A Wolf with a coat of Darkness – chapter 10
I do not own ASoIF/GoT or Warcaft/WoW
Rated M for everything wrong with the Cult of the Damned and the Scourge (including but not limited to cannibalism, human experimentation, murder, rape, slavery, torture, sadism)
It took some convincing to have the innkeeper tell them the exact location of the bandit keep, the man almost shaking in fear, afraid of any retaliation that the thugs may levy towards the village folk.
It turned out that the mighty keep was barely a step above a watch tower, a relic of a time before Aegon's Conquest when this was the border between the Stormlands and the Riverlands. And the lord that once lived was simply the descended of a line of captains that the Stormlords became too tired to select every time one died and simply created a minor house to hold the border at this one point.
But with the rise of King's Landing, the House fell into a decay, their original purpose obsolete. One would have thought that this close to the capitol, they would have prospered, but the reality seemed different. The big city drained everything from the surrounding lands, many of the properties becoming the king's. The King's woods, the King's fields, the King's vineyards. A slow death by a thousand cuts.
The keep itself was deep within the woods, roughly an equivalent distance between it and three surrounding villages. As they trekked towards it, the giant still carried their chests, the two girls not trusting the villagers with their things. As they approached, they started to catch glimpses of it in between tree tops. Depositing the chests and hiding them with some dead leaves, the two stopped to consider their strategy.
A simple let the knight loose on them? Should they join in. They knew offensive spells, but this was different. What laid up ahead were not still targets, but living people. What if they came after them? What if arrows flew at them? Just how many bandits were there? The innkeeper said there were at least ten. That number was both too many as well as vague. In Sansa's increasingly paranoid and frightened mind, at least ten began to mean eleven. Then twelve, fifteen, twenty, fifty…a hundred…
There were quick ways to level the playing field, though both were hesitant to use them. There was a quick spell, easy to cast, not all that taxing. "Combat reanimation", their teacher had called it. Almost instantly raises a body into undead. The undead would be very dim-witted and would have to be controlled at every step and the spell would barely last for a minute.
That spell was beginning to look ever-more tempting.
For the moment, nonetheless, the two settled on having the knight charge in while they kept to the back, both keeping up wards before themselves to stop any arrows from coming their way. And if one was charging them, there were plenty of frost spells to slow him down.
Their breath quickened with every step they took, the keep revealing itself fully to them. A small square keep, two stories high with seemingly barely enough space for more than three rooms on each level. A short square tower stood in one of the corners, a simple pointed roof adoring it. There were two additional wooden buildings outside, one was barely standing and undiscernible whereas the other was a stable, a pair of horses visible lazing inside.
A person could be seen on the roof of the keep, though he had his back turned to them. Two more were sitting around a table near the entrance, bottles visible even from distance where as a fourth was napping, leaning against the wall.
"Oy, lads! Get out here!" shouted one of the two at the table, waking the napper and making the one from the roof look down.
As Sansa saw the grins of some of the faces before her, she wondered whether to pull her hood further and shield herself or lower it so that she may be better aware of her surroundings. More and more people began to emerge from the keep's entrance.
No two were the same. Some were old, others maybe barely older than them. No two bore the same clothes, nor did any have the same weapons. To Sansa, who was used to armed men been dressed and armed similarly, despite never really having paid attention to it, it was jarring. None of the bandits had yet drawn their weapons, but they did begin to move as to envelop the two girls and their knight.
A man almost dressed as a noble in the middle spoke up in a surprisingly pleasant and even voice:
"Good day." His eyes momentarily wondered to the silent knight before returning to the two hooded girls. "My ladies. What can I and my good companions do for you on this fine day?"
"Are you bandits?" bluntly asked Myranda, a clear edge to her voice.
"I beg your pardon? I assume you must have heard it from one of the villagers. Blatant slander, that is!"
"But you do take money from the villagers?" questioned Sansa.
"Why, ofcourse. We are but…tax collectors. We collect the money in the name of the king…and the gods." Yet many of the surrounding men barely managed to conceal their smirks.
An arrow suddenly flew, piercing the knight in the armpit, startling both girls. As this happened, the pleasant smiles disappeared and all men rushed as one towards the knight, only two going towards Sansa and Myranda. The iron behemoth stood unmoving as the thugs approached before springing into action at the last minute. The girls watched as a second arrow hit his breast plate, harmlessly bouncing off.
