The Trident 2 BC.

Torrhen Stark.

He had marched and marched hard, bringing with him the largest army the North had ever assembled. More than 30,000 men had crossed through the Neck and it had all been for nothing. As he sat in his tent and pondered his next move he sighed when his brother came in. Torrhen already knew what Brandon would say before he did so. Still, he sat and he listened and though he sighed and made his displeasure clear, his brother still spoke fervently about his plans and how they would work.

"Our bows are strong brother, we can take them down and without them they are nothing." Brandon said almost laughing as he did so.

"And what of their men?" he asked looking to his brother.

"They're no match for our own and some will abandon the dragons once their beasts have been slain." Brandon said.

"And if they should not? If they hold and stand firm then we face an arm larger than our own, one with far more horse and far better armoured." he said trying to get it through to his brother it wasn't just the dragons that he feared, though fear them he did.

"Southern men, not Northmen, not men like our own. We can beat them, brother, without their beasts we can beat them." Brandon said willing him to accept his words.

"What if you fail, brother? What if one dragon escapes or all are not there? You heard what Balerion did to Harrenhal and what they did to the Lannisters and the Gardeners on the Field of Fire? Am I to risk the lives of our men on a plan that may not work?" he asked almost angrily.

"What's the alternative, brother, kneel and beg for scraps from the dragon's table? Is it a wolf you are or is there mouse blood in your veins?" Brandon said and Torrhen's fist caught his brother's cheek hard as he knocked him to the ground.

"You doubt me a wolf?" he asked with a snarl.

His brother looked at him and spit the blood out of his mouth before rising to his feet, a small smile on his face as he did so.

"I just wanted to make sure that the wolf was still inside you. Tell me what you wish of me?" Brandon asked.

"Go and speak to Aegon Targaryen, seek him out, and see what he offers. I'll not spill more northern blood than I need to." he said and Brandon nodded before turning to leave "Take your guards with you, have them dress up in the Maester's Robes." he said to a chuckle from Brandon as he left.

It took him some time to return and the note he brought back with him was not the one he'd expected. Torrhen looking at it and then handing it to Brandon who seemed just as surprised as he was.

"This can't be true?" Brandon said after reading it.

"No, but it's a strange lie to make up though is it not? What thought you of the man himself?" he asked curiously.

"A warrior who is both fierce and focussed. This is not a man who offers terms lightly and yet he seemed…."

"Brandon?" he asked looking to his brother who had drifted off in his thoughts somewhat "Brandon?" he said a little more loudly.

"What? Sorry. He seemed to almost be expecting me, I mean he said something I thought was odd at the time, though now I'm not so sure." Brandon said and Torrhen looked at him.

"What did he say?" he asked eager to learn as much about the dragon as he could before deciding his next move.

"That my Maesters would be more at home with a sword in their hands than a book." Brandon said and Torrhen smirked, Aegon had either seen through his ruse or had simply been sure it was to come, either of which gave him pause and concern.

"Send a note and arrange a meeting, just you, me, and him, Brandon, and with guest rights to be offered and accepted." he said and Brandon nodded before leaving him alone, Torrhen opening the note and reading it once more.

Wolves and Dragons should howl together, for in time our kin will Bring the Dawn.

It took four more notes before he was able to make his way with his brother to meet with Aegon Targaryen. The meeting to be held far too close to the dragon's lair for Torrhen's liking. While he'd conceded that guest rights would be acceptable, Aegon had only agreed to his dragon leaving once they'd all partook. As he and Brandon made their way to the meeting place they could see the dragon in the distance or the shape of it at least. Balerion was as dark as the night's sky and it was only that he moved or else he'd have been invisible to the eye.

Brandon may think his Weirwood bows and arrows a match for a beast that size, Torrhen was far less convinced. Just as he was not sold on the notion that the army that Aegon had at his back would be as easy to defeat as his brother assumed. True enough he could retreat to the Moat and hold them back, but then what? What was his next move and what if just one of his brother's arrows missed or if he was proved more right than Brandon?

"We've come to treat at your request." he said when they arrived and Aegon smiled as he took some of the bread and salt from a plate he held in his hands before offering some to him and to Brandon.

"The dragon?" Brandon said and Torrhen looked on with interest as Aegon turned to the dragon.

"Sōvegon naejot aōha mandia, Balerion." (Fly to your sisters, Balerion) Aegon said and the true size of the dragon was then revealed, even Brandon beginning to doubt his plans as it took to the air.

He looked to the man in front of him, his silver hair was cut short and his purple eyes were barely able to be seen in the darkness. Aegon wore a shirt of black scales and a silver circlet with square-cut rubies on his head. His sword that he carried on his hip was one of Valyrian Steel, just like Ice. Though Blackfyre was a longsword where Ice was a great one. Of a height and size with both Brandon and himself, Aegon he could see was powerfully built. The man was a warrior through and through and for that reason alone he demanded and had his respect.

"Your words were not the ones I expected." Torrhen said.

"Your march was not the one I did either." Aegon replied.

"You thought we'd stay North of the Neck while you conquered all the lands south of it?" Brandon asked.

"I hoped you would." Aegon said with a sigh "I've no quarrels with House Stark, no more than the present circumstances demand. I had intended to come to you once my war was done, but here we find ourselves, and here an accord must be reached." Aegon said looking directly at him and not at Brandon.

"What accord is that?" he asked as he stared at Aegon.

"House Stark will kneel and give up its crown and once it has I'll name you and then your heirs after you as Wardens of the North and Lords of Winterfell. I'll leave the North mainly to its own devices and not ask more of it than it's willing to give." Aegon said and again Brandon answered instead of him.

