:-[Chapter 28]-:
The royal wedding was to be set on Harrenhal, just before the war against the North. Cersei was beyond happy that her dream was coming true. Himself was satisfied with his two eldest. Jaime was set to marry Catelyn Tully as soon as he becomes a knight. The war should easily provide that, he thought to himself.
Even in all of his madness, Rhaegar was showing more cunning than his father ever did. He was the one who came to Tywin about marrying his daughter, even after his own father had already refuse once, to his great anger. The Targaryen was the one whom organized all of the marriage for this great alliance. He even managed to keep the Stormlands in his grasps by giving the Royal Fleet to them.
But this last raven gave him pause. Initially thought to be neutral in the war, Jon Arryn was given the position of Hand of the King in the hope that his could convince the Starks and Martells to surrender peacefully. His spies in King's Landing told him that if he was to fail, the knights of the Vale were to fight in the war. Tywin was convinced everything was a ruse from King Rhaegar to simply have more men to spend on the war. There was no way the North and Dorne would ever agree to kill one of their own.
:-[T.A.B]-:
The Order of the Guiding Hand was traveling toward Harrenhal. As many of them were member of the clergy, merchants or Maesters, it was easy for them to cover their travel with their guards. Inside their carriage, the members minus the Stranger, still with their mask, wre discussing the latest facts and future plans. Years of planning. Years of waiting for the perfect opportunities to act. Now was the time. With the help of the Stranger and his contact in Essos, they were able to hire a certain man from a certain organization, the Faceless Men of the House of Black and White.
"Now we know we will have the sorcerer. The Faceless Men never broke or failed a contract. He will bring him to us and the war will end before it even started." said the Father, sure of himself.
"Indeed. It cost us much in our savings but, it will help us tremendously. We need to learn where he is from to make sure to exterminate his teachers if he has some. His lady wife must be killed." said one member.
"We should just kill him instead of capturing him. Who knows what a sorcerer like that is capable of? He managed to rebuild Moat Cailin in one simple night and take control of the Starks. This sorcerer is far more dangerous than The Lace Serpent." said the Mother.
"I agree with the Mother. We should..."
"Enough." said the Father firmly. "We've already agreed on this matter in Oldtown, no need to revisit it now. The Faceless Man is already on his way. Hopefully capturing him will break his spell on the North and they will understand and accept the light of the Seven."
"What of King Rhaegar? Is he really to lead the Crown's armies himself?"
"Like the High Septon said in his letters, Rhaegar sees himself as the Voice of the Seven. He is convinced they are talking to him through his dreams. He believes it is his sacred duty. All the more good for us. Our agent also told us that he will accompany his grace wherever he goes to give him council."
"At least that old buffoon is doing something right finally." muttered the Mother.
:-[T.A.B]-:
Harry Winterstorm was out hunting with some of his men. Wanting to learn the way of the swamp like the crannogmen, the young wizard had asked to some of them to show him. Many volunteer came out, forming a small group. Holding his spear firmly in his hand, the young lord followed the trail on an animal.
"Can you tell what animal it is, my lord?" asked one member of his hunting group.
The emerald-green eyes man took his time to analyze. He was there to learn after all. A boar? No... a stag. The animal's prints were still fresh in the soft ground. A big one, he thought with a smile. The thought of bringing his first meat was something he truly wanted to do.
"It's a stag, isn't it?" said Harry, sure of himself.
"Indeed, my lord. You remembered your lessons well." said the experienced hunter. "Now from these marks here, we can see he stop. Probably when he heard us. Can you tell me how I know that?"
"Aye." smiled Harry. "The mark on the top left has more dept than the others, sign that the stag heard or saw something."
"That is exactly right, my lord."
Suddenly, Harry and the hunters heard a branch cracking. Immediately, everyone looked up. A shadow appeared from the fog. A horse came out of it and on it, a cloaked figure. Immediately, the hunters went around their lord, ready to give their lives for him if needed be.
"Stay back, my lord!" said one of the hunters. "You! Stop right there or be killed!"
The figure stopped and Harry could hear him chuckled slightly.
"Even after travelling all this way, you northerners still can't say a simple hello." said the mysterious man.
"Reveal yourself!"
The cloaked figure let his hood down, revealing his face. The face of Robert Baratheon. Harry was stunned to see him, all alone in the Neck of all place.
"Robert! What are you doing here?" asked a confused Harry, tightening his grip on his bow. "Shouldn't you be with you father, guarding your border with Dorne?"
"When I heard about why our new king is so pissed against the North, I decided that I can't fight for someone like that. To force a father to kill one of his own children is... unforgivable. My own father has resigned himself to continue serving the Targaryen due to their great alliance, but I've chosen to come here to help my foster brother, Eddard."
