Ruby Ford and the Kings Road

The snow was blanketing the area slightly, and Daeron knelt to one knee and looked out to the Trident river where his House was defeated.

His brother fought against Robert Baratheon and lost, his breastplate shattering and the rubies fell into the ford which gave the nearby Crossroads Inn its fame and area its mark, the Ruby Ford.

Turning back, he wanted to stop the march to look upon it and contemplate on his life and how it ended up here, and putting another Targaryen at this river once again. Except for this time, he is the victor, he overpowered and took back his Kingdom from those who inherited it from the true traitors.

Mounting back on his horse, he nodded for the army to continue up the Kingsorad, leaving and hoping to see this river once again when the Night King is dead.

"It's just a straight road, now." He heard Jon say, riding up and keeping pace with him.

"I heard Winterfell is the oldest castle of Westeros, I hope it is true." He said with wonder, Jon smiled and for a moment the silence reigned until he began to speak again. "I suppose you want to know about your family, about us that you didn't hear from soldiers or blurred lies." Jon nodded and he took a deep breath before thinking but Jon started.

"My father, who was he like- I know you never met him, but Viserys did and the old knight, too." He pondered on what to say, thinking back to what Barristan had told him when he had asked.

"Barristan said he was melancholic, loved to play and sing the harp, and would have been a better King than our father, your grandfather." Now came the Mad King. "Aerys II was as Mad as everyone thought of, and Viserys- As much as I loved the man he was would have turned out just as Mad... But Dany." He stopped, a tear running down his face.

"You don't need to continue, Daeron. It must have been hard, losing her." Yes, it was.

"More than you know, I loved her dearly and she would have made a great Queen, one I would follow to hell and back with." Maybe he'll always think of her, despite him thinking he had let go so that makes him quite the lovesick fool.

"I suppose I shouldn't have asked... I'm a Stark, now, and that's all I will be from this day to the last." That doesn't mean they cannot be friends, and be there like brothers as him believing like an uncle seems too silly what with Jon being older than him by a year.

"Jon, you'll always be family to me... Nephew." A weird silence dawned and both himself and Jon felt strange, "No, let's just keep it as brothers, it sounds a lot less silly." He added and Jon laughed, enjoying one another's company that lasted several minutes but to him, it felt like an hour.

The Riverlands were greatly different compared to Dorne, the Reach, or the Stormlands and Crownlands which were more open with fields and had a bright and warm and uncaring.

It was fare more woodlands, a great forest that reminded him of the ones he had seen when traveling with Khal Drogo to Vaes Dothrak but these woods were wilder to him- More ancient.

Daeron smirked, wishing he had been able to bring ashore a horde of Dothraki, they would have caused a lot more damage to House Baratheon and Lannister when he had arrived in Westeros but now, they wouldn't be much use to them when fighting the undead.

They don't fear anything, as Jon said and that was precisely why he wasn't bringing along a cavalry force because they wouldn't be as useful.

But spearmen and thousands of arrows will certainly do the trick.

"So Winterfell is where we will make our stand?" He asked of Jon, the Lord of Winterfell nodded and yet grimaced quickly thereafter.

"Worst case, but I wished to march to the Wall and man it, we have enough men to hold out against the Night King, now." He stopped his horse to the side, Jon eyed him with confusion and followed him. "What do you have in mind?" Daeron thought about it and started to put out his idea.

"Moat Cailin, it's held off thousands upon thousands soldiers going as far back as the Dawn Age." He mentioned, remembering Jorah praising the Northern fortress. "It's geographical advantages all but guarantees to slow the dead unless they happen to learn how to fly." He added and then decided on what they are going to do when they made it North.

They will rebuild Moat Cailin to be ready to face the encroaching dead, and stop the Long Night from occurring once again.

Agreeing to the plan, they relayed this knowledge to the other commanders who also agreed to the battle plans for the fight against the dead and Night King.

The allied forces marched further up the Kingsroad, it seemed like the further they got the whiter the land got until they made it to an abandoned castle, possibly destroyed during the War of the Five Kings.

It was here he decided to camp, taking shelter in the least ruined chamber, and began writing a letter for the Wall and Winterfell.

The letters were decrees for all women, children, and elderly to go to White Harbor and take ships to the Three Sisters or further South until the war was over, he also commanded for all able-bodied men and women to gather materials to rebuild Moat Cailin and for those at the Wall to keep an eye out for the undead then leave for safety by ship at Eastwatch.