"You offer us no more than is already ours by right and seek far more in return. Why would we contemplate such a thing?" Brandon asked.

"Daenys dreamed and so we came, and in doing so we escaped the Doom that took our lands from us." Aegon said "Yet our coming was not without purpose. In time a war will come that you and I will not be here to fight. A war that only a son with both our blood running through his veins can win. When that war comes I know not, who that son will be, I know not. I know that he is the Prince that is Promised, the Song of Ice and fire, the White Wolf, and the Winter Dragon. I know little more than that." Aegon said as Brandon snorted.

"Why should I believe anything you say?" Torrhen asked.

"It's not only me who's here to say it." Aegon said and Torrhen and Brandon both dropped to a knee when they saw him come from behind the tree, his height, size, and the antlers he wore marking him for who he was.

"The dragon speaks true and all of you have your roles to play. Yours takes you far from here, Brandon Snow. Yours will make your fellow Northern think less of you Torrhen Stark, and yours will cost your family much blood, Aegon Targaryen. The prince must come and should you not agree to terms then he will not. The North, South, East and the West, all that you love and all you know will end and that end shall be on your heads and not mine own." The Old God said before he moved away and in the blink of an eye, he was gone.

Torrhen looked to Brandon who nodded and then they followed Aegon to his tent. A mummery was to be done on the morrow, one of a far more public kneeling and a fight between brothers leading to an exile. He'd give up his crown only for it to be returned in secret, accept his bannermen's scorn, and in many years from now when he'd die, he'd know not if what he had done was for true or not. It was a heavy price to pay but it was one that all three of them were willing to do so. So the next morning he crossed the Trident and knelt before a king, and he did so with nary a doubt in his mind.

Castle Black Now.

If not for what he and the rest of those present had just seen or for Jaime and Arthur catching Jae as he fell, then Ned Stark would have been far more worried about his nephew than he was. Instead, he, Robb, Cregan, the Northern Lords, the men of the Watch, and the men of the Company of the Rose had all looked on as the truth of Torrhen Stark had been revealed to them. They'd listened as Aegon had read passages from a book that had then become a prophecy that the Company had waited centuries to be filled.

He'd watched on as a crown had been buried that had been thought lost, all so a king could come and claim it three hundred years later. When he looked to Jae and saw the blood falling from his nose and the worried looks on Robb's, Cregan's, and other's faces, his own worries had grown. Ned rushing to where Arthur and Jaime were laying his nephew down on the ground.

"Is he…Will he…" he asked as he held his breath.

"Magic takes a toll, he'll be well after he's rested." Jaime said and Ned felt his relief as if it was a far more palpable thing.

"Father look." Robb said and he looked to where his son was pointing, the blood from Jae's nose rolling down and being absorbed by the crown that he still wore on his head.

"Is that?" Rickard Karstark asked incredulously.

"Aye, it's glowing." Cregan said and Ned looked to the crown to see it now shining brightly.

Eastwatch By the Sea 301 AC.

Dany.

Far below her Aurane sailed with her men and Dany feared for them all. Even here high up on Ellagon's back and with the entire expanse of blue sky in front of her, it was the ships that she looked down upon. Almost everyone she cared for in the entire world would be taking part in the battles to come. Sandor, Grey Worm, Bonifer, Belwas and of course Aurane. Other than her family who were off dealing with their own duties and Missandei who was to remain on Dragonstone, all of them were on the lead ship that she now flew over.

She'd sailed part of the way and flown part of it too, her nights spent in her husband's arms and her days in the air as she scouted the lands ahead of them. Dany wished to know as much about them as she could. She was determined to learn where there was water, food, and cover and where there was not. Ellagon would be as prepared for what was to come as she could make her, both for the battle and for a retreat if it was needed. The more she thought of either, the less she was sure which of them sat the best with her.

A retreat would probably keep her husband safe as Aurane's was to remain with the ships and to help lead the evacuation if need be. It would take him from the danger of battle and the heart that feared so very much for him, wished him to be far away from here. Yet if they had to retreat then it meant they were losing and if they were losing, then all of those she cared about would be even more at risk. She'd already had nightmares of losses that she knew she'd not be able to bear, and so at times, it was the battle to come that she wished for more than the retreat which may well follow.

"Ilagon konīr Ellagon." (Down there Ellagon) she said and the dragon took her to the small cove she'd just seen ahead of her.

She needed to feel Aurane's arms around her and though there was still much daylight remaining, she needed to feel them now. Dany flew over the ship and knew that her husband would get her meaning. Ellagon then landed in the cove and within the hour Aurane had led the boat to collect her and she was now back on board The Dragon's Breath. The Pinnacle was her own, a gift from her nephew for her wedding and one that her husband most appreciated. As did Sandor and Belwas, given the comfort that the cabins provided.

"I'd not expected you to come back so quickly?" Aurane said as he took her in his arms once the ship was back at sail.

"I missed my husband and we're now close enough to Eastwatch as it is, we'll arrive on the morrow or perhaps mid-afternoon." she said and he nodded with a small smirk on his face "What?" she asked playfully.

"You take all the fun out of sailing." he said and she slapped him lightly on the shoulder as they walked down to the cabins below.

"I do not." she said pretending to pout.

"I wished to impress my wife with mine own declaration of our arrival, but she and her dragon beat me to it." Aurane said smirking still.

"I'm still fun." she said before she laughed when he lifted her in the air, his kisses telling her far more than his words could have and letting her know that he thought her so too.

