The bolts that signaled that the Night King was close took to the sky and Jon didn't hesitate for a second. The was falling in earnest now and as he climbed on Rhaegal he realized that they were going to have a hard time seeing where they were going.
"Dany!" Jon called out as she climbed on Drogan. "We're probably not going to be able to see if we're killing the Night King in this weather. So watch the wights on the ground. If you see them falling in large numbers that means it's working."
"And if we don't need to get the dragons as far away from him as possible," Daenerys said. "Be careful, Jon."
"You too," Jon replied. The dragons took to the sky and Jon got a chance to see the battle from above. It was hard because of the snow but he could see that a considerable amount of their forces were already lost. He imagined that he had friends down there, in what remained of the frontline, and it made him feel a little sick. He couldn't think about that right now. Daenerys eventually let him lead since he had an idea of what they were looking for. The two of them spent nights coming up with hand signals so they could communicate from the skies.
The Night King had made it to the former frontline and was slowly walking toward Winterfell with what looked like about a dozen White Walkers. There were likely more White Walkers out there but, at the moment, it looked like the Night King was planning on attacking with these twelve. The wights would fall if the White Walkers were destroyed and, in theory, the White Walkers would be destroyed if the Night King died. That is what Jon hoped, anyway, he really had no idea and everyone was just guessing and hoping for the best.
Jon signaled Daenerys and they dove down to the ground. It was now or never. They were making an attempt at the Night King and if it didn't work then Jon was going to have to get on the ground and find another way. Daenerys taught him the word and they went off, far away from Winterfell, to make sure that Rhaegal would listen if he couldn't hear Daenerys say it.
The Night King looked up just as the three dragons burst from the clouds and the twelve White Walkers scattered in all directions but the Night King stayed. He looked up at them and despite the fact that he wasn't that much bigger than a toy at this height Jon could have sworn he smiled.
"Dracarys," Jon said and all three of the dragons rained down dragonfire on the embodiment of evil that was beneath them. It was impossible to see if it was working from where he was sitting so he looked around. He looked at the wights that were trying to swarm Winterfell and saw that none of them were falling. Not a single one seemed to even hesitate. It somehow felt like it got even colder and Jon screamed.
"Fall back!" He waved the signal as he Daenerys looked at him. "Fall back! It isn't working!" The dragons stopped and he struggled to get Rhaegal in the sky, above the clouds, somewhere where he could regroup with Daenerys because their first planned had failed. Jon dared a glance at the ground and he saw the Night King with a massive ice spear. It was instinct more than anything that made him move Rhaegal but the massive spear tore through the green dragons wing.
He needed to hold on because a fall from this height would kill him. Jon could hear someone screaming his name and he looked up to see Daenerys and Drogon flying nearby. She was holding out her hand. Jon didn't know if she could take his weight but he didn't have time to find out. Rhaegal was bleeding on a bad wing and could barely fly. Daenerys nodded like she could see his doubt and Jon took a chance. He reached up and Daenerys managed to pull him onto Drogon's back as Rhaegal began to fall. His wing was badly damaged but the wound wasn't fatal.
"We failed," Jon said and his voice was already horse as if he'd been screaming.
"I will take you to the ground and then we move on to the second part of the plan. My children and I will protect Winterfell and you figure out how to kill that thing," Daenerys said as she glanced over her shoulder. Jon nodded as Daenerys went to the far side of Winterfell and the opposite direction of the Night King. The snow was getting worse and Jon could see Rhaegal on the ground and already fighting for his life against the wights. The dragon couldn't fly, not tonight and possibly not ever again, but they still had Drogon and Viserion. There had to be a chance still.
The snow was making it hard to see but Arya could still tell that the dragons had arrived. It was pretty hard to miss the three beasts breathing fire down on the land. This was the first plan, this is where they found out whether or not the Night King could be killed with fire. Arya looked over the battlements, at the wights that were continuing to try and make their way to the walls of the castle, and none of them fell. It wasn't working and it wasn't going to work. When she looked up she saw the dragonfire cease and she knew that it was time to readjust.
