Taking the Dreadfort
Riding beside Hadrian and five Children of the Forest, at the head of an army heading towards the Dreadfort, Ned was even more silent than usual. His mind was away, thinking about a topic that was deeply unpleasant for him.
War
All it is good for is causing misery and death. Suffering and pain. Even among the victors. Ned Stark honestly hoped he had seen the last of it for his lifetime.
Perhaps that was naive of him. The dreams of a Summer boy.
Perhaps he is still that boy in some ways.
After the wars against the Targaryen's and the Greyjoys, Ned honestly thought it would be many years before his family was dragged into another. His family was in the strongest position it had been in centuries. With his friendship with the King and his relationship with Jon Arryn. His nephew's betrothal to the Royal Princess and the connection it brings them to House Lannister. Ned honestly thought something extreme would have to happen before his family was put into the position of having to fight for their lives again anytime soon.
He knew the Faith was becoming unruly in the South, but he honestly believed that Jon Arryn or the King would do something to squash their rebellion before it became too big. No matter what his nephew said. He thought Robert would take any opportunity to go to war, regardless of the opponent. He thought Jon Arryn would immediately see the danger of the Faith Militant.
He honestly never expected the Faith Militant to grow strong enough or bold enough to strike the North. He thought his nephew was perhaps being slightly paranoid with all the measures taken against the Faith in his kingdom.
Just another example of how Hadrian was often much wiser than him.
Ned took a moment to look back at the army marching behind him. First there was a thousand men marching directly behind him with an impressive discipline, drawn from the newly created Northern Army. Each armed and armored in the fine castle forged steel. Ten thousand men marched behind them with noticeably less discipline, the majority coming from Stark, Ryswell, Dustin and Manderly lands. Enough men were drawn from each lord without taking too many away from farms or other labors across the North. Following that were six Giants each wielding newly forged steel greatswords, longer than Ned was tall.
Ned could at least take solace in the fact that this would probably be the easiest war he had ever fought. There weren't armies from different Kingdoms or even one Kingdom to fight through. Just a single, unloved lord. One of the most powerful lords in the North perhaps, but a single lord all the same. That lord would also be fighting against things that men hadn't had any experience fighting against in millenia. Lord Bolton would have no solution to the Childrens abilities as scouts using skinchanging or any easy solutions against a Giants strength, except to swarm it with numbers. Which would be difficult when he was outnumbered himself.
When Ned first saw his nephew marching back into Winterfell, followed by Giants and the Children of the Forest, he almost passed out from shock. Oh, he knew what his nephew planned to do beyond The Wall, but he never expected him to succeed. In truth, Ned never really believed that the Giants and the Children were still alive.
For all his accomplishments, Ned honestly thought his nephew's desire to travel beyond The Wall to collect the creatures of legend was nothing more than childish fantasy. Even with all the strange powers Hadrian had been blessed with, believing Giants and Children would bend the knee to him just didn't register as something possible.
The only reason he didn't put up more of a fight about his decision was that Hadrian promised not to go far beyond The Wall and because his nephew never had a chance to really indulge in his childhood. He thought it would be a harmless thing to indulge his nephew with, so long as he took proper protection with him.
Ned vowed to have more faith in Hadrian from then on. Even if his ideas sometimes sounded ridiculous.
He doesn't know what Giants and the Children could truly do in war. But he expects them to make a noticeable difference. Once their numbers grew more, they would probably make the North the strongest Kingdom in Westeros. They would definitely make others think twice about declaring war against his family.
His nephews words brought him back to reality. "Lord Umbers army is a few hours away from us uncle. Please inform him about this and see to it that the men make camp."
He just gave Hadrian a nod before going about his duties.
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Four days later the army of twelve thousand men was camped a mile from the Dreadfort.
Ned had an uneasy feeling during these last few days of marching. A feeling he knew that all the Lords shared. The town around the ancient castle was all too quiet. All the homes were abandoned by any small folk, belongings remained where they were, with food still still sitting on tables in some places. Giving the feeling that none of the residents had any time to pack before leaving.
All the Lords were in currently in Hadrians tent to discuss what this could mean and their next steps.
All the Lords were unusually quiet while waiting for Harry to begin.
His nephew decided not to waste any time. "The Children have done some scouting. All the men, woman and children of this town and a few more small villages around the area have all been brought into the Dreadfort. Lord Bolton is currently arming each of them with whatever he can. Knives, shovels, woodcutter axes and even rocks and sticks in some cases. I expect he will use them as fodder against our men. Both to demoralize us and tire us before he uses his real soldiers."
