AN/

' ' – character thinking

"" - character speaking

BOLD – author notes

Waking up in a new world was an experience. Waking up in a medieval style new world was an even bigger experience. Waking up in Westeros though? A certified death world as soon as the white-walkers or others come down from the far North. A soon to be civil war and then another war in a couple years. That is a nightmare. I suppose the only silver lining would be my position here. I am a Lord of an Island, well I say island but I do remember a certain buggy video game having a map identical to my new territory.

Ark Survival Evolved was always my favourite game. The appeal of taming and riding dinosaurs easily attracted me and my friends to it, having us pour thousands of hours into it over the years. And now I was here, sat as a lord of several game maps to the West of Westeros, just short sail away from Oldtown's port. Did this make my territory, the aptly named "Ragnarok" of house Velorath, belong to the Reach? Only on paper thankfully, allowing me to avoid the squabbles of court.

The maps I ruled over spanned several generations. Ragnarok was the largest and greatest of them, but to the west I had Valguero and to the South I had Fjordur, something I had never even touched in the game and by the far the most inhospitable simply due to the masses of sharks and sea creatures surrounding it.

The unique inhabitants of the islands I now lorded over allowed me much freedom in my actions. Dinosaurs did exist here. Much like their game counterparts but slightly more accurate to the real world. An ankylosaur would still be useful for mining and collecting raw metal to be processed. But it was now much larger. Weighing in at several tons and reaching 6 metered from armoured head to tail club, it was a larger and more dangerous beast. Other dinosaurs and creatures too had been tamed over the centuries since Aegon's conquest, with my ancestors choosing to bend the knee instead of having our homes torched by Balerion.

I haven't introduced myself either have I? I am Elric Velorath, the current lord of House Velorath due to my parent's recent accident in the desert portion of the island and a deathworm encounter. The unfortunate demise has caused me to become a lord despite my age of 14. And now, I am sat here in my solar looking over parchments and deciding how fucked my house truly is.

Contracts had to be honoured, and I had to either meet them now or visit the other lords to renegotiate or void it. Looking over them they were easy to meet however and I would gladly fill my houses pockets with them. Kings Landing was the main money maker here. Demanding a steady supply of Ovis sheep for King Aerys II feasts. The North too have a small contract for crops during the winter, with Rockarrot, Longrass, and Savaroot all being the primary crops required. After this the only other notable contract is to the Westerlands to sell off Equus as some steeds to the minor noble houses.

My house itself however was stable, at least for the time being. I had enough gold to look after my land and pay who needs to be payed. The Ovis farm was churning out large amounts of meat and livestock to be used, and the Equus were all slowly being captured and broken in for taking and training.

The island of Ragnarok itself was still mostly wild. The main settlements of my house were exactly where the old ruins you could find in game were. With my home currently being the castle above the Swamp. It was bigger here however, but just a glorified tower with some walls around but a true castle. The natural plains before it had been filled by a sprawling city of houses and workshops, the swamp had been mostly cleared of any threats, but the all buildings below had been built on stilts to avoid the waterlogged floor.

I paused at my desk and looked out through the window, no glass there, just a wooden shutter. It was near enough moon and I had more things to do today than just paperwork. I stood from my desk and retrieved my cloak from the wall opposite me and left the Solar. Walking through Velorath castle, 'such an original name' I thought inwardly, as I walked through the halls. I slowly reached my destination, my personal hangar. The method of taming was very similar to the games, but involved far more training.

Knocking a creature unconscious allowed for you to get closer and imprint on it, which along with feeding it would make it less likely to attack when it got up. Of course the more aggressive species like the Giganotosaurus, Tyrannosaur, or other large theropods would still attack. No one has tamed one yet. But despite that I wanted one. I wanted to sit on its back and ride it into battle, I wanted to take it hunting. I wanted to be the apex of this island, no, I wanted to be the apex of this world.

Thinking of species I thought back to the Wyvern gulley in the grasslands to the North. It was empty, I had been personally to look several years ago. No wyverns. No eggs. I would have to look at the cave near to the desert if I wanted to try find any.

A loud screech interrupted my thought and Cobalt walked towards me. My griffin was large, larger than the average member of her species. Her plumage was a deep brown colour and melded with the soft gold feathers of her underside. Her beak glinted in the torchlight, and her eyes held a semblance of intelligent thought beyond what an animal should have. She understood me fully. Griffins had always been the symbol of my house. The emblem itself held a griffin's head looking down above the opened jaws of a tyrannosaur.

Riders were the elites in the island. Pteranodons were used to teach the trainees before they want into the wild and tamed their own. They were primarily used for scouting and travelling to deliver a message between settlements. An argentavis rider was even rarer. A right of passage belonging to a select few of unique individuals. The argentavis were primarily used for war mounts, attacking bandits outposts or pirates from the Iron Islands. Griffins though? A gridding could only be tamed and ridden by a member of house Velorath. People had tried of course, but they always failed and were left as bloody piles of flesh between their claws and beaks.

