39

Chapter 39 – Battle for the Dawn Part 3

Unknown location, the North…

Two armies clashed in a vast struggle with a blizzard raging around them chilling the living to the bone while the dead remained unaffected and fought even harder. The screams of men filled the air as they did their utmost to fight back against the wights but no matter how many heads they chopped off or however many wights they set on fire, there was seemingly no end of the undead horde.

The Night King had dismounted from his stead and joined the wights on the battlefield. He did not particularly desire battle, it was merely a means to an end. Thinning out the ranks of his enemy while adding to his own. Looking around he noticed his wights overwhelming human men with ease and while satisfied that things were going as planned decided to get involved himself, swinging his ice sword into the chest of one foolish human that tried to attack him and then as the snow beneath their feet turned red with the blood he wasted no time in impaling another through the stomach.

The Night King was an unstoppable killing machine as he moved across the battlefield, cutting down men at random and then without missing a beat moved on to the next. Careful to not damage any part of them that make them useless for his future plans he would slash open their throats, their chests, sever their limbs or impale them with no hesitation or pity. The presence of the Night King on the battlefield sent the already spiralling morale of the humans into an even steeper decline. There was nothing that they could do to hurt him as one man found out when he swung his enormous battle-axe into the Night's King back only for it to shatter like glass upon contact with his cold armour. The large man only received a slash across the chest for his brave attempt to kill the leader of the White Walkers and end the 2nd Long Night.

The Night Queen watched as her king cut down the human men with ease, a smile coming to her grey lips as they fell so easily to his might. She felt the cold inside her grow in strength as time continued, her power growing and with a wave of her hand she conjured some spears and propelled them with her magic towards a group of retreating humans that had been taken over by their terror.

Their cries were like music to her ears as the metal impaled the humans and left them to die slowly as she started freezing the snow into shards of ice hard enough to penetrate the human's limited armour before throwing them with her magic straight into what few humans remained. She looked to her king who nodded, glad to have this distraction over with and with what some might call a sense of glee she raised her arms and called on the power that all of her kind possessed.

The corpses of the dead men began to rise, their eyes now the same unnatural shade of blue of their masters. Hundreds of humans now became wights that would follow their ever command but the Night King was not satisfied with this meagre display so he turned his new army towards the nearest human stronghold.

Karhold, the North…

Near the seat of House Karstark a long convoy of carts carrying food, flame throwers, oil and dragonglass was moving slowly through the heavy snow under heavy escort. The biting winds made it almost intolerable for the men who would rather be anywhere than here, as they knew that they were going to be attacked. The last convoy had been struck on this route and wiped out. They might have more men and better equipment this time but it was not much of a comfort.

The sight of people moving in the failling snow brought a terrible dread to all of them as the wights began to emerge from the blizzard around them. Loras Tyrell who was leading the convoy was struck dumb for a moment at the sight of the dead coming towards him and his men. He nonetheless drew his sword especially when the White Walker leading the attack appeared leading the wights. Being raised with the Seven Loras had never imagined such a thing as the ice demon that stood before him that seemed to come from his worst nightmares. Fear gripped his heart firmly and it took all of the courage he could muster to stand firm instead of running away. Strangely the gauntlets given to him by Lord Lannister prevented him from feeling cold. He was wary of magic as it came from the Stranger but he could not help but be grateful as they gave strength to his arms and warmth to his bones. The thrum of energy that seemed to travel through Rosethorn as he held it in his hands was a comforting feeling too.

The walker and his wights some of which Loras recognised as Reach men from the last convoy stood opposite Loras and his men, ready to charge when suddenly a large shape lunged down out of the clouds and spewed fire on the walker and his wights. Loras almost smiled as the green dragon of his brother in law the King of Westeros cut down the enemy with ease. Wights begin burned to ash in mere moments while the Walker looked on powerless. Loras had to admit the King's plan to use convoys to lure walkers and their wights into a trap was proving effective after they had been attacked the first time. It was too easy a bait for the walkers to resist.