She ate that night with those closest to her. Belwas, who looked ridiculous in the extra layers of fur that he wore even here in the dining cabin where it was warm and Sandor was taking the piss out of him for doing so. Bonifer looked lost in thought and Aurane sat much closer to her than usual. His hand touching her own every so often and it took her a moment to realize he did so only when she frowned. Her worries were still on her mind and no matter how much she tried to send them away, they'd not leave until she was laying her bed later that night.

Even then it was only the distractions that her husband's lips and fingers brought to her as he kissed and touched her before they then took their pleasure in each other and she then fell into a dreamless sleep. The next morning she broke her fast and called Ellagon to meet her at a smaller cove. Aurane taking her to her dragon so that she could fly the rest of the way to Eastwatch. Dany knew it was important that the men waiting there could see that they had a Dragon to offer them protection from what marched their way.

She arrived before they did and she heard the cheers when she landed. Dany smiling to see Loras and Prince Garin and the Rhoynish army that she and Ellagon would fight with if the fight came their way. Her nephew had told her it would, yet he'd not ordered the evacuation of the people here as of yet. Which was something that concerned her when she saw just how many of them there were. Climbing down off Ellagon's back, she took a closer look at her surroundings and saw the rows of tents that seemed to stretch for miles around.

"Princess, it's good to see you again." Prince Garin said and Dany was glad he'd not tried to kiss her hand, the coldness of this place making her not wish to remove the gloves she wore.

"You too, Prince Garin. Ser Loras." she said with a nod to the young Kingsguard who now looked a far happier man than when last they'd met.

"Princess. Is Lord Aurane to join us?" Loras asked and Dany smiled a the mention of her husband.

"He is. The Dragon's Breath is not far behind me and should arrive within an hour or two. How fares things here?" she asked curiously.

"We've settled in as well as can be expected, my people aren't used to the cold but they've adapted well." Prince Garin said.

"And my nephew?" she asked curiously.

"His grace stopped here before flying on to Castle Black, he arrived before we did so we didn't get to speak. Prince Tyrion and Prince Oberyn we did get to speak to and both seemed well, but we've heard nothing of Prince Aemon or Princess Shiera." Loras said and Dany could see how much it bothered him that he'd not seen Jae since he'd gotten here.

"I'm sure my nephew will join us before the battles to come. As for my aunt and uncle, they have their own parts to play." Dany said, though she wished to see them both and hoped that Jae arrived soon to allow her to fly on Ellagon to speak to them.

"Will you be needing quarters, princess?" Ser Loras asked and Dany shook her head.

"I think I and those with me will be most comfortable on our ship, you're both welcome to join us?" she said looking to them both and noticing a brief look between them before Prince Garin answered.

"I think it's for the best if we stay with my people, we may join you for a meal though if that's acceptable?"

"I'd like that very much." she said smiling at them before she walked over to speak to Ellagon and told her to find somewhere to eat and rest up.

Aurane arrived a little over an hour later and after The Dragon's Breath had docked, he, Sandor, Belwas, Bonifer, and Grey Worm joined her as she walked around and took in more of the camp. The Free Folk were camped much further from the Wall than Prince Garin's men and she took some comfort in that. If the worst came to pass then they and the people of the North would have more than 30,000 men and a dragon between them, the Wall, and what lay behind it.

It was Sandor who surprisingly suggested that they go to the Castle and speak to the brothers of the Night's Watch and she found Cotter Pyke and his men were more than happy that she was to be staying nearby, or perhaps more precisely that Ellagon was. She asked for and received permission to go to the top of the Wall and though it took her some time to reach it, she found it most worthwhile when she did. Shiera had already explained to her that Rhaegal had refused to cross it and she knew that Ellagon felt the same. So if she wished to see what lay on the other side then this was the only way she could do so. Looking out on the white lands below her and at the Haunted Forest off in the distance, she felt a chill run down her spine. The lands though beautiful to her eyes were tarnished somewhat by the knowledge of what was moving unseen through them.

"Let's go back to the ship." Aurane said and Dany took his hand, only too happy to do so.

Castle Black 301 AC.

Oberyn.

The march through the North had been more than an eye-opener for those with him. The Dornish Lords and their men quickly finding out that their prince wore the clothes he did because the conditions demanded it. They'd been lucky that they'd not lost people as some had thought him over-exaggerating the cold, only to find that if anything he had downplayed it. His men even had trouble lighting fires and though Tyrion had suggested letting Lygaron do so for them, Oberyn had refused.

"Your dragon won't always be there for them, so they'll learn or they'll freeze." Oberyn said and Tyrion nodded.

It may have sounded harsh to some, but Oberyn knew the truth of things and that truth was that if they wished to survive here then they'd have to adapt. Over the course of the march they had and by the time they reached Castle Black, he'd have matched them against any of the other men who'd come here. Barring the Northmen and the Free Folk that was. He'd enjoyed the march, spending time with his men, speaking to them as they sat around a fire and telling them of the things they'd soon be facing. On this, they at least listened far more truly, as the truth about the cold had earned him even more of their trust.

He'd also enjoyed Tyrion's company, even though his goodnephew had spent as much time in the air as he had on the ground. He and Bronn both joined him in his missing of Ellaria, as they each missed their own wives too. That it was even more of a thing with Tyrion was no true surprise given Arianne's condition and Oberyn did his best to offer reassurance wherever he could. They'd stopped off to speak to Garlan and the Reach Lords, though they had stayed only a night and that outside of the Nightfort. Dorne and the Reach had always had a strained relationship and given what Doran had tried to do during the war, now this was even more true.

