Chapter 37

On Our Terms, Surrender

Kingdom of Waloed, Stonhyrr

Within the capital city of Waloed lurked a curious darkness. Deep in the confines of his castle, eyes staring into the flames of his hearth was Barnabas Tharmr. Chosen of R'hllor to heed his commands and aid his hero, his champion, in the coming war. The only one outside of his priests who could see what the flames wished to impart upon him. Upon the mortal spirit.

Within the flames he saw the trials that Azor Ahai would face. His confrontation with the Others. His journey back towards the Wall. The encounter with the Behemoth. Barnabas saw all in the flames, all that his lord would allow him to see.

"Just what lies beyond the flames?" he asks aloud, gaze firm on the fire "What is it that you would have me do now?"

He saw a man, a cruel smile etched on his face. He knew this man, for it was he who had brought the Behemoth to the Wall. To his lord's champion. A fate worse than death awaited him as the flames showed the fool being hefted up and over the wall, body hanging for three days before a cold hold overtakes it.

But that was no guide. The flames flicker, images shifting. He sees a city by the waters of a vast bay. He sees armies gathered around it and across the lands and in the sky he sees them.

Eikons.

"I see it now; you wish this to be my purpose in this conflict? Very well." The guards outside his door share a wary look, not unused to their liege's ramblings when alone in his chambers when the door opens. They stand at attention, eyes forward in fear as the Dominant of Odin leaves them in suspense. "I have need of you both to assist me with something, are you up to the task?"

"Whatever it is you would have of us, my liege, we will see it through." The one on the left says.

"Very good. I would have you deliver a message to the Lord Commander, tell him to have his men ready for battle."

"B-battle?" the guard on the right asks "My…my lord, are we…at war?"

"No, not yet, but we will be soon." Barnabas eyes the guard "You I would have report to the docks, have the men down there prepare the Einherjar for a voyage, a long one."

The two share a look.

"Well? What are you waiting for? Away with you!"

The guards make a hasty retreat leaving the Dominant of Darkness itself alone to his thoughts. Preparations would be swift, the trip even swifter, but nothing on this earth would delay his arrival. He had foreseen it.

Harrenhal

The return trip fromm the Wall had been…eventful. Clive was mostly looking forward to being able to get back to the war effort rather than spending his days having to deal with the combined noise that was Tormund and Wrecker.

That was another thing he found he came to regret. Mance and Jeor had agreed to a tentative peace. The Watch would keep an eye out for threats from beyond the wall while the Free Folk would help man the castles in their immediate range. Farming the lands of the Gift would be a trial but fortunately there were plenty eager to keep themselves on this side of the Wall who would do their part. The one issue Clive had was with the older men's decision to send Tormund and a few of his people south with his party back to Harrenhal.

A delegation, Jeor had called them, would do some good to help smooth things over with the other lords. As Clive watched the wary looks and stances of the northern soldiers they passed on their way up to the castle, he didn't doubt someone would draw a weapon and start another war they could not afford.

"If anyone asks, what do we tell them?" Hunter, ever the one to focus on their troubles, voices from his left "Wrecker can carry the damn thing just fine, has so far…but this is not the kind of thing we can just explain and expect calm to follow."

"Leave that to me," Benedikta chimes in, her predatory smile firmly in place "If anyone should give us trouble, I suspect it would be Lord Bolton who does once he sees the gift we have brought him. Although…are you certain the chains are strong enough?"

"Wrecker couldn't snap them, and I doubt something like that thing could either." Clive's eyes narrow as he spies his Uncle and a few of the northern Lords, Roose Bolton among them, just up ahead "Let's try to be gentle with this, shall we?"

Ned Stark watches as they approach. A brow raised in question as he stares at his nephew, his gaze barely flicking to the wildlings who now travel with him. "Sansa sent a raven ahead of you, while I find myself grateful for the safe return of my youngest child I find myself equally as…confused, by the new additions to your party."

"Ah…right, them." Despite his age Clive still bore a look of nervousness that his own mother once had, something Ned could not help himself but to smile at "Well…there's something that you all ought to see first."

"And this will somehow keep us from cutting down these savages?" Roose scoffs, arms folded against his chest as he glares at Tormund "Do you have any idea of just how many of our people they have killed, your grace?"

Clive buries the fury of Ifrit deep within, but he catches the eye of Rex as he and Cody step forward "There will be no need for any of that, I'm sure that Lord Bolton will be more than happy to see what we have to show him now."

Hunter helps Wrecker with the chest they brought back. It was put together in Winterfell after their original method of transport proved to be less than effective. The steel reinforcements kept it from opening suddenly, the iron frame doing its part to keep their confined prisoner from moving too much. As it was set down the pair unlatched the bindings and slowly tipped it forward.