With Jon having an easy time with the wights, Loras stepped forward with his sword the air still hot from the dragon's breath. The Walker noticed him and rushed forward to meet him, charging like a raging animal, enraged by the victory that had been snatched from him. Loras with the ease of a true swordsman just sidestepped and as the Walker stumbled past slashed at his mid-section with Rosethorn. Seeing the tall demon reduced to ice crystals with one stroke of his blade made Loras feel a hundred foot tall, he smiled vowing to send a letter to Sansa and his sister about this when they finally managed to get their delivery to Karhold.

Flint's Finger, the North…

The Night King would have considered himself excited, or at least what he considered excited as he looked at his new Queen as she raised her arms towards one of the human strongholds. The Night Queen as some would one day name her reached down into her herself and drew forth the immense cold where fire had once resided. Like from the mouth of an ice dragon, blasts of intense cold erupted from her palms, flowing over the castle in icy waves that chilled everyone inside. The men women and children had only moments to realise what was happening as the cold came upon them, worse than any had ever felt in their entire lives.

The Night Queen had a cruel grin on her strangely beautiful face, the features of Melisandre could still be seen in her cheekbones and her mouth but otherwise that was all that was left of the Red Priestess. Her powers were getting stronger with each passing moment and there was so much more that she could do now. Even without her ability to chill entire castles she could just appear inside and slaughter the defenders at will she thought with great anticipation. But right at this moment she raised her arms above her head and inside the castle walls, the frozen corpses of the men she had just slain with her magic rose at her command.

-x-

In the world beyond as some might refer to it where the beings called gods lived Brynden Rivers and the Children of the Forest looked down at the Night King and his Queen, horrified at the new threat to life in the world they had worked so hard to defend,. All the strongholds of humanity were now at risk from this powerful new queen that their champions had no idea existed.

They had to do something but their own power would not be able to kill her or the Night King, otherwise they would have done that long ago. They would have warn their champions in the physical world by sending them a vision of the Night Queen and the danger she posed. So they reached out to all minds in the North that had magic enough to hear them.

-x-

Hadrian, Shaena, Bran and Kinvara all felt the sheering pain in their heads as the images of the Night Queen and her actions at Flint's Finger flooded into their mind. Dread filled all four of them as they saw the Queen and her powers. Immediately wherever they were they all headed for a Weirwood Tree and opened a link to each other.

The imaginary environment for their emergency conference was just a Weirwood tree like the ones they were using to communicate only in the warm temperatures of summer. Hadrian and Shaena were unsure of Kinvara but for the moment there was no time for an interrogation.

"We all saw the visions, how can we protect the Northern strongholds from the Night Queen? At least with the Ice Dragons they knew how to kill the creatures now but that witch is too dangerous. Wildfire and dragons will be little use against her." Hadrian said cutting straight to the point and taking the lead in proceedings. If he could have located the Night Queen he might have tried to go after her himself but by now she could be far from Flint's Fingers. She had all of the powers that they did, including portkeys and teleporting. It meant that no stronghold was safe from her power. They needed a defence against the Night Queen and fast he thought urgently. Everyone was silent for a moment before Kinvara asked him something.

"How do you protect your castle from unwanted visitors just magically transporting themselves inside? I must confess I have tried once or twice only to be met by some kind of barrier."

That timely reminder gave Bran an idea.

"Wards." He suggested with more confidence than he had when speaking to any of them before, a testament to his grown as a man they all thought. Still that aside the idea was not a bad one. Shaena herself put an imaginary finger to her lips in thought for a moment before expanding on that idea.

"If we made runic stones to act as ward stones then they can act as a shield to keep the Night Bitch out, maybe if we gave each a heat retention on the other side of the stone then it would give the castles a little protection against her freezing powers. Not enough to completely stop her and an ice dragon could easily breach it but it would at least slow her down and keep the people inside a little warmer."

Hadrian nodded and then got them going rather than waste any more time with debate, feeling that they had a workable plan even if it made his own plan to deliver supplies by portkey slightly more difficult until he could modify the portkeys to pass through the wards.