Harry stayed silent a moment, hearing and trying to understand the man. Robert had never shown any hatred of even a hint of animosity toward the northerners and their religion. The man didn't even seem to care at all about the subject, only wanting to feast and spar with his friends.
"We are at war, Lord Robert. You can't expect me to believe you would have left your home and family to fight with us." said Harry, still suspicious. "What if you were followed?"
"I wasn't followed. I left Storm's End in a hurry and..."
"Robert, you are a six-foot-tall man dressed in full armor underneath your cloak." interrupted the raven-haired man. "You're not exactly subtle, aye? Add to the fact that your own father probably has sent many ravens to lords and knights about you. Can you honestly..."
A presence.
Something dark was near them. It was like a shadow within the darkness itself. Dark clouds passed in front the sun, hiding the light, creating a darker atmosphere. Even Robert's horse was becoming restless under the man who was projected from it. The Storm's End's Heir fell with a bang and grunted loudly on impact.
"Fucking horse! What in the actual fuck!?" screamed Robert as he got up to his feet with difficulty. Clearly the fall made him somewhat knocked out, but he managed to stay up his feet with his sheer will.
"Stay close!" said harry to his men. Why oh why didn't he bring Hedwig or more men with him hunting? Stupid mistake. His direwolf was way too far to help him now.
"What is it, Master Harry?" asked the direwolf, sensing her master's growing fear.
"There is something here, girl, something lurking. I don't know what it is." answered the Lord of Moat Cailin.
"I'm on my way." immediately answer his most loyal friend.
"It's already near and we are a couple day from the stronghold. I don't know if..." wanted to say Harry but was interrupted by yet again another voice, the one from a man.
"I can see you."
Harry froze. The voice was low and had a hint of danger within it. The feeling of death was in his heart, and he couldn't shake it away. This feeling... felt like when he was fighting Lord Voldemort at the end of his first year at Hogwarts.
"My lord..." started one of the hunters before getting a small knife through his eye, killing him on the spot. The other started to shoot arrows in the direction of where it came from but didn't seem to hit anything. The shadow ran so fast Harry could barely see it. From it came other knifes, killing the other crannogmen hunters, leaving only Harry and an already weak Robert.
"You are all mine."
The voice came from behind him. When Harry looked, nothing was there. He was shaking.
"Master! Snap out of it!" screamed Hedwig in her mind.
The young warrior snaped out of it as soon as he heard his familiar's voice inside his mind. He took out his sword from his scabbard on his belt and took a defensive position. Like the fool that he was, he had let his shield in Moat Cailin, thinking that he was safe. Multiple knifes were coming out of the fog, directly toward the Heir of the Stormlands. Since he was wearing his plate armor, his was able to easily deflect them.
"Come out you fucking coward! Fight like a man!" screamed Robert.
"As you wish, Lord Robert Baratheon." said the voice.
Quick as a flash, a shadow came out of the fog. Wearing a black cloak, the man was hiding almost perfectly in the environment. A black blade came out from under it and started to attack Robert first. The man was so fast that the stormlander could barely keep up. Quickly, he was hit under the arm and was barely able to lift his heavy warhammer.
"Ah fuck!"
Using part of Hedwig's power, Harry ran toward the mysterious man. He used his sword to throw some dirt at the assailant. The enemy manage to evite the attack and pushed the Baratheon man to the ground. The two warriors launched each other in a violent sword fight.
"You were so easy to find. Such an easy prey." snarked the man.
"Who the fuck are you and what do you want? Why have you killed my men?" said Harry, pointing his sword to the attacker.
"Contract on your pretty little head, Lord Winterstorm of Moat Cailin. You've some powerful people against you." answered the man before jumping back into action. He threw two knifes at Harry, one which manage to cut him a little on his leg. He was nothing than a surface wound however and the young warrior was able to continue the fight.
The young wizard was facing off an adversary stronger than him, even with Hedwig's power combined to his. He was parrying the black blade to the best of his abilities, but the man was faster than him.
"Hedwig! We're going full power, now!" screamed mentally Harry.
"We can't use it for very long, Master."
"Maybe so, but I'll fucking die before the North face the Crown and that cannot happen!"
Harry concentrated on his connection with Hedwig in his mind. His found her energy quickly and took possession on it. His body became bigger and taller. Wolves fangs appeared in his mouth, giving pause to the mysterious man. He was able to see clear as day, even in the darkness. His senses were decupled and now he knew he would be able to follow him. His eyes glowed in a green light.