"Protect the battlements at all costs!" Arya yelled. "The Night King still stands and he will make his way through the gates eventually! Make sure to hold the line!" Gendry raced over and looked at her.
"We need to get to the courtyard so we can protect the Great Hall," he said and Arya nodded. Various fighters from the frontline were making their way to the battlements because even though the wights are not attacking at this moment because the trenchworks appear to have stopped them for the time being Arya knew that they will attack again. She saw a few familiar faces, Beric and Jaime and Brienne and Sandor, but there wasn't any time to think about who might have fallen on the frontline. She raced down to the courtyard with Gendry where young Lyanna Mormont met them along with Edmure.
"The wolves are staying in the shadows but I don't know how long that door is going to last once they charge," Lyanna said.
"They're going to break through and there isn't anything we can do about it," Arya said. "The Night King has one goal and that's to get to my brother. He wants him and that means coming through Winterfell." There was the sound of a dragon screeching and Arya looked up to see Rhaegal falling from the sky. One of the wings was almost completely gone and her heart sank. Jon was supposed to be on that dragon and if it was swinging around like that he could have fallen to his death. Rhaegal hit the ground hard and Arya winced painfully.
She couldn't think about that right now. Jon had to be alive because that was the only possible option. Someone called out that the wights were sacrificing themselves to build a barrier of bodies over the entrenchment. They were climbing on top of each other to get over the walls. There was a slam against the gate and Arya looked at it. Men were struggling to hold it close but there was no chance. Lyanna raced forward to try and help with the door but Arya stayed back with Edmure and Gendry.
"We protect that door," Edmure said as he drew his dragonglass sword from its sheath. "We protect that door with our lives."
"Nothing gets through," Arya said and she watched as the gate splintered. There were wights on the battlements now and her home was being invaded.
"Nothing," Gendry agreed with his dragonglass mace in hand. The gates to Winterfell spilled open and just like that her home was overrun. Arya didn't know what she was expecting when she saw the wights but nothing could have prepared her for this. She was a good fighter, she knew that, but this was not the kind of fight she and Gendry were used to. They had the tactics they had used for defeating the Lannister's but this was nothing like that. No matter how many of the wights she struck down more and more came. They swung sharp weapons and clawed at her with razor-sharp nails. She didn't know the first time a wight managed to land a blow that drew blood but it was far too soon in the battle.
Arya knew she should have been keeping an eye on Edmure but she found herself fighting back to back with Gendry. He wasn't as fast as she was but his massive mace could take out two or three wights at a time. Arya was faster but she always knew that their fighting styles complemented each other well. She could see that he was bleeding from a few cuts already but she tried not to get distracted by it. They needed to make sure the Great Hall stayed safe.
A voice called out that the White Walkers were going to enter Winterfell and Arya remembered what Jon told her about them, what he told all of them. The White Walkers controlled the wights and taking down a White Walker could severely diminish the number of wights attacking.
"Gendry! Edmure!" Arya called out. "We need to lure a White Walker closer to our position. It's the only way we're going to keep these wights from overrunning us."
"How are you going to do that?" Gendry called out as he smashed another wight to the ground.
"I'll figure it out," Arya replied. "Stay here." She thought she heard Gendry call for her to come back but this was the only option they had and they all knew it. When Jon explained the strategy to everyone it was agreed that the wights were a losing battle. Even if they killed every single one of the wights the Night King could just make more. The White Walkers were the real targets and that meant they had to be taken care of. All of their best fighters knew this so she wasn't surprised to see that some of them were already trying to kill a White Walker. Jaime, Brienne, and Podrick managed to corner one, she thought she saw Grey Worm fighting another, but as much as Arya wanted to know if the people she knew or cared about were alive or dead there wasn't time.
