:-[Chapter 38]-:
The Dornish, however, were excellent at guerrilla tactics. They repelled the first Targaryen's invasion almost three hundred years ago and never once did they meet them in battle. The two thousand men who came with Oberyn were already the best in Sunspear. So, when came the time to choose who would come with him in assisting the crannogmen, he chose the best of the best. His men were, like him, shooting at any man from the Iron Throne's army, causing a lot of damage. The fleeing men were causing accidents with the campfires, which started a small fire in the camp. Many of the tents were burning ablaze, causing even more panic, as the lizard-lions snatched and devoured anything they could reach.
The Red Viper saw some men from the Vale arriving in panic. Thousands of dead and wounded were lying on the ground. The Prince saw the Old Falcon, Hand to the King of the Iron Throne starting to bark orders to his men. The knights of the Vale began to try to control the situation but, the highly intelligent mind-controlled animals were extremely tough to kill as each time one of them died, the crannogmen that controlled it had better control over the others, making them even deadlier.
Seeing the old man of the Vale in such a vulnerable position gave the Red Viper an idea. Nocking a very special arrow with an extremely lethal poison of his own concoction, Oberyn let the arrow fly in the direction of the Hand of the King, Jon Arryn.
:-[T.A.B]-:
:-[Day 9, hours after the attack]-:
Anarchy. It was the only word left to describe the world right now, Gawen thought grimly. The man remembered the terrible night that seemed to just happen. He was still in a semi daze state so he was not too sure. Only the excruciating view of his fellow Reachmen half eaten by gigantic monsters serve as an awful reminder.
It had taken them hours to take control of the situation. Only with the coming of the knights of the Vale could they encircle and kill each one of the beasts. The damage, however, was done. Tents were burning, food and supplies were set ablaze in all of the chaos, making the first wave of the crusade extremely difficult. What was left of the food was quickly stolen by desperate soldiers and levies of the Reach.
Lord Tyrell, his liege lord had run into the swamp and had not been seen since. Parties mainly made of loyal Summer Knights were quickly gathered and sent to look out for him. Gawen wanted also to join, as he was a good tracker but the lords only sneered at him, like a cockroach. The young hunter was however put in charge of clearing the camp of debris and refuse.
The worst of it, however came from Lord Arryn. The poor old man had been shot in the arm by a poisoned arrow. When the Maesters and Silent Sisters managed to remove to offending piece of metal, they immediately saw the poison working due to the purple veins and skin around the wound. They were now working tirelessly on finding a way to save the Hand of the King.
The moral was at an all-time low. Thousands of men, levies, Summer Knights, infantry or cavalry, had run away, terrified of what the North was capable of. If he was honest with himself, even Gawen wanted to leave. He was fine with the cold, he was fine with being hungry, but those monsters, the snow, the heavy resistance from the northerners, his cowardly liege lord running away and now the Hand of the King was dying. Only his honor and the promise he made to his old man, Old Gawen, made him stay.
"I will not run away. I will stand proud, like you did during the Ninepenny War."
He wanted so much to be a hero. His multiple promotions gave him a little money but it was either stolen or destroyed during the inferno. He had hoped to sack the castle and then the North to bring honor and glory to himself and his family in the hope to maybe obtain a knighthood but now, he was not so sure he would even suvive.
:-[T.A.B]-:
"To a tremendous success! To the North!"
"To the North!"
Inside Harry's personal solar, the main leaders of the North were present, celebrating their grand victory from their defense. The young wizard was indeed proud of his plan. When he saw the signal Prince Oberyn gave when he litup the enemy camp, he immediately made the wind start up andfedthe inferno that ravaged the camp, destroying the majority of it.
"Aye, Prince Oberyn." said Lord Rickard Stark. "It was, like you said, a tremendous success and a very good showing of mutual aid. The fact that you protected every single crannogmen and you suffered no losses among your own is a testament of your own capabilities. So, to this I say, to Dorne!"
"To Dorne!" said the group, drinking their respective drinks.