Cobalt pushed her beak into the top of my chest. At 10 metres long, with a wingspan of 8 metres and standing at a height of on all fours of 2.5 metres she was massive. My own height of 1.5 metres was dwarfed by her.

"I'm here girl, I'm here. Let's go flying. I need to get out before this paperwork sends me to an early grave" I spoke softly to her as my hands ruffled her facial feathers. She squawked in reply and lowered her body to allow me to clamber up.

Perched on top I took her reigns. Unlike the games, a saddle would be needed on a griffin simply due to the speeds she could reach. If I tried to ride her while she dive bombed in a hunt I would simply slide off and fall to my death. The last heir and lord of house Velorath, died due to falling off his mount.

I scoffed internally as Cobalt walked forwards and up the ramp. Her own weight pushing down on the plates embedded in the ramp, hoisting the behemoth trapdoor open and allowing us out.

The guards around seemed to pause as they took in the sight. All the useless chatter as Cobalt pulled her forelegs up and screeched into the air ceased. Her legs came down with a thud and the silence echoed.

"Will you be gone king milord?" A guard asked, gaining his confidence to approach one of the greatest predators of the island. "Just till sunset Jacob, I'll be heading out towards the Megalania colony and into the grasslands" I replied back after remembering the household guards name. He smiled and nodded his head before backing away.

I dug my heels into Cobalt's side and she ran forwards before jumping. Her mighty wings spread and lifted us off the floor with a powerful swoop. She took off fast, faster than most horses in a gallop and only increased in speed as we flew over the town. Mirehaven it was named.

The town blurred beneath us as we propelled our self forwards. The beating of Cobalt's wings pushed us further and further towards the Northern grasslands. Fields and forests passed underneath before it faded to cliffs and rivers, then ash. The volcano was dormant, and it hadn't erupted in centuries, but despite that a small stream of lava pushed through the ashen dirt to the coast. I felt the heat blow past as we skirted around it. The black dirt slowy faded away once more to the shady beach and grasslands in view.

"It works, doesn't it." I spoke out to my aid. Jules was a skilled blacksmith, and he could understand my ideas. He looked over the mass of metal and wood as it ran. "Honestly Elric, how did you think of this? Your idea of this 'paper' and this 'printing press' will change everything. Do you have any idea what you've done?" He questioned me.

I smiled back at Jules as he looked me in the eyes. "Of course, it's the start of something greater. Imagine in Jules. A world where even the common smallfolk can go to find a book, where they can all read. A society that isn't just barbaric and cruel. The smallfolk are the greatest force in this world. They outnumber any noble by thousands to one. Why no elevate them, so when they finally have enough they won't dispose of us." I spoke my peice to him and he nodded along. He agreed to my points, at least mostly. "Still Elric, what do you plan on doing now?" He asked, looking at me. I paused and considered my words carefully.

"It's simple my friend, we make more and we print these books for the people. The plants of the island are thick in fibre, we harvest it and use it to make the paper. We export it to Oldtown for gold dragons and take the profits. Then? Then we can finally start to colonise this island, not hide away behind our walls from the creatures." I spoke out. Gripping his shoulder as I looked up to meet him again.

"What do you see them? This grand plan to colonise this island?"He asked, genuinely curious. In return I simply smiled. The same smile I gave to him two years ago when I first hired him.

"We expand, tame and take everything. Explore this island fully when we are able to go round without fear. New towns and cities. New ports. Now wealth. A paradise for my people." I spoke with conviction. My old world had been slowly ruined by war and politicians, living becoming more expensive and the she joy of life failing. I would fix that and it wouldn't t have the chance to happen here. Jules simply looked at me and grinned with a nod.

Time skip 2 years:

Mirehaven had expanded. Immigrants from all the holds had come after I sent people out to spread rumours, the chance for the smallfolk to be able to read and write. Since then I had received ravens from across the seven kingdoms, various smaller nobles demanding compensation due to the loss of their people. They were swiftly ignored if they were rude in their demands or asked for too much. The few that were cordial I exchanged ravens with, and with the help of my maester I was able to negotiate some form of payment with them. Usually a pile of gold dragons.

My maester, Grimmold was his name and he was a shrewd elderly man, with his links forged in his youth he came to serve my father and then me. He was enraptured by the island. The dinosaurs I called them had take to be a popular term and he agreed. I believed he was loyal. He wasn't payed off by any other house or had some insidious plot to further the maester's order. He simply enjoyed and lived for the research on the dinosaurs. His own room often being overflown with drawing and notes of his observations.

He was thrilled when I offered to help write a book to be published. The Codex Ragnarok outlined the species located on the island and the oceans surrounding us. Its mass production and subsequent availability had it become easy to sell. The Seven Kjngdoms too wished to read it. Notably the North and the Westerlands along with some Houses in Dorn ordered several more than the other kingdoms. I theorised in my head the possibilities for it. Dorne obviously for the Desert part of my book. As a rocky and arid kingdom with deserts they obviously took interest in my own desert region. Oberyn himself would likely take a liking to the creatures, and while I don't remember much about his character, I knew he was a warrior. And a warrior likes to test themselves against monsters and stronger foes.