"During the war Shaena and I visited or saw many Northern castles and walled towns, we can make and distribute the stones. How many are we likely to need? At least hundred I should think." He said thinking about how many strongholds would need protecting. Between walled towns and castles there was a lot of work to be done. Bran I take it you have been working on runes?"

Bran nodded and Hadrian smiled encouragingly.

"Then I leave it to you to make the ward stones for Winterfell, given the size of the stronghold two will probably be safer. Use the heat retention runes and anti-portkey and apparition runes in your book. Make sure to hide them well lest some idiot interfere with them. Are you comfortable with that?" Hadrian asked not wanting to push the young man any further than he had too but given all of them were going to be working hard for the next few hours he had to know whether or not Bran was ready to do this.

Winterfell was too important to lose. The capital of the North and had the largest population within its walls, it was a major rallying point to the Northerners and the last thing they needed was for the Night King to take it.

Bran looked unsure of himself for a moment but he seemed to regain confidence and nodded firmly. Hadrian gave him an encouraging nod and told them all.

"Well then we had best go our separate ways, there is much work to do and not a lot of time to do it in. Until we meet again." Hadrian said and was about to end their conference when Kinvara spoke up.

"Lord Lannister, I was wondering if we might discuss an idea given to me in a vision." That brought a moan of resignation from Hadrian and Shaena that surprised Bran.

"Visions of the future, why would I trust in some random vision? The reality of the situation is too dangerous to risk running off on some fool's errant. Not to mention those who put faith in prophesy are often met with disaster." Hadrian said angrily hating prophesy with a vengeance since the events of his first life as Harry Potter. Kinvara was taken aback at his outright rejection but pressed on knowing that what she knew could help be helpful.

"I want to create a symbol to rally the people behind for the fight against the Walkers. A group of warriors with the ability to kill them that can inspire the living to fight back rather than lay down and die or coward in fear." Kinvara said which made Hadrian's eyes narrow as he thought on her words. He conceded that it could be a good idea, a band of heroes to fight against the enemy. It would be a huge boost to morale after recent events he realised. So he asked Kinvara still wary of this witch.

"Who did you have in mind?" Wondering just who she wanted in this 'brotherhood' she was planning. She rattled off a list of names that had Shaena and Hadrian raising their eyebrows but with a little hesitation they nodded in agreement.

"We will meet at the Dreadfort once you have gathered them, but first the siege of Last Hearth must be broken, by any means possible." Shaena said with her eyes boring into Hadrian's. He nodded, it was time to take a more hands on approach.

Last Hearth, the North…

A few hours later the situation was becoming desperate as Shaena looked out onto the ever growing number of wights and she was sure that there was at least one Ice Dragon in the dark clouds above given how they shifted occasionally. Sheepstealer had at least recovered from her bout with the last Ice Dragon but she would rather not force her to fight such a battle again. The supplies inside the castle were dwindling with each passing day and men were being forcibly restrained from taking their own lives in the castle's cells. Hunger and sickness was spreading within the walls that could well claim all of them. Even the old bear Jeor Mormont was laid up and the maester was worried he might not make it to see another sunrise.

The sight of her dragon both terrified and uplifted the men, not sure if it would eat them or not and glad that it was there to defend them against the wights. Today however would be the first day she would take flight again only this time they were ready for the ice dragon and the thousands of wights below.

Jorah Mormont stood at her side as they looked out over the walls. Jorah had been surprised to learn that the dragon princess turned lady of the rock was magical like Kinvara. Still he had his reservations over her plan given the presence of the ice dragon.

"Are you sure that they will be here?" He asked not sure of some of the players involved. Shaena did not even turn to look at him and just said without any doubt at all.

"They will be here. They know their parts, you and Dacey just remember yours." She told him with an edge of threat in her voice not liking her integrity questioned. Jorah did not backpedal feeling his concerns were justified but nodded signalling his acceptance of her word. He looked down at the gauntlets that Shaena had given him and Dacey. He certainly was glad of the warmth that they gave him if nothing else and the sense of energy that ran through him when he held Orphanmaker in his hands. Dacey too felt the same when she held Longclaw. It would be a useful asset he acknowledged in the battle to come.

