Lord Warden Adrastia Locke walked along the battlements of the Blackstone Fortress. Built at the base of Mount Ignis, the fortress has changed hands many times over the years. Each time, its new owner would redecorate the fortress to their taste and add more to it. It had become so massive by the time Adrastia took the fortress that she hadn't even explored all of it yet. If anyone were to describe it, they would say it was a castle on a hill but in Centurion Titus Valerius' words: It's a castle on top of a castle on top of another fucking castle on top of more fucking castles. It was an apt description though a bit crude.
The banners of the Blackstone Legion were torn down and replaced by the Iron Legion's and the lesser Legions who submitted themselves to the Iron Legion. There were still other Legions out there that didn't submit and stayed independent but they were allied to the Iron Legion nevertheless. An example of this was Daubeny's Militia. A mercenary company that was actually pretty successful considering Hervis Daubeny always hosts a Ludi Gladiatorius in Feronia. Though he might host games whenever he can, when Adrastia calls upon him and his Militia for aid, Daubeny always answers.
Adrastia stopped and looked over at the distance to see group of riders heading towards them. From what she could see from the banners on the rider's back, these riders were messengers from Empress Ayu herself.
"Open the gate!"
The Lord Warden turned away and made her way to the entrance. Considering how massive the fortress was, this was gonna be a long walk.
~Line Break~
Adrastia made it to the main hallway and saw Marcus leaning on one of the pillars with his arms crossed. The Centurion was clad in his musculata, red tunic and trousers. He had a short, white toga over his muscle cuirass with a belt wrapped around his abdomen to keep it in place. He also wore a pair leather bracers instead of his metal bracers, gloves, greaves and boots while his gladius was safely sheathed on the scabbard on the belt around his waist. Marcus didn't wear his helmet, letting everyone see his unkempt black hair and heavy stubble as well as the scar running down his left, piercing steel blue eye and a second one on the right side of his lips.
When she first saw him walk around his estate in that, she asked why he looked like he was prepared for a fight. The Centurion replied that back in the Great Empire, he and his siblings lived in fear of their uncle. Fear that one day he'll send assassins to kill them off so the Valerii siblings always wore armor and carried weapons even in the walls of their own house. Even after the death of their uncle, they still do it. Old habits die hard it seems. Not that she was any better.
The Lord Warden may wore a simple green, long sleeved tunic shirt with said sleeves rolled up to her elbows and a set of leather bracers. She wore a pair of trousers and leather boots while a bastard sword was secured on the scabbard on her belt. Her red hair tied into a braid but a few strands fell over her ocean blue eyes.
"Adrastia." The Centurion nodded im greeting.
"Marcus." Adrastia nodded back.
The Centurion got off the pillar and walked beside the Lord Warden as the two made their way to the castle's main gate.
"So how does living in Blackstone Fortress feel, Warden?"
After the second cataclysm, thankfully it wasn't as catastrophic as the first, Beaufort Stronghold was left in near ruins and it would take years for it be rebuilt so Iron Legion decided to make Blackstone Fortress as their new stronghold.
"It's... bigger than Beaufort that's for sure."
"Indeed."
"So how's your brother and sister doing?"
Marcus chuckled at that.
"Same as usual. Titus won't stop asking questions about that Samurai mercenary thst beat him in a drinking game. It's been a month now and he still won't shut up about it. I'm starting to think my brother just met his match."
"What about Lucia?"
"My sister has suddenly became fascinated with your God after that catastrophic escort mission. I've seen her walking around with that cross around her neck more often. Perhaps you can help her understand your religion better than others."
That certainly earned him a raised brow.
"Why's that?"
The answer she got was a smirk.
"Because you actually respect who I choose to believe, even if they're different from yours. She's been asking some of your knights and frankly, some of them are more zealous than I'm comfortable with."
"And none of your Legionaries are zealous with their Gods?" Adrastia stopped and looked up at the Centurion as she crossed her arms.
"Well." Marcus smirked "A few lashings here and there as well as a lecture about respect got them to behave, didn't it?"
"Ugh."
Adrastia shook her head and rolled her eyes before leaving. The Centurion chuckled as he matched her pace and the two finally made it to the castle's main gate. The doors were opened and they stepped outside into the courtyard were the group of Samurai were waiting for them. One of them, she noticed, was none other than the Empress' Champion himself, Sosuke. The Orochi bowed and Adrastia bowed in return.
