Chapter 11 - A Beautiful Ritual
Harry met with the 27 Warg's and their eagles that joined the newly forming Frost Legion, wanting to offer them a more powerful familiar bond like he offered to Jon Snow. Warg's in general had a bit of magic about them, and to fully bond like most of them have, means they have enough to enact a familiar ritual.
"Listen, I can enhance the bond between you and your eagles, allowing for more abilities than just shared consciousness. If you are going to be the scouts of the Frost Legion, then this bond would benefit you."
Not a single one responded. The Free Folk inherently distrusted people with magic, yet they had put their trust in him enough to walk through a portal of his making. Harry was worried they would be too bitter to work with him.
Harry sighed, "Alright, you don't trust me and my foreign magical ways. I get it. But being Warg's, you all have magic inherently as well. I will just increase the connection between you and your bonded familiar using your magic to do so. For example, you see this tattoo?"
He showed the tattoo of Shimmer on his left hand, the rippling black and silver flames acting like a constantly shifting portrait of the beautiful phoenix. She was residing in his magic, tired after a day of teleporting people around. He summoned her and she appeared from the tattoo in a swirl of flames.
The future scouts of the legion were wide-eyed at his display, "I know, this isn't an eagle, she is a phoenix. An inherently magical bird of flame and rebirth. That being said, the connection you two have already between man and eagle, can be enhanced to allow some abilities like this."
Harry gestured and Shimmer vanished back into his magic, the tattoo coming to life like it was a living image.
Finally, one of the grizzled older men stepped forward. He had a huge grey beard and an eye that had a gnarly slash through it, "And this is needed to be a part of your legion?"
Harry smiled, "No, but it is an exceptional aspect of magic that you all can utilize quite easily, and I am offering you the chance to do so."
The same man spoke again, "I know it was you who saved our people, but I also know this cost isn't something we will easily pay. What more would you want from us besides our lives, just for a bit of fancy magic?"
"What's your name?"
The man glared but finally answered, "Ragmund."
Harry nodded, "Hadrian. This isn't an agreement to move an entire region's worth of people. This isn't a deal that requires a significant effort on my part to facilitate the meeting between leaders of nations. This is just a wizard offering the ability to enhance your bonds as Warg's. It costs you nothing and only a bit of time for me. I am only doing this because you offered to join the legion, you will notice that no other Warg's from the North will even know about it should you decide not to say anything. That's it."
Ragmund liked the straightforward talk the wizard used, "Aye, then how do I know you aren't trying to trick us? How can you guarantee that no harm will come to me bird or me people?"
"I don't care enough about you to waste my time doing so. I will only promise that this ritual is a world of difference in connection between you and your familiars and that they will not be harmed in the slightest."
Ragmund looked to the others, sighing as he walked forward, "Fine then, I will go first."
Harry nodded, "Great, let me lay out the circle and we can get started."
Harry laid the circle out just as Fawkes had done for him and Shimmer. His magic snaked out from him, burning the ground in the shape of the familiar bonding ritual, "Now, Mr. Ragmund, you sit here, and have your eagle sit in that part there. Make sure to not move and the same for your handsome eagle."
The rest of the future scout division of the Frost Legion encircled the ritual, but no one got close enough to disrupt anything. Ragmund was also careful as his huge eagle hopped down from his shoulder and he took his place on his side of the 'infinity sign' on the ground.
Harry didn't hesitate to activate the ritual and it was completed within seconds. Ragmund gasped as he felt his companion, his friend and companion for many years, enter his soul and body. It was intimate, powerful, and surprisingly different from when he was Warging. His eagle, Sharpeye, manifested within his mind. He could feel the emotions and connection as the bird vanished from the ritual.
A tattoo of a swooping eagle appeared on his neck and shoulder, the right wing spread down his arm and the head of the eagle went up to his eye. Ragmund pulled the undershirt he was wearing aside to show the tattoo. The rest of the scouts were speaking in the harsh consonants of the Old Tongue, questioning Ragmund about what just happened.
Ragmund was a hard man, but tears fell from his eyes as his connection to Sharpeye became more profound and powerful. It was beyond just using the bird as a Warg, beyond just having a companion, it was joining with her to become one.
Ragmund spoke to the rest of his fellows, nodding as he stood, "This...this is everything we wanted." He looked at Harry, his cheeks still wet, "Alright, wizard. I trust ye'."