Garlan though was just as Willas was and while Randyll Tarly and Mathias Rowan were prickly, he was glad to see them both here. Given what marched their way they'd need all the experience they could bring to bear. Tyrion was pleased to spend time with his aunt and both Lygaron and Rhaegal seemed happy to meet each other again in this strange land. Yet for Oberyn it was to reach Castle Black and to see his nephew again that drove him forward.

"Castle Black, my prince." he heard the call ring out from the outriders and within an hour he was riding in through the main gate with Tyrion by his side and not on his dragon's back for once.

When he saw both Ned Stark and Jaime Lannister, along with the Lord Commander of the Night's Watch and some other men that he didn't know all standing there, with no sign of Jae, it caused him some concern and he wondered if his nephew was already Beyond the Wall. He quickly dismounted and almost waved away the welcome as he looked to Jaime and asked him where his nephew was.

"He's resting, come I'll lead you both to him." Jaime said before smiling at Tyrion who seemed just as happy to see him as Jaime was him.

"What's happened?" he asked as they walked up the steps to the King's Tower.

"Jae used the Glass Candles, he wanted to show them all what it is we faced, only that was not what we saw." Jaime said and Oberyn was relieved he couldn't detect any worry in his voice.

"What did you see?" Tyrion asked eagerly.

"We saw Torrhen Stark and why he knelt. Gods Tyrion, Aegon planned his conquest with this in mind, even way back then he was setting the stage for what's to come." Jaime said rubbing his hand through his hair.

"Jae told us this, he told us all about Daenys and the Doom, surely it wasn't that much of a surprise?" Tyrion asked and Jaime shook his head.

"It's one thing hearing it, Tyrion, to see it though. I and every lord or high-ranking man of the Watch or Company of the Rose, all of us saw the Conqueror as if he was right there in front of us. We saw Balerion, Tyrion. We saw Torrhen Stark and Brandon Snow, and a plan that was made more than three centuries ago. We saw it as if we were there and then we saw…" Jaime said shaking his head.

"What?" he asked worriedly.

"You'll see it for yourself. Don't try and touch it, trust me it's not pleasant." Jaime said with a small shiver as they reached Jae's room. Oberyn nodding to Arthur and Jors who stood guard outside.

Inside the room, his nephew lay in bed with his eyes closed as he slept and looked as peaceful as a babe. Beside him sat both of Jae's cousins. Yet it wasn't them nor the look on Jae's face that Oberyn or any of them found themselves concentrating on. On his head, Jae wore a crown that was hard to make out such was the light that shined from it. It was a light that almost flickered and one that though they could look at and not need to squint or shield their eyes, it did make them turn away from it after a few moments.

"How is that?" Tyrion asked and Oberyn thought perhaps that what is that may have been a better question and it was that question that was answered and not the one that Tyrion had asked.

"The Crown of Torrhen Stark and the Kings of Winter." Jae's cousin Cregan said and both Oberyn and Tyrion looked to Jaime whose nod told them that the boy spoke the truth.

Oberyn had known that Jae had the crown, but to be honest he'd paid it very little mind. Compared to all the things that his nephew had gathered over the years, a crown worn by a northern king mattered very little. His nephew had both the ancestral swords of his house, the Conqueror's crown, Daenys's journal, Glass Candles, and dragons. A crown of iron and bronze seemed lesser than all of that. Now as she looked to it and felt his headache grow, he found he wasn't so sure. Soon enough he began to wonder if this like so much of the things that Jae had gathered held an import that he didn't yet understand.

He bid Robb and Cregan leave when he'd found out that they'd sat vigil for a number of hours. Both boys arguing until he told them that they needed to rest and eat to keep their own strength up. It still took him to tell them that he'd be staying by the bed himself to get them to leave, and once they had, Oberyn took a seat beside the bed. When he was offered some warm soup and cider he accepted gratefully. Once he was done with both he then spoke to Jaime, Tyrion, and Ned Stark who had joined them after his son and nephew had left.

"How long?" he asked.

"A day and a half, he speaks some at night, some mumbled words, well all but three." Jaime said a soft smile on his face.

"Ghost, Margaery, Elia." Oberyn said and Ned Stark laughed as he nodded.

"Aye, those are the ones." Ned said as Oberyn reached out to move Jae's hair from his eyes.

He didn't join Ned and Jaime when they welcomed Benjen Stark and the Free Folk to Castle Black and he was not surprised when he was joined by the younger Stark brother only a few moments after he arrived. Oberyn even giving up his seat so that Benjen could speak to his nephew and but a few hours later it was yet another uncle who was looking down on Jae.

"A day and a half you say?" Aemon asked as he held Jae's hand in his own and pressed his head against his chest.

"Aye, a day and half." Ned Stark said.

"And this has been like that in all this time?" Aemon asked as he pointed to the crown.

"It has. A few of us tried to remove it, but it doesn't seem to shift at all." Jaime said and Aemon nodded.

"Nor you, me, or even Lord Stark here have it in us to take it from Jae's head. Only one of Stark and Targaryen blood can do so, and other than Jaehaerys, the only one who shares such blood is Princess Elia." Aemon said and Oberyn saw Ned, Benjen, Tyrion, and Jaime all look at each other.

"Her blood is the same as Jae's?" Tyrion asked and Oberyn almost rose to his feet before he realized it was a different question that Tyrion was asking and not that he was daring to say that his grandniece was not his nephew's blood.

"It is. Though it's not quite the same as well, but compared to the magic's that you and I possess, nephew, the young princess is closer to her father than you or I will ever be." Aemon said as he finished his examination and turned to look at them.

"You're saying that in time she'll be able to do what Jae can?" Jaime asked and Aemon shook his head.