A body falls out dressed in leathers and paler than the snow of the North. Brown hair that was far lighter than it should have been with eyes of blue colder than any frozen lake. Many of the men in the yard went for their swords on instinct as the body rose to its feet. Those eyes, just as beady and conniving as they were in life, flicked from one face to another before settling on one that even in death still drove their owner to madness.

Roose for his part did not flinch as the corpse rolled out of the trunk. He did not draw his sword in fear of what this creature was nor did he give anything away when it looked right at him. It took him a moment to remember why he recognized the face. In that moment the snarling undead corpse of Ramsay Snow charged and struggled as it tried to strangle Roose, frozen hands just falling short of his body.

"What is this?" Roose asks softly, face paling as he stares at his bastard son "What is this…this…abomination!?"

"That, is Ramsay Snow," Clive says, "Your son, a torturer of the people of the North, and a traitor to all of us."

"Explain…explain!"

Wrecker tugs on the chains keeping Ramsay's body bound to the trunk. The walker stumbles back before turning his attention on the large man. Before it could move in to strangle him an increase in temperature has it cowering before Clive. "This used to be a man, a rather poor excuse for one but nonetheless he was human. Now…now he is little more than a Walker, like the old stories."

"Walker's…a real one…"

There were murmurs all around. Some were scared, others in denial, but all of them were said by those who could see the abomination that Ramsay had become.

"How…how did it happen?"

"He tried to set a beast from Valisthea upon us, a Behemoth; when we had slayed the beast he attempted to stab me in the back." Clive eyes the changed man with distaste "Hunter knocked him out. We knew that none of you would believe us without proof, so we prepped him for a hanging, shackled his arms and legs and hung his body over the northern side of the Wall. For three days we waited for him to change on the fourth day he did."

Roose had never felt weak before in his life. Never helpless, and certainly not guilty. He didn't feel any of those things here and now, but one thing he did feel was fear. Fear of what the old stories had spoken of. Fear of what was now surely coming south to kill them all. "How many of them?"

"Probably more bodies than you have ever seen in your wars," came Tormund's gruff response "The Others don't care who you are, they just take whatever they can get. Man, Woman, even children. Every beast we have in our lands turned to their cause. Mammoths, Dire Wolves, bears, shadow cats, ice spiders, and Giants. We are all nothing more than fresh bodies for them to convert into their army."

"To think we saw them as little more than fairy tales," Maege could feel the years catching up to her at the news "How do we stop them?"

"We know that fire can defeat and even intimidate the lesser ones, the Walkers, but for the Others themselves that is another issue." Clive draws Invictus "Valyrian steel should hopefully work, weapons enhanced with Aether appear to work just as well also. But only the old stories would know more. There is not a man alive today who could tell you their weaknesses outright."

"And our plan for dealing with these…things?"

Clive lets loose a stream of fire, the flames forcing Ramsay back for Hunter and Wrecker to force him back into his prison. "We cannot hope to stand against them all on our own. We need to end this war soon, unite the kingdoms, prove to the other lords of the real threat and then prepare."

"That could take years!"

"Aye!" Ned watches as Clive addresses the crowd "It could take us years to prepare but we have time on our side. The enemy wont be getting any new bodies from us, and between us and them is the Wall which has stood since the last war with those abominations. More importantly…our ancestors didn't have the power of the Eikons on their side. When they attack, and they will…Ifrit will stand with you all!"

"As will the Phoenix!" Joshua throws in his support, giving his brother a nod "Rosaria wont allow an enemy like this to be left free. We will stand with you all when that time comes that we must fight them.."

Cid laughs, clapping the young lad on the shoulder "Well, if its all the same to all of you fine folk of Westeros, I should hope that Ramuh and I are more than welcome when the fighting starts."

"As if we expected you to sit this one out," Rex mutters, earning an elbow from Cody.

Clive's eyes search out Jill in the crowd. Her smile reassures him that she will stand with him, easing some of his own nerves. "There's still the matter of the war."

"Ah…about that, Clive." Cid shares a brief glance with Benedikta, the Dominant of Garuda narrowing her eyes and almost looking like an angry pheasant with how she glares at the man "I might have a plan for that."

"You might?"

"Alright, alright," he relents "Cody and I might have a plan."

Rex gives him a look.

"I am not doing this a third time Rex."

"Out with it Cid."

"Well, as fortune would have it King Robert is about to be surrounded in the coming days. A report came through one of Benedikta's people, and it turns out that old Tywin is marching on the capital as we speak along the Gold Road, while the Tyrells are taking the Rose Road." Cid, in his usual dramatic way according to Clive, pauses for dramatic effect "Now who do we know that is eager to claim the throne and not at all likely to pass up this golden opportunity?"