"Greetings. May I ask what brings Empress Ayu's Champion all the way out here?"
"I bring an urgent message from the Empress. About what, I cannot say."
Sosuke held out a scroll and Adrastia took it with a nod before looking at the Orochi.
"Will you stay for the nightbor does the Empress have more need of you?"
"A night's rest is all we ask, Lord Warden. By dawn, we ride for Valkenheim."
At the mention of the Vikings' land, Adrastia knew whatever contents the scroll held was serious. Serious enough that Ayu would send her most trusted and loyal to personally send the message. Nodding, Adrastia motioned at the castle.
"I'll have someone show you to your temporary quarters. The stable boys will handle your horses."
"Our thanks, Lord Warden."
Sosuke turned to his companions and talked to them in his native tongue before the Samurai handed their horses to the stable boys. A castle servant bid them to follow while Adrastia unfurled the scroll before reading what was written. Slowly, her mouth grimaced which the Centurion took notice of.
"Problem?"
Adrastia handed the scroll and looked up to meet the Centurion's eyes.
"Raiders from the sea and they're not Vikings."
Marcus narrowed his eyes before looking down at the scroll. He read the contents and sure enough, the message say that Kaiyo Kabe was attacked by raiders of unknown origin. They managed to repel the fifty ships and the raiders that landed on the beach, only half remained of the invaders. Ships were sunk to the bottom of the deep thanks to the fortress' catapults and the raiders who made it to the beach fell upon the rain of flaming arrows. Considering what happened back then, he wouldn't be surprised if the Samurai doubled the defenses of that sea fort. At the bottom of the scroll was not writing but a drawing of the sail on the raiders' ships. A golden...
"Squid. Their banner is a squid?"
"What? No. It's a kraken. A sea monster."
"That's... are you sure? I thought a kraken was a really big fish."
Adrastia sighed and snatched the scroll from his hand before rolling it up.
"Regardless. We need to address these invaders. They attacked the sea fort unprovoked. They might return someday and with a bigger fleet too."
"You're right."
The two made their way back to the castle. Passing by Holden Cross and Stone who nodded in greeting. The doors were opened for them and the duo entered the halls of the castle before making their way to the Meeting Hall. Once there, Marcus opened the door and Adrastia walked inside and into the head of the table before placing the scroll down. She unbuckled the scabbard and placed it on the table as well before taking a seat. Marcus sat on the seat on her right.
"So what's on your mind?"
The Lord Warden sighed and rubbed her temple with two fingers.
"A fleet of fifty ships suddenly pops up and attacks the Samurai with no cause other than to raid. The question is why? Do they not know that the Samurai have made sure to double efforts in defending themselves from such things. They learned their lesson from the Warborn."
"Considering that this sigil of theirs is unknown to us. Perhaps they are a new faction. Hoping to conquer the world."
Upon hearing that, Adrastia snorted and looked to Marcus.
"How can you hope to conquer the world with fifty ships? You need more than just ships. You need an army. A strong army and a loyal one to boot."
"So what do you propose?"
Adrastia was silent. Trying to think of what to do. She rose from her seat and walked over to where a map was laid out. She looked down at the map as Marcus stood up and joined her.
"These invaders. The only way they would reach Ashfeld is from the west and the north but if they're going north, they have to pass through Viking waters and the Vikings don't like outsiders in their lands. I doubt they'll let these invaders sail through their waters. Not if Sosuke bring them news of what these invaders attempted to do."
"You may be right." Marcus crossed his arms before placing a hand on his chin "The Vikings won't tolerate anyone attacking one of their clans. They'll demand blood. But if these invaders are foolish enough to do so... there will be a feast for the crows that's for sure. But still... what do we do about our borders. If they decide to land west, they'll be dropping off in the shores of Blackstone Hills. Right at our doorstep."
"But they won't get past the Shard."
"It's not the Shard I'm worried about." Marcus muttered "It's the settlements. Blackstone Fortress is massive. Anyone can see it from the shore. The raiders can bypass the Fortress if they circle around and take to the forests. They won't be foolish enough to take the path leading to the Fortress. They're raiders after all and those minor settlements will be easy picking for them."
"You're right but what then? Do I send forces to meet them head on in the beach or do I send our forces to defend each settlement within Blackstone Hills borders?"
Silence fell as the Lord Warden contemplated on her move. Marcus hummed to himself before looking at Adrastia.