"Perhaps some if not all, I'm still not sure how much of it passes on. We take our blood from our own fathers and mothers. Mine house takes its own from the forty of Valyria and while Tyrion, Shiera, Daenerys, and I have some within us, Jaehaerys has always needed to have more. We are but a sip from this mug." Aemon said taking a small sip of the water "Jaehaerys is the mug itself."

"And Elia?" he asked curiously.

"All, most, half, I can't be sure, more than me but less than her father." Aemon said and Oberyn nodded.

"When will he wake?" Jaime asked worriedly.

"Ask him yourself." Aemon said with a large beaming smile and Oberyn and everyone in the room turned to see Jae sitting up in the bed.

"He's here." his nephew said forebodingly.

Castle Black 301 AC.

Jaehaerys Targaryen.

He stood on the Wall and looked out on the lands beyond it knowing that he was there and he was watching. His first instinct had been to take to the sky and for he and Rhaenix to fly and lay down their flames, but he knew he could not. When the Night King and his army arrived, he and Rhaenix needed to be here. The men needed to see them and so did the Night King. If not, then he'd know his mind and Jae couldn't allow him to know what it was that he knew, not yet at least.

On his head, he now wore a cloth that covered a shining crown and he could only imagine how ridiculous he looked. Given the smirks that he'd gotten from Robb, Cregan, his uncles, and Jaime there was no need for a looking glass to be brought to show him either. It was another thing that the Night King couldn't see until it was too late, another surprise that Jae needed him to be unaware of. As it was the Gods only knew what surprises the Night King had in store for him.

A part of him had considered that perhaps what he'd seen had been a trick of some sort, a feint almost and one that he should be wary of falling for. In time he'd been more sure that it was not. He'd seen glimpses of the Night King's plans, spent moments in his mind, and only that he risked being detected he'd have spent more. He knew that he couldn't risk being detected though and that the longer they were linked the more likely it was that the Night King would see some of his own plans. So he'd taken what he could and hoped it was enough and now he stood and watched and waited.

"You sure you don't need to rest?" Jaime asked as he moved behind him.

"I've rested for two days almost, I miss being awake." he said and Jaime chuckled.

"I take it your dreams were not the ones you wished for then?" Jaime asked and Jae shook his head.

"I sought Ghost, I wished to see them both, to look upon them before…." he said stopping for a moment to compose himself "I didn't wish him to see them, to know."

"Could he?" Jaime asked worriedly and Jae shook his head.

"I don't think so, but I'm not willing to take the chance. Some of the war to come will be fought elsewhere, Jaime. On a field not of my choosing and not truly one that exists." he said and Jaime looked at him with intrigue "Magic is its own thing and while this battle will be one in this world, it'll also need to be fought in that one too."

It was hard to explain what it was he meant, partly because he didn't fully understand it and partly because he didn't want the Night King to know that he knew. Jae's mind was closed to him, as was his family's. Fire and Ice magic were two opposing forces that repelled one another. That he possessed both allowed him to do as he did, that his family did not meant that the Night King couldn't do so to them. So he and they alone knew the full extent of the plans he'd made. Jaime, Oberyn, his uncles Ned and Benjen, any of them could be open to the Night King's gaze and so there was only so much he could tell them all.

He hated it, despised it, and it made him feel dirty inside to keep things from all those he cared about. Secrets and lies had almost brought about the end of his house, they, and a choice made long before even the Conqueror had been born. Over the years he'd done his best to not lie, to not keep secrets and he'd succeeded more than he had failed, or so he believed. To come here at this point and to find he now had to keep some more, that had only been something he'd been able to do if he didn't have to speak a lie too.

"Come, we should eat, he'll not come tonight." Jaime said and Jae turned to follow him to the lift.

It wouldn't be tonight, he knew that. One more they would have until the fight was upon them and he and Rhaenix would be forced to fly. As they reached the bottom of the Wall and walked from the lift was when he saw them, the men moving in the darkness with their swords already drawn. He sighed and turned to Jors and Arthur, both men had seen them too and as they came towards him, Jae removed the cloth and the crown shined even more brightly than it had up to then.

He didn't even get to remove his sword before Arthur had already taken two of them down and Jors one more before the other three dropped their swords as men rushed out from the halls. On his head the crown began to dim once more and yet he wrapped the cloth around it again. Jae ignoring the angered shouts, the men being kicked to the ground, and their pained moans as their former brothers, Men of the West, Free Folk, and of Dorne all got their licks in at the men on the ground. All of the noise he had drowned out, everything but the booming voice of the Lord Commander.

"What's going on here?" Jeor shouted as he hurried towards them.

"These men attacked the king." Jaime said to angered voices.

"Your grace, are you harmed?" a voice called out and Jae turned to see it was one of the Dornish lords, Ser Symon Santagar who was now a brother of the Watch who was speaking.

"I am unhurt. Lord Commander, I leave these men to you, I'd suggest you burn their bodies once you're done." he said as Black Walder bled out in front of him and the rest of his kin pleaded for mercy.

He'd thought they'd fall to the Army of the Dead, but it seemed that the Old Gods didn't even wish them to live that long. When he'd passed judgment on them outside the Twins it was always with that in mind and then when he'd seen them here it was clear what they would do. Arthur and Jors had been ready, he'd been ready, it had needed no more than that and even his own sword hadn't been required. The Frey's proving themselves as feckless and impotent as ever and by the morrow, they'd be with their father in the seven hells that was no doubt reserved only for them.