Arya picked up a bow left on the ground and fired an arrow, not a dragonglass arrow just a regular one, into the shoulder of one of the White Walkers. It turned its blue stare on her and Arya turned and ran back to Gendry and Edmure. The White Walker approached and she could see the way they both paled as it got closer to them. Arya bared her teeth and the three of them charged the White Walker.
She couldn't believe how fast a thing that looked like a frozen could move and the first time it swung its blade at her Arya also couldn't believe how strong it was. The impact rattled her bones but she pushed through it. She had pushed through far worse. It swiped at Edmure and he was unable to blow the blow. Arya watched as he flew back several feet and slammed into a wall hard enough that she knew he wasn't getting up again. He needed help and the only way that was going to happen was if she killed this thing quickly. Arya glanced at Gendry and he nodded for just a second. He swiped long at the White Walker and smashed its knee with his mace. It wasn't a killing blow but it made the creature stumble long enough that Arya slashed its throat with a blade. It fell to the snow as if it never existed and several hundred wights nearly collapsed to the ground.
Arya glanced at Gendry and managed a small smile. He was bloody and dirty but he was alive. They were both still alive and that was what mattered. They had survived for now but more wights charged. Edmure needed help but there was no time to rest and try to get him help. They needed to protect the Great Hall and that is what they were going to do.
Meera knew what to expect when the dead came. She'd seen them before, she lost her brother to them, she killed a White Walker. Meera knew what was coming and Bran did too which made her extremely angry when he refused to take the Valyrian Steel dagger. When Bran was himself he talked about giving it to someone who could use it and Meera has stared at him like he was a complete idiot.
"Do you really think sitting in that chair is going to keep someone from trying to kill you?" she asked. Bran had blinked but hadn't said anything else. As she expected when she woke up to the sound of horns signaling the time for war it wasn't Bran that was lying in bed with her but that stranger. At least he didn't acknowledge her lack of clothing and even looked away when she got dressed. When everyone had left the room Meera tried to get him to take the dagger but he kept saying "no". It wasn't until she insisted that Bran finally took the dagger that nearly ended his life and placed it on his lap beneath the furs.
She didn't want to admit it but Meera was beginning to think that Bran was going to have to use that dagger. They were doing their best to hold off the horde of wights but they just kept coming and before long they were going to run out of arrows. Meera knew she could handle herself and she had a feeling that Theon could as well but it was risky to let any of these things get too close to Bran. They were all relatively sure that the Night King wanted to kill Bran himself but there wasn't any way of knowing that for sure.
Right now it was just wave after wave of the wights and for every couple that she killed Meera saw another body fall. The army of the dead was massive and they only had so much energy to kill them. Once the Night King got to Winterfell he could just bring everyone who had died back. There wasn't enough time to burn any of the bodies that were falling so not only were they losing members of their army but they were giving him more bodies. Meera took her spear in hand after she fired her last arrow and bared her teeth. She would die fighting.
Meera kept an eye on Bran as she fought and did her best to keep some distance between him and the wights. Every now and then Bran's eyes would turn white but he never said anything. He never said that the Night King was coming or even forewarned them that Winterfell was breached. Meera didn't like thinking about the idea that the thing in Bran might want all of them to die but it nagged at the back of her mind.
Theon cried out in pain and Meera looked over. A wight on the ground had stabbed Theon in the knee and he went down hard. It wasn't a deadly injury but it was one that was going to keep him off of his feet. A wight broke through the defenses as Theon fought from the ground. Meera called out Bran's name but he didn't say anything. Bran barely reacted as the wight slammed into him and Bran's chair went toppling over.
His head slammed into the trunk of the weirwood tree and his arm hit the root badly. Meera scrambled to fight off the wight she was trying to kill but she distracted. She stabbed the rotting body with her spear and scrambled back to Bran. The wight had fallen still and Bran had the dagger in his hand. There was blood already running down the side of his head, even some smeared on the tree, one of his arms looked broken, and his eyes were wide. Meera instantly knew that this was Bran before her and not the Three-Eyed Raven.