"Adrastia, I've known you for fifteen years and from what I've seen, you always have a plan. Whether they be reckless or cautious, for some reason your plans always work. I'm beginning to believe Fortuna favors you more than anyone, Adrastia. So whatever choice you make, you will always have my support. Even if it means charging headfirst into enemy lines on our own... don't consider that. That's a bad plan."
"Fifteen years huh? Ever since Harrowgate... " Adrastia smirked. Fifteen years ago, she arrived at Harrowgate to save Stone's ass from the Vikings. Then this lone Centurion arrived and fought beside them to repel the Vikings. Through the years that followed, he was there. When she left Blackstone, he gave her a place to stay. A place to plan and rebuild the Iron Legion. She still remembered what he said the day she left Apollyon.
'You won't be getting rid of me anytime soon, Warden. You can count on that.'
A comfortable silence fell between the two as one thought of a plan while the other patiently waited.
~Line Break~
By order of the Lord Warden, Kaiyo Kabe will be reinforced by Knights to help repel another attack should these Krakens decides to attempt another raid. The Knights brought with them giant onagers and scorpios courtesy of the Centurions. Kaiyo Kabe was fortified by both Knights and Samurai. The shores of Blackstone Hills was another story.
Since the shore didn't have a sea fortress, the Lord Warden had stationed the Regal Legion in the forest. Some trees were cut down in order for the Legionaries to build their fort as well as a place for their catapults. They made sure that the catapults weren't too far from the shore that their missiles won't be able to reach the invading ships while also keeping sure that they were still hidden from sight. The Regal Legion had sent 1250 soldiers, a quarter of their strength but enough to defend against the invaders. 960 were hidden behind the tree line and they were the ones closest to the shore while the remaining 290 were stationed to garrison the fort.
Three months later, the invaders came once more and this time, they brought more ships. Back then, there were fifty ships. Now there was a hundred. Rather than make another attempt at Kaiyo Kabe, the invaders made landfall on the shores of Blackstone Hills. There they were met by a Warden, flanked by an archer with his bow drawn with a flaming arrow and a foot soldier with his shield raised.
"Take one more step, outsiders, and it shall be your last. Turn back. Never return. Your lives will be spared. This is your only warning."
"And who's gonna fucking make us? You and those two fucking cunts?"
Primus Valenti grimaced behind his helmet before nodding to the archer who quickly shot the flaming arrow to the sky. The raiders, meanwhile, jeered and laughed at the archer before making their way towards the Warden and his companions. Suddenly, hundreds of arrows shot up from the forest behind the Warden before raining down on the invaders. The Warden nodded to his companions before they turned around and ran to the forest. The raiders, however, saw this.
"After the fucking cowards!"
The raiders roared in agreement and ran towards the forest while more longships landed on the shore and dropped off their raiders who followed after.
~Line Break~
The Ironborn called out the Knight as they tredged through the forest trying to find said Knight.
"Come on out, ya fucking cunt!"
"Just lay down your weapons and we'll nake your death quick, Knight!"
"Come out, cowa- "
The Ironborn raider didn't get to finish his sentence as an arrow lodged itself into his eye socket. The man quickly crumpled to the ground and before any of the others can react, more arrows sailed through the air and struck the Ironborn raiders. Those who weren't shot by the arrows looked around them in panic. A group of six Ironborn were separated from the others and were back to back. Looking around them for any sign if their attackers. Something dropped on top of them and they looked down to see small black orbs by their feet with a piece of thin rope that was burning away. Once it all burned, the orbs exploded in flames.
The rest of the Ironborn turned to the screams to see some of the raiders on the ground and trying to put out the flames on their legs. Another storm of arrows rained down on the Ironborn from the treetops as well as the small bombs. Then the Knights revealed themselves from behind some foliage and trees. Some threw javelins or shot arrows but the majority rushed the surprised Ironborn. The first one to reach them was a large Knight, nearly as tall as the Mountain. Heavily-armored and armed with a poleaxe. He ran one of the raiders through the gut and slammed him into a tree. The Knight then grabbed the raider by the throat with both hands and lifted him up and off the ground before crushing his neck then threw the corpse away. The Knight then faced the Ironborn.
"We gave you a warning. Now you have sealed your fates!"
Without another word, the Knight charged at the Ironborn once more.