Harry smiled, leading the 26 remaining pairs through the ritual. He then promised to get them all horses and equipment to begin training and he even set them with a mission to start. They were to watch the docks of the city, and let Harry know should the Wise Master's decided to flee by boat. With how it was surrounded and likely to come under attack, that would happen sooner rather than later.
Ragmund agreed to become the Captain of the Scouts and would be keeping an eye on the city with their eagles. He planned on meeting with Harry after the city was taken the next day.
There was one last group that Harry hadn't met with yet, and he started by finding their king and leader.
The giants watched as he approached, none of them acting aggressively but just curious. Their curiosity only grew as Harry spoke the giant tongue, "Greetings, Mag Mar Tun Doh Weg. I am Hadrian Peverell, but you may call me Hadrian."
The giant grunted, meaning that he accepted the greeting.
"I noticed that over 100 of your people have decided to join the Frost Legion, is that correct?"
He nodded, "Many fighters, few growers."
Harry realized that 'growers' were for both giant children and food suppliers, they were the mothers of their race, the women. He went on to question the mighty King Mag Mar, about the needs and wants of the giants and it was surprising to find out that they were mostly vegetarian and held a special connection to the earth. Their people used to cultivate large amounts of berries, cold plums, and root vegetables in the caves where they lived. Steam vents kept the earth warm and fertile so the giants could grow food underground.
Harry had to speak with Daenerys about finding a large series of fields for the Giants. The problem was that there wasn't any fresh water near Yunkai, and most of the farming was done outside of Meereen and Astapor, both of which had fresh water sources flowing into Slaver's Bay. He would have to relocate the giant population to Meereen along with the Frost Legion, with plans to cultivate their growing abilities.
Harry promised the King of the Giants that they would find fields to work with in the next city, and urged him not to put roots down just yet. In the meantime, Harry would have to acquire enough produce for their population to survive the few weeks until they get to Meereen.
For now, this was easily fixed by enlarging the various food types, creating fruits the size of carts that could feed several giants each. He was given some strange looks when the Giants celebrated the massive fruits and vegetables but they loved it.
~~o0o~~
Daenerys, Missendei, and Ser Barristan found Harry's Tent between their camp and the empty field that would belong to the Gold Legion come dawn. Drogon came along in his mother's arms as if being carried in a palanquin. He eyed the world around him with curiosity.
The sun was setting and Daenerys had been invited to dinner at the Peverell Manor patio where they had often met inside the Dream. After which, he had promised to conduct the ritual he had told her about, should she still wish to do so. The group approached Harry's relatively small tent and found the Hound on guard duty.
And by guard duty, it meant that he was eating a turkey leg the size of Daenerys's forearm with a huge mug of ale in his other hand.
"Here for the wizard then?" Hound asked around a bite, side-eyeing the dragon like it might take his meal.
"We are, is he in there?" Ser Barristan asked.
The Hound grunted and nodded at the tent, "He's in his fuckin' house in a box."
Ser Barristan exchanged glances with Missendei and held open the tent flap for the two to enter. They did and found an empty tent aside from an archway holding what looked like a vertical surface of water, glowing with blue and white light.
"Are we supposed to go inside that?" Missendei asked.
Daenerys looked at Ser Barristan who nodded, "I will go first, Your Grace."
The knight wasted no time and walked through the strange portal into a world of magic and mystery. He stuck his head back through, "It seems fine, Your Grace, rather beautiful in fact."
He walked back through and they followed. The surface of the portal didn't feel like anything as they prodded the surface. Even Drogon swiped at it with a wing. Daenerys had an odd sense of Deja Vu as she walked into the realm. Things within the Dream weren't as clear as what lay before her, but the same sense of majesty and profound magical beauty still struck her.
Drogon wasted no time as he greedily began drinking in the air, which was ripe with magic, a veritable feast for the growing wyvern. Even she felt it with barely awakened magical abilities.
"What is this place?" Missendei asked.
"This is Lord Hadrian's Manor, as he calls it. Though it's an entire realm in and of itself, even being magically potent enough to project into the Dream realm," Daenerys said, relaying the description given to her.
"What does that mean?"