"I guess I did need the dagger," Bran whispered. Meera was about to say something when she heard a grunt of pain and she froze. She turned around slowly to see a wight standing before her father snarling as it pushed the blade further into her chest. She thought she screamed "no" and at that moment she abandoned Bran and raced over to him. Howland collapsed on the ground as Meera looked down at him. It was the second time she'd held a family member with a mortal wound and she hated it. She hated the Night King for taking everything away from her.
"Father, you can't go, I need you," Meera whispered with tears in her eyes. Howland raised a shaky hand and brushed the tears with his thumb.
"You need to survive and sitting here with me isn't the way to do it," he said. Meera glanced over her shoulder and saw that more people were falling. Theon was struggling to get to his feet and couldn't, his knee was too badly injured, and he was doing his best to fight from the ground. Bran was watching her with wide blue eyes and tears. Jojen had died for him and now her father was dying for him. Deep down Meera thought she might hate Bran Stark as much as she loved him. She looked back down at her father and knew that he was fading quickly. "I love you, my sweet girl, and I'm so proud of the woman you've become." Meera didn't know what to say to that, she didn't know how to respond, and she didn't get the chance before her father breathed his last breath.
Meera screamed at the injustice of it all. She screamed because the dead were walking and taking everything that mattered. She screamed because the world was ending and that meant losing everyone that she loved. She screamed because she wished was home with Jojen as he learned how to rule. She screamed because she was supposed to rule beside him, of course, she was, Jojen always needed her. Meera wanted to hold her father's cooling body but much like Jojen, the world did not seem keen to give her time to grieve.
She was on her feet, furs stained with her father's blood, as she fought off wights that were trying to come for her and Bran. Theon had backed up and more and more people were continuing to fall. The Night King would be here soon and there wasn't going to be anyone left to protect Bran.
Meera bared her teeth and, for the first time in her life, felt more like a wolf than a lizard.
Sansa had a dagger strapped to her belt but she wasn't planning on using it. She had a different battle to fight. She remembered being a little girl in the Red Keep and how she tried to help the other women feel a little better when Stannis was trying to sack the city. Sansa remembered praying to gods that she desperately wanted to believe in to keep her safe. She remembered silently wishing that Stannis would take the city because she was fairly sure her life would be spared. She prayed for a stray arrow to take Joffrey's life and she prayed that if they were found by soldiers they were honorable enough not to take advantage of frightened ladies.
She was once again locked in a room with an enemy trying to break in only this time she was home. Sansa lead prayers to the old gods, gods that she once again was desperate to believe that they were real, and tried to keep everyone calm. She played with the children and brought them down to the fire so she could read them books. Sansa took a lot of people into her arms and let them hold onto her even though it made her skin crawl. Her people, these people, needed her and she would put away her own fears for that.
Tyrion watched her with a curious expression that she didn't understand until she had a moment to take a breath and relax as another sounded and she could hear the fighting just outside the main door.
"I've never seen you so in your element," Tyrion said as he sat down next to her. "What a Queen you would have made."
"I think we both know that isn't true," Sansa replied with a small smile. "If I'm going to die I'm just glad I can die here, in my home, and with my family nearby. After Joffrey took my father it was the least I wanted. Of course, I wanted to come home to a family that was alive but if I was going to die I didn't want it to be surrounded by enemies or strangers. I wanted the people I love close by." Sansa looked around the Great Hall and despite it all, she felt a sense of peace.
"I suppose that is all we can ask for in the end," Tyrion replied and he held up his glass. "My Lady." Sansa nodded as she looked at the door. The fighting was close and every time something slammed into the wood the people in the Great Hall jumped. Sansa frowned and stood up. She could hear people telling her to stay away from the door but she wasn't listening. There was a mournful howl of a direwolf and for half a moment Sansa swore she could feel Lady again.