The war was going well. They had very few wounded and even less dead in their ranks, even with the attack on the camp. Harry's strategies were going well in sapping the moral of the enemy. The Red Viper of Dorne had struck and used this incredible opportunity to give a tremendous blow to the forces of the Crown. Jon Arryn was wounded and if Prince Oberyn was to be believe, the man would die soon. Harry knew Lord Rickard and Eddard were sad, in a way, about the man's future demise. He had been a friend and a mentor respectively to both of them.
Nonetheless, both Starks knew their duty to their family, to the North and to their people. They knew they had an entire kingdom watching them for answers. Sure, they had one big battle that put them on the high ground. Moral was on their side, as were food and supplies. Rickard made sure to have Moat Cailin at full capacity before the south arrived and even then, fresh food was still coming in from his bannermen.
Speaking of the bannermen, some like the Karstarks, Glovers, Boltons and Umbers had sent more men, thus reinforcing even more the already fully guarded castle. Under the advice of his liege lord, Harry decided to send the Bolton men, who came without Lord Bolton, to the northern wall.
"My friends," started the raven-haired young man. "The armies of the Reach are in total disarray. Thanks to Marcy and her birds scouts, we know that Mace Tyrell is currently missing. Our offensive this morning was such a success, that we stopped not just one Lord Paramount, but two!"
"Fucking aye!" yelled Lady Maege, drinking her second glass of wine of the day and making her young protege laugh. The young Stark woman was drinking diluted wine with some water with her father's blessing.
"Soon, the armies of the Riverlands will arrive to support what is left of the Reach and the Vale. We can expect that they will be better equipped to fight against the cold. Ser Brynden Tully was supposed to lead the host himself but Marcy is convinced that the Smiling Knight is leading them all." continued the young lord to the shock of all present.
"Why would Rhaegar do this?" Ser Barristan said aloud. The man was drinking a very, very rare glass of wine for the victory his new lord and young protege obtained.
"What do you mean, Ser?" Harry asked, simply curious about his mentor in the art of swordplay.
"Rhaegar was once a man of honor andintegrity. He would never have allowed mere criminals to be part of the kingsguard for whatever reason. Now he gives one command of an entire army? Something is amiss, Lord Harry."
The group became very pensive at the honorable knight's comment.
"Well," the young wizard said. "We will have to upgrade our own defenses and ask Marcy and her scouts to investigate more about all of this. In the mean time, what are we going to do about Mace Tyrell, being lost in the swamp?"
:-[T.A.B]-:
:-[Day 11]-:
Lord Mace Tyrell, Lord of Highgarden, Lord Paramount of the Mander, Defender of the Marches, High Marshal of the Reach, Warden of the South, Vanquisher of the North and head of House Tyrell was completely lost and absolutely famished. He had not eaten since the attack on his camp days ago when those demons from the Seven Hells came from the night itself.
Mace was still running but did not know where to go. He was lost in the snowy swamp and could not remember where hehad comefrom. After his first night alone, where he pissed himself in fright at every sound that he did not know, he wanted to follow his own tracks back to camp but the wind had blown them away while he was sleeping. He was so scared but managed to find a small cabin, probably from a hunter or something. Now at least he had found shelter. It smelled like shit but at least he would not feel the wind so much.
The Reachman was trying to light up a small fire but was unable to do so, having no idea how to light one by himself. He always had a servant make one for him.
Now, on the second day alone, after many, many unsuccessful attempts to make a fire, Mace finally did make one. What he did not know, was that it would be a fatal mistake on his part.
:-[T.A.B]-:
Marcy woke up from a long period of time in her crow's mind. After two days of searching, she had finally found him. The man was hiding alone in a small cabin hunters used during their hunts. In her warged animal, she saw the smoke from a significant distance and flew in that direction quickly. She put herself on a small branch, up in a tree and waited. At one time, Mace Tyrell came out of the hut to take a piss.
Immediately, the woman from the Neck let go of her bond with her animal, even if it would take it several hours to come back. Marcy got up quickly and ran toward Lord Winterstorm's main tower. After leaving all of her weapons at the entrance, she was allowed to enter and was escorted by two of the Moat's Wolves into Harry Winterstorm's solar. In this time of war, security was at an all-time high.