"You truly are a sorcerer. The Stranger shall be happy with your death"
The man dropped his cloak on the ground. He was now armed with his black sword and a second but smaller one. On his second weapon, Harry could see it dripping with a liquid. The liquid hadn't any smell but the young wizard knew it was probably poison.
"I see you already saw the poison on my second sword. None the matter. The fight is already over anyway." laughed the man.
"Who the fuck are you?" growled Harry.
"A Faceless Man, send to capture you. I've waited a long time to finally get you alone. My patrons will be most happy to finally have you in their grasp."
"Come and try, you fucking piece of shit!" screamed an enrage Harry, his emotion decupled by Hedwig's power. The young warrior jumped high in the air with his full speed. The assassin in front of him wasn't a normal warrior so the raven-haired boy went full power.
Harry fought with all his might. His adversary was a tough one, better than Barristan Selmy himself, thought Harry. Even with his new power, the young wizard was on the defensive. The Faceless Man was dominating him as if he was a mere child. Why? Why? Why!?
Suddenly, a monumental roar put Harry out of his negative thoughts. Robert Baratheon was back on his feet and manage to grab the Faceless Man from behind. Quick as a flash, the assassin uses his newfound support to kick Harry fiercely with both of his legs, propelling him on the muddy ground. The Stormlander tried to hold on desperately but lost his grip when he received his enemy's head right in the mouth.
"Pitiful. Most pitiful." said the Essosi before smashing the flat on his blade on Robert's cheek, making him loose consciousness.
Harry's vision was starting to dwindle. What was going on? Even in sparring with the two ex-kingsguards, he was able to fight for a least an hour before getting exhausted. So how was he so tired after only a few minutes?
"I see you have notice. Let me help you remember." said the Faceless Man, showing one of his knifes on his belt.
"You piece of shit poisoned all of your blades." said Harry, touching his leg's injury. The young wizard saw that the wounded was purple around the edges. 'So little poison does this kind of damage?' thought Harry, starting to feel dizzy.
"Aye, I did. My blades are always poisoned. You were doomed from the start, little sorcerer. The House of Black and White has been around for millennia. We have fought the Valyrian Sorcerers themselves and won... from time to time. You are nothing compared to them. You are a tiny little lord playing around."
"Yeah? Play with this!" screamed an enrage Harry. "Incendio!"
A massive wave of fire came out of the palms of his hands, taking the assassin by surprise. The wall of fire quickly advanced towards the Faceless Man, who didn't have time to move quickly enough. His right arm was taken by the flame and soon, his clothes caught fire too. The man started to scream and ran away into the fog.
At the same time, Harry lost his new form, returning to his normal self. He was panting heavily as the poison was making its way in his entire bloodstreams.
"Did I... did I get him?" panted the young emerald-green eyes man.
"Not quite." said an angry voice behind him.
Harry didn't have time to turned around before feeling a blade piercing his skin. The last thing the young wizard heard was Hedwig screaming in his mind before he knew no more.
:-[T.A.B]-:
Lyanna was in her bedroom reading with Hedwig when she saw the direwolf becoming agitated. The familiar didn't act like this normally.
"What is it, girl? It is Harry?" asked the young girl.
Hedwig didn't look in her direction before jumping down the bed and running down the tower with speed, making the guards jump on her way. Rickard's daughter quickly dressed appropriately and followed the animal, ignoring the guards' plea for her to come back.
When Lyanna managed to find Hedwig, she found her collapsed on the stone ground on the courtyard outside. Guards were around the both of them in an instant, wanting to her sure their liege lord's daughter and lord's familiar were safe.
"Lady Lyanna! What is going on with Lord Winterstorm's direwolf?" asked one of the guards in semi-panic at the view of the agitated animal.
"I think there is a problem with Harry!" said the young girl. "His direwolf has never acted this way except during the Sistermen Rebellion."
Just as she said this, Hedwig let out a huge growl on pure pain, making everyone present in the courtyard wince at the same time.
"Hedwig!" screamed Lyanna, running toward her furry friend. The white direwolf whined a couple of time before falling unconscious. "Go get my father and brothers, now!" ordered the she-wolf. Her family would know what to do.
Guards scampered in all directions at the tone of her voice. Luckily, they found all three men training together in the Direwolves Tower's courtyard. They all came running as fast as they could, immediately conversing on the young woman.
"Father! It's Hedwig. I think Harry is in great trouble. One moment she was calm beside me and the other she was running down the stairs like mad. We need to get to Harry, now!"
Eddard was quick to act. In a couple of minutes only, he was able to assemble fifty men on horseback, ready to go get their lord.
"Don't worry everyone. We are going to get our Harry." said Eddard before riding away with his men. "Follow me men! Let's get Lord Winterstorm! Ah!"