~Line Break~
Jean-Philippe Taureau roared as he charged the raiders with his poleaxe again. They managed to avoid the Lawbringer but one wasn't so lucky. The dague of his poleaxe impaled the raider in the gut and Jean-Philippe planted his weapon firmly on the ground, leaving the man impaled on the weapon and die a slow death. Jean-Philippe then faced the raiders who charged him, grabbing a man by the forearm as he attempted to bring his sword down on the Lawbringer. Jean-Philippe gave the man an unimpressed look before punching him across the face. He then threw the man towards another raider and the two fell into a heap on the ground.
Behind the Lawbringer, Primus slammed a raider's against a tree before throwing him to the ground. Without wasting time, the Warden brought his longsword down on the man and split his head in two. Primus looked around him to see that the Regal Legionaries were fairing great against the invaders. He saw a Conqueror beat a raider to death as he loomed over the man. The chain of his flail wrapped around his knuckles.
To the side, a Peacekeeper avoided the raider's swings at her before seeing her opportunity and closed the distance. She then proceeded to stab the man thrice in the gut before kicking him back. Before the man had a chance to retaliate, a Centurion ran towards him and leaped into the air before quickly stabbing the raider on the neck. The Centurion didn't even looked as the man crumpled to the ground dead behind him.
Centurion Domitius Tetricus let out a short hum before making his way towards the rest of the Ironborn. He looked to his side to see a Gladiator punch a raider across the face and the man fell writhing on the ground. Domitius looked at the Gladiator who looked back at him.
"Put him out of his misery, Decima."
The Gladiator shrugged and stabbed the writhing man on the head with her trident. Decima suddenly turned towards Domitius and threw her trident towards the Centurion who quickly jumped back to the side. The trident struck the raider that was running towards the Centurion in the chest and fell on his back. Decima walked over to the downed man and raised her foot over his head before bringing it down hard. Domitius snorted and turned to look at the Knights, his orange and grey cape swished behind him.
By the looks of it, it wouldn't be long before they push the invaders back but that doesn't mean their troubles are over. They still had a hundred ships on the water to deal with.
"Hmm."
Domitius looked to his right to see Decima holding a net and nodding towards one of the raiders that was getting separated from the group.
"Bring him in alive. The Lord Warden would want to know everything about our invaders."
The Gladiator simply nodded before making her way over to the raider. Domitius watched her go before running towards the fighting to join the battle. He was about to join in but before he could, something exploded in front of him and threw him into the air. The Centurion slammed his back against the tree before he fell to the ground. Domitius could feel his ears ringing and felt someone grab hold of him before helping him sit up. He looked to the side and saw Decima looking over him. His eyes turned away from her and into the sky and saw the incendiaries hurling towards their soldiers. Decima helped him up his feet and the Centurion began shouting at the Regal Legionaries.
"Scatter! Scatter all of you!"
An archer was about to pass them by but the Centurion stopped him.
"Signal the catapults now!"
The archer nodded before running towards one of the burning trees and lighting up one of his flaming arrows. Once it was lit, the archer shot the arrow high into the sky.
~Line Break~
Isolde looked up at the sky and saw the second signal. She turned to the rows of giant onagers, ballistae and trebuchets before raising her longsword in the air.
"Loose!"
The catapults hurled their projectiles towards their intended target. The enemy ships. Boulders doused with oil and set on fire sailed over the trees and into the ships close to the shore. Some struck the beach where the Ironborn were disembarking their rowboats but the majority hit their mark. Both sides hurled incendiaries against one another. Back and forth. The incendiaries were taking chunks of the Regal Legion's forces and this would force them to retreat while the Legion's own incendiaries did the same to the Ironborn and destroying some of the Ironborn's ships.
From behind the tree line away from the Regal Legionaries and close to the shore, Lord Warden Adrastia and Centurion Marcus watched from atop their steeds as the battle raged on.
"Those raiders need to be stopped." Marcus began "If they keep making landfall, they will overrun the Regal Legion and force them to retreat to the fort."
Adrastia was silent as she observed the raiders and noticed that the longboats close to the shore stopped just in front of the shore as they dropped rowboats containing raiders to the water. She looked to the rest of the fleet and saw a few of them were lowering boats into the water. Adrastia knew it would take them a bit of time before they reach the shore to reinforce their men. Just her luck, they weren't tightly packed. This was the opportunity she was looking for. Looking over her shoulder, she nodded at the archer.
"Signal the charge."
The archer lit up his arrow and shot it ib the air.
"Cavalry!"