She quickly told her escort the reason forher coming and they all three ran as fast as possible toward the lord's personal solar. They found Torrhen, as ever standing in front of the door, a massive spear in his hand.
"Warrior Torrhen!" said Marcy. "I need to speak to Lord Winterstorm immediately. It is of the utmost importance. This could change the war!"
"Wait here a moment. Lord Winterstorm is in a meeting with Lord Stark himself.
Marcy nodded her head, understanding his reasons. Nonetheless, she felt trepidation about what was about to happen. Less than a minute later, the giant man came back from inside and let the door open for her, nodding in her direction. She nodded and entered the solar.
Inside was of course Lord Winterstorm and all of the Starks. Her liege lord, Lord Howland Reed was there also, a small smirk on his face. The two ex-kingsguard were also present in thecompany of Prince Oberyn Martell, his sister, Princess Elia Martell and her lady-in-waiting, Ashara Dayne.
"I beg your forgiveness, my lords... but this could not wait a moment longer." Marcy said.
"What is it, Marcy? Are the crannogmen fine?" asked Lord Winterstorm.
"To my knowledge my lord, the only thing we all despair for is our home, but this is not what I wanted to speak with you all about."
"Then please, tell us what is so important."
"I have found the Lord Paramount of the Reach, Mace Tyrell."
:-[T.A.B]-:
Barely twenty minutes later, the group was gathered in the main courtyard of Moat Cailin. Harry had immediately volunteered to lead a small group of elite men. With him was Torrhen, who had immediately refused to stay at the castle, his best friend and right-hand man Eddard, Ser Barristan Selmy, Ser Lewyn Martell and of course, Hedwig.
Sura was saying goodbye and good luck to her husband, while Lady Ashara was being reassured by Ned himself. Princess Elia was with her uncle, speaking softly together while Lord Rickard was speaking with Ser Barristan about protecting his son and young protege in which the honorable knight reaffirmed his dedication to.
Harry climbed up his familiar's back, enjoying the powerful feeling she gave him. He had with him the map where Marcy mark the Fat Flower's location. He was not far, as his feeble legs could not handle running for too long. The man was probably waiting to be found by his men instead of taking the situation into his own hands.
The other selected men mountedtheir horses, who were used to Hedwig's terrifying presence. Just before leaving, Harry had asked Howland about the passage that the crannogmen and Dornish men had usea couple of days ago, allowing them take the enemy completely by surprise.
The five men and familiar were running as fast as they could. Hedwig was leading them into the swamp and then the woods after a couple of hours, being used to running in them in the past.
They thus passed unnoticed by the Reach soldiers, each one of them having chosen a white horse and white cloak to help them pass by stealthy. Luckily for the men, they had a wizard with them that could make a small gust of wind in the enemy camp, obstructing the enemies' vision.
Harry was letting Hedwig run on her own, since she knew what he knew. His familiar was not running as fast as she normally did since the horses were not as agile as her in the woods. After hoursof travelling at a hard pace, the group finally found the small cabin, smoke rising up from the chimney. It was surrounded by a least two dozen of Reachmen. Luckily for the northerners, all of the Reachmen's attention was on the building and not the surrounding forest.
The four men that came with Harry quickly tied up their horses to some trees and knelt down so that they could not be seen by the enemy.
"Fuck. They have already found him." Harry said softly. Summer Knights were surrounding the cabin, creating a small zone of what they thought was security.
"These are fucking southerners." Torrhen said gruffly. "They are not warriors." he said, while looking at the twoknights looking at him with a small smile on their face. "No offense." he quickly added.
"None taken." both of them said at the same time.
"Pay attention. I agree that this group is fairly strong but let's be honest, we cannot take them head on just like that and expect to come out unscathed. Mace Tyrell is not worth any of our lives." Harry said firmly but not scathingly.
"Harry is right." Ned said, looking around. He pointed out a group of horses tied up with only a couple of levies guarding them. "Look, their horses have barely anyone guardingthem. We can create a diversion that will cause them to come running for the horses."
Harry immediately understood where his best friend was going with this. "Then we can shoot some of the Reachmen with our bows and kill the rest with our swords in the woods where we have cover."
