17

Chapter 17 – Breaking the Iron

The ships of the Lannisters and Iron Born rebels drew closer on the undefended Iron Islands. The men sharpened their swords and spears in preparation for their landing. The men were near silent as they prepared themselves for what they were about to do, the more honourable found it extremely unsettling while many burned with excitement at the chance to finally make the Iron Born pay for what they had done to the inhabitants of Fair Isle and the few successful coastal raids that Sandor Clegane had not been able to stop. The chance of plunder also in the minds of many as they hoped to have the chance to enrich themselves by essentially doing to the Iron Born what they had done to the rest of Westeros.

The fleet closed in on Pyke, the island of the Greyjoys. Hadrian standing on the bow of the Sovereign in his full plate was silent as he contemplated what he was about to do. As Harry he would never even conceive of the slaughter that he as Hadrian was going to unleash on the Iron Islands, there were times when Hadrian actually wondered if he had left the honourable and good part of himself behind as he was reborn into this world.

Harry would have risked his life rather than allow a slaughter like this to happen, he would have done some amazing daring that might just have worked by the narrowest of margins to prevent it despite whoever it was he was saving. Hadrian however was wiser or at least he hoped he was, he had the advantage of hindsight, he could look back and see how things could have been done better or mistakes avoided by being just that little bit devious or dare he think it ruthless. If he were to be Harry Potter here in this world, he would never last a moment with too much of the deck was stacked against him and no Dumbledore or other such figure to pull him out of the fire. He stood by himself here, a few good friends and family at his side but otherwise was alone and as his sister was fond of saying when you play the game of thrones you either win or you die and he was not going to die, so he would win however harsh he had to play to do it. He had never wanted the throne for himself or even recognition for his actions, glory did not appeal to him nor did power beyond what he had. The higher you climbed, the greater the fall and he was making sure that his footing stayed sure and firm before he took his next step. But as the ship came close enough to anchor, Hadrian forced his mind back to the present and prepared for what was to come.

As the ship's came to anchor off the coast Hadrian took the lion head helm that was under his arm and placed it on his head. It was an impressive piece sent as a gift from his cousin Lyonel in Tyrosh, shaped like the head of a roaring lion with golden inlay and rubies for eyes. It was not too impractical either as it did give Hadrian as good a view as a normal helm. Whoever had made it Hadrian admitted to himself as he slid it on his head had certainly known their craft.

He carefully climbed down the ladder into a longboat that drew alongside to take the soldiers to the island, no small feat in full plate but he managed it somehow and Raga was lowered in beside him. His squire and cousin Tyrek stood next to him as they stood on the deck of the longboat ready to go ashore. He had begun dispatching his army around the islands to secure the various keeps of the six islands they would be invading. House Blacktyde, the strongest of the rebel houses that had joined them already controlled one of the islands and would be named the new Lord Paramount of the Iron Islands once they were secured. Hadrian could easily take the islands for himself but he did not want to waste his time having to subdue all the Iron Born when he had a much larger war to fight elsewhere and would let House Blacktyde worry about keeping the native population in line. Not to mention if the reports he had heard from the North were true about a potential return of the White Walkers then he needed to maintain as strong an army as he could in case they truly were coming.

Tyrek in his own armour was ready with his sword as they came ashore, their heavy boots making groves in the sand. Alongside them the men of House Blacktyde who were looking uncomfortable at being so close to the mainlanders but deferred to their lord Baelor who was grim as he came face to face with the man that had just destroyed the Iron Fleet.

"Lord Lannister, we should get moving. I want to finish this matter quickly." Lord Blacktyde said with steady calm but in his eyes you could see anger at the sight of castle which shared its name with the island. Hadrian nodded as he too wanted to get the re-conquest of the Iron Islands done as soon as possible and to that end he had entrusted his best men with the rockets needed to breach the enemy keeps, all secured with magical oaths in case they decided to betray him. As they moved up the hill towards the large castle Tyrek found he could not contain himself and asked the grim Lord Blacktyde.

"Why did you turn against your liege lord, are you not sworn to the Greyjoys?" The warning look from Hadrian immediately shut him up but it was enough to make Lord Blacktyde sneer in disgust at the mention of the Greyjoys.