The giant only responded with thrusting his greatsword, an unfortunate lightly-armored man ending in the middle of the long blade like a skewer gone wrong. Other began to jump him, trying to hold down his arms, stabbing him into the gaps at the back of the knee, the joints at the elbows as another arrow ricocheted from his helmet.
The two girls barely had enough time to react to their own approaching assailants. For a moment, Sansa hesitated, but when Myranda used Blink, her favorite teleport spell, to appear some distance behind her attacker and throw an ice spike at him, her own hesitation melted in an eyeblink.
Sansa conjured a fireball and launched it at the feet of her own assailant, the man managing to jump from the impact, but freezing shortly after, his now wide frightened eyes shifting between Sansa and the burning grass where he had stood but a moment ago. Their eyes remained locked for a few moments, mere heartbeats, before he shouted:
"Witch!" as he rushed her anew. He had not taken even a step as his companion fell next to him, what can only be described as a spear of ice protruding from his midriff, the unfortunate man looking at it in disbelief, grasping at it with shaking hands.
Unfortunately, for the first man, his momentarily distraction with the fate of his comrade was his undoing, a ball of fire impacting him from one side as another ice spear greeted him from the other.
Many of the people that were trying to down the knight had frozen when ice and fire started flying, looking towards their dying friends in fear. The knight, for his part, was unbothered by their attempts to subdue him, the steel giant easily throwing off anyone that was hanging on to him and proceeding to stomp, slash and crush his way through everyone that stood in his way.
Sansa saw the archer up top readying another arrow, this time pointed at her. Her heart spiked as she watched the arrow fly, a shield already forming on her fingertips, the girl barely managing to bring up her arm in time to protect herself. The cling as the arrow bounced off of her shield was deafening to her senses. But a moment later, the place where the archer stood was engulfed in a small, but powerful fiery explosion, the flames quickly subduing after. Nodding her thanks to Myranda, she watched as the knight butchered its way through the rest of the bandits.
Two tried to escape and Sansa briefly considered letting them go, but they had seen too much. They had seen them do magic. They could not be allowed to leave. This, as well as them been bandits sealed their fate. A short incantation and a wave of her arm later, chains of ice erupted from the ground, wrapping around their legs. The two barely had time to understand what was happening as the greatsword of the knight slashed across their backs.
Sansa sighed in exhaustion, collapsing to her knees, slumping down her staff. She was breathing heavily, her arms shaking. She turned her head to Myranda, trying to smile only for her eyes to widen.
"MYRANDA!" she cried out as a man put a dagger to the little one's throat.
"Stay back!" the man screamed, his posture shaking, his eyes wide, never leaving Sansa or the knight. "You stay back!" Sansa rose to her feet as unimaginable horror swept over her.
"Please, let her go!" she pleaded.
"Stay back, you witch! Back or she gets it!" all the while, the man was backing off, dragging Myranda with him. "Just what are you?!" he hit the body of one of his comrades with the back of his boots, drawing Sansa's eyes to the body. Her lips quivering, Sansa barely managed to cast the spell in silence.
The man did not see the body rise behind him. Did not sense the dagger lining up with his spine. He only felt sudden pain.
Myranda managed to tear herself away in that moment, rushing to Sansa who welcomed her in her embrace, clutching her as if their life depended on it. The red-head started fussing over the thin red line that the dagger had left on the younger girl's neck, yet she barely saw it as tears clouded her vision and ran down her cheeks, mixing with Myranda's own. The two sobbed and quivered, both in exhaustion and shock, fear and relief.
"Never again, please." Sobbed Sansa "Never again."
They stood embraced for a few more moments, both refusing to let go. When their breathing relaxed did they as well. Looking up at the carnage all around them, they sniveled as their eyes roamed the many maimed corpses. The ice had already melted, the fire – fizzled out. Some essence of guilt lingered within Sansa as flashes of the frightened faces of the bandits that she held down with chains of ice passed through her mind. But she also remembered the thin red line on Myranda's neck and the dagger that left it. And any guilt that she felt was replaced with anger and fear.
Anger at herself for allowing her friend to be nearly claimed by death. Anger for agreeing to this crazy, ill-though out plan, rushed into action. Anger at the thugs, their dark souls and wicked actions. Anger at the local lords for allowing this, focusing on what she imagined to be pageantry and feasts as opposed of doing their lordly duty. And fear…for the loss that was nearly dealt to her.