It was like there was a voice in her head that sounded like Bran. He was whispering something she didn't understand and as Sansa eased the heavy furniture away from the door and placed her hand on it she tried to hear. Perhaps these were the old gods that she thought had abandoned her so many years ago. Maybe it was the Seven or the Lord of Light or maybe it was Bran speaking to her. Sansa closed her eyes, pressed her forehead to the door, and waited for clarity.
Arya continued to fight but the battle was beginning to weigh her down. Her muscles were screaming and every inch of her hurt. The wights got in a few lucky cuts but, so far, she wasn't going to bleed to death. Arya wanted water or rest or just a moment to catch her breath but there was none. There was no time. She knocked another wight down and scanned the courtyard for another White Walker. That would be a more difficult fight but at least killing one would give them a moment.
She caught a glimpse of Nymeria and Ghost as the wolves attacked the wights which seemed to be falling to their fangs but there weren't enough. Arya had seen a few wolf corpses around the courtyard and the pack was falling. She wondered if Nymeria was ever going to forgive her for asking them to fight.
Arya blinked when she saw a dark figure moving throughout the courtyard, fighting like nothing she had ever seen before. She had seen Jon fight but she hadn't ever seen him like this. She watched as he sliced through wight after wight and while he was far away Arya was grateful that he didn't look too injured. He saw her, from across the courtyard, and ran over to her. Arya didn't hesitate as she threw her arms around her favorite brother.
"I thought you were dead when Rhaegal fell," she whispered.
"Daenerys saved me," Jon replied as he pulled away. He and Gendry hugged briefly as they looked out at the battle in their home. "Arya, I don't know if we can do this," he whispered. "The dragonfire did nothing and I'm not sure any weapon is going to be strong enough to kill that thing." Arya wanted to say something to make Jon feel better but the words died on her tongue when she saw how pale Gendry had gotten all of a sudden.
"A weapon," he whispered as he dropped his mace on the ground. Gendry looked at Jon and his blue eyes were large and wild. "You need a stronger weapon to kill the Night King and I know how. She told me but I wasn't listening but I get it now."
"Gendry, what are you talking about?" Arya asked even though she had a sinking feeling she knew what "she" he was talking about. Gendry didn't reply as he looked at Jon.
"Let me see Longclaw," he said and Jon hesitated as he handed over the sword. Arya was about to ask what he thought he was doing when Gendry rolled up his sleeve and sliced a cut into his arm.
"Gendry!" Arya called out and she tried to get over to him, to make him stop hurting himself, but there was something about the way he looked at her that made Arya freeze.
"King's blood," Gendry said as he began to slowly cover Longclaw with his blood. "She said that my blood is a powerful weapon. She told me that she was going to use it as a weapon. I think I can use it to make a weapon stronger." The cut on his arm deepened as he worked to cover Longclaw and Arya winced but Gendry didn't even seem to notice. The blade was covered in deep red blood but it looked strange. He landed it back to Jon and something in the air shifted. The blood on the blade looked like it froze and instead of fighting with steel Jon was going to fight with a blade made out of ruby.
"How is this possible?" Jon whispered. Gendry didn't seem to even notice that he was bleeding all over the snow but Arya reached under her leathers and ripped her shirt. She quickly tried to wrap the wound but it needed to be stitched. Gendry winced as Jon looked at the blade. There was the sound of a commotion and they all looked up to see the Night King walking into the gate followed by another White Walker. Arya tasted blood in her mouth as she tried to calm her beating heart.
"Go," she said to Jon.
"Arya-" Jon started but she shook her head.