"Best get in position Ser Jorah, the time is nearly here." She told him and went to get onto Sheepstealer's back. Her dragon welcomed her with a loving nuzzle which she returned by gently rubbing behind her ears once she was on her back. She was slightly nervous about fighting the ice dragons again but this time she thought to herself she would not be caught off guard. They were ready for them this time.

Jorah meanwhile was getting on his horse in front of the castle gates while Dacey argued with her husband.

"Let him go alone, our son needs you!" The SmallJon said with a face so purple that if Hadrian had seen it would have reminded him of Uncle Vernon but Dacey was not moved in the slightest as she got on her horse.

"Which is precisely why I am doing this. If our son is to live any kind of life at all then these creatures must be fought and beaten." She said not budging an inch, this was not uncommon however. They argued a lot and made up just as much, two equally stubborn people who loved each other completely and always made up but when they disagreed it was not an advisable thing to be involved in. Still both of them enjoyed the make up immensely.

Before the SmallJon could utter one more word of protest the battle horn sounded and the gates were opened just enough for Jorah and Dacey to ride through before they were shut again.

-x-

Sheepstealer took to the skies again and the sight of her brother Terrax made the dragon's heart soar. Shaena could tell that much from the bond she shared with both her dragons but the fact that Terrax was not alone brought a smile to her face.

Daeron, Elinor and Sunfyre all flew alongside Terrax towards her and Sheepstealer. Shaena could see her sister, niece and nephew riding their own dragons and as the ice dragon decided to emerge from the clouds with the intention of freezing her dragon it found itself confronted with five dragons at once.

Daenerys was full of anticipation as she urged her dragon forward and Daeron strafed the ice dragon with a strong blast of fire that may only have wounded the great beast, but Jon and Rhaenys then did the same, leaving angry purple wounds over the formerly brilliant blue dragon. But the beast had no time to lick its wounds or retaliate as Terrax and Sheepstealer then while the beast was distracted unleashed their own fire on the wings of the ice dragon. The beast howled in agony as the wings were scolded and the thin membrane burnt through sending the great beast to the ground where it crashed hard.

The five dragons were merciless on the larger beast as they began strafing the grounded ice dragon with streams of fire, their combined strength inflicting damage that none of them could have done alone. Had the creature not been under the control of their enemy they might have felt sorry for it but as the five of them blasted away, they knew it had to be done, for the safety of all that lived.

-x-

On the edge of the forest nearby as the five dragons worked together to slay the ice dragon, Hadrian and Kinvara were readying themselves for their part in the battle. The wights saw the opening of the gates and charged forward, intent on rushing in. Hadrian and Kinvara with the beginning of sweat dripping from their foreheads their magic.

"Fiendfyre!" They both called out and the torrents of intense flame erupted from their palms and streamed out towards the wights. The strain of controlling the great fire was hard on both of them but the effect was immediate on the wights as they were incinerated in droves. The bait of the opening gates drawing them straight into the trap. They had to be careful to leave a channel so that Jorah Mormont and Dacey Umber could get through but still with great concentration they began to decimate the wight army.

The rest was up to Jorah and Dacey.

-x-

The two white walkers watching the battle were shocked at the five dragons and the inferno that was consuming their army. Their master had not mentioned the humans had five dragons at their disposal or this monstrous fire. They knew both were not really a threat to them personally but still they felt it better to withdraw and inform their master of what had taken place here. They turned to leave except two humans armed with dragon steel were blocking their way. Most of the humans did not even warrant a look normally but the two armed with dragon steel caught their notice. The larger one, the man charged forward and engaged one of them. The sense of heat from him was surprising and more so that despite the walker putting all of its strength into the strike the human was able to match him with only slight difficulty.

While the other walker was distracted by this the other found himself under attack by the woman who again surprised him with her above natural strength and they found themselves locked in a genuinely hard struggle. Most white walkers relied on their speed and strength alone to win but Dacey and Jorah were both well trained with their swords who had augmented their strength with magical objects. The contest was now far more even as both Dacey and Jorah managed to out manoeuvre their opponents and strike them down.