For the next hour or so, the two slowly gathered the bodies into a pile, stripping them of anything of value, the two working coldly, methodically. The knight was sent into the keep to scour the floors in search of any potential assassins hiding in dark corners, the lumbering metal giant unceremoniously dumbing the body of the archer from the rooftop over the ramparts and onto the pile. When the giant exited the keep and returned to their side, the two with grim determination turned to the pile and casting the strongest fire spell that they knew, set it all ablaze.
As they watched the bodes burn, the two wondered what to do. It was well past noon by now, the midday sun warming their dark clothes considerably, the fire before them not helping either. Eventually, they sent the knight to bring their chests and their puppy companion to them as the two entered the keep. Directly after the gate was a small intermediary room with empty weapon racks lining the walls and beyond through a gateway was what might have been called a great hall, though it was barely larger than a bed chamber. There was an adjacent kitchen area, separated by curtains that were currently pulled back, a staircase visible in the corner, going down. In one of the corners stood a simple, non-descript door that the two imaged led to the tower. Walking around the large table in the middle, they entered the tower and ascended up the spiral staircase. The second floor had a short corridor with two rooms linked to it. Both rooms were bedrooms, one significantly larger than the other.
Inside of the larger bedroom, the two found several small chests filled with an assortment of goods. There were coins, obviously, but also gems, jewels and some tiny containers ones even held spices. Myranda had the biggest grin on her face that Sansa had ever seen.
"We are rich!" the little one was shouting, the girl shaking in excitement as her gloved fingers ran over the coins. Sansa only smiled before closing the chest before her. She was a noble, a daughter of a great house. She had never lacked money, but nevertheless, she enjoyed the sense of freedom that this small fortune gave them. Smiling at the happiness of her friend, she exited the room and went up the tower until she was on the roof.
"We won't make it to King's Landing today…" she whispered under her breath, looking north.
She swore she could almost see it. Tiny towers, barely needles to her eyes, occasionally, if the treetops swayed just right in the wind. "Father…" Was he already there? Did he know, did he feel her approaching? She returned to the tower and went up again, hoping the additional high of it would allow her to see the capital. Upon exiting there, the view was much the same. Sighing, she collapsed in a chair that a lookout might have once sat in.
They spend the night in the keep, the knight guarding the only way in or out. The pantry was well supplied and that night, they had a small feast on the tower-top with the two downing many flagons of mead and wine, sir Boo chasing fireflies on the roof just below before falling asleep in a corner. In the dark night, the two could see clearly see the lit towers of the Red Keep through the treetops.
When they fell asleep in the master bedroom, they were content. They were in a secure place, their two chests nearby, away from prying eyes and today, they had done some good. Despite the two telling themselves that they should be more careful, they did go on in a drunken haze to boast, each giving exaggerated retelling of their part in the fight, their laughter filling the dark forest.
The next morning saw the two with a massive headache, neither getting up until the sun had well risen in the sky. When they began to dress for the day, Sansa briefly considered her attire.
She hated it at first, all those months ago now, and truthfully, a part of her still did. She did not always enjoy the feel of her naked behind exposed, nor did she enjoy the feeling every time she sat down somewhere. But the cloak gave her a sense of security, the leotard freedom of movement and the boots stood comfortable on her feet. Given how much walking she had done the last few days, especially compared to her old life, the girl was beginning to see the high value of boots as opposed to slippers and other proper lady-like wear.
The two did not really know the prices of things and so they began to fill medium leather poaches with gold coins, each attaching a pair to their belts. As they descended to ground level, they wrapped a bit of bread, cheese and ham for the road, the two stopping at the entrance blocked by the knight. Should they take him with them? They were going to the capital and thus, they should be safe. And they were also quite close. Sure, there was a chance of bandits, but they somehow doubted it, this close to the territory of the bandits that they just wiped out.
In the end, the two left the knight behind to guard the keep, their chests as well as keep Sir Boo company. Given the lack of a soul within their construct, they wondered just exactly to instruct him, but when they ordered him to keep the puppy company, there was no resistance.
Going outside, Myranda was ready to turn and head for the city straight through the woods before Sansa stopped her. the red-head's eyes were on the two horses within the stables, an idea dancing within her head.
