290 AL

Judeaux III

Meereen was quite the sight, its huge towering walls dominated the mouth of the Skaharadhan river, and Judeaux could see its strategic position as a port for the entire rivervalley. According to the witch Mirri Maz Duur, who had become a camp follower of the Band of the Hawk recently. Meereen was the mighiest city of Slavers Bay. To Judeaux slavery was an antiquated idea, from the times of Gaiseric the Skull King, or even before that dark time. He and several other members of the Band of the Hawk despised such practices. Guts had become rather agitated the other day as he heard about the so called ''Unsullied''. Though Judeaux couldnt really pinpoint why.

Casca, that ebony lady had found herself disagreeing with the witch a lot. The only flower the Band of the Hawk possessed couldnt stand the witch for some reason. Somehow Judeaux knew she was right, something made him feel bad in his stomach when talking to the woman. He had always held a suspense of disbelief against any sort of magical trickery. But after being transported to this strange world, and having heard the tales of Griffith and Guts fighting some sort of demon back in Midland... Well his imagination went to work with that.

He gazed upon the walls of Meereen once again, the small but capable engineers of the Band had enough gunpowder left for a prolonged siege. But against the men of Meereen they probably wouldn't need it, their walls were not at all prepared for an assault with cannonry. Even the bulky and unwieldy versions that had been brought with them would easily shatter the walls of this city. Did these people not posses gunpowder? He was sure Griffith had already considered this, hence his rash decision to march on Meereen mere months after defeating the Dothraki horde in Lhazareen.

Those months had been well spent, the Band of the Hawk had quickly gained enormous fame across the entirety of Slavers Bay. And with this fame came emissaries of various cities in the bay, Astapor, Yunkai, Bhonash and even a small delegation from Tolos. Yes the Band of the Hawk had apparently caused quite a stir by defeating those Dothraki, brave, but no match for the pikes of the Hawks.
This way Griffith had gathered plenty of information on the political situation of this land. Essos was a rich land, but its interior had been ravaged by these Dothraki. The so called Khalasar they encountered a few months ago had been small fry.

While Judeaux was contemplating the wealth they could gain from a continent plagued by warriors such as the Dothraki a trumpet sounded. It was the signal to prepare for the attack on Meereens walls! The large and unwieldy pieces of cannonry the Hawks had brought with them glistened in the sun as the cast iron reflected the hot glare of Slavers Bay. Another trumpet sounded, and the cannons released their destructive power. The walls of Meereen crumbled as the second volley of the cannons hit. Judeaux could hear the panicked screams of the Meereenese from his position at the rear. The cannons fired two more salvo's afterwards before stopping their bombardment, Judeaux knew what was coming next.

A horn blew from Griffiths position, it was the signal for Casca's cavalry to secure a position near the crumbled walls and asses the enemy situation. It was clear to Judeaux that Griffith wasn't sure what to expect from the Meereenese, or he would have send Guts and his raiders straight in there. But in this sort of situation Casca's more intelligent command would be more helpful. This land was after all a strange one, why just yesterday they lost 2 men to something called a Manticore. Who knew what these city dwellers had in store for them.

Judeaux narrowly dodged an arrow coming from a Meereenese bowman, he quickly used one of his throwing knives to take out the offender. Judeaux's rear unit had been tasked with planting the flag of the Hawks at the top of the Great Pyramid of Meereen. Signaling the defeat of the city at the hands of the Hawks. For the Hawks Meereen hadn't been a very tough nut to crack, though the fighting inside the streets proved to be harder then expected, mostly due to the complete chaos of slaves, slavers and freemen making the city a living nightmare. Slaves took advantage of the situation and started to attack their masters. The freemen tried to live through the siege without their stores and shops being marauded. While the so called Great Masters of Meereen tried to hold on to their mansions and the Pyramids. Which proved to be rather formidable defenses, mostly due to their narrow layout.

Yet the battle had been won as soon as the walls of Meereen crumbled and the meager excuse for a militia was reduced to a core of elite soldiers. A few of these ''Unsullied'' also managed to hold the passage into the Great Pyramid of Meereen, but the proved to defenseless against the sheer violence of Guts and his raiders. Guts his enormous sword cut through the shieldwall of the ''Unsullied'' with some ease, allowing his raiders to take advantage of the holes in the Unsullied formation. It was a bloody battle, but in the end the Unsullied were too few and the Hawks too formidable.

In the midst of the chaos there was Griffith, on his staggeringly white horse and in his shining armor, directing his forces at the front line to whatever position he deemed necessary. Judeaux always prouded himself on his intellect and talent for the less appreciated arts. But Griffith was a true leader and strategist. Someone who would inspire bravery on the battlefield, bask in the love from his subject and strike fear into the hearts of his enemies. Honestly he seemed almost too perfect.
At the moment Judeaux couldn't care less about that though, they had almost reached the top of the Great Pyramid now, and Casca was already waving the banner of the Hawk while standing a top of the Harpy of Meereen. The city had fallen, and the Band of the Hawk would soon face the perils of this new world from a new position.

Casca, Guts, Corkus and Judeaux were attending a meeting of the Hawks commanders. It had been a week since the city of Meereen had fallen to the Hawks. And after re-establishing order and accepting the submission of the Great Masters of Meereeen, Griffith had been considering their next more. 'Why don't we beat up the rest of Slavers Bay while were at it?!' Said Guts, who's lust for battle sometimes made Judeaux's blood boil. 'For once I agree with that lumbering idiot!' Said Corkus, who swiftly scuffled away from Guts after his remark. 'Slavers Bay is easy pickings and the wealth is incredible! Not to mention we can live like nobility here! Griffith you could have your own Kingdom in these lands!' Corkus's enthusiasm was remarkable for the man, but the Hawks knew that he had always wanted to be a man of high nobility and honor. Not that you could tell from his usual sarcastic and murderous intent.

Griffith turned towards the Hawks, laying in front of them a map of Essos and Westeros. What was commonly known as the world to these people. 'I have spent a lot of time these last days figuring out the political playing field of our new home. Normally I wouldn't have you bother with this kind of talk. But I think its important to get at least some knowledge about this world into your hard heads.'
Guts spit at that remark, 'Tssk'... Casca lent over a bit more, making sure that she could hear everything Griffith had to say. Judeaux and Corkus their demeanor stayed somewhat neutral in comparison. 'You're not going to give us a history lesson are you?' Said Corkus after a few seconds of silence. Griffith smirked a little, 'In fact I do.'

Cyricist001, butterflies my friend, butterflies. Just because that was the situation in the original books doesn't mean it will go exactly that way in the fic. And Robb may be honorable, but he is still a young man/boy. He is brash and could be manipulated by the Behelit. Like Griffith sometimes seemed to be motivated to do things thanks to the Behelit, the God Hand probably was a part of that process as well. They gave the Crimson Behelit to him after all.

Frozen862, there are a lot of people he can sacrifice. His mother, Jeyne Westerling, his unborn kid, his comrades in arms. The Freys and Boltons may not be sacrificed because they're enemies. But that won't stop them being eaten...