With a nod to Oberyn and to his uncles who'd come to make sure he'd not be harmed and a more grateful one to Jors and Arthur, he looked to Jaime and they continued walking to the Common Hall. Sitting down to eat, all that had just occurred was quickly forgotten and after they were done, the cries rang out for a song. Jae consented and then spent the next two hours singing songs that he'd sung before, including one he'd sung here those years before. The words of that song now taking on even more meaning as he looked around at his Brothers in Arms. It made him consider if his father had written it, for now, more than then and if he had known he'd done so.

Sleep didn't come to him that night, though he stayed in his rooms to ensure that Arthur and Jors got their own. He sat by the fire and he wrote to his wife, to his daughter, and to all three of his sisters. In the Red Keep, he'd left letters for those he loved, letters telling them all how much they had and would always mean to him. They were letters to be opened only either should he fall or many years from now. While the ones he wrote now were ones he wished for them all to read once they arrived. Jae smiled as he looked into the fire, the visions he saw were ones that were no gift from R'hllor or visions of things to come, but instead visions of days long since passed.

Joy and he riding apples over the fields near the Rock, sitting with Sansa as the sun came up over Blackwater Bay, sparring with Arya and Lyanna Mormont, and laughing when both of them teamed up to take him down. Holding Elia in his arms as they flew on Rhaenix's back and feeling his wife's head resting on his chest after they had just lain together. There were other visions too. Showing Martyn and Tommen how to handle their lances properly, or Walder, Tion, and Willem how to ready their armor. Laughing with Joanna as she rode her pony for the first time and playing with Jon as he lay in his crib.

In time it wasn't just visions as he soon found himself contemplating memories of his time at the Rock and training with Loras and Arthur. Of having his tears wiped from his eyes by Genna and Ellaria. His time spent with his cousins, with his uncles, with Gerion, and with the dragons, and of course the times he spent with his father by choice. Jae sat there and both welcomed the visions and memories and yet wished them all away at the same time. At some point, he fell asleep, and when he woke it was morning. He knew then that he needed both some air and to spend some time with his sister before what was soon to come.

He dressed and put his armor on himself, happy to see that Jors had come to his door only after he'd done so and not before and with a nod to his Kingsguard he left the room and walked outside the gates to wait for Rhaenix to land. Lygaron and Sandorix and she were resting nearby, though his sister arrived almost as soon as he did.

"I just need some time alone with the dragons, Jors, we'll be back before the others wake. If anyone asks there is nothing for them to be concerned about" he said looking to his Kingsguard.

"Of course, your grace." Jors said before turning to walk away and Jae almost called the man back to speak to him to let him know just how grateful he was to have him by his side.

In the end, he did not he and Rhaenix were joined by Sandorix and Lygaron almost as soon as they took to the air. The three dragons all playing games with each other as they flew over the rows of tents and away from the Wall. Jae made sure to turn back more than once so there was no question that he or they were leaving the men alone here. Why he flew to the Nightfort he couldn't be sure, but he could feel the dragon's joy at seeing Rhaegal on the ground. So after a little more time in the air, he landed and allowed them to be with the green dragon while he made his way to the main camp. He spoke to Garlan, to Randyll Tarly, Mathias Rowan, and to his aunt, telling Shiera that it was almost time before he then climbed back up on Rhaenix's back and flew towards Castle Black once more.

"It's time Jae." Rhaenix said after he'd landed, Jae leaning his head against her own before moving to Sandorix and then to Lygaron.

"Be safe my son, worry not about your sister or me." he said as he stroked the bronze dragon's head.

"Father…"

"Your rider, son, protect your rider above all, even from himself." he said softly as Lygaron said he would do as he was bid.

As their two dragons readied for Aemon and Tyrion to take their places, Jae made his way back into the keep and called the men to arms. Jors hurrying to him with a bowl of what he found out was porridge which he then made him eat before he left his side. Quickly enough they were all assembled, Benjen, Mance, Tormund and Val, Ned, Robb and Cregan, Oberyn, Tyrion, Aemon, and Jaime. Men of Company of the Rose, Men of the Watch, the Northern Lords, Glover, The Great and Smalljon's who'd arrived that morning, Rickard Karstark and the Lords of the West, Banefort, Marbrand, Crakehall, and Lefford.

"The realm has called and all of you have answered and for what it's worth, every single man and woman of you here has earned the gratitude of a grateful king. What we face is not a fight for crowns, for a throne, or for glory or renown. It's not even a fight for our own lives, for I'll not lie to you, some of us will fall before the war is done. We fight for those we love, for those who cannot fight themselves. For our mother and fathers, our grandmothers and grandfathers, and our sisters and brothers. We fight for our husbands and our wives, and we fight for our children both those now here and those who are yet to come.

We fight against an enemy that seeks to take from us all that we hold dear. An enemy that won't stop here and won't offer any terms. An enemy that seeks to cast the world in darkness, to bring death to the living, and to replace the fire that burns in each of our hearts with ice that would chill us to the very bone. Our enemy thinks himself invincible, thinks he has the upper hand, but in this, he's very much wrong.

I look out upon each of you and I see what he cannot. I see heroes one and all and a courage of a like that no fear can ever make falter. Look to the man or woman beside you, look to them and name me a liar if you can. Look to them and tell me that you'd seek another to fight by your side or to guard your back. For I can tell you all that truly I would not seek any others than those who stand here with me today. One day songs will be sung of the deeds we do this day. Songs will be sung of the men and women who looked into the face of death and said, no, I'll not go quietly into the long night. No, I'll not be taken without a fight. Not Today." he said his words rising as he spoke and once he'd done so the shouts rang out.

"Not Today."

"Not Today."

"Not Today."

"For those that we love. For those that we have vowed to protect. For the future of our children and our children's children. Together We Will Bring the Dawn." Jae said as he drew his sword and the light beamed high into the sky.