The lords instantly exploded. "That craven-!" "Fucking bastard!" "Damn Boltons!"
Ned just closed his eyes in silent grief. He should have known that things wouldn't be so simple.
He remained that way for half a minute while the rest of the lords ranted. Then he took a deep breath, opened his eyes and spoke. "How many?"
Everyone else immediately went silent and looked first at him, then at Hadrian for answers.
His nephew shrugged. "They don't know for sure, but they estimated between ten to fifteen thousand people."
Before the lords could go off again, Ned asked his next question. "How could he force that many people to fight for him? They outnumber his own soldiers."
Hadrian grimaced. "From what Leaf was able to discover, Bolton went for the children first. He is using them as hostages to make their parents cooperate. If they don't have children, then he is just using pure fear. They would rather fight us than risk being tortured by Bolton. Or having their children tortured."
The table fell silent for several moments as all the lords stared at the table grimly before Hadrian spoke again. "What are your suggestions?"
Lord Karstark was the first to speak. "We could just siege the castle. That many mouths to feed, Bolton will run out of food sooner than later."
Ned frowned. "All that would happen is that the smallfolk would be starved. Bolton will feed his soldiers and leave them to suffer."
Karstark nodded. "Aye, but I expect that after a few weeks with no food they will become desperate and most likely they will be much less willing to cooperate with him. Most likely they will riot. Even with their children as hostages, as it will be their only chance. If they aren't being fed, why would they believe Bolton is feeding their children?"
Ned pursed his lips, the taste of ash in his mouth. "They are still citizens of the North. We can't just leave them to starve to death!" Ned looked towards his nephew for support, but Hadrians face was stone, giving nothing away about his true feelings. Although Ned saw his fist clench slightly.
After a few moments his nephew spoke. "Any other options?"
Ned slumped back in his chair as Lord Umber spoke. "I believe the Giants could probably open the gate to the castle if they are given enough cover. We could just charge in. The smallfolk aren't loyal to Bolton. They would probably break quickly. Then we just have to deal with his soldiers. It would probably save more lives than a siege. "
Yes. Ned preferred that idea.
Lord Manderly was the next to speak. "It doesn't make much sense, does it?"
Lord Umber rounded on him. "What?"
Manderly was quick to raise his hands in placating manner. "Not your idea my lord. That has merit. What doesn't make sense, is that Bolton is willing to use his people in such a way. Roose Bolton is many things, but he is not stupid. Surely, he knows we can starve him. Or that Hadrian can still call on tens of thousands more men from all over the North. So why is he making things worse for himself with these crimes? He must know he will be beaten and if Domeric inherits the Dreadfort after him, then none of his people will be happy to follow him after his father pulled this move."
Ned leaned back thinking over those words. Lord Manderly was right. Roose Bolton must know that he has lost at this stage. So why pull a move that will ensure his son was hated by his own people if Hadrian grants Domeric the Dreadfort?
Lord Umber slammed a meaty fist on the table. "Bah! There's no point in trying to understand Bolton. He must have lost his wits when he realized how much he fucked up!"
Lord Manderly hesitated before speaking. "Perhaps-"
"My Lords." One of the guards outside of the tent called, interrupting the Merlord.
Hadrian raised his voice. "Enter."
The guard, one of Hadrians Winterguard, entered looking slightly nervous to be interrupting a meeting between all these lords. Without wasting any time, his nephew gestured for him to speak.
After taking a breath to calm himself, he did so. "Lord Bolton sent a man asking for a parley."
Hadrian frowned, as did the rest of the Lords.
Lord Dustin was the first to speak. "We cannot trust him."
Hadrian nodded his agreement. "Aye you're probably right Lord Dustin. Still, I can't ignore the fact that this might give us an opportunity to see what Bolton is thinking."
After taking a few more seconds to think, Hadrian spoke. "My uncle will go, as will Lord Karstark and six men. You are to bring his terms to me. There will be no single combat. Bolton doesn't deserve the honor." Hadrian looked at the guard. "Inform Boltons man that Bolton is to have no more than himself and six men, they are to meet my uncle at the midpoint between this army and his castle."
Lord Umber grumbled slightly, but he appeared satisfied that Hadrian wasn't going himself.
The guard swiftly left the tent and Hadrians attention turned back to them. "While this meeting is happening, the rest of you are to start organizing your men and preparing to attack. Dismissed. Leaf, you stay."