"Stannis."

"Got it in one!" Cid laughs "While we don't have any intel on his movements we do know that most of our enemies will be in the same place, at the same time, in less than a week. Which is the perfect time for us to attack as well."

"A three-pronged attack…Cid that is…"

"Brilliant? Fantastic?"

"Absolutely insane."

"Oh…well it was Rex's idea for that part."

Ned could feel the headache building as the former Lord Commander of Waloed antagonized the rosarian knight. "Well, it is not the most well thought out battle plan I have ever heard." He ignores the outcry from Cid and Rex "But Cody has argued the finer points to all of us before your arrival. He believes, and I agree, that if the other Eikons appear this would be the place to be. A battle like this will be dangerous, but it will be the perfect chance to take the city and avoid a long siege."

"Of course, we could always just wait and do nothing," Joshua adds "But then we would be here longer and every second counts when an army of the dead is marching south towards us."

Clive eyes Cid. There's that spark of something in the older mans eyes. Something that has Clive on edge as it did back at the hideaway. "You are up to something, aren't you?"

"Who? Me? Up to something? Perish the thought." Cid scoffs "I am not up to anything…although I was up to something before."

"Cid!"

"Alright, alright…spoil my fun." Cid waves over a pair of knights. "Had this made, well Joshua and Jill handled the design."

The knights were carrying a roll of fabric. As they unrolled it Clive felt his eyebrows shoot up as the blood red roll was revealed to be a banner, a banner with the design of a black Ifrit.

"This…this is…"

"Ifrit," Jill was the one to speak as she came up to Clive's side "Joshua and I thought that this would be most fitting. Your family, both sides of it, are connected to these colors but you yourself have been adamant of being a Rosfield."

"Father wouldn't have a problem with you taking our colors as your own Clive," Joshua smiles "But I do believe the use of Ifrit he would find quite fitting for you."

"Who came up with that?" Clive asks, right hand tracing the design slowly "It's…brilliant."

"That would be my doing," Jill admits with a light blush "Jote helped me with the actual stitching, though we did have plenty of help getting enough done for your return."

"How many?"

Robb smirks at his cousin "Enough for your army, your grace. We might have done this without you, but we all agreed, you are the king we would follow. A king born of the North, Dominant or not, our swords are yours."

Clive watches as the knights in the crowd, the lords, his own cousin kneel before him. The only ones not kneeling were his own party and Ned. Uncle and nephew exchange a look. The Warden of the North slowly steps forward, drawing his greatsword he stabs Ice into the ground and kneels.

"I, Eddard Stark of House Stark, Warden of the North," the words ring in Clive's ear as they are spoken. His mouth feels dry, his body almost weightless as his uncle begins his oath. An oath spoken only to a king by his lords. "Do hereby swear my loyalty, my sword, my service to you your grace."

"Ned will you stand up, poor lad looks like he might keel over." Cid's remark snaps uncle and nephew out of their collective dazes. The pair throwing the man their own glares. "Yeesh, hard to doubt you two are related when you can look like that."

Jill's touch on his arm has Clive brought back to reality from his usual irritation at Cid "Uncle…I am not yet crowned…and all of you, rise my friends. There will be time for oaths and kneeling when the capital is taken, but for now we have a battle to prepare for."

"Aye," Ned can see it in the lads face, his own lost in memories "We only waited for you, your grace, but now we can go."

Clive groans, eliciting a giggle from Jill. The pointed look from Joshua, Clive's raised brow and the conspiratorial smile Jote gave her had the princess of the northern territories feel heat rise to her cheeks. "Well, if my uncle is so agreeable…Sir Cody! Best we be off then!"

Cody nods, "Alright lads! Grab what you can carry, we march for the capital!"

There's a roaring cheer from the men, the order passing throughout the castle as the men run off to grab their gear. Cody and Rex don their helmets and fall into formation with the men. Clive himself could hear Ifrit deep within rumbling in anticipation of their next move. A steady heat enveloping his body as he relinquishes his control for just a moment.

"Everything alright?"

"For the first time in thirteen years Jill, I do not wonder about what I am doing or who I am…and I…I no longer feel as though I must repent for something beyond my control."

She gives him a smile, one of the special ones she only ever gave to him. The kind that made him try all the harder to impress her during his training. The kind he now knew was filled with her love for him. "We'll get through this together like we always have. And when it is done you can tell me all about what it was you went through up north."

"Aye, I would like that."

"You two love birds down yet?" And there was Cid to spoil the moment. Clive wondered if he might get away with knocking that self satisfied smirk off the mans face "Course, if you don't want a little help for later I could always come back before the battle starts properly."

"Help?" Clive asks, a feeling of unease settling in his stomach "Cid...what kind of help are you offering?"