:-[T.A.B]-:
Eddard Stark had been riding for two days straight before they found Lord Winterstorm's small temporary hunting camp. It looks like it has been abandoned for a couple of days. There were no horses around. The fire looks like it wasn't lit for the same time as well, an unusual thing about a hunting camp. All of their equipment and gear were still there also.
"Spread away, found where they have gone. They cannot be too far away now." ordered Eddard.
A chorused of, "Aye, my lord." was heard. Torrhen, the Captain of the Guard of House Winterstorm, was quickly beside his lord's friend's side.
"I should have gone with him. I should have insisted to accompany him." said the giant man, frustrated with himself.
"You know how he is. Once he got an idea, nothing can stop him. We will find him. I do not want to face Lady Sura without her lord husband."
"Me neither. The woman can be fierce..."
"My lord! Captain! We found traces in the mud leading east, into stag territory. They were following an animal." said one of the trackers.
"Good. Take the lead my good man, we will trust your instincts."
Eddard decided to let around a dozen men take of the camp and horse just in case. The Stark man continued his way, following the tracker. The man eventualy found the scene of the massacre. All the hunters Lord Winterstorm brought with him were death on the ground, flies flying around them. They all had knifes in their body, easily showing them the way they died. Around the wound, Ned saw the skin was purple.
"Lord Stark! Come here!" screamed one of the men.
The second son of Rickard quickly joined the screaming man. What he saw shocked him to his core. Robert Baratheon was there, wheezing on the ground, bleeding. His war hammer was at his side, completely clean of blood. What in the Old Gods names was he doing here in the North? He was supposed to be in the Stormlands with his family, not in the Neck.
"They died a day ago at the most." informed the tracker. "This fucker here gave them a run for their money I think."
"I don't think this is the work of Robert, the using of knife is not something he does. He much prefers the use of his war hammer. These men would have their skulls crushed if Robert have fought them but look at his weapon, no blood on it."
'My lord, the land was burned here and there is blood there beside what I think is Lord Winterstorm's own sword." sais the man before giving the weapon to Eddard by the blade.
"Aye, good find. I recognize Mikken's work. Lord Harry was here."
"I also saw other trace. I think they were attacked by surprise and got completely taken over. From was I gathered, the attacker was alone."
In a few minutes, all the information was gathered. The men found a horse's track a few dozen meters further directing directly South. Eddard decided to send five men with Robert, escorting him to Moat Cailin with strict order to not hurt him any further. He was the only witness to all this awful situation and the only one who knew what had happened to Harry. He, Torrhen and the rest would go South, to find Harry Winterstorm.
:-[T.A.B]-:
The Order of the Guiding Hand were the first to arrive in Harrenhal. They knew their agent was successful in his mission due to the Valyrian candle. They've assisted to him winning against the beast sorcerer with his poisoned blades. The Faceless Man was already near the castle due to having ride hard on his horse with his victim.
"Finaly, we will speak to that sorcerer. We need to know where he is from and kill him. His death is paramount to our success to exterminating the Old Gods." said the Mother.
"Aye, luckily, we are the first to arrive and we can to our business in peace. We need to hurry though, the royal armies are nearby." said the Blacksmith.
"One night we be enough. The man is drugged and his senses will be diminished. Killing him will be child's play." said the Mother confidently. "The Old Bat of Harrenhal, Lady Shella Whent has given us one of her towers to proceed with the execution. She's the last on her line at the castle, her only relative being Oswell Whent of the Kingsguard."
"Shella...she's one of our agents in the Riverlands isn't?" asked one of the six. "She was supposed to destroy the Isle of Faces but never did a single thing to help out and now, we stand to lose Harrenhal."
"Why should we care about Harrenhal? It is of no importance now." said the Father firmly. The Isle of Faces will burn eventually when the king arrives from King's Landing for his marriage with Cersei Lannister. It will be a sight to behold."
"When will the Faceless Man arrived with the heathen?"
"Tonight." answered the Mother, a vicious smile beneath her mask.
:-[T.A.B]-:
Thank you everyone for reading Chapter 28 of The adventure begins! Please let a review in the comment, letting me know what you think about my story of what you would like to see.
If you are interested in becoming an Alpha or Beta reader, contact me!
Criticism is always welcome as long as it is constructive.
To Sheploo: Soon!
To Qhristhian: ¡En efecto! El plan de Rhaegar será completamente revelado.
To Mark1: It is something that could easily happen indeed. The Boltons should not happen in the sotry, as I want the story to advance into the next adventure.
To SolOscuro: Thank you for the review, hope you like the chapter my friend!
To RRW: It would have been awesome!