At once all the Lords stood and began to leave. Ned left with Lord Karstark, praying silently to the gods that he would be able to prevent the loss of life that would come if there were a battle.
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An hour later Ned found himself a few hundred yards away from the Dreadfort, waiting patiently in silence, as Lord Bolton and his party slowly made their way towards him. He felt slightly irritated by the Lords slow pace but kept his opinion to himself.
After a few more minutes Bolton finally got within ten yards. Close enough to talk but far enough to react if he tried anything.
Ned gave the lord a slightly tense nod. "Lord Bolton." Lord Karstark just grunted.
Boltons face was utterly without expression. "Stark. Karstark. I'm surprised your nephew isn't meeting with me. I always thought he had some courage, but perhaps I was wrong."
Ned bristled slightly but kept his calm. Lord Karstark was another matter, the General of the Northern armies retaliated. "He is smart enough not to trust that an honorless cunt like you wouldn't try anything."
Lord Bolton smiled slightly when he answered. Ned always found his smiles unnerving. "Honourless? Perhaps. But all I'm doing is protecting my House, Lord Karstark."
Lord Karstark scoffed. "We all know you allowed the Faith Militant into the North, Bolton. We know you would have tried to attack Hadrian and the rest of us after that battle if we didn't manage to escape your noose. How exactly were you protecting your House?" Ned remained silent, content to observe for now.
Roose kept the smile on his face. "Come now. Surely you can see the way things are going. House Stark is gaining more and more power. A central army that answers only to them, new tax methods meant to increase their reach into matters of other Houses, ships and so on. Every year since Hadrian Stark took power, House Starks influence has continued to grow. I knew it wouldn't be long before Hadrian started intruding in the matters of individual Houses. So I did what I believed was necessary to remove him and solve the problem."
Karstark scoffed. "House Starks power has grown greatly, true. But so has the power of the North as a whole. My House has gained benefits from that growth. Lord Umbers House has gained benefits. So has Lord Manderly and many other loyal lords. If you were loyal, you may have gained benefits too. But Hadrian never trusted you and for good reason. More likely you saw that House Stark was becoming stronger than it has been in centuries and knew, if it carried on this way, House Bolton would never stand a chance of ruling the North. That they would be completely unassailable. Never mind the fact they were practically untouchable in the North before Hadrian was born. House Stark has ruled the North for eight thousand years. There are very few in the North who would ever consider going against them. Even fewer who would be willing to follow House Bolton."
Roose Bolton was still smiling, but his eyes were much colder now. "I tried to-"
"Why are we here Bolton?" Ned interrupted him. He saw no reason to let this farce continue. It was obvious Bolton was trying to turn Karstark away from his nephew.
Roose turned to Ned his smile gone completely. "To discuss terms of my surrender, of course."
Ned kept his face impassive, only arching an eyebrow. "Oh, and what are your terms?"
The Lord of Leaches answered smoothly. "You must have noticed by now that I have emptied all the villages around here. My terms are simple. I will surrender unconditionally if Hadrian gives his word that Domeric inherits the Dreadfort and none of my men are punished. Domeric will need strong soldiers. No land will be taken, taxes will not be raised. It will be like this war never happened."
Ned clenched his jaw. "You are using your own people as hostages."
Roose Bolton smirked slightly. "Of course, I am. Hadrian Stark is far more pragmatic than most of his ancestors. Domeric might be his cousin, but I don't doubt he will still seek to punish House Bolton for rebelling. Most likely he will take some land. Perhaps he would even send Domeric to The Wall. This is the third time my House has done this, after all."
Ned struggled not to attack the man in front of him. "If he is so pragmatic, then why would he ever agree to your terms."
Roose rolled his eyes. "Because he still cares about his people. He will save thousands of smallfolk and thousands of his own soldiers."
Ned clenched his jaw even harder before speaking. "Even if he agreed to your terms, you must know that your people would hate you after this. They would more than likely despise your son too."
Rooses face was cold. "Not a major obstacle."
Ned held in the urge to shout at the man for several seconds before turning and storming back to his horse. His guards and Lord Karstark were quick to follow. As he turned to ride away, he spoke over his shoulder. "You will have your answer tomorrow."
After a few moments Lord Karstark spoke from beside him. "I really hate that cunt."
Ned just grunted in agreement.
Line Break-
An hour later, Ned and Lord Karstark were back in Hadrians tent with the rest of the Lords. They had just finished giving their report and it was clear to see that none of the Lords were happy. There were curses being thrown at Bolton, about his mother, his ancestry and his honor.