"I have no idea, it is just what he told me. The more I learn with him, the more questions I have," Daenerys said with a bit of whimsy. They stood on a solid stone walkway that curved along the mountainous cliff to the right. From where they stood she could see the patio she had landed at so many times before. If only she could step up into the air like she did in the Dream...
Sir Barristan stood in awe, just as much as Missendei and herself did, but he still observed the surroundings with the keen eye of a lifetime guard, "That means we have no idea what sort of dangers could be here, lurking about."
Daenerys nodded, "Even Lord Hadrian warned me about wandering too far in this place." She nodded to the dark forest to the right of the castle across the lake, "That forest is supposedly endless and filled with things that he said were a bit much to handle.'"
Sir Barristan turned to her with an eyebrow raised, "The wizard said that?"
She smiled and nodded, "We have only seen a bit of his abilities, but I remain wary of anyone with that much power. And someone with that much power that remains wary of exploring in his own realm...Well, I hope we don't see the darker things this place has to offer."
A wave of black and silver flames popped into existence not a stone's throw away. Daenerys smiled upon seeing the wizard and his gorgeous phoenix as they appeared to greet his guests.
"Welcome to Peverell Manor, Your Grace," Hadrian said, one of his famous smirks in place.
Daenerys smiled back at him, and Drogon sniffed as if to smell the fiery magic that just took place, "Greetings, Lord Hadrian, thank you for inviting us this evening. You of course remember Sir Barristan and Missendei."
"I do, how are you old chap? Well, young now I suppose," He greeted the knight. "And how are you this fine evening Missendei? Memorized any more titles?"
The knight chuckled at the wizard's antics, but Missendei didn't seem to know how to respond until her formality seemed to take over. She bowed, "Greetings Lord Peverell, many thanks for graciously allowing us into your manor."
He waved her formality away, "Don't worry about it, just wait till we get to the castle. Do you lot have a tour in your system? Or should we just get straight to eating?"
"I would love a tour, this place appears so much more vibrant in the physical," Daenerys said.
"As everything should, I say. Well then, Shimmer-"
He was interrupted by a few melodious and annoyed chirps from said phoenix that rested on his shoulder.
Daenerys wasn't entirely sure what she was saying but caught the gist, "Ah, forgive me Shimmer, it is fantastic to see you again. You are looking as radiant as ever!"
The phoenix, now properly satisfied, sang a little tune that made everyone feel like they just woke up from a long nap. Not tired from sleeping too long, but perfectly rested as if they had achieved the optimal amount of sleep needed.
"Remarkable," Missendei said, her eyes taking in the fantastical creature before them with awe.
Harry was smiling at the bird on his shoulder as finished her tune, "I suppose that is enough energy to go for a bit of a tour through the castle. Shimmer my dear, would you mind taking us to the front? I believe that is as good a place to start as any."
She chirped and Missendei, Drogon, and even Sir Barristan flinched as they were covered with flames, though the heat didn't bother them. They hardly felt movement at all as their surroundings shifted upon the removal of the flames.
Intricately carved doors with Harry's house symbol as the central piece met their gaze. The doors, fit for giants, had magical symbols, and beautiful text all along the edges. She saw other interesting carvings: a cloaked being with a scythe, a large wolf with elongated limbs, a strange horse that almost appeared skeletal with bony wings, and more.
"You will have to forgive the slightly dark doors here, the Peverell Family has always been closely tied to death," Harry explained.
He tapped his wand on the door once and they pushed inward as if someone else was opening them. A beautiful entryway greeted them, with a staircase worthy of royalty. It climbed upward like the slope of a mountain before splitting and wrapping upward out of sight. The red carpet perfectly sat along the steps. Orange-yellow flames illuminated everything within the castle in flickering light.
Suits of armor, grand tapestries, majestic murals, and more all lined the hallways. The strange thing was that everything felt alive as if slightly moving to address the people entering the keep. Sir Barristan was immediately on guard at the unknown threats.
"Worry not Sir Barristan, while you are welcome in my house, no harm will come to you," Harry said.
Missendei spoke up, "Are those murals...moving?"
Harry smiled at old pictures and paintings, the contents all alive and moving as fitting of magical artwork. "There will be all sorts of magical things to see while in my house, almost all of which are safe if not slightly annoying to deal with."
Daenerys looked around with overt excitement, "I can't wait to see your library and the patio!"
