itself, pitch black with dark red ripples.
Finally Torhen Targaryen was armed with a Valyrian Steel blade.
"Seven Hells now I have two Valyrian steel weapons." thought a grinning Torrhen as he reached over his shoulder to touch the handle of Euron's axe, which he had strapped to his back.
The second thing he had taken from the hold of the Silence was carefully stashed away in his quarters on the Balerion, he wouldn't show that to anyone except Dany. she being the only person Torrhen trusted enough to tell. 2*
"My Prince, we are about to dock in the harbor of Pyke, and it looks like we have a welcome party waiting for us." one of his crew members informed him, unnecessarily since from where Torrhen was standing he could make out the figures of his brother Jon and two members of the King'sGuard, Ser Barristan and Ser Oswell.
Around the royal party was a small group of soldiers, all standing at attention and waiting for orders from either Jon or the King'sGuards standing with him.
"Jace, fetch me the bag, half of you grab your weapons and get ready we're about to go kill more Ironborn scum, the other half, stay with the ships and guard out bounty, it wouldn't do to have our treasures stolen while we're out killing some squids." yelled Torrhen getting a loud cheer in return from his men and from Jace standing beside him.
All his crew had been on a high since he had killed the Crow's Eye. a high that was sure to grow as the killed more Ironborn.
The Sunset Sea
Pyke
Harbor
As Torrhen walked down the gangplank he saw the way his brother and Ser Barristan and Oswell frowned at him when they saw his face, specifically the place where Euron had hit him.
Half of his face was now swollen and purple but even the pain of it couldn't keep Torrhen from grinning as he stood in front of his older brother and brought him into a tight bear hug.
"My prince, what happened to your face?" questioned Ser Barristan as he moved to take a closer look at Torrhen's face, said Prince just released Jon and grinned at his former sword master.
"Hunting Krakens is dangerous business Ser Barristan." said a grinning Torrhen as he patter the aging knight on the side and motioned for his squire to hand him the bag he was carrying.
"Does that mean you were successful brother?" question Jon as he stared at not at the bag Torrhen was now holding but at the axe handle protruding from his back. Unlike Jon both Ser Barristan and Ser Oswell were staring at the bag in the Prince's hands, more specifically at the blood stain on it.
"Aye, The Crow's Eye now sails the Seven Hells...well swims since I stole his ship." said a grinning Torrhen to the two gobsmacked members of the King'sguard as he turned sideways and pointed to the ship docked next to the Balerion, its black sails and dark red hull a dead give away.
"Good, let's go tell father, I bet he can't wait to hear from you." said a smiling Jon, as said prince reached out and threw an arm over Torrhen, not even the mention of his father could bring the Dragon Prince down.
"And don't think for a second I won't ask about those new weapons you're carrying." said grinning Jon, making his younger brother laugh and throw the bloody bag back towards his squire.
"Let's go brother, and while we walk I'll regale you with the tale of how the Dragon killed the Kraken...with a little help from a Seahorse." said a grinning Torrhen as he threw his squire a wink, making the boy swell up in pride.
The walk to the Royal camp took them over half an hour, the camp having been formed close to the castle of Pyke, far enough away so the arrow from the castle couldn't reach them but close enough for the siege.
The Royal tent was the biggest one. The tent made of black cloth with a bright red three headed dragon sewed over the tents entrance, surrounding it were tents belonging to the other lords that had come with his father.
As Torrhen, Jon, Ser Barristan and Ser Oswell got closer to the royal tent Torrhen could make out some of the figures standing by the entrance of the tent. He recognized his brother Aegon, Viserys and the red Viper of Dorne himself.
"Little brother, we've been waiting for you." yelled Aegon when he caught sight of their group, next to him Viserys shot them a small smile before quietly slipping into the tent, most likely to inform the King of Torrhen's arrival.
"Aye, sorry I took so long, Euron was one slippery cunt." said Torrhen as he reached Aegon and his group, and just like he did to Jon brought the oldest Prince into a bone crushing hug, causing said Prince to laugh and struggle to get his younger brother off him.
Next to them Jon started to laugh at Aegon's predicament before Torrhen, with a mischievous grin reached out and grabbed him into the hug as well.
"Someone's in a good mood." said the Prince of Dorne as he watched all three of the Royal Prince's interact like normal brothers, something that didn't happen as often as it used to now that the boys were grown and had different duties to take care of in the capital.
Before Torrhen could say anything back to the Prince of Dorn the entrance to the royal tent moved and then standing before them all, in the same black armor he had worn when he killed Robert Baratheon stood their father, the King of Westeros, Rhaegar Targaryen.
"Torrhen, you're here." said Rhaegar as he stared at his youngest son with barely hidden shock. Torrhen's smile faltered before his father's gaze and without looking away from the King, Torrhen reached out and grabbed the bloody bag from Jace's hands.
"I have done as you commanded father, I present you the head of Euron Greyjoy." said Torrhen solemnly as he kneeled in front of his father and slowly pulled out the severed head from the bag. Rhaegar for his part just barely glanced at the head before his eyes once more landed on the kneeling figure of his son.
"How is this possible? Did the Red Witch lie? She told me if I sent Torrhen after Euron Greyjoy the boy would die, so how is he still alive?" thought Rhaegar as he stared at his youngest son.
A/N:
1*Basically just google Greyjoy's Axe, the one that the company Valyrian Steel makes, it's that one but made from actual Valyrian Steel.
2* Come on I bet all of you know what the second treasure is. I don't even have to tell you guys.
Sorry it's taken me so long to update, but damn who knew social isolation was such a muse.
Expect a few new chapters on my other stories in the days to come.
Hell maybe some new stories too.