After that he rested in the bed or what there could be of a bed, closing his eyes and dreaming of Sansa already despite them seeing and being in one another's embrace not long ago.

Morning came swiftly and Jorah woke him by bringing him some soup, bread, and a slice of lamb.

"Barristan advised a better meal, but I said that Daeron often ate only stew with lamb and a piece of bread." That is true, he liked many types of meat over his travels across Essos and Westeros but grew a great liking to cut lamb.

"It's been harder to find good enough lamb until we achieved victory at King's Landing, before that, it was salted beef and fish." Although, when they were in Volantis, he had to try exotic meats like elephants and tigers. "How is the morale, Jorah?" He asked, biting into his breakfast.

Jorah sighed, sitting down and setting his helm on the table. "It is good, better after a few months of being back in Westeros." That's good, well, a lot better than it was when the first came to port at Dorne. "You've fought for a long time to be where we are, the men love and respect you." he looked up, Jorah stopping from speaking further.

"And fear me?" Viserys was big on getting the fear rather than just love, and Daenerys demanded respect with being the Khaleesi.

"Some do, but overall you have made the Realm better than all the previous Kings that sat that throne." Jorah smiled and put a hand on his shoulder, "Stay close to Barristan and me, my King, or stay on your dragons but please don't throw yourself too deep into the enemy." His friend and teacher pled, but Daeron refused to agree.

The King leads from the front, protecting those under his banner and territory.

"Sorry, I can't do that, friend." Finished with his meal, he rose from his chair and latched Blackfyre on his belt. "Tell the army to prepare to march along the road." He aimed for the door and was stopped by his Kingsguard and friend.

"And where will you be?" He turned to answer but Daegon's yawn echoed from behind the ruined keep, answering Jorah's question for him.

Daeron saw both of his dragons waiting for him, he smiled and got on top of Daegon's saddle and strapped himself in and saw some of his men gathering then he commanded the dragons to take flight and soar across the sky as Jorah relayed for everyone to break camp and get moving.

Nearly two weeks would go by before they made it to the Neck, Daeron commanded Daegon to land over a cliff and he spotted the fort.

Taking a breath filled with trepidation, he descended down as Jon Snow, Jaime Lannister, Grey Worm, and Randyll Tarly led the great force down the path and into the area which will be their last stand against the undead.

Daeron noticed that the North was already undergoing construction on bringing the fortress back to working order, preparing it.

The Wall 

Edd stood alongside his brothers as they readied to fight and die.

It came subtly, the lads from atop the Wall sounded the horn of returning Rangers that he had deployed not even a night past but that should've meant that it was important enough to end their ranging early.

It turned out it was a trap because as soon as the gate was lifted, the former Rangers revealed cold skin and blue eyes.

A fight broke out, but from the surprise and the thousands of wights breaking through the Haunted Forest, they couldn't stop the assault and did all they could to slow them down.

The horns were blown, three times to echo across to the other outposts then he charged five to take their best horses throughout the North and the Wilding settlement to have those too weak to flee and those strong enough to ready themselves for the undead.

Gathering the last men in Castle Black, more than eighty men that were mixed with Wildling warriors and Watchmen. Men manned the back with bows and crossbows, the rest stood in line with him as twelve others threw barrels and used the scorpions to take down larger wights.

Edd knew a day like this was going to happen, he sighed and unsheathed his weapon along with others. "Brothers, do you remember our vows?" He asked and the Watchmen began to recite the words they all said the day they became brothers.

"Night gathers and now our watch begins, it shall not end till our death." The rumbling of hundreds began shaking the gate. "We shall take no wife, hold no lands, father no children." They rammed against the door again, "We shall wear no crowns, and win no glory." The wood chips and a wight began sticking his head through. "We shall live and die at our posts!" The dead broke through and started darting towards them.

"We are the swords in the darkness, the watchers on the Wall! The shields that defend the Realms of men!" The battle commenced, Edd swung and beheaded a wight, the bowmen shot the best they could and it didn't seem to matter. "We pledge our lives and honor to the Night's Watch! For this night- " A spear struck his chest as Edd finished his vow and fell to his knees.

A wight finished and bashed his head with a mace, all the while he thought the final words of his vow.

"... And all... The nights... To come." Edd's eyes then went blue, the defenders being gutted and turned into meat or fresh soldiers.

The Night King entered the hallowed ground he hasn't seen since his mortal life ended, when the Children made him into an instrument of their wrath against the First Men.

The Long Night is here, now... And it shall cover more than Westeros but beyond it.