The duo moved slowly to the capital as Sansa spent most of the time teaching Myranda how to ride, the fact that these were large horses did not help the issue much. It was strange how with Sansa's current attire she could ride like a man where as Myranda had to be taught how to ride like a proper lady given that she had a dress on. Although in the end, and with Myranda pointing out several time that she indeed wore pants underneath, the two gingerly aligned the little girl in a proper riding form.
And suddenly, the forest pulled back and revealed the city.
Neither of the two had ever been to a large city, let alone one of King's Landing's scale. The tall walls, the many towers, the crimson teeth that made the many spires of the Red Keep, the gleaming dome of the sept of Baelor. For a moment, both of them stood and simply observed, gazing in wonder at the city before them. A wide river separated them and the city, many, many docks extending like fingers grasping at the water from the southern side of the city walls. The road that they were on led to what might have otherwise been called a small village, an assortment of small boats going back and forth in between it and the city docks.
With ever-growing anxiousness, the two trekked towards the village and with some initial difficulty, the two managed to have a ferry carry them and their horses across the water. A lot of first-time things were happening, especially for Myranda, her child eyes wide with wonder.
First time riding a horse, first time on a boat…first time in a city.
The shadow of the gatehouse parted to reveal the city proper. A straight road led directly forth with green trees growing in the middle, colorful building of each shape and size dotting both sides. The three hills that the city was build upon appeared even more massive now that they were inside, the Great Sept to their left and the Red Keep to their right practically towering over them. Despite her wonder, Sansa left her hood half up, showing some skin to the sun, yet leaving plenty hidden.
Plenty of people mulled around of all shapes and sizes, dressed in a variety of colors, each trying to outshine the next. Several litter boxes moved, occasionally stopping before a shop, a small number of guards blocking the space around their benefactors. With having spoked to several elves and having the unfortunate "pleasure" to dissect an orc, Sansa paid little heed to the various people and their strangeness. It was definitely a breath of fresh air, all this color, all this variety, but the less been said about the actual air, the better. She briefly considered pulling up her mask, for if it worked against undead, rotting flesh and plagues, it would work against…excrements, but she decided not to.
They did stop maybe a third of the way down the street when a new, larger one branched off in the direction of the Red Keep. Sansa kept her eyes trained on the massive fortress, squinting her eyes, trying to see any white. Any Stark banner. Any sign of her father. Myranda stopped next to her after having almost moved past, too busy looking around in unbridled excitement.
"So?" she asked, following her friend's gaze towards the massive castle on the hill.
"I-I don't know." Responded the red-head. Her eyes spotter two men with golden cloaks, polished breastplates and shiny helmets leaning on a nearby building, looking bored.
"Excuse me, good sirs." Spoke up Sansa, drawing their attention.
"Ugh, wha-Why yes, Mi'lady?" Sansa could clearly see their eyes wonder to her exposed thighs after they had turned to her, but she also noted the half-way change in tone.
"We are travelers from…Dorne. We were wondering if the King has returned from Winterfel."
"Ha!" one of the men had a sudden outburst. " 'pologies, Mi'lady. We received word but a few days ago that the king had just left Winterfel."
"Aye, probably won't be here for another month. The Seven know just how bad the roads are that far up there in that backwater." Filled in his comrade.
Sansa barely registered the insult towards her home, her mind only repeating 'A whole month' over and over again. Having come to stand next to her, Myranda overheard most the conversation.
"Do you know any good place to eat?" asked the little necromancer.
"Aye, go further down and if money is no issue, stop at Tobaro's. The honeyed ribs are particularly good." Responded the first, waving his arm in the direction that they were originally going.
"As for the king, you see that big, short, round tower?" said the second, pointing up towards the Red Keep. "When you see a large yellow flag with a stag on it, that means the king has returned."
"Thank you." Mumbled Sansa. Seeing how lost in though her friend was, Myranda reached into one of her pouches and pulled out a coin and passed it on to one of the men.
So close, yet so far.
I find it almost impossible that mages would lose to normal people, especially unprepared ones, even if those mages are meek-ish.
Most fanfic tend to paint King's Landing as absolute hell and it is bad, but it is not THAT bad. It has bad areas, like every city, even today. The main areas, as well as the three hills are almost pleasant.
Thank you for reading.