That Attack on the Wall 301 AC.

Ned.

He stood on the top of the Wall, just down the line from where Benjen and the Free Folk stood with the Night's Watch. A little further down to the east stood Jaime Lannister and the Men of the West and to the west stood Oberyn and the Dornish Lords. His nephew's speech and seeing Lightbringer as it truly was had given courage to those whose own may have been wavering. It was courage that he had no doubt would be needed in the fight to come and he stood with Ice in his hands ready for that fight to begin.

Ever since he'd learned the truth of what it was that Benjen and his nephew had faced at Hardhome and what it was that had brought them down, he'd known what he needed to do. Ice though too large to be wielded, needed to be wielded, and so he'd spent as much time as he could learning to do just that. Compared to how he wielded a longsword he was no more than a novice but then wielding a longsword was redundant against what marched their way. Dragonglass, Dragonsteel, and Dragonfire, he now had two of the three. The two Dragonglass daggers at his hips were enough to add to Ice's own blade, or so he hoped.

Around him men wielded spears and pikes tipped with Valyrian Steel or hardened Dragonglass. There were some who had axes, maces, daggers, and one or two with even more than that. Jaime Lannister had Blackfyre and down in the courtyard below Arthur had Dawn. While Oberyn had a Valyrian bladed spear and a Valyrian Myrish Dagger too. His nephew had seen that Robb and Cregan were given daggers and had offered him one too, but Ned already held his Valyrian Steel and it was better that others did too. There were men with bows that had arrows tipped with Dragonglass and even some with crossbows that had bolts tipped with either it or Valyrian Steel, and they had the dragons of course. Even if only one of them could cross the Wall.

The other two and their riders stayed with those on the ground and as Ned looked to the long ropes that were tied to the Wall he hoped they would hold should the need arise to use them. There were more than ten thousand men on top of the Wall, more than there had been at any time in its history according to Prince Aemon. The line itself stretched almost to Oakenshield and Queensgate and back behind him to the lift itself. He prayed that it would be enough and as he turned to speak to Rickard and the Greatjon, the horn began to blow.

Once it rang out, which was for Rangers returning.

Twice it sounded, which meant the Wildings were here.

Three times it rang out, which meant Others.

"The Tree's Ned, By the Old God's Look to the Trees." The Greatjon said and Ned did as he was bid.

At the first Battle of the Trident, the North, Vale, Riverlands, and Stormlands had been brought to bear against an army of Crownlanders, Loyalist Houses, and of Dorne. At the second Battle of the Trident, the North and the West faced off against the Vale and some Riverlanders. All those men combined would be dwarfed by the army of dead things that now marched their way and Ned looked down as Giants, animals, and things he couldn't be sure what they were marched towards the Wall.

"Hold." he said as one man let loose an arrow and he listened to the cheers when they heard the dragon's roar and behind them, Rhaenix took to the sky.

Oberyn.

The courage that his nephew had given them with his speech now threatened to desert them. Oberyn doing his best to keep them in line as the horns rang out. Each of his men had heard the black brothers say what the horns meant. So when the third one blew, all of those with him looked out to the lands below and saw the army that marched towards them. For Oberyn it was less shocking than it was for those who'd not seen them before, though it was still shocking enough. The army was far larger than the one that had attacked them at Hardhome and there were many more White Walkers in this army than he'd seen there too.

Despite what was facing him, Oberyn closed his eyes and said a small prayer for his nephew who had fallen that day. Praying that he found a peace in the afterlife that it had taken him so very long to find in this one. He hoped that he and the girl that Quentyn had told him he loved were together and that he'd not be joining them both too soon. Opening his eyes he looked to see Mance, Tormund and Benjen Stark calm down some of those who'd not truly expected what it was they were not looking at. Oberyn laughing despite the odds being so heavily against them.

"What wrong you fuckers, did you think the king was lying with all he said?" Mance shouted loudly.

"They may look scary, but try laying with a giant and then suckling at her breast." Tormund added to loud laughs.

Oberyn had found himself standing beside Ser Symon Santagar, the man almost seeming to be happy to be fighting beside Dornishmen once more. Even though he still wore black and they faced an army that was at least thrice their size. Part of that was the same reason that Oberyn was glad to be here, to protect those who were not and to end the threat to them before they ever got close to those he loved. Just as large a part or perhaps even larger was for the offer that Jae had made to each and every man of the Night's Watch.

"Fight and fight well and all your crimes are forgiven. I'll not give lands back to those who've lost them or titles back to those who had them stripped. Your honor though, that you can reclaim and do so and I'll then give you your freedom too."

It was a better chance than most of them had been given, a truer chance, and even should they die they'd die honorably. Ser Symon had already told him that if he could have that then he'd welcome death and that it was better to be remembered as a hero in one war, than as a villain in another.

"I'd not thought." Symon said shakily.

"It's better not to think." he said as he heard the cheers around him and Oberyn turned to see Rhaenix and Jae take to the air and fly over their heads "That I leave to him." he said proudly.

As Rhaenix flew out to the lands Beyond the Wall, Oberyn watched on as a lone horse rode ahead of the others, or what seemed to be a horse at least. A figure climbed down from it and knelt in the ice before a wind storm seemed to appear out of nowhere, and Oberyn had to shield his eyes from the falling hail. The Wall then began to tremble and shake and he looked nervously at Benjen and Mance. Below them in the lands Beyond the Wall, the storm had begun to clear and Oberyn and the others looked on in disbelief to see another wall of ice now in front of them. It was almost as high if not as long as the one they stood upon and where he to try to jump from one to another he'd probably make it. Just as he had this thought, it began to fall against their own and the impact knocked some men off the Wall and to the ground below. The other wall of ice now leaned against their own and he saw it even more clearly.