-x-

With the death of their masters the wights began to fall over, returning to their true death before the fires of Hadrian and Kinvara covered them and reduced their bodies to ash. With one last effort, the two magic users directed their flames high into the air and forced them into the shape of the sun, brining looks of awe to everyone that had seen it. Seen for miles around tales would spread by raven or word of mouth. Just as they had planned to boost morale.

-x-

Hadrian watched with Jon as the men of House Umber worked with Kinvara to burn the remaining corpses to ensure that they could not be used again. The pair of them were both fully aware that they had now confined the Walkers in the North itself. They could no longer flee back to where they came from and they could not pass Moat Cailin, Hadrian had ensure that with a well-equipped garrison led by House Reed who had been given communication mirrors just in case the Walkers tried. They had won an important victory today but there was more to be done so Hadrian spoke to his king with a secret that had to be shared before they continued.

"Your grace, there is a relic I have to show you that could give us vital information on the enemy." Hadrian said pulling the Resurrection Stone from his pocket. Jon looked at the black stone in disbelief which only made Hadrian smile as he turned the stone over three times in the palm of his hand causing Jon to jump in alarm as Sirius in the guise of Brandon the Builder appeared next to them. Smirking Hadrian said to Jon feeling a little childish but amused all the same. "Your grace Jon Targaryen, the First of his name meet Brandon Stark, also known as Bran the Builder. Maker of the Wall, Winterfell and Storm's End. Founder of House Stark."

Sirius ever the prankster looked sternly at the suddenly nervous Jon and said seriously.

"YOU are my descendant? A KING? I have never seen such a scrawny looking boy in all my days." Jon visibly deflated at the slight, how could he not Jon thought feeling very small suddenly. Possibly the most accomplished of all of his ancestors labelling him as a mere boy only for his feeling wretched to be replaced with confusion and then annoyance as Sirius/Brandon suddenly laughed and said to the shell-shocked king.

"I am only joking, my boy! I and the rest of your ancestors have been impressed. Now you finish what I failed to do thousands of years ago." Jon frowned but knew enough Northern lords just like Sirius/Brandon to let it slide given what was at stake. To that end he asked what he and Hadrian needed to know.

"Please we must know if there is any way to defeat the Night King and his army. You must have some idea." Jon urged although he would have loved at any other time to talk at length with this legendary hero and ancestor of his there was greater things at stake here. Jon was only disappointed when Sirius/Brandon shook his head sadly.

"Everything I and the rest of the people knew about them is already at your disposal. Dragonglass will kill a regular walker, fire a wight but the Night King is stronger than any of them. When we faced him last time we only managed to wound him and drive him north, so we built the Wall to keep him out and hoped for the best." Sirius/Brandon sighed before continuing. "We should have known it would not be enough but what else could we do?" The atmosphere grew solemn for a moment and Hadrian became lost in thought for a moment as he considered what the hell they were going to do when they faced the Night King if they could only wound him.

Jon meanwhile had another question. "What of Valyrian steel? Could that end the Night King?"

The mention of the word 'Valyrian' made Sirius/Brandon seethe with rage surprising both Hadrian and Jon as he said with fury.

"THOSE INBRED PRICKS! THEY STOLE IT FROM US! The children of the forest tamed a dragon on the island of Dragonstone and brought it here. We used its fire and our combined magic's to create 'Dragonsteel'." Sirius/Brandon said with great annoyance his nostrils flaring like an angry wolf. "I can admit that the Valyrians had their own magic or they would never have managed to tame the dragons but they found one of the swords we made and copied it! Then they have the bloody nerve to rename it 'Valyrian steel'." Sirius/Brandon said spitting on the ground with his non-existent breath causing Jon and Hadrian to take a step back but still they had to know.

"But will…dragonsteel kill the Night King?" Hadrian asked hoping that Sirius would not keep raging when they needed information. Fortunately Sirius had calmed down enough after his initial outburst to answer.

"That was how we injured him, but the magic carried in the sword was only enough to do just that." Sirius said sadly. "I spent my whole life looking for a way to kill him but nothing I did ever seemed to work and I never found a way to improve on dragonsteel." Sirius/Brandon said with a mixture of anger and regret, now his own descendants had inherited his problems and he was seemingly powerless to help. Then he saw the gauntlets on their wrists and looked intrigued by the rune work and the firestones which he stared at intently.