"I will go take care of the first part of your plan." volunteered Ser Lewyn. He rose up and move through the bushes to the enemy's horses without being seen. With a nod, Harry sent Hedwig with him to help him scare the animals.
They waited for around five to ten minutes for the Spear of Dorne and the white direwolf to accomplish this mission. Just as planned, as soon as the animals started running away, the Summer Knights notice and followed behind them. When they were spread out enough for Harry, the Lord of Moat Cailin fired his first arrow, hitting a man directly in the upper back. Eddard, Torrhen and Ser Barristan followed, expertly killing their targets at a good distance.
"What the fuck!?" a Summer Knight screamed. "We are under attack! By the Mother, rise up your shields men!"
The dozen surviving members of the Reach grouped up and locked their shields together, creating an impenetrable wall against the arrows. Harry was quick as a flash, noticing that they had grouped up. He raised his arms, his palms toward the enemies.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" thinking as hard as he could about their shields. The objects of protection flew high in the air, leaving the men completely at the mercy of the other three northerners. They each had time to kill another Reachman each before needing to pull their swords out.
Ser Barristan was the first to arrive within close quarters with Reachmen. It only took him three moves to defeatthe first man of this group. The knight was truly the epitome of a swordsman, deflecting attacks easily. Beside him, Eddard was equally deadly with his weapon. With his young age, the Reachmen thought to have found easy prey but they were all disposed of easily by Rickard's second son.
Torrhen was a happy man, judging by his heartly laugh. His massive two-handed axe was maiming and slashing at anyone who came too close to his lord. It was the first time the man could prove himself in battle and Harry knew he would fight like a maniac, reveling in his bloodlust. Even if the young wizard was very skilled with his sword, he decided to keep using his magic against the Reachmen.
"AUGUE!" yelled the young raven-haired man, joining the tip of his index finger and thumb on both of his hands together. A massive fireball came from it, carbonizing the first poor man who thought he had a chance against the wizard.
Ser Lewyn came riding in on the back of a horse, brandishing his spear high and striking a Summer Knight from behind, killing him instantly. They quickly took care of the entire group without even a scratch on them. Approaching the cabin as a single unit, Harry quickly casted one of his most useful spells.
"Alohomora."
The lock clicked instantly, letting the sorcerer knowit was successful. He could hear people inside, which he informed his group of. With a mighty kick, mixed with Hedwig's strength, Harry smashed the door open, removing it from its hinges entirely. He heard a girlish scream, then other voices, trying to calm the screamer.
"My lord, please be calm. Nothing will happen to you under my watch."
Harry heard his mentor, Ser Barristan and Ser Lewyn gasp in surprise when they all heard the voice. The lord of Moat Cailin did not recognize it, however. Entering the cabin, the raven-haired young man finally saw the man who was their target, Mace Tyrell. The man seemed to have seen better days. He had bags under his eyes and seemed absolutely terrified of the situation hefound himselfin. In front ofMace,was a man dressed in full white combat armor with a white cape.
"Ser Jonothor Darry. Knight of the kingsguard to Rhaegar Targaryen." Ser Barristan said, his voice grim, for he knew what was about to happen. Darry was one of the finest blades in the Riverlands, not an opponent to mingle with.
"Ser Barristan The Bold and Ser Lewyn the Spear of Dorne. Traitors to His Grace, King Rhaegar, First of His Name. His Grace will be most pleased when I will bring both of your heads."
"You really think you can beat the five of us, Jonothor?" Lewyn asked, his tone showing his surprise.
"I am blessed by the Voice of the Seven himself. I shall see victory, there is no doubt about it. You are a disgrace to all knights in Westeros, all three of you. Now, old man, do you want to be first, or be the one who shall see his companions die?"
"I shall..." began the stormlander but was interrupted by someone.
"I shall take you on, Ser." the young wolf said, his voice slightly angry.
"Lord Stark! Your father..." Barristan said, his voice almost begging.
"I will not let this man insult you nor us any longer. This is a bridge that I need to pass and I need to pass it by myself. Please, Ser. Allow me to defend your honor."