Cid approaches, each step making Clive grow tense "Offer? Not so much offering it as I am forcing it on you. Now, if you would be so kind as to hold still, this wont take but a moment of your time."

Clive could only groan before giving his consent for this crazy scheme. On the upside, he'd be able to get some rest on horseback before the big day. And hopefully none of the visions or visits from gods that the last one brought upon his poor body and mind.

Kings Landing

Robert Baratheon scowls in his council meeting. Letters scattered across the table as his eyes scan the latest one.

"They would dare do this…and to sign it so boldly." Robert's scowl deepens "Clive Rosfield. That insufferable cur! He still lives!"

"Lives, and judging by your reaction, demands your surrender." Raven muses, reading over the letter from Joffrey "Is his letter demanding your surrender as arrogant as the bastards?"

"More so I say," Robert huffs, thrusting out arm and thus the letter in question "Read it."

Raven examines the letter. A smile tugs at the corner of his lips though it is quickly hidden "Well…it seems they all are coming then. And they are none the wiser to your power or the others' presence. Tell me, has Prince Oberyn sent a letter demanding you surrender?"

"The viper?" Robert scoffs "He and his army have been kept outside of the city walls as you suggested for a month. If he hasn't left or tried anything now, then he and Dorne might just be the most loyal of all the kingdoms."

"Worry not, my men and I are ready, and soon your enemies shall be dealt with in one battle."

"A single battle to decide the fate of the realm…this could mean the very end of the war." Barristan the Bold held in his hands the letter written by Stannis. The words weren't pretty, nor were they as arrogant as Joffrey's had been either, they had been blunt and quite…confident. "What do we know of this Clive Rosfield, truly?"

"Why do you wish to know?"

"Your grace, we have underestimated him at every turn. Your brother and Joffrey have been predictable. It is only because of Lord Tywin that the Lannister's forces did not lose this war in the opening engagements. With the Reach allied to them we run the risk of facing Lord Tarly as well, a man who is one of the realms greatest strategists."

"A man who could come up with a plan to take the city…Ser Barristan has a good reason to be concerned," Raven agrees "But this Clive Rosfield…he is no Dominant, every Dominant is known to us in these lands. None have escaped our notice."

"You are sure of that? My throne is threatened Raven, I will not have any more surprises in fighting to control it still."

"I assure you; my men and I know of every Dominant on the board. Should they engage us in battle, they will be knocked from the board and the seven kingdoms will be yours by days end."

"Very good then. Now, let us plan for this siege they intend to enact upon us."

Dion Lesage embraced the breeze blowing through the field. King's Landing awaited him just ahead. The march had bee uneventful but seeing it now this was going to be a battlefield unlike any other. Bahamut had stirred within him and the great dragon had good reason to. He could feel it, the other Dominants were near, as were these other Dominants he had been hearing rumors about.

"And so it begins," Dion sighs as Terrence, one of his most loyal knight's steps forward with his lance "Tell it to me true Terrence, do you think this to be the right thing?"

"I cannot say, my prince, but as our honor demands it we are supporting an ally in this war. Surely that alone should be enough?"

"I am not so sure." Dion admits "A war for the throne, fought amongst many with a claim to it and yet…something still leaves me feeling uneasy."

"Whatever it is, a feeling or something more, we Dragoons are loyal to you my prince. And we forever will be."

Dion feels some of the tension slide off his shoulders at those words. Accepting his lance from Terrence he smiles "I shall not let you down then Terrence, hopefully this war will end today, and we may return to the empire alive."

With those parting words Dion takes the initiative and marches alone towards the city. The battle would begin but it would be on his terms and no one else's.

AN: Yeah…so…last chance for a lot of you to back out if you liked how this was going. I wont lie to you all, the next one is probably going to be rough. Our pieces are in place. The stage is set. Next time you all join me for a chapter, will be Chapter 38: War of the Eikons.

Hi, Future Shobu here; so yeah...chapter 38 is officially done. Did I do everything my brain told me to do? No...chapter got way too long for my liking so I had to cut it off...at the right moment. I wont spoil what happens but if this chapter goes up when I want it to which is 2/9/2025 at 3:00 AM my time...that's EST. Then you all can expect the next chapter to be uploaded...on the 23rd of the month, that is two weeks from today. Now, I will cut a deal, I'll decrease the time you all have to wait by one day per review. Gives you a reason to review, and you get to see the finale for our season 2 sooner. However, I will add a day for each bot review mentioning commissions/art in any form.

You've been warned.

Now let's get to the review, shall we?

Jebest4781: Well how is this for taking things at my own pace? A cliffhanger right where many probably didnt want it. ...maybe I do deserve the mob and pitchforks, but dang it I couldn't give everything in one chapter...that's next chapters job.