"That is interesting. I never had those before, they are like collectors of magic." But before they could ask him what he meant Sirius/Brandon faded away. Jon just stared while Hadrian kept turning the stone in his hand again and again to try and bring him back but nothing worked. Jon turned to Hadrian and demanded.

"Bring him back! We need to know what he was going to say."

Hadrian ignoring the fact that Jon was the king snapped back with anger at having been denied what could have been a crucial piece of information and were left with only a brief clue.

"I CAN'T! THE NIGHT KING IS DISRUPTING THE LINK! WE ARE LUCKY IT LASTED THIS LONG!" Hadrian nearly threw the stone in the snow in frustration but instead he slipped it back into his pocket. Jon was not offended and neither was Hadrian, both were too annoyed at losing whatever information Sirius was about to give them.

"What can we do now if we can only wound the Night King? And what did he mean collectors of magic?" Jon said in frustration, if they could not end the Night King then at best they were delaying his conquest. He was immortal for goodness sake! Whatever prison they could build would only hold him for a time and he would eventually escape. Hadrian likewise saw the problem and only had one suggestion.

"It is possible if we wound him enough he might expire. As for the collectors of magic, I know they can store magic if it can be channelled into them but how that helps I do not know." Hadrian said now wondering about the last sentence Sirius had said. Could these fire stones be more useful than he had thought and how could they help them now?

Unknown Location, the North…

A detachment of the Vale Knights brought to the Vale and some additional Reach soldiers were escorting a supply convoy to Last Hearth when the Walker and his wights had come. The leader of the convoy Ser Robar Royce was leading his men in the fight against them and this time he thought grimly he was not going to make the same mistakes. His men had formed the shield wall and with torches instead of spears were slowly driving the wights back, their morale beginning to recover after their previous losses. He himself was approaching the Walker that was snapping a man's neck as easily as if it were a dried twig. The sight of it made Robar both nervous and angry in equal measure, vowing to kill these creatures that had slaughtered his men.

Eight of his men carried four particular looking devices loaned to him by Lord Lannister and while he had explained their function Robar did not fully understand why he needed them and thought their name harpax sounded too strange to be a Westerosi word, possibly Valyrian. His sword arm was strong and his men disciplined, still it would be interesting to see he thought.

The Walker had not noticed them, still busy with other men so as Robar's men split into pairs around the Walker it was in no position to attack them. Robar then as the men got into position yelled out with eagerness.

"NOW!"

The Walker turned to look at him, but it was too late for the ice demon as each of the harpax fired out a sharpened bolt attached to the strongest rope that could be fitted inside. If the bolt had been made of steel or any other kind of metal it might have shattered into pieces but these bolts were made of ironwood a wood as strong as the metal from which it got its name. The wooden projectiles punctured the Walker's body causing it to cry out in some strange painful whine that made all of the men cringe slightly from the pitch of it. All eight men now held on to the harpax for dear life as the creature struggled against them with its inhuman strength. It was only due to their being eight of them and the rope being so strong that the humans were able to hold the walker down as Robar drew his sword and plunged it into the walker, shattering it into pieces.

The Walker's death immediately stopped the wights and his men cheered in victory. The bodies would have to be burned less they be used by another walker as expendable foot soldiers but another walker had been dealt with and while he returned to his tent his men burnt the bodies only from the moment the flaps closed to feel a jerk at his naval and promptly vanished from the tent.

The Dreadfort, the North…

One of the largest and best fortified castles in the North, the Dreadfort had become a vital stronghold for keeping the people of the north safe and acting as a rallying point for Northern armies as it had yet to come under siege.

It was here that Robar Royce found himself appearing, in a room was large and decorated with banners of a golden sun on a blue background. The banners were unfamiliar to Robar who looked around in confusion and nervousness. How had he come to be here? Where was here? What did the people who had brought him here want? These questions spun around his mind as he held Lamentation firmly in his hands. The sword being comfortably familiar in a very strange environment. A sudden voice made Robar jump as it sounded behind him, nearly causing the Vale knight to spin around as cleave the speaker in two.