"We'll distract the White Walker and you go protect our brother. You can do this," Arya said. There wasn't time to do much else as the Night King began to raise any soldier that had died. Jon pressed a brief kiss to her forehead and raced off toward the godswood. The Night King paused and looked directly at her and, for a second, Arya swore that her heart stopped beating. The Night King nodded once to the White Walker which began to stalk toward the two of them. Gendry had his mace back in hand and Arya could see that he was already bleeding through the band.
There was no time.
The White Walker charged the two of them and unlike the last time Arya was not prepared. This White Walker was fighting a lot faster and much more ruthless. It kept looking at the door like it knew that there were people behind that door that couldn't fight back. They were close to the door, a few feet away from it, and Arya wondered if Sansa could hear them fighting. The White Walker knocked one of Arya's blades to the ground and there wasn't any time to go get it. Gendry was struggling and when the White Walker managed to knock his mace down it took Gendry by the arm and forced him to his knees. Arya thought she screamed "no" but even holding down Gendry with one hand it disarmed her with the other.
Arya wasn't sure what she thought a White Walker's hands would feel like on her skin but as it took her by the throat and lifted her clear off of her feet Arya could feel it burning like frostbite. It was strangling her and she could only watch as Gendry's arm snapped and he cried out in pain. They were losing this fight and Arya swore that she heard Brienne scream out a "no" but she couldn't be sure. The world was beginning to go a little dark around the edges and Arya couldn't kick anymore. Gendry was struggling but the White Walker snapped the bones in his arm again. There was nothing Arya could do; they were out of time.
The door to the Great Hall was not to open under any circumstances and that was the rule of this battle. Until it was confirmed that the Night King was dead the door to the Great Hall was not to open. Arya thought her mind must be playing tricks on her because the door opened. Sansa stood there, red hair blazing like the fire that was slowly consuming their home, and a dragonglass dagger in hand. Arya wanted to tell her sister to run, to close the door, but Sansa calmly took two steps forward and before the White Walker could react, Sansa stabbed it through the eye with the dagger.
The White Walker burst into pieces and Arya dropped to the floor. She drew a breath and the world around her began to clear. She coughed violently as Sansa knelt down next to her.
"You weren't supposed to open the door," Arya said and her voice sounded hoarse. Gendry was clutching his arm to his chest and gritting his teeth so hard Arya thought they were going to break.
"I won't apologize for saving my little sister," Sansa said as she looked out. The wights were going to regroup quickly and they didn't have any time to waste. Arya saw that Edmure hadn't moved and one of his legs was twisted in a terrible angle.
"We need to move Edmure to the Great Hall," Arya said. It took a little effort but the two of them managed to drag their uncle's limp form into the Great Hall. Arya turned to Gendry to tell him to go in too but he shook his head.
"I'm not going anywhere," he said and he sounded like he was in so much pain. Arya wanted to tell him not to be stupid but her stubborn husband pushed himself to his feet, took his mace into the arm that already had the cut on it and glared at her as if daring her to try and convince him to leave. Arya glanced at Sansa and nodded.
"Close the door and don't open it again," she said. Sansa nodded quietly, picked up the dragonglass dagger from the ground, and locked the doors to the Great Hall behind her. Arya looked around and found a sword belt lying on the ground. "If you insist on staying then let me help." It wasn't the best idea and Gendry screamed when she tied it but using the belt to hold Gendry's broken arm to his chest was the only idea she had. The wights were regrouping and they needed to give Jon time to kill the Night King.
Arya was once again aware that they were out of time as she struggled to fight. She had found her other blade but it wasn't enough. Her throat ached and made it hard to breathe and every bad move she made the wights managed to get through her defenses. She felt a sword slice her side but Arya felt like she was beyond pain. She saw Gendry fighting with one arm as the bandage on his arm bled through and became useless. Arya was once again watching her husband bleed out in front of her. Maybe the gods did exist and they had a sense of humor. Gendry stumbled, another wound to his leg, and Arya knew that he wasn't getting up again.