The worst reaction was from his nephew. Hadrian had a furious expression on his face. Ned believed he was probably even more angry than the time that Edmure Tully visited Winterfell. It left him slightly wary. Hadrian was always difficult to predict. He was even worse when he was angry.
It took a few minutes for the Lords to calm themselves. Once they did, none of them seemed to want to be the first to ask the necessary question. Ned sighed slightly and decided that it was probably best for him to be the one to start things off. "Are you going to agree to his terms?"
Hadrian clenched his jaw and then gave his answer in a voice as cold as winter. "No."
That sent a ripple of surprise through Ned. Judging by the rest of the lords reactions, he wasn't the only one.
Lord Ryswell was the first to voice his confusion. "Forgive me grandson, but I would have thought you would agree to Boltons terms. We all know you care for your cousin. I would think you wouldn't mind letting Domeric off, as he is not guilty of his father's crimes." The lord sounded slightly concerned, as Domeric was also his grandson.
Hadrian sighed and his shoulders slumped. "Aye. Domeric is family and I care for him. Originally, I was going to just remove a maybe a third of the land from House Bolton and perhaps increase the taxes a bit. Roose was right about that. The issue is, if I accept Boltons terms, then I will be creating a precedent. The next time a House rebels against House Stark, they would think they could do the exact same thing as Bolton and their House would escape any punishment. There are too many ways it can be abused."
"I see." Lord Ryswell muttered. To be fair to the Lord, while he didn't look happy, he did look understanding.
Lord Manderly spoke up. "You're right my Lord. If you did give in to Roose Boltons demands then there is a chance something like this would be tried again. Maybe not for many years, but it is possible it would happen."
Hadrian nodded. "I am all for negotiating to limit bloodshed, but this goes too far. I will be punishing House Bolton more than I would have before because of this."
Lord Umber spoke up. "So if you aren't going to agree to his terms, what is the plan?"
Hadrians fists clenched on the table and his eyes became cold. "We are going to hit Bolton hard and fast. The Children are busy scouting the Boltons lands using wolves. They are looking for the secret tunnel that the Boltons used during their last wars against House Stark to sneak supplies into the Dreadfort. We never managed to find it then, but with the wolves, I believe it should be easily done now."
Most of the Lords sat slightly straighter. A small grin broke out on some faces. Lord Umber looked as if he was struggling not to burst into laughter.
But the Lords all managed to contain themselves and let his nephew continue speaking. "Lord Karstark will lead the Northern army down this tunnel with Lord Umber and his men and if it is large enough, two giants will join them. Your job will be to hit them as hard as you can and take and hold the dungeons. That is most likely where the children are being kept. Hopefully that will convince the smallfolk to lay down their arms. Once done with that you can move on to the rest of the castle. While this is happening, the rest of the giants will attack the main gate. With a large wooden shield, they should hopefully be protected from arrow fire and be able to easily get close. The Giants will lift the gate for the rest of our men to pour through and take the castle. Grandfather, your job will be to take the gatehouse and keep the gate open so that the giants can join the rest of the attack, before moving on. You will be joined by Lord Manderlys men. Lord Glover, Lord Dustin and uncle, you willl take the courtyard and the rest of the keep. I would like Lord Bolton to be brought alive to me, my Lords, but if he dies, so be it. Also remember to accept the surrenders of any smallfolk. I would prefer not to have killed good men and woman of the North for no reason. All of Boltons soldiers on the other hand, I want dead. There will be no surrender for them."
Line break
It was a beautiful sunrise, Ned reflected. The skies were bathed in orange and gold, creating a tapestry that even the most hardened men would struggle to find a problem with. Ned tried to enjoy the color as much as he could, for he knew he would soon be submerged in crimson.
The entire army woke a few hours before, with word from Hadrian that the tunnel into the castle had been found. His nephew had wasted no time before sending Lord Karstark and Lord Umber there. While the rest of the army sat and waited patiently for the attack to begin.
Ned was standing near the very back of the army with the men from Winterfell, Lord Glovers men were on the left and Lord Dustins were on the right. In front of them was Lord Ryswell and his portion of the army, with the Manderly men, as well as four giants. Hadrian was on a horse at the back of the army, overseeing everything and far from the battle. With him was Lord Manderly, who would probably get killed instantly in a fight, as well as the Children of the Forest.
"Ooooooohhhoo!" A horn blasted from his nephews position, signaling the start of the attack for both the main army and the army at the tunnels.