"TO ARMS, TO ARMS." he shouted.

"Is that? How is that?…" Symon said and Oberyn readied his spear as he watched dead men climb up stairs made up of ice and move across platforms that matched their own.

They'd have time until they reached them, but reach them they would and the Wall that so many thought would protect them would do little to do so now.

The Halfhand, the Bridge of Skulls 301 AC.

Where the storm had come from he had no idea and that it didn't last for long had only confused him more. Yet compared to what he was looking at now he understood the storm clearly. The Gorge was no more or the gap between both sides of it at least. Instead, it was now a path of ice as far as the eye could see and it was only that the Wildings had already crossed the Wall or Qhorin would have feared for the situation they now found themselves in.

Had they not already been given passage through the Wall, then this would see them pass it without any way to be stopped. It was a thought that only briefly brought him comfort as he then heard the horns ring out. One, Two, Three, and for the first time in all his years in the Watch, Qhorin Halfhand felt a fear that chilled him to his very soul. From where he stood to some form of safety was a distance much too far. Looking at what was coming their way it was clear to him that they'd not make it and Qhorin turned to the small band of men he had led to their doom. They were good men, brothers one and all, and men he'd served with for more years than he cared to remember.

"I'm sorry lads." he said as he drew his sword and looked out at the army of dead men that raced towards them.

"For the Watch." Blane said and Qhorin nodded.

"For the Watch." He said as did the four other men that made up his party of six.

Two of them were dead not more than a moment later, both of them torn apart in front of his eyes. Blane and the other two followed no more than a few moments after that. He fought and fought hard and yet it was a fight he couldn't win and not even one that had lasted very long. That they could have ended him before now if they so wished was clear. Qhorin took another dead thing's head and then an arm from another before he saw the breath come out of his mouth and felt the ice run through his veins.

He laughed when he saw it, it and its pale white icy armor and its bright blue eyes. For some reason, he found it almost funny, or perhaps it was just that he'd prefer to die with a smile on his face. It moved quickly, far too quickly, the White Walker just toyed with him and all those skills he'd been so proud about and that had been remarked upon for many a year, now seemed to be so very inadequate. Qhorin may as well have been a green boy against the speed, strength, and skill of the thing he faced and so when his sword was knocked from his hand, he laughed loudly.

"Is that all you've got you icy fuck?" he shouted after he'd been slapped to the ground, his jaw was perhaps broken and the words were maybe more in his mind than making any intelligible sound.

The scream was loud and high pitched and the smell of burning things was the sweetest smell he'd ever known. Looking at the fear and anger in the White Walker's expression, Qhorin actually found himself at peace and as he saw the white dragon fly over his head, he laughed once more, and then he began to fall.

The Bridge of Skulls 301 AC.

Jaehaerys Targaryen.

Rhaenix flew fast and out over the Night King's Army, Jae knowing that he couldn't let him know the truth of his destination until it was too late. Leaving the Wall and those he cared about behind to face what they had to was a hard choice, but he had to pray they held until he returned or retreated if they could not. If they got past the Bridge of Skulls then those who couldn't fight were at risk and so he had to put his faith in those who could.

After flying far enough and letting some flames down on the dead men beneath them, Rhaenix no longer flew North and instead headed West They arrived just in time, though not quickly enough to save the black brothers that had been swarmed by the army of the dead. Leaving those who were far enough behind to not be an issue, for now at least, Jae directed Rhaenix to the Gorge and she let her flames rain down on the ice beneath them. It was as he feared and so he directed her to land far enough away so that she'd not be at risk and then quickly climbed down off her back. Hoping he was standing on solid ground, he unsheathed Lightbringer and drove it into the ice, watching as it cracked and began to break.

"Īlon maghagon zirȳ se perzys, Rhaenix." (We bring them the fire, Rhaenix.) he said climbing back onto her back as the ice began to fall off into the depths of the Gorge below.

It had been too thick for Rhaenix to melt, but he knew it didn't go all the way down to the bottom. The magic required to do that and to do what the Night King was doing at Castle Black was simply too much. Had the Night King been here rather than there, then the Wall he was building would have barely reached a quarter of the way to where he needed to be.

"Dracarys." he said and Rhaenix laid her flames down as they flew, dead things, ice, and trees, anything beneath them that the flames could burn, they did.

When he reached the Bridge of Skulls it was to see that they'd gathered near there, the gorge was now impassable as the ice had fallen away and the dead were racing to beat him to the bridge. Fast though they were, they were no match for a dragon and when Rhaenix landed on the other side of the bridge, Jae once again climbed down off her back. The song he sang was a short one and Rhaenix let out her flames to burn any of the dead that managed to cross the Bridge before it too crashed and fell into the Gorge.

Once he knew it was safe and none could pass, he rose and was back in the air in moments. They hurried now heading back to Castle Black and he prayed that he managed to arrive in time. It was halfway there when he realized he would not, as the light began to fade and the sky began to darken. He wished to cry out in his anger and frustration, but he had no time for either. The Long Night had fallen and the War for the Dawn had truly begun.

A/N: Thanks to all who've read and reviewed. I'm pressed for time which is why I've not answered reviews. Up Next The battle at Castle Black takes an interesting turn as Jae and Rhaenix hurry and the defenders fight an unrelenting enemy.
My good friend, Descend made a great suggestion and I had hoped to include it in this chapter, but wasn't able to. So in the next, I'll be providing a list of where as many characters as I can are. To let you know who is part of Jae's army and who is part of the reserves.