The mounted Knights unsheathed their swords at the Lord Warden's call. Even Marcus unsheathed a spatha from his horse's saddle. They waited in silence before a horn was blown in the distance.
"CHARGE!!"
The Knights let out a battle cry as they spurned their horses and rushed out of the tree line. Charging directly into the left flank of the Ironborn forces on the beach. On the right flank of the Ironborn, mounted Knights with banners that had a white lion on an orange and grey background. Mounted Knights of the Regal Legion and mounted Knights of the Iron Legion flanked the Ironborn on the beach.
The Ironborn did not anticipate this nor did they expect to have cavalry crush their ranks. Try as they might, they didn't have the weapons nor the strategy to counter a cavalry assault and were easy pickings for the Knights. Some Ironborn archers managed to shoot a few of the Knights but their arrows were deflected by the Knights' plate armor. Their horses, however, were a different story. Some Knights had their horses killed and they were thrown off their mounts, forcing them to fight in melee against the Ironborn.
Adrastia severed the head of one Ironborn as she passed them by before trampling the ones that were trying to outrun her. To her left, Marcus reared his horse back in it's hind legs before using it's front to kick an Ironborn in the chest. The Centurion was about to have his horse crush the man's torso but a mounted Knight rode in front of him and destroyed the Ironborn's head instead. The Centurion then unlatched a pilum from the saddle and threw it towards a raider and struck him directly in the chest. The Ironborn screamed but was cut off as mounted Knight ran him to over. Marcus then raised his spatha.
"Legio Aeterna!"
"AETERNA VICTRIX!!"
From above them, incendiaries from the Iron Legion's catapults and Regal Legion's catapults hurled through the air and struck the Ironborn ships.
While the Iron Legion and Regal Legion cavalry took care of the Ironborn on the beach, the Regal Legionaries in the forest managed to rally themselves and push the Ironborn raiders back. Primus planted a Regal Legion banner on an Ironborn's back and the man screamed before dying.
"Legion, forward!"
The Warden lead the charge as they routed the Ironborn forces from the forest. Meanwhile, the catapults managed to destroy dozens and dozens of Ironborn ships while also destroying the boats they were using to come ashore, taking out the raiders with it. The Legions soon surrounded the Ironborn before the Regal Legionaries formed a shield wall around the raiders. Arrows shot out from the trees and arched over the Knights before raining down on the Ironborn. Their screams were cut short as arrow after arrow fell the raiders before their bodies started to pile up. Soon, the beach was secured and all that's left were the ships in the water. Once more, the Ironborn were driven back with their tails between their legs. The Legionaries cheered as they watched the ships retreat. It intensified when one of their incendiaries managed to destroy the ones that couldn't get away fast enough. The Ironborn who survived began to swim away only to be showered by arrows and left to float dead on the water.
"Look at them run. Ha ha!"
"Who's the coward now?"
Adrastia patted her steed on the side before looking over to Marcus who wiped his spatha clean using his red cape and sheathed the blade. He moved his horse closer to hers and the Centurion nodded.
"Well. That's that."
"Yeah."
"So what now?"
The Lord Warden was silent as she kept her eyes on the retreating ships before turning them towards the remains of the ships they sunk. She was silent even as her soldiers celebrated their victory. Moments passed before she looked at Marcus.
"What do you say about building our own fleet?"
Marcus blinked behind his mask before smirking.
"I think I still have some plans about ships lying around somewhere in my room. They're old but it's better than sailing with the Vikings and their ships, right?"
"Alright, then."
"Lord Warden."
The two turned to the voice and saw one of the Regal Legion's Centurion limping towards them while a Gladiator followed closely behind him and dragged a net with a struggling man inside. From what Adrastia could see, the man wasn't just caught in a net. His ankles were bound by a bolo.
"Centurion Domitius." Marcus greeted with a nod which the other Centurion returned before facing the Lord Warden and saluted.
"Hail."
Adrastia nodded in reply before gesturing at the bound man.
"What's this?"
The Gladiator dragged the bound man and roughly kicked him towards the Lord Warden before the Regal Centurion answered.
"I had Decima capture this one, Lord Warden. He could give us the information we need about our invaders."
"Fuck you and your mother!"
Decima gave the man a sharp kick to the gut silence him. Domitius simply shook his head.
"We need him alive, Decima. He won't be of use if he's dead before we can even ask anything."
"Fuck you!"
Marcus let out an amused snort before grabbing the man's attention.