"Peace Ser Royce. There is nothing to be alarmed about, we have just gathered yourself and some others to propose an alliance of sorts to fight the White Walkers." The speaker was a woman, dressed in silks that did not appear cold despite how low temperature had been. Her brilliant red hair and lush figure would have earnt the lust of any man, including him he thought imagining how she would be in bed.

That was when he noticed that he and the woman in silks were not alone in the room. In fact there were quite a few people. Some he recognised immediately; Lord Hadrian Lannister and his man Sandor Clegane, the King Jon Targaryen, two of his Kingsguard Ser Arthur Dayne & Obara Sand, Lord Loras Tyrell who looked as lost as he, Robb Stark the heir to Winterfell and Lord Randyll Tarly who some people said was the best general in the empire.

Other than those people there were some that he did not know by sight. He would later learn they were Ser Jorah Mormont and Lady Dacey Mormont, the new Lady Lannister Shaena, Yara Greyjoy the new lady of Goldengrass, the Wildling archer Ygritte, the Princess of the Bay of Dragons Daenerys Targaryen and the Princess of Pentos Rhaenys Targaryen. The woman that had first spoken to Robar was named Kinvara, the sorceress who had brought them all together.

"So what is this about?" Lord Tarly asked uncomfortable with the magic of this foreign woman and wanting to return to his men. He had like Robar been taken rather abruptly from his tent and was not in the best of moods. He was on the verge of just leaving until he had realised that if they had snatched him so easily the first time then they could simply just bring him back. The woman Kinvara then spoke.

"In ancient times there were heroes that inspired the people to rise up and defeat the Night King and his hordes. The people would appreciate hope and someone to rally behind in their battles to come, a group of people that are armed with the weapons to fight the Walkers and end their threat forever." Kinvara explained and they all looked on, listening intently. Now that they had trapped the Walkers between Last Hearth and Moat Cailin, maybe they might be able to tighten the noose around them and end the Night King permanently. But the cost might be too much, causalities were high, already of the one hundred and fifty thousand men that had joined the war against Walkers from all of the Seven Kingdoms, a third fifty thousand men were now dead. The numbers might have been far worse if not for the dragons and new weapons brought by the Lannisters. The moral of the people was shot to pieces despite some critical victories and a symbol for the people to rally behind might be a good idea.

Better if it were made up of great warriors and famous leaders. Some of the candidates however had reservations.

"Why should we form a brotherhood? Things seem to be going quite well as they are?" Ser Robar Royce demanded with Loras Tyrell and Randyll Tarly all nodded in agreement. Hadrian nearly groaned when he realised just why they were so against Kinvara's plan despite its good points. It was her magic; the Tyrells, the Tarlys and the Royces still kept the Seven as their gods and the Seven had long labelled magic as an evil thing. Kinvara had abducted them and brought them here against their will which did support this assertion regardless of her good intentions, adding to that was the fact that Kinvara was a foreigner, a fear that was as old as time and one that Lord Tarly kept close to his heart, Hadrian could tell. It irritated him that such petty attitudes could interfere when the fate of all life hung in the balance. He was about to try and convince Lord Tarly and the rest but Jon beat him too it.

"Has it Ser Royce? We have lost a third of our army while theirs's grows with every death. The people and our troops have already lost so much and more will happen in the days to come. A symbol of hope is what they truly need, something to give them courage when the darkness is at its greatest. You have been a soldier all of your life, you know how men fight when they have hope and when they have none. Which would you prefer?" Jon's grey eyes burned hard into Lord Tarly's and Ser Royce who stared hard back at him before conceding his point albeit it reluctantly. Ser Loras followed suit. Hadrian gratefully nodded to Jon who nodded back

Hadrian then stepped forward and addressed them. "We have between us gathered weapons and equipment to assist our cause. Such as these gauntlets." Hadrian said holding up one of the Valyrian steel gauntlets with the embedded fire stone. Everyone looked as Hadrian explained their uses. "The stones in them will grant you warmth even in coldest environments and increase the strength and speed of the wearer if used in combination with a Valyrian steel weapon." He said handing a pair to everyone who had such a weapon while Kinvara handed out golden sun badges that she had created to each member to show their common goal, for the sun to rise again. But then she turned to the archer/huntress Ygritte and offered her a strange looking bow. The wildling woman looked confused for a moment.

