Chương 88: -Chapter 82-

-Chapter 82-

-22nd day of the 5th moon of the Year 299 AC-

-POV Trystan Sunfyre-

From atop my warhorse, I watched the gates of Blackcastle slowly open.

As much as I had been impressed by the Wall, I was disappointed to see the ruins of this illustrious fortress.

As the king had commanded, I did not adopt a humble attitude towards the Night's Watch, an order that deserves all respect for their sacrifices, despite the decline of this order over the last fifty years.

I maintained a superior attitude and entered the castle surrounded by my guards without dismounting from my horse, as a sign of respect towards Lord Commander Mormont.

From atop my steed, looking neutrally down at him, I said, "By order of the King, we have come to ensure the defense of the Wall."

"When I called upon the king, I did not think he would send troops so quickly," said Commander Mormont, genuinely surprised.

"The king has always been concerned about the fate of the Night's Watch and the Wall; here are His Majesty's new directives," I said.

He grabbed the scroll I handed him, then read it and as he finished the letter, his brow furrowed, and his fingers gripped the letter tightly.

"What is this?" he said, gritting his teeth.

"Just as you have just read, from now on, the Wall, the Gift, and the New Gift are now requisitioned by the crown and will be incorporated into the royal domain."

"You cannot take this away from us; previous kings have gifted this to us, and the Night's Watch has been our order for millennia."

"You are no longer capable of ensuring the security of the realm, but you will continue to defend the realms of Men under the supervision of the Iron Throne. The latitude that previous kings have given your order has been misused, and it is for this reason that the Iron Throne is taking control."

"I will not accept such a thing if the price for such help is our submission to the crown and the abandonment of all that makes our order what it is, the Night's Watch."

"This was not a question, nor an offer I was making, moreover, everything is already enacted. I have simply come to ensure that the will of King Aegon VI is carried out according to his desires without any resistance," I said, signaling to my men to take control of the castle.

Unfortunately for them, they had opened the gates of Blackcastle without suspecting us, and over 500 soldiers had already entered the courtyard of Blackcastle, not to mention the 9,500 others waiting under the walls of the fort.

If one can call them walls, I thought, looking at the palisades that surrounded the castle.

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-24th day of the 5th moon of the Year 299 AC-

-POV Aurane Waters-

I watched the fleet of the pirate Ragelio 'the Butcher of the Strait' mooring in the bay of Bloodstone and I shouted, "Sound the war horns and beat the drums with all your might."

Instantly, the men assigned to play the horn and drum gave everything they had to inspire all our troops with 'epic' music as per the king. Doing this would inspire our troops to fight harder and intimidate our enemies.

I smiled, excited about fighting my first battle as Grand Admiral of the royal fleet.

I was so lucky compared to all the other people who had lost lands, gold, and even family members.

Not only had House Velaryon suffered no damage for following Stannis, but we had also gained much more than we would have with Stannis.

As our fleet emerged from the mist and the sound of drums echoed, the pirates all began to swarm like ants to get their ships out of the harbor and not get trapped between the pincers created by the pirates.

I grabbed my axe and shield and said, "Be ready, as soon as we are within range, kill as many pirates as possible, spare those who surrender and throw down their weapons."

"Yes, Grand Admiral."

The wait between the moment the boat touched the sand and when the ships started playing the drum was interminable, and I felt the pressure begin to invade me as I jumped into the water and charged straight into battle.

We didn't need a plan because we were not only more than ten times their number, but we also had better equipment and the advantage of surprise.

Immediately after I disembarked from the boat, a pirate attacked me. I smiled as I charged him with my shield.

He fell due to my charge which broke his balance, and I took the opportunity to quickly raise my axe and then smash it down on his skull, which split in two under the impact.

I smiled, and as I continued my advance through the increasingly dispersed enemy ranks, I noticed that the 20 dragon guards that King Aegon had charged with my close protection surrounded me and were alert, ready to take a mortal blow if needed for me at any moment.

In less than half an hour, the harbor was completely secured, and we had taken control of all the ships, thereby securing the evacuation route as well.

"I want you to find all the hiding spots of these filthy rats. They know this island like the back of their hand," I said as I watched the Master Spy who had made the journey with us arrive after the battle.

I knew he was close to the king and the brother of the late 'queen' Valeria, but that changed nothing about the fact that this fleet was under my sole command, and I had to assert authority from the start.

"I know what I have to do," he said without showing any respect, his eyes turning completely white.

Then, after a few minutes, he said, "They are in the caves."

"YOU HEARD HIM, EVERYONE TO THE CAVES, FLUSH THE RATS OUT OF THEIR HOLES AND IF YOU CAN'T CATCH THEM, BURN THE CAVES WITH WILDFIRE TO SMOKE THEM OUT."