"OH yes, our marvellous overlords House Greyjoy, who had managed to lead us into two unsuccessful rebellions and made the Iron Islands the pariahs of the Seven Kingdoms. While other kingdoms amass gold from trade or mining becoming stronger every day, we cannot touch such enterprises because we must pay the Iron price and take whatever it is we want, regardless of whether it makes everyone hate us in the meantime and weakens us in the long term." Lord Blacktyde said with so much scorn that it actually made Tyrek look in shock at the Iron Lord although Hadrian knew how the man felt about the Greyjoys or he would never have approached him. Continuing his tirade as they made their way towards the castle and the town around it he then told them his own personal reasons for rebelling.

"Balon Greyjoy was a piss poor lord and has been an even fucking worse king. I mean what kind of idiot attacks a nation while its army is at home instead of waiting a few months for them to send their men off to fight? Announcing your intentions while your enemy is still in a position to resist you is just stupidity in the extreme. He cannot even accept that it was his bad decision that finished his plan before it even began, he…" Lord Blacktyde seemed to lose momentum for a brief second as he was hit with terrible grief. "He killed my son when he failed to take Seaguard after having to turn back due to bad weather. Killing and blaming his own vassals for his own arrogance and idiocy."

Hadrian nodded while Tyrek looked suitable chastised by the other lord's angry response. As they arrived in the town that stood at the gates of Pyke, a poorly armed band of men came screaming at them with rough and rusty axes, table legs and other bad quality weapons. The Lannister men formed the shield wall immediately as the Iron Born came forward and found themselves being impaled on the spears and swords that stabbed at them from behind the strong wall the men had created. As they entered the town Hadrian gave an order to his men followed by Raga's loud and powerful roar.

"Kill any man that can fight, women and children are to be spared and any salt wives cared for." He said feeling the smallest guilt at how many lives he was about to snuff out but he pushed it ruthlessly aside. The men moved forward and began going from house to house and the screams and sounds of fighting soon filled the air. Tyrek was wide-eyed with horror at what was going on around him. Hadrian pitied him, never before had the lad been exposed to such horrors and Hadrian despised giving such orders but in this case he had too. His sword in hand he continued moving, a man carrying a large, rough looking battle axe came running at him, swinging wildly so Hadrian side stepped to avoid a manic overhead strike before slashing at the man's arm causing him to drop his axe as blood spurted out of the stump where the arm had been severed and the man had a brief moment to stare at his stump before Hadrian thrust his sword into the man's mouth, killing him instantly. Withdrawing his blade he barely had a moment's respite before three more men, all overweight or too old to have sailed with the fleet came at him with swords. Drawing on his magic to fill his muscles Hadrian drew Brightroar from his other sheath and with both swords in hand which impressed many with his strength, he easily parried the undisciplined strikes of the attackers. Then once he had the momentum, Hadrian with his mind focused completely on the fight went on the offensive. He thrust Crimson Night into one of the men before slashing at the throat of another with Brightroar. Blood splattered onto the ground as the wounds began gushing out blood like a river as the men fell to the ground but Hadrian with his mind already planning his next six moves in advance moved on the third who was trembling at the ease with which Hadrian had dispatched his two fellows and with a frantic desperation swung wildly with his rough sword which Hadrian easily deflected with his two far better swords before knocking his arm away and slashing into the man's chest with an X shaped crosscut.

Having finished off the enemy closest to him Hadrian moved forward deciding to return Brightroar to its sheath while keeping Crimson Night in his hand, followed by his a large party of his men as they approached the castle Pyke. From the windows and slightly parted doors the eyes of the terrified islanders that could not or would not fight watched in fear as the island's defences quickly crumbled and dreaded whatever was yet to come as the menfolk of the island were slaughtered.

As the Lannister men approached the castle where Balon Greyjoy was sulking around, they took a quick look at the battlements and realised how under manned the Iron Born were, only a small number of men were there, one perhaps every four metres. Hadrian turned to a pair of his own men and nodded, they were carrying a rocket launcher and aimed it at the large doors to Pyke and fired, blasting the door and portcullis apart and leaving the way forward open. Once the smoke cleared the men rushed inside and engaged a surprisingly small number of guards, Hadrian with Crimson Night in his hand walked without fear into the fray with his red cloak billowing in the wind and began hacking away at his enemies. The Lannister men were able to take inspiration from the sight of their commander with his red cloak cutting down enemies with ease, Hadrian himself was able to let himself go in the thrill of battle. His instincts heightened and his senses sharpened, the adrenaline pumping through him as his sword cut through the guards that attacked him. They were he realised not the best, likely all the best men had been with the Iron Fleet when it had been destroyed which was useful for him now as he cut down the stragglers with ease, blocking their clumsy axes and swords. At his side Tyrek was not quite able to match his older cousin's skill at arms but with sheer enthusiasm he pressed on, managing to kill one squat guard with a quick decapitation.