~~o0o~~
They had toured most of the inside of Peverell Manor, Harry playing the tour guide until they got to his ritual room. This room was an offshoot of the library and could be expanded to fit an assortment of rituals, there was even an altar for the darker sort. Right now the ritual room was filled with the circles Harry and Shimmer had devised for the Mount-Rider bond.
"Here it is," Harry said. "Did you have time to look over everything I gave you? As far as the ritual stuff at least."
"I only had time to glance at it, but this does look familiar," Daenerys said in her sweet voice.
Harry smiled, "Well, it was only a copy of the ritual and a list of the supplies we would likely need. I have collected everything and set it all up for now. Do you want to do the ritual now or after dinner?"
She looked at Sir Barristan then back to Harry, "What do you recommend?"
He just shrugged, "It might be nice to eat afterward, but you might find it difficult to sleep tonight as the increased magic between you and...Drogon was it?"
She nodded with a smile at her baby. The little wyvern was tired from walking around the castle as he was too heavy to carry for such a long time.
"Well, Drogon and you will be producing and absorbing magic at an increased rate. And while you will be wide awake for the night most likely, he will go to sleep as his body begins to catch up with the magic it's consuming. He could sleep upwards of a day or two, and you just need to have food nearby for him since his appetite will skyrocket. He might even eat more than his body weight to some degree," Harry said as he looked over a copy of the ritual requirements.
He looked up and saw the knight, handmaiden, and queen staring at him as he dove into the magical theory. Harry raised an eyebrow, "Or...we can not do that if you don't want to?"
Daenerys laughed, "It isn't that Hadrian, it's just that you have a way of speaking that leaves us lost in your words like sailors in a storm at sea. Only a few of the stars are visible enough for us to follow."
Harry tilted his head in thought, "Oh, uhh, well...should I explain it differently?"
The queen smiled and shook her head. She stared at Harry as he awkwardly stood there with a sheepish expression. It was like she had already made her decision and wanted to burn the image of the man who might change the course of her future kingdom. Her future empire.
"Alright, Lord Hadrian. Let us conduct a ritual," She said after too long of a silence. "But know if you betray me, then I will never forgive you."
Harry's face dropped and nodded solemnly. She was taking a risk no matter how it was laid out, and he knew it.
"Your Grace..." Sir Barristan said with worry. He had been staring at the ritual while listening to Harry's words that were way above his pay grade. "Are you sure about this? We have no idea if this ritual is-"
He was cut off with a delicate hand from the queen, "I have already made my decision. To move forward requires me to trust. This is me extending that trust."
Her eyes had never left Harry's as she spoke, adding weight to her words.
Harry nodded. With just a gesture, Harry let his magic flow into the ritual circles, "If you are ready, then enter that circle and put Drogon in that one."
The circles began to light up in ethereal green light, spreading out from Harry's location in the center.
Daenerys gently placed Drogon in his circle and whispered to him, "Stay here my baby. This is for both of us."
Drogon would have normally followed his mother, but the ritual was already feeding him magic. He watched her cross the intricate designs as she walked to the other side, and he passively consumed the magic around him at an increased rate. It was part of the design, a sort of precursor to the amount of magic that would course through him and his mother in the future.
Harry had stepped back, where an adjacent circle allowed him to essentially conduct the ritual from the side while not taking part in it.
Daenerys entered her circle and looked at Harry.
"Right, connect to the magic and infuse your own into it, just like the mirror. It will feel like it's taking more than the mirror, and it is. But don't worry, it's just part of the ritual."
She nodded and didn't hesitate to do so. Her own magic joined the glowing green lines after a few seconds of concentration. They morphed from Harry's guiding deathly green magic to Daenerys' blood and fire magic, which glowed red with power. The rings filled slowly, but the moment her circles were filled she heard Harry speak again.
"You both are now connected. The ritual is starting," He wasted no time and activated the trigger, the ritual drawing a single drop of blood from both participants and combining them through magic.
The feeling of her magic draining only lasted a few seconds as it connected to her child across the way. Drogon's eyes locked onto his mothers and they felt the rudimentary connection blossom into a vast and powerful one. Daenerys' purple eyes ignited at the same time as Drogon's bloody red ones.
Harry, acting as conductor of the ritual, was keenly monitoring the magic levels. Once the connection formed he finished the ritual and the connection between mother and dragon officially formed as a mount and rider bond.