Ned could see the giants instantly charge forwards along with the first portion of the army. Everyone was on foot, so the giants almost instantly started pulling ahead even though Ned knew that they were slowing themselves down so that they werent completely separated from the rest of the men.
A few seconds later, Ned started charging with his men keeping an eye on the progress of the giants the entire time. A lot of the plans did rely on them, after all.
Once they got within arrow range of the Dreadfort, Ned could see a hundreds, perhaps thousands of arrows get shot in a wave. All of them aimed towards the giants. Unfortunately for the archers, each giant had a huge shield made of wood, big enough to cover their entire bodies for protection. Not a single giant fell and they were still gaining ground.
The next wave of arrows was more scattered. A lot were still shot at the giants, but plenty were shot towards the men too. By this time, Ned was within range of the archers.
"Shields!" He roared as loud as he could while raising his own shield over his head. Most of his men followed his example.
While no arrow touched his shield, many hit the shield of his men. A few even slipped past them and some men fell. Ned had no time to be distracted by the sight, however.
A few moments later the giants eventually reached the gate. All four of them held their shields over their heads with one arm, while the other was used to grip the bottom of the steel gate, and pull.
Ned was honestly expecting the giants to struggle. Or for it to take a bit longer. But the gate basically shot up with only a few grunts from the powerful creatures.
While this was happening, about a hundred men among those who were with Lord Ryswell stopped. These men were equipped with bows and they wasted no time shooting at the men stationed above the gate where the giants were, to prevent any of them from trying to pour hot oil on the creatures or using any other tricks.
It was only a few moments later that Lord Ryswell and one of his sons ran through the gate, followed by thousands of screaming Northmen. The flow of men slowed down as they were all forced to go through the narrow space, but it never came to a complete stop.
It was only a few minutes later that Ned himself passed through the gates and into the chaos. Lord Ryswell was already halfway up the stairs leading to the gate mechanisms located on top of the wall. It looked like most of the men he was fighting were smallfolk with only a few of the actual soldiers mixed in, and so he was making quick work of them.
Ned didn't have long to watch the other lord though, as he was soon beset by his own enemies. There was a line of smallfolk in front of him and behind them were a few hundred men who were obviously proper soldiers. Unfortunately, Ned had to go through the smallfolk first. The first man that came didn't have any armor and was only armed with a kitchen knife. He raised his shield, catching the knife before smacking the poor man in the head with the flat of his sword. He instantly crumpled. The next man was armed only with a rock. Ned just bashed him in the face with his shield before moving on. His next enemy was a woman armed with a large stick. He tried asking her to surrender, but she didn't listen, and it was with slight guilt that he smacked her with the pommel of his sword. He silently prayed that these souls survived the battle.
Unfortunately, not all the smallfolk were as lucky as the ones he fought. While his men generally tried to take them alive, most of them lacked his skill. Ned saw a man get his head cut off, another lost his arm, while another few were run through. He saw a woman get her head caved in by a hammer and an old lady get smashed with a mace. He watched a pregnant woman get her throat crushed by a gauntlet and saw what he assumed was her husband scream in grief before he was cut down as well.
It was a horrifying experience. It was something that Ned knew would probably give him nightmares for years. He was extremely relieved when the mass of smallfolk finally broke and either started throwing down their arms or running any direction that was away from a soldier, allowing his men to reach their real enemy.
It was honestly with eagerness that he finally engaged with the Bolton men. The first man lasted three exchanges with him before Ned slit his throat. The next one had his guard broken nearly immediately when Ned swung his sword down with a roar, finishing off the man by cleaving half his skull away. He knocked over the third man with his shield before stomping on his head with all his strength. The fourth lost his arm and then his leg in short order.
The next several minutes descended into a blur of violence and blood as he let himself take out his anger on the Bolton soldiers. It was honestly the first time Ned truly lost control of his emotions in years. When he finally came to, he was kneeling on either side of one of the Bolton men, beating his head in with his bare hands. His shield nowhere to be seen and his sword stuck in the ribs of the corpse next to him.
When he finally looked up, the battle was winding down. Most of the smallfolk were throwing their weapons down or turning on Boltons men. He realized Lord Umber and Karstark must have taken the dungeon.
After giving himself a few moments to catch his breath, he stood and turned to look around him. Thats when Ned noticed the almost stunned looks on most of his men's faces as they looked at him. He grimaced slightly, before pulling his sword out of the body next to him.
Ned then turned and started making his way towards Lord Gover without a word.
He honestly hated war.
Criticism is welcome as long as its constructive.
To read ahead: Pat_ (slash) TheLifeandTimes19.