A heavy silence settled over the cabin and Harry used it to better look at the situation. Mace Tyrell was in the corner the single room, unscathed and seemed to be without a weapon. Ser Jonothor was in front of him in a defensive stance and two other knights behind him. One of them looked more like a lord, if his attire was right. The coat of armon his shoulder was a portrait of interlocked golden rings, upon a sky blue field. The young lord did not recognize the House at all since his studies were more concentrated on the North.
Barristan sighed in despair. He knew Lord Stark would have his skin if his second son were to die in a futile duel like this but Harry had complete confidence in Ned andhis combat skills. After all, he sparred against him almost every day. His sparring with Barristan the Bold and Lewyn the Spear of Dorne had only honedhis skills even higher.
"Very well, my lord. We shall go outside to prepare for the duel."
It was a solemn group of rebels that came out of the cabin. They removed some of the corpses out of the way, with Hedwig watching their back in case of a treacherous move or even to hisescape coming from the Lord of Highgarden. Eddard went in place, a couple of yards from the door.
"I am ready, Ser Jonothor Darry. House Stark has found offense in your words. These men are allies of the North and I am honor bound to defend them." he said, taking a stance.
Darry came out of the cabin, with his white helmet on his head. He threw his shield on the ground, pointing his sword and laughing at Eddard.
"Well, isn't that cute. The young pup thinks he has claws does he not? I will show you the true power of a skilled knight. Prepare yourself."
The knight blitzed forward without warning nor waiting for a signal. Harry had to give it to him, he was fast on his feet and with his hands. He was on the offensive and did not let Eddard to have an inch. Eddard stoically blocking his blows with skill.
"You defend yourself better than I thought for a fucking barbarian!" Jonothor said, trying to anger his opponent.
Ned said nothing, concentrating on the fight. He knew sometimes verbal sparring was part of the fight but Harry also knew his best friend had a mind of steel. He was very hard to distract in a fight. Slowly but surely, Eddard took the advantage. The momentum was on his side but Jonothor was not a simple levy.
"Do not underestimate me, you fucking brat!"
Eddard stayed calm, not reacting to the man's verbal jab. His sword was fast like the wind, not letting Darry rest for a second. Suddenly, the duel to the death was turning to the young Stark's side. Ser Jonothor was on the defensive and Harry could see him panting more and more.
With a quick sidestep and a blow to the wrist, Ned managed to force his enemy to drop his sword. Now unarmed, the man from the Riverlands was so shocked that he did not see the second blow coming, this time to his right knee. Now on the ground, screaming in pain, Harry saw Jonothor bleeding heavily.
Missing the bottom half of his leg, the kingsguard only had moments to live.
"How can a fucking brat can beat me?" whispered the maimed knight.
"I did not underestimate you, Ser. It is just that I fought knights better than you." Eddard said in the coldest voice possible, slicing the man's neck open with finality.
:-[T.A.B]-:
Gawen could not believe his luck or lack thereof. This morning, the Lords and Summer Knights had finally changed their minds and called for the best trackers in the levies and the young hunter was part of them. In fact, he was the leader... or had been. Now, everyone was dead outside, lying in the now red snow, except himself, Lord Roxton and Lord Tyrell. A group of around two dozen men, kill by five men and an overgrown wolf in a matter of minutes.
Now, he was forced to stand in the way of Ser Barristan the Bold, again, and that was without speaking of the fucking sorcerer himself. Both lords beside him were shaking like a leaf before winter, especially Lord Tyrell. Lord Roxton was sweating nervously.
"D-Do something, Lord Roxton!" the Lord of Highgarden begged.
"I cannot do anything, my lord. They have won this battle. We must pray the Seven-Who-Are-One that the heathens will treat us with mercy."
"This is unacceptable! I refu..." the man started before getting interrupted by the sorcerer's voice.
"Lord Tyrell. It is over. Lay down any weapons you and your men may have."
"W-What proof d-do I have that I shall be treated with mercy?" Lord Tyrell said.
"My word is the only proof you will get." the sorcerer answered, his voice resonating in the cabin as if he was the wind.
Gawen heard his cowardly lord whimper in fright. Clearly, he did not want to step out of the cabin at all. To be honest, the young hunter did not want to either. Lord Roxton did not seem to be from a different mind.