The Westerlands however worried me. Tywin Lannister was a threat. He was rich. He was manipulative. And he was smart. Smarter than me at the very least. While he hadn't made any open moves it didn't mean that he won't in the future. I'm sure the appeal of your own flying monsters would be enough to sway the Lion of the Rock.

The North however, I could more or less guess. The mountains and snowy regions of the island had many creatures they would want information on. Primarily the Dire Wolves. House Stark would easily pay what they could afford to get their own back in the North, and I'm sure the other houses took interest to the mammoths or the woolly rhinoceros. In the end though, I could only guess what they wanted.

The exploration of the island had finally begun in earnest. I took the lead in establishing new dinosaur tames and a rider corps. Raptors were tameable. Smart enough to be used to hunt and small enough to maintain by families. The use of larger and larger tames had also revolutionised the methods of agriculture. Triceratops and Pachyrinosaurus were good work animals. Able to work harder and for longer than ox could. It could do triple or even quadruple the ox's workload, easily offsetting the increased cost of feeding it. Even smaller animals like the pachycephalosaurus and phiomia had its uses. A smaller tame available for an average smallfolk family to care for like a dog. The whole island was being tamed, and they were perfect aids for agriculture.

My own menagerie had also been increased in size. Cobalt had her own roost still, but it was now shared with an Argentavis I fondly named Ace. A dark red coloured head plumage along with dark brown feathers over its body. A tapejara also had its own nest within now. The smaller reptile was fast and capable of clinging to walls and trees letting it be used for exploration. The rarity of its species simply made it unreadable to tame on mass however.

In terms of land creatures however I had taken a few for my own personal use.I had taken my own dire wolf from the nearby hills. It was a larger specimen, a dark black furred thing. Its fur was surprisingly soft despite the savageness it had when I encountered it. It was a pack animal however, and would act up if alone for a long time period. I had to take several others to keep my ride happy and my limbs out of its mouth.

I had also surprisingly taken another tame. The first of its kind to be claimed by anyone on the island. The therizinosaur was a horrible thing. Claws too long and too sharp, a beak, feathered coat, but it was sting and fast too. I first heard a rumour about this specimen in the jungles. It had attacked a settlement. I had departed to personally hunt it down, but seeing it in person changed my minds. The dark blue feathers and its viciousness as it cut through the steel armour of my men confirmed it. A powerful individual like that had to be taken in. And so I did that. Climbing a tree and using my crossbow with some tranquillisers to slowly wear it down before it collapsed. The kibble I had experimented with using berries and dinosaur eggs worked wonders and thankfully it didn't attack me on waking up.

Smaller settlements had also begun to pop up. I had received letters from hedge knights arriving and asking to serve. I allocated them some land and they begun to look after that area. They also received a raptor or equus tame in order to help patrol the area.

My own training had also begun in earnest. While Ihad dabbled in the martial side of this world briefly I was never any good. Swords simply felt wrong, as did a spear. I didn't trust myself to fight with it. Instead I looked for a different method of protection. The mace was simple. I used it to great efficiency to crush my enemies, whether they be bandit or dinosaur. With a swing I could crush someone's ribs in or shatter their bones. It didn't take much skill, just practice the movements and try to duel people with it. I had discovered one of my talents it seemed like.

I was 16 now, and I had grown. Standing a just under 2 metres I was tall. My muscles had grown too. The hard daily work of training and the high protein diet of dinosaur meat had left me looking like a natural bodybuilder. I had the mass, just not the muscle definition.

I looked at the letter in my hand Maester Grimmold had passed me. It was the invite to the tourney at Harrenhall.

"I'd advise you accept Elric." he spoke to me. His voice soft and grandfatherly. His age was starting to catch up to hime. I nodded and spoke back to him, "I'm not exactly in a position to refuse. Besides it would be good to meet another couple of noble houses for the Reach and Dorne since they are my closest neighbours." The maester nodded his head and took a seat opposite my desk. "You should be looking to get a wife while your their, do well in the duels or joust and you might get lucky Elric." He started. I spat out my drink and placed the goblet down to look at his eyes. "It's about time you find one. You can't stay like this forever or else you'll have rumours start to spread about you." he spoke.

I was about to speak then I paused. He was right. Of course he was right. I hadn't really gone off the island ever, and as the only noble house here I had no others to mingle with. "It's scheduled for two moons, I'll make the preparations to travel." I sold with a finality that left Grimmold smiling as he left the room. I would need to organise much to take me to Harrenhall. Ships for the transport across the sea, provisions and men. Plus any dinosaurs I'd wish to bring with me. That should shock any noble or knight, and should at least give me some renown. Riding in on a great beast that they'd struggle to hunt themselves.

I smirked to myself, thinking about giving those stuck up arrogant pricks a little surprise.

So here's another idea i've had for a while, Ark and dinosaurs are interesting concepts for me and it's definitely something i'll play with in the future. GOT too is in interesting premise for it, but so could many other verses. I have a few ideas floating round.

See you all soon

Stan