She put herself between him and the wights but she was losing the battle. Arya wanted to protect him, the people in the Great Hall, Winterfell, every single person in Westeros, but this was all she could do. Another White Walker approached and Arya readied herself for battle. She could hear Gendry struggling to get to his feet but she couldn't think about him right now. She needed to focus on the creature in front of her.
Arya didn't know it was desperation and luck or skill but she found herself capable of holding this White Walker off. The world, the battle, around her fell away and all she could hear was her own ragged breathing and her heartbeat. She focused in a way she hadn't done in many years. Arya hardly heard the howl as Nymeria distracted the White Walker long enough for Arya to shove her blade through its chest. She fell to one knee and looked up at her wolf, cut and bloody, and still so strong. The pack was surrounding her and Gendry, trying to fight the wights off and keep them safe, but there were too many.
Her wolf was giving her a chance to say goodbye.
Arya stumbled back to Gendry and fell to the ground before him. He looked at her, so pale and breathing hard, and he placed a hand on the wound on her side. Arya knew she was bleeding badly and combined with the other wounds she knew there wasn't much time. Gendry didn't say anything; he pushed himself up to his knees and pulled her close. It must have hurt but Arya still held onto him as the world ends around them. The wolves weren't going to last long against the wights and if a blade didn't take her wounds would.
They were out of time.
Arya closed her eyes to the hell that surrounded her and hugged her husband as the world ended around them.
Jon raced into the godswood as fast as his feet could carry him but he couldn't stop looking at Longclaw. He didn't know why the blood froze like that or why his blade looked like a gem rather than steel but Melisandre proved there was some magic in the world. Maybe her rantings about the power of king's blood were true too. They needed to end this quickly; Jon knew that Arya and Gendry weren't going to last much longer with their wounds.
The weirwood came into view and Jon could see that it was just Meera and Theon left. Meera looked rapid and there were blood and dirt on her clothes, her face, and hands. She looked like some warrior from a story come to life. Theon was on the ground and it looked like he was unable to stand. As Jon ran up to them he could see the deep and ugly wound in Theon's knee. There was no way he would be standing on that today.
Bran looked up when Jon joined the two of them and his eyes were clear. There was blood running down the side of his face and caking his hair, one of his arms looked broken, in the other hand he held the Valyrian Steel blade that nearly took his life, and his chair was smashed to bits.
"He's coming," Bran whispered and they all looked toward the entrance of the godswood. The wights nearby stopped fighting as the Night King began to emerge from the falling snow.
"Jon, what's wrong with your sword?" Theon asked but Jon wasn't really listening. There was a buzzing in his brain that he was unable to ignore. All he could think about was Gendry cutting his own arm opening and declaring the power in king's blood. Jon wasn't sure it was going to be enough to save them.
"Jon," Bran said and even over the chaos he could hear his little brother perfectly. "Gendry isn't the only one with king's blood in his veins." Jon didn't understand what Bran meant for half a second until he realized. He was the son of Rhaegar Targaryen, the son of a prince and the blood of the dragons rushed through his veins. Vaguely, he thought he could hear Theon and Meera asking him what he was doing but Jon ripped off his gauntlet and threw it down to the ground.
It hurt as Jon used his own sword to cut into his arm but at the same time, he hardly felt it. The world around them was getting quiet as the Night King approached. Jon liberally covered Longclaw with another coat of blood which, as soon as he was done, seemed to freeze yet again. Jon looked up and saw the Night King walking toward them and this was the only chance they would have.
Jon clenched Longclaw and walked forward to meet the Night King on the battlefield.
In time, the stories that would become legends would talk about the fight that King Jon Snow raged against the Night King. The legends spoke of an epic battle, one for the songs, but the truth is never as interesting as the legends. Jon Snow met the Night King on the battlefield and the first time their swords clashed Jon's sword burst into flames. The truth was that once that fire was lit Jon Snow took the head of the ultimate evil in less than six moves.
The Night King fell and so did the armies of the dead.