The fight was over quickly and the small group of Iron Born lay dead, Hadrian wasted no time as he moved forward into the keep unopposed. The corridors were sparse with people, only the odd terrified maid or a guard that was foolish enough to attack him. The annoying part was that Pyke as a castle was in fact five separate towers each on its own small island which were connected by rope bridges that swayed too easily in the wind. Walking over in full plate was enough to make a man worry he might fall through the rough wood or tumble off the side, but Hadrian made his way over the bridge from the Gatehouse to the Great Keep without fear. He gave the Great Keep a brief glance before making his way inside and was somewhat impressed that it was still standing given the constant battering it must experience from the sea.

A group of old men stood there wearing the colours of House Greyjoy met them in the entrance hall and with their swords drawn stood ready, prepared to face him. The men behind Hadrian did not even have to lift a finger as Hadrian moved forward with his sword, still bloody from his earlier killing and sized the six men up. The youngest was easily fifty and the oldest seventy, these men should have been home with their grandchildren Hadrian thought to himself with a dual sense of scorn and pity, instead they stood here ready to protect a man that in no way deserved their loyalty. Hadrian decided to make it quick and not waste time, moving forward with purpose he easily blocked the feeble first strike before slashing the offender across the chest, before impaling another man and quickly throwing one of the small daggers he kept at his waist into a third man, striking him right in the chest.

The remaining three men were unsettled at how easily Hadrian had defeated their three fellows but he did not give them a chance to surrender or act before he continued his attack. Pulling his sword free of the now dead guard he swung in a wide arch and killed the fourth man before easily deflecting a sword blow intended for him from the fifth man into the arm of the sixth, separating it below the elbow. The man screamed in agony but he was not in pain for long as Hadrian decapitated him and closed in on the sole survivor who found himself gasping for breath after being impaled on Hadrian's sword.

Tyrek was wide-eyed as were the men that accompanied him but Hadrian did not waste time before continuing on towards the long hall where he expected to find Balon Greyjoy.

Passing through one of the many halls of the keep they encountered an old man that must have been nearly ninety years of age, an impressive accomplishment for an Iron Born, Hadrian mused as he studied the man. His hair was white with age and his long beard was not only a tangled mess but was so long that it fell nearly to the floor. He was sitting in his chair with a large crossbow in his hand and fired a quick bolt at them. The shot went wide however and zoomed past their heads, while the man who Hadrian identified as Erik Ironmaker struggled with his aching fingers to reload Hadrian turned to his lion whose mane and jaws were already red with the blood of the men that he had killed today and said.

"Raga get him."

The lion did not need to be told twice and Hadrian could feel through their bond the satisfaction as the lion pounced and devoured the screaming man while the men looked on it horror, not wanting to see but unable to look away. Hadrian did not feel the slightest guilt at setting his beast loose on Erik, he was a vastly overweight man that had been set to marry Yara Greyjoy, a girl more than sixty years his junior as punishment from her father.

As soon as Raga was finished with his meal they moved on in the hunt for Balon hoping that the coward had not fled before they arrived, Hadrian had learned the layout of Pyke when he had last been here during the previous rebellion. The door to the great hall burst open at his shove and seeing the dreary looking hall for the second time, Hadrian noted that little had changed and he suddenly had a sense of history repeating itself when he saw Balon Greyjoy sitting on the Seastone chair which served as his throne. He had been sitting on it, near exactly the same as he was now during the Siege of Pyke when they had finally breached the keep and entered the throne room. The arrogant look that the man sported was the same too although his face was clearly more lined and his hair greyer than it had been last time.

"Lannister." Balon said with a snarl as he looked at the man that had slain his sons and brothers, who had smashed his fleet in a way that he had never even imagined. His revenge denied him by the incompetence of others and the gods themselves it seems plotting against him.