It only took a few seconds and the instant it finished, Daenerys was breathing hard while still staring directly into the eyes of Drogon. Their magic pulsed and instead of the constant draw to fuel the ritual, both of their magic seemed to build off of one another.
"It worked," The queen said, a huge smile blossoming on her face.
Harry smiled, "How does it feel?"
"Incredible," She said, her tone reverent. She smiled at Drogon, who walked on clicking claws over to his mother.
They were communicating telepathically, and Harry watched the conversation with amusement. "Come, let's get you both some food. You are going to need it."
~~o0o~~
Harry led Daenerys, and her retinue out of the manor after an incredible dinner. Drogon had already visibly grown and was extremely tired as he trudged along.
As the party left the tent, the newly minted Captain of the Scouts of the Frost Legion, Ragmund, was waiting for him. The man was nervous at the sight of the Queen, but he just pretended not to see her and spoke to Harry.
"Hadrian, our birds have seen things," Ragmund said, his words taking on an ominous tone.
Harry nodded to the Queen, but addressed Ragmun, "What have you seen?"
"Heh, the rich fools have left the city, they took a boat not two hours ago," Ragmund said.
"The Wise Masters? As they call themselves?" Harry confirmed.
"They were dressed like women, face paints and had slaves following them, boarding a ship filled with gold."
Harry smirked, "Well, your grace, it seems like the Wise Masters have seen the writing on the wall. A few hundred thousand people will do that to anyone I suppose."
Daenerys smiled, "Do you have a plan in mind?"
"Of course I do! The city will be yours in just a few minutes," Harry said.
He took a strange device out of his combat robes and put the extended chain around his neck, nodding to the distant gates of the city, "I will be coming through there in no time."
Harry wound back the Peverell Time Turner, giving himself 6 hours to make his words come true. It started with him instinctually wrapping himself in the Invisibility Cloak and spinning around his heel to Apparate onto the nearest of the Yunkai walls.
He scanned the nearest slave guard, one of many who were standing at attention. He was an Unsullied, a single member of an entire regiment of 5,000 that the Wise Masters had purchased at some point. Their armor was more upgraded and stylized than the troops that Daenerys had rescued, but the weapons were the same.
Right now, the man was following orders to guard the wall. Harry found memories of his Captain, a hired man who enforces and delivers the orders of the Wise Masters. Harry found the location and made his way there in moments. Finding the man in a brothel wasn't what he had in mind for an optimal place to invade his brain, so Harry went to take care of some other stuff in the meantime.
His main goal was to find out what 'friends' the leaders of this city were threatening Daenerys with. The Wise Masters themselves were easily found, as all of them were having a meeting while being pampered by slaves. Harry Imperio'd all of them, giving them specific instructions to follow at the correct time. He had read all their minds, as disgusting as it was to do so, and took solace in the fact that he was sending them to their deaths after seeing just a small percentage of their crimes.
Not a single one of them had any reason to claim that they had 'friends' aside from the shitty mercenary company, the Second Sons and the regiment of Unsullied.
That was it.
Harry shook his head at their absurd behavior, having the gall to threaten the Queen. He found the one food who dared to claim that he would enslave her.
Harry turned him inside out.
He finished setting up the finale to his timeline continuity, fulfilling the requirements for his time loop. Then he decided it was time to get crafting while waiting for time to pass. He had many sets of armor, weapons, and supplies to make for the Frost Legion and the future guards of Yunkai.
He appeared in his workshop, working alongside Gendry. The smith had gone above and beyond when crafting everything that was needed. He was currently finishing the base gear for the last of the set of armor and weapons for the pikemen. Neatly packed into crates, the other pieces needed for the longbowmen and the standard infantry were all complete.
Harry finished the final assembly for the Guard and Infantry and began to copy them. He had Willis, his favorite crafting House Elf, begin to make copies of the finished ones as well, helping the process. After four hours of multiplying the armor set with the altered Gemini Spell that makes perfect copies, he spent the rest of that time activating the enchantments. It cost almost the same amount of magic to imbue the enchantments as it did to create the copies, but it was worth it.
By the time he needed to go back to Yunkai to finish his time loop, a few thousand infantry equipment sets were waiting, letting off an aura of frost.