142- The beginning of something beautiful.

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~~~Kevan Lannister, Tenth Moon, 277 AC~~~

~~~Lannisport, Westerland~~~

"Quick, you damned vermin, whoever I see strolling I'll throw you into the lion's den!" I rode as fast as my horse would let me, shouting orders and preparing everything for what was to come.

The sailors and captains of the Lannister fleet climbed into the boats as if their lives depended on it. They needed to reach the ships anchored several yards offshore. Having a massive fleet at the docks made the task difficult, but fortunately, Azrael had stopped the cargo of their massive ships, and instead, they moved those behemoths off the docks to a more open location.

But there were still two Xandarian ships at the dock, and my entire concern was that the Ironborn would decide to lean on the two big ships that were still left, with the idea of a bigger bounty.

The last thing I needed was for Xandar to come into conflict with the Seven Kingdoms due to the attack on what was formally an Iron Throne-ruled territory, for not even the descent of the Seven would make any difference should Xandar deploy its full might.

"Those arrows, get them to the ramparts, quick damn it, and you, what the hell did I say about loitering!"

One thing that surprised me, due to the bravery or stupidity of the attack, was that they didn't wait for night to attack, since the moon's mantle would give them a better chance to go unnoticed until it was too late to react.

But now, with enough daylight to fight clearly, it made the certainty of what was to come not desert the soldiers on the ramparts and the ships being prepared for combat.

"My lord, they are very near, the ships have weighed anchor!" A squire informed me of the situation in the bay, as he ran after me, as I rode up the quay walls on my horse.

"Have them intercept the Greyjoy ships close to shore, we can't fight in their knowing state, the bay will allow the flow of Greyjoy ships to be low, which will allow us to repel them, the Ironborn are not good at knocking down walls, they are disorderly and undisciplined, the wall will repel them if they reach the shore."

Or so he hoped.

Up on the ramparts, he got a better look at the big picture, and the sight brought a lump to his throat, on the far left of the bay, were six Xandarian ships, the rest of the fleet, was several hundred meters away, spread out in a large perimeter.

On the other side, the Lannister fleet was closer together... And more cluttered than the Xandarian fleet, and although there were more ships than Azrael's fleet, it looked smaller due to the contrast in size.

And ahead, a mile away, a massive fleet of Ironborn ships was approaching, cutting through the water with protrusions protruding from their bows, quite possibly to break a ship in half if a collision was involved.

I watched intently as the Ironbone ships drew closer and closer, my heartbeat becoming louder and louder, and the clatter of armor and swords silenced around me.

And yet a sound from the Seven Hells themselves was heard, a distant, shrill echo reverberating in my ears, forcing me to remove my helmet because of the torturous echoing as if the bells of the Sept had been rung mere feet from my head.

The surrounding soldiers were in the same or worse conditions than me, there was even one or another one whose ears were bleeding they had not reacted in time and the sound made their ears explode due to the helmets.

But whatever the product of that sound was, it served its purpose, the morale of the soldiers dwindled, and many were disoriented and lost. Clutching their heads tightly.

As I was about to shout at them and lift my squire who was kneeling next to me, a loud explosion sounded. My neck spun so fast that I thought I would break it, and the shock was great due to the surprise of what had happened.

Four galleys, the closest to the Greyjoy fleet, were in pieces, pieces of wood were floating in the water, and the fire was fighting the salt water for the sole purpose of consuming the surviving wood.

Contemplation struck me like a spear in a joust, not understanding what had happened, from one moment to the next only... They exploded.

"They are Krakens, Ser Kevan," it was at that a honeyed, sweet voice snapped me out of my stupor, and once again, my neck turned at an almost dangerous speed, there, to my left, stood a woman, the same woman who had been at the docks when I went with Azrael a few hours ago.

Only now she was not wearing a black robe, but armor, 'witch' I thought, Lady Janna had told me about them, dangerous and volatile women who were in the service of King Azrael, women (if the word still belonged to them) with great power within Xandar and one of the swords that King Azrael could unleash if necessary.

And watching now, I felt naked, for I had not even felt when he had stood beside me, and the soldiers posted on the wall were the same, judging by how they drew their swords and looked tense.

"Do not be alarmed, Ser Kevan. I am not here to pose a danger to you. I only wished to see contact with the greatest naval force in your realm, and the result has been more than enlightening: to think that you have Krakens under your power. It is a wonderful thing, especially considering that they are beautiful creatures."

This woman's words seemed just the boasts of a madman, but looking out into the bay, it all pointed to something more... Mystical, because the closest Greyjoy ship to the fleet, which was one with a strange one-eyed banner, was a hundred yards away.

"Your people do not have the power to take on the Krakens, they will serve if anything as an appetizer for the beasts." The woman continued speaking, oblivious to the swords pointed at her.

"And what does he offer? King Azrael has not offered his support, and in any case, I have not asked for it, we can with..." My words were left in my mouth, as another three explosions rang out, and this time, I could watch intently as a tentacle, thicker than any mast on any ship, hovered above the surface.

Grayish in color and thousands of suckers, it crashed against the ship with an enormous force, splitting the galley in two, "at this rate, your fleet will be reduced to ashes, and the... Greyjoy, will have a free way to take the city, do you want that?"

"And what do you propose?" I asked hopefully, though somewhat cautiously, King Azrael had returned to Casterly Rock, and I knew by his own account that his fleet was only allowed to engage in combat if it came under attack. So it wasn't as if I could ask them for help if it weren't for that detail.

Besides, what could they do in this case? "Permit for Xandar to get involved, if you do, you can save what's left of your fleet, and safeguard your city." In Westeros nothing was free, and I was sure it was the same in Essos, so I didn't hesitate to ask him what she wanted in return.

"What do I have to pay for this?" I asked, and she laughed amusedly, though it only made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. "You? No, you won't have to pay anything, in any case, you are not the lord of Casterly Rock, leave that to him and my king."

I hardened my gaze, nothing good or easy could come of this, but no doubt Tywin would understand, so without further ado, I agreed, "Do it, do something about those Krakens, and I will see to it that your help is rewarded," I told him, noting how one by one of the ships were slaughtered, with the Greyjoy fleet simply sailing slowly at some distance, no doubt ready to reap their results.

"Oh, it will be so no doubt," she said, and without warning, pulled a circular tube from her clothing, with a strange object in her right hand, she made a notch and the red tube ignited, whatever the object was, soared into the air and exploded at some height, spreading a shower of colors. 'Fireworks' I thought, remembering those things they used to signal when a hunt had come to an end.

What followed was something completely surreal, for a row of small waves formed from where the Xandarian fleet was standing, with the ripples spreading out across the entire bay.

And whatever that was, I didn't like it in the least.