"Balon Greyjoy." Hadrian said and with his sword in hand decided not to waste time on pleasantries before he did the job he had come here to do. But a second later only his sharply honed instincts warned him in time to dodge a sword strike from a badly scarred man with snow white hair. His unique features; having four lips, the result of a longaxe wound in the man's youth identified him as Dagmar Cleftjaw, the master at arms of Pyke and one of the most loyal and capable men that Balon Greyjoy commanded. Wielding a broad sword with an experienced hand he would definitely prove more of a challenge than the other men earlier, Hadrian thought with a slight grin.

The broad sword was a powerful weapon and in Dagmar's hands it was truly deadly. He did not waste energy with extravagant or flashy movement, nor did his waste his breath on useless words when there was a fight to be done. Hadrian respected that and as he blocked the fierce blows of Dagmar snarled at not being able to break through Hadrian's defence. Hadrian quickly determined he was designed more for power than speed and began a series of fast jabs, swipes and parries that he had devised from studying the Water Dance style albeit modified to suit his own weapon. This did not have quite the effect of catching a weak spot in Dagmar's defence that he had hoped for but it did force the older warrior on to the defensive.

Hadrian did not lose momentum as he pressed the attack, switching to more power based strikes or swings of his blade, which were he already noticed starting to crack his enemy's weapon. Tell-tale fractures were starting to form in the metal, so bringing all his strength and speed to bare Hadrian intensified his attack.

Dagmar staggered back as Hadrian began a series of powerful strikes that wore heavily on him as he struggled to defend himself, his old muscles aching as he felt weariness spreading and his moves slowing. His breathing may have quickened as he struggled to keep up with his much younger enemy but his body was slowing down from the brutal pace of the fight. But he must defend his king, he resolved and with that grim determination urging him on he rallied the last of his energy and tried to counterattack attack, only for his sword to shatter after a hard blow. He did not see the sword that would sever his head from his shoulders, his enemy had decided for his reputation as a warrior to make it quick and painless and unlike many other Iron Born that day he would be buried at sea.

Hadrian took a brief moment to catch his breath before he returned his attention to Balon Greyjoy who did not seem even remotely touched at the death of his long-time friend who had given him his complete loyalty. Feeling a slight fury he marched across the hall and Balon Greyjoy seeing his executioner came closer and closer said for the last time before Hadrian impaled him.

"What is dead can never die."

As the sword was stabbed into his belly Hadrian taunted him with a comment of his own, whispering in Balon's ear as the man doubled over.

"What is dead may never die because it rests and burns in a hell of its own making and will wish for an end that will never come as it suffers for its sins." Hadrian sneered at Balon who grasped at him as blood flowed out of wound in the stomach. He did not waste time and threw the man to the ground before turning to his men. "Tie a noose around his neck and hang his body from the battlements. When eventually Aeron Greyjoy is found or crawls out from under whatever rock he is hiding under, hang him next to his brother." Hadrian said sternly, it would serve as a useful message to people of the Iron Islands and turned to the man that from this moment would rule the islands. "Lord Blacktyde I expect you have much to do as well so I will leave you to it while I see to things that require my attention."

The rule of the Greyjoys and their past of raiding and pillaging was over.

And never to return or he and his family would return and finish the job that they had started today.

-x-

Hadrian would earn a song of his own when the day was done, The Seas of Red and Gold. All across the islands men were slaughtered by the Lannister men to stop any chance of the vanquished rising up against either him or the new ruling houses of the Iron Islands. Homes and castles were ransacked with anything of the remotest value looted and divided up amongst the conquerors. Priests to the Drowned God like Aeron Greyjoy were rounded up and hanged with their bodies buried in the ground rather than at sea to mock their customs. Anyone caught trying to exhume the bodies was executed and soon no one tried anymore. Weirwoods began sprouting up all over the islands and his own men saw it as some sort of divine intervention, the Old Gods were claiming the Iron Islands. The natives would not be forced to worship them, but when healthy crops began growing around them and the words of the Old Gods were whispered in certain ears then it would begin the eventual conversion of the islands to the religion of the Old Gods.

Hadrian meanwhile was in the Bloody Keep looking through the treasury, and what an impressive amount of gold and other valuable objects were held within. Clearly he mused the Greyjoy's treasure had not been cleared out after their last rebellion or they had been quietly raiding ships out at sea for some time since they had supposedly stopped such actions, possibly he conceded it could be a combination of both. Either way a portion of these funds would be useful in the rebuilding of Fair Isle. He had even discovered a Valyrian manuscript that he had not seen before describing a naval weapon they had used during the freehold. It was called the Harpax and basically it was a large harpoon launcher but with a rope attached to the end of the harpoon to which a winch was attached so ships could be pulled alongside. He would immediately send this design to Castamere so his engineers could begin building a prototype to install on his own ships.