"Oi!"
The man turned his glare over to the mounted Centurion who looked down at him in amusement.
"Is that all the words you know? Is your tongue limited to Fuck and You and Your Mother? Then you wouldn't be much of use to us then." He turned his head towards Adrastia "I say we kill him. Slowly and pai- "
"You're not crucifying him, Marcus." The Lord Warden sighed in exasperation "Nor are we stoning him or flogging him or shoving him in some Iron Bull and cooking him alive or whatever it is that's going on in your mind."
"Well now you just took all the fun out of it."
"You're all fucking crazy cunts!"
"Ah! So he does speak more than a few words." Marcus took off his helmet to reveal the sinister grin that was forming on his lips "You have your uses after all."
His grin widened when the man cowered and tried to wriggle away only to be stopped as Decima placed her foot on his chest.
"Mercy's going to have so much fun with you."
Speak of the devil and he shall appear. Mercy made her way over to them. Walking over the bodies of the Ironborn as she closed the distance. The Peacekeeper's dagger was still impaled on a severed head while her sword dripped with blood. She stopped by the Lord Warden and gave the bound man a glance before looking up at Adrastia.
"You rang?"
Adrastia tilted her head when she saw the severed head on the Peacekeeper's dagger before shaking her head then nodded towards the bound Ironborn.
"Find out everything he knows about the invaders."
Mercy was silent as she looked down at the man, emanating an aura that clearly unsettled their prisoner as well as some of the Knights close by but the Lord Warden and the Centurion were unaffected.
"After I get everything out of him, then what?"
"Dispose of him."
"As you wish, Lord Warden."
The Lord Warden then turned her head to the Regal Centurion and Gladiator.
"Take him back to the fortress."
The two nodded and left, dragging the bound man behind them as Mercy followed. Adrastia watched them go before hearing the Centurion next to her chuckle.
"What's so funny?"
"Do you remember what Mercy kept saying when we were still with the Blackstone Legion?"
"To doubt is to die. Doubt is death."
"Yet you left her doubting her allegiance to Apollyon when we left." Marcus let out an amused chuckle "Doubt is death yet doubt led her to you. Would you have spared her if she hadn't switched sides? What would've happened if you met on opposite sides of the war?"
Adrastia looked down at her hands holding the reigns of her horse.
"I would've killed her... like Hector."
Hector Graves. A fellow Warden from Daubeny's Militia that joined her after Holden Cross inducted her to the Blackstone Legion. They had fought side by side on every battle under Apollyon's army. Their paths were one and the same until Sverngard where their paths finally diverged. Where she left and cut her ties to the Blackstone Legion, Hector stayed loyal to Apollyon to the end. It still stung thinking about the man she called friend. Brother. And how she was the one that ended his life by running him through with her sword.
"To doubt is to die."
She was shaken from her thoughts as the Centurion spoke once more.
"But her doubt saved her life. Her loyalty to you runs deeper than you know, Adrastia. Perhaps even as deep as mine."
While the two stayed silent on their mounts, the Knights have begun piling up the bodies of the dead and were ready to set them ablaze. Two Knights doused the bodies with oil while a third one threw a torch into the bodies. The flames began to engulf the pile and light up the night as the moons sets and the smell of burning flesh hit their nose. Adrastia and Marcus watched the bodies burn away into the night. Doing the best they can to ignore the smell of burnt flesh.
"When we take the fight to them, do you think the others would join us in our endeavour?" Marcus asked. Breaking the silence.
"The Samurai might. They've kept to themselves but these invaders attacked them first. The Wu Lin are keeping to themselves as well behind their borders. They would not interfere with affairs not of their own."
"And the Vikings?"
"A feast for the crows?"
"Heh. A feast for the crows."
Marcus grabbed a wineskin from his saddle and took a drink before handing it over to the Lord Warden who took off her helmet.
"Si vis pacem." The Centurion muttered and the Lord Warden Cousland continued.
"Para bellum."
The two shared a drink that night until only ash remained of the burning pile. Hopefully by the time they return, Mercy should be done with her job.
A/N: I have no idea what I'm doing. I don't really know if this is how the Ironborn does things but I do know that against armored Knights on land, especially Knights that are close to the height of Gregor Clegane, they would suck ass. Even my friend who watches GoT say they suck if they fight for a prolonged period of time on land. Their strength is the sea and their ships but come land... FEAST FOR THE CROWS!!