"I already have a fucking bow, what use would I have for this weird looking thing?" She said looking at the bow with suspicion but Kinvara was not offended and explained the significance of the bow.

"The bow is made of dragonbone, making it nearly as strong as steel with greater flexibility. Its range is far greater than nearly any other bow that you will find in this world." Kinvara said to the sceptical Ygritte and then passed a gauntlet made of what looking like Valyrian steel covered in runes to Ygritte. "Try it in combination with this stabilizing glove, the Valyrians made these gloves to strengthen the arm of the archer, increase its range and power. Combined with the dragonbone bow, it is especially lethal in the hands of a good archer."

Ygritte thinking the strange woman mad nonetheless indulged her and slipped the strangely comfortable glove on before picking up the dragonbone bow. She loaded an arrow from the quiver that came with the strange bow and targeted the wall where a steel covered shield was hung on the wall. Drawing as hard as she dared with the unfamiliar bow and loosed her arrow. Her eyes and those of everyone in the room went wide when the arrow went straight through the steel. Kinvara smiled and from a bundle on the table produced two more dragonbone bows and stabilizing gloves which Kinvara had retrieved from Valyrian once the air had become breathable again. She handed one each to Daenerys and Rhaenys who looked at the weapons with awe. From astride their dragons these bows would be perfect at fighting the walkers if teamed with dragonglass tipped arrows. Even better if these gloves were as powerful as Kinvara boasted they need not even get too close to the ground to use them.

Obara Sand meanwhile was presented with a spear made of dragonbone and a tip of Valyrian steel. She marvelled at how light and flexible the weapon was, twirling it around with an experienced and practiced hand. The sword wielders in the room meanwhile placed the special gauntlets on their wrists that Hadrian and Shaena had designed although Lord Tarly did so reluctantly. That resistance dissolved once he felt the warmth enter his bones and the feelings of power rush up his arm, when he tested it by drawing Heartsbane the sensation intensified. It was a…useful weapon he conceded.

-x-

While Lord Tarly and the others were getting over their distrust of magic bit by bit, Daenerys and Jon were faced with a man that they had never expected to see again, at least in this world. Ser Jorah Mormont, the bear and the fiercest knight that either of them had ever seen…a man that had died in Daenerys' arms was now standing before them whole and healthy. Neither of them could quite believe it although for Daenerys it was worse, she had been there when the man had died and accepted his dying declarations of love. Tears were growing slowly in the corners of her eyes as she did not know whether or not to run from the room or rush over and embrace the knight from Bear Island. Her nuptials to Khal Drogo were still new but right now she could run up and kiss Jorah Mormont who had waited for her for so many years. Instead alongside Jon she walked forward to meet Jorah who was admiring his gauntlets while his cousin Dacey talked to the archer Ygritte.

"Ser Jorah, I…I thought you were dead." Jon said slightly stunned and feeling rather foolish at his choice of words but else were you supposed to say? They had seen this man dead, by all rights he should not be here however grateful they were that he was.

"Yes." Daenerys said nervously before throwing her arms around the bear knight, tears rolling down her face as she cried into his chest. It was so quiet that hardly anyone but Jon and Jorah noticed and the Bear Knight just put a warm arm around her and let her cry. Once her tears had exhausted themselves he explained what he knew.

"It is a comforting sight to see both you princess and you grace. Lady Kinvara is the one that brought me back with her magic, since I have not felt the same but what is clear is the gods wanted me here to join this fight." Jorah said not sure why but when he looked at the beautiful Targaryen princess he felt a strange sense of loss but as much as it irritated him he did not know why.

Was this what he lost he thought to himself with concern? Had he felt something for this woman once? And the gods had taken it from him?