He was about to leave his most trusted men with the task of removing a good amount of the gold back to their ships when something caught his eye. Turning he saw in a pile of jewellery no doubt ripped from the finger of some noble a strange ring. It had dark black stone with a symbol of a triangle with a line and a circle inside it and set in a large gold band.

He recognised it immediately but not from this life as he picked it up with the utmost care, of all the place he would never have expected to find it here. The Resurrection Stone, the second of the Deadly Hallows capable of summoning the spirits of the dead from the 'next great adventure' as Dumbledore would have put it. As Harry he had only ever used it once, to summon the spirits of his family and their friends before he had confronted Voldemort in the forest and then never again.

But like the cloak of invisibility its power was constricted and it was now little more than a slightly gaudy piece of jewellery. Hadrian was astonished at the luckiness of his unexpected discovery as he stared at the ring in his hand, now all he needed was the Elder Wand and just maybe he could break through whatever was affecting magic here. He quickly slipped the ring into his pocket as Raphael came in carrying a small bunch of messages.

"My lord, reports are coming in from all the Islands. Our men have breached all the enemy strongholds and have wiped out the last of the Iron Born resistance. The houses that joined us have begun establishing themselves in their new holdings. My lord…" Raphael said taking a pause as an uncertain and guilty look spread across his face and felt the need to ask. "What it truly necessary to do what we have done?"

The guilt on his friend's face was more than enough to let Hadrian know what he was talking about and Hadrian felt a grim look come upon his own face as he answered, knowing it would not ease Raphael's guilt right at the moment but hopefully make it easier in the years to come.

"Could we have used less brutal methods to defeat the Iron Born and prevent them being a threat in future? Possibly but we are at war my friend, other houses are baying for our blood and the Iron Born are so devoted to the Old Way that it takes a great shift to change things. To build a better world." He said not sure if his entirely believed this explanation himself but it had to be done or the Iron Born would just rise to become a threat again. "Sometimes means tearing the old one down and that is never a pleasant business." He said grimly, mass slaughter was something that Tywin would never have let bother him and Hadrian had enough of dealing the Iron Born. If they ever caused trouble again, he would not be so merciful.

But then as he and Raphael left to let their men carry out the looted valuables back to their ships he had a flash of inspiration, although on their own the ring and the cloak were constrained their magic was still ran deeply and combined with his own magic and the magical traces he had felt in the seastone throne he might be able to use the link between the hallows to find the Elder Wand, quickly making his decision he turned to Raphael and told him.

"Have the seastone chair taken to the ship, I will not have anyone else have ideas of taking it to rise as the King of the Islands again." Giving a quick excuse that his men swallowed easily he gave them a slight smile but this was wiped from his face when Sandor Clegane arrived with news.

"We found the salt wives that the fucking squids took, my lord." Sandor said with a grim expression on his scarred face. "They are as filthy and abused as you had feared my lord, what are we going to do with them?"

"Take them back to the Westerlands." Hadrian said sadly, feeling a great sense of sympathy for the poor women that had been taken as little more than breeding slaves to the Iron Born. How they must have suffered he did not want to conceive. "There is a large farm in the hills near to the border with the Riverlands. There they can spend their time recovering without anyone bothering them until they wish it. Light duties and easy chores to give them work to order their thoughts and patient listeners there if they felt the need to talk. It was far from perfect but in this world, what else could he do for women that were so tortured.

After the men left, Hadrian with the ring in his hand drew his sword again and focused all of his magic and all of his will on the memory of each of his children being born. He held off of saying the word out loud and started repeating them instead in his thoughts like a mantra.

'Expecto Patronum…Expecto Patronum…Expecto Patronum…Expecto Patronum.'

At first he was disheartened to see that it had little effect but he resolved to keep trying and slowly his sword's freshly cleaned blade began to glow slightly, dim at first but getting brighter and brighter until with sweat dripping from his forehead Hadrian stopped, breathing quickly and feeling rather drained but while in some ways he was disappointed that he could not yet summon his magic like his used too, he was elated at the same time. Today it had actually worked for a brief moment and if his idea to find the Elder Wand worked, soon magic would be free again.