"Step out, all of you with your hands high in the air." the lord of Moat Cailin continued. "Do not think you can get out of this alive if you try anything."
The son of Old Gawen gulped loudly at the last comment. He did not want to die, especially for a cowardly lord like Mace Tyrell. The man really did not have any kind of courage whatsoever and Gawen was starting to see the man for what he truly was, a spineless coward. The lord was born with a silver spoon up his arse and had never faced a harsh reality like this.
"My lord, we... we should go out." Gawen said. "This is the sorcerer of the North with two ex-kingsguards and the Young Wolf himself. We have no chance of escaping."
"Q-Quiet you fool!" Lord Roxton said, trying his best to look in control of the situation. "This is not the time for your foolishness, peasant."
"Well, I for one refuse to die here in the middle of this shithole, because of you!" the young hunter said, before taking his first steps towards the door.
Gawen ignored the pleading of the two lords. He took a deep breath and step out. Outside, he sawthe group of five men glaring at him. The native of the Reachquickly puthis handsin a 'I give up' stance and simply hoped for the best.
"I give up, my lord..." started the terrified man, dropping to his knees.
"You are Gawen, are you not? We met on the first day when we captured you." Ser Barristan the Bold said, his blue eyes peering through his helmet, watching Gawen's every moves.
"Yes, Ser, I am. I fight for Lord Tyrell..." the young man confirmed, still shaking.
"Well Mace, what are we going to do?" Eddard interrupted. "Are we coming in, or are you coming out?"
The group receive no answer for several minutes, causing Harry to react angrily.
"Tyrell! Get out of the fucking cabin before we force you out!" Harry yelled impatiently, but still receiving no answers.
"Harry, if I may try something? Ned asked, before getting a nod from his best friend and fellow lord.
"On my honor as a member of House Stark, I swear on the Old Gods that if you come out in the next minute, your lives shall be spared. You may keep your weapons and honor after the war."
The young wizard was satisfied with this offer. He did not care for a Valyrian Steel sword, especially if he had to steal it. He would not have minded if a chance to take Red Rain or Nightfall from the Iron Born had appeared, since they were a bunch of rapist-murderingfanatics but he did not want to bring shame upon his name nor Lord Rickard.
"V-Very well, my lord. We put our trust into you." said a voice coming from inside the cabin.
Lord Roxton was the first to come out, his hands raised in the air, his face down with Mace following reluctantly. Ser Barristan and Ser Lewyn immediatelystarted searching the three men. When Barristan got to Lord Roxton, he removed his sword from his scabbard and saw the darker toned and rippled metal sword, catching his attention instantly.
"A Valyrian steel sword. Orphan-Maker if my memories serve me right." Eddard said, seemingly knowing what Barristan had in his hand. Lord Roxton reluctantly nodded at the Young Wolf's query.
"Torrhen, make sure they are securely and gag them as well. Do not make me break the word of my friend." Harry stated.
"Aye, my lord, I shall be quick about it. Permission to split their heads in two if they start doing something stupid?"
"Granted."
:-[T.A.B]-:
Harry was ecstatic at the moment. A little bit stressed out about being outside of his fortress and having a massive number of enemy soldiers between him and Moat Cailin but overall the young wizard was proud of himself and his compatriots. He could feel his familiar breathing just behind him, ready to pounce at the first sign of aggressiveness.
"Lord Tyrell, a pleasure to see you again. Lord Roxton, we never had the pleasure. I am Lord Harry Winterstorm, Lord of Moat Cailin and Sorcerer of the North." Harry nodded. "It is my pleasure to announce your capture by the forces of the North."
:-[T.A.B]-:
Thank you everyone for reading Chapter 38 of The adventure begins! Please let a review in the comment, letting me know what you think about my story or what you would like to see.
Criticism is always welcome as long as it is constructive.
Thank you to abarai72 for his amazing help in developing this story!
To Blaze1992: Oh absolutely!
To Travis Btmb, BioHazard82, Claudiomir and Ptool: Thank you all so much for your support guys! I really mean it.
To Sheploo: Hails!