A Song of Grace & Fury

(A/N: Here's the second plan-... chapter.)

I dismounted Roach slowly and cast a wayward glance at the burning settlement outside the main castle as I made my way past the raised portcullis, hand atop the hilt of the broadsword I'd pried off the corpse of some dead soldier on the way.

Immediately, I noticed the number of corpses was odd.

I narrowed my eyes, "Hmm..."

It was mostly soldiers, and men, not elderly, women or children.

Maybe Lewys had urged them all into the keep for safety, which was smart, but at the same time, dangerous unless victory was a distinct possibility. It meant all of them would be gathered in one place, and clumping large numbers together was never a good idea.

I passed the still smoldering remains of wooden houses, collapsed stalls, and dead men, most of whom I didn't really know but recognised all the same from my visit.

Pinkmaiden was largely undefended, the number of soldiers was too low because Clement Piper had taken most of his men to fight the Lannisters at the pass... It made me consider just how grim the situation would've become for the Riverlands if Jaime Lannister won like he should have.

The light rain did little to wash away the blood that had been spilled by whoev-... I knew who it was.

I sniffed at the air, and unshackled the superior senses of dragonkind that I usually kept in check for my own personal amusement. 

And I heard.

There was no bird, and no animal for miles and miles but there were definitely beasts in my vicinity.

I could hear steps and shouts and groans and moans.

I was also reminded of the more grim reason to keep my senses in check, I could smell rot, blood, the stench of iron, burnt flesh, excretions and... semen for a reason I didn't quite like.

Pinching my nose, I shut the influx of information down, "Never trying that again."

Unless it was for a good reason.

I cast a glance at Roach who was following behind me with his head lowered.

Quickly, I took off my trench coat and hat, fastened them to the saddle and slapped Roach on his hind.

"Go on, boy, do whatever you want."

The horse roared loud and rushed off to whatever had caught his fancy as I picked up my pace.

It was fact that I probably could have done something to stop this had I not entertained my whims and spent time with the Brotherhood but that line of thought was simply wrong and did more harm than good.

Wallowing over what could have been was a waste of time, I'd learnt this lesson early on.

One could only accept the facts and make endeavors towards what would come next.

Soon enough, a pair of men came into view, clad in furs and thick clothes like common brigands, laughing and poking at an old man in rags, protecting a child in his arms, with pointed swords.

A third one leaned on a spear, watching with amused eyes.

Humans were quite odd.

"If you don't mind me asking..." I spoke politely, a thin smile on my dry lips, "Can you direct me to my squire?"

"Who the fuck are you?"

I smiled more, "And who the fuck are you?"

The one with the spear grunted and approached me with a grin.

So, I drew my sword and jammed it in his gut, then tore it out of his shoulder before kicking his bleeding corpse away, "I only need one of you folks for my questions."

The other two realised their situation quickly enough for supposed brigands, and surprisingly, didn't try to rush at me with their swords flailing about. No, one moved to my right and the other to my left without speaking a single word.

Only once they were on completely opposite sides did they rush at me.

I stepped back at the last moment, grabbed one's hand and jammed his sword into his fellow's neck. Before he could register what had happened, I snapped his hand like a twig and bent it towards the sky.

"You're the lucky winner... Now then, where's my fucking squire?" I pushed him to the ground as he screamed. He went quiet when I stabbed my sword into his thigh and glared at me hatefully, hissing in pain as his blood flowed to join those of his victims in the rain and mud, "Where's Gregor Clegane?"

"Fuck you, bastard!"

I crouched down next to him, "Child, I can do much worse."

"Try it!" He spit at me so I shrugged and grabbed his leg.

"On my hunt, I encountered an interesting drake." I explained, once again expanding my senses for Addam's scent, "The damn thing caught the Scarlet Rot but... it hated dragon communion, my hunt, so much it retained enough sentience to guard the Church."

"What the fuck are you blabbering about you fuc-"

"Shush now." I tightened my grip, "I ate it of course. Tasted like shit but I did it... Let me show you what it gave me."

Crimson rot creeped onto his leg, his flesh decayed as he screamed. 

In moments, his leg disappeared, like it was set on by a swarm of locusts.

I stood up and dusted my hands.

This was what these fucks deserved.

I walked over to the old man that they'd been torturing, and took the crying babe from his warm embrace before patting his shoulder, "You did great, child. I admire you."

It didn't take long for me to get to the castle, even if my pace was barely a brisk walk.

I was greatly relieved by the clanking of steel, and the groaning of men.

Lewys was smarter than he looked and behaved, he'd ordered a retreat to the main keep and while the band of brigands burnt most of the castle outside it, a significant number of people were safe.

Piper men took potshots from the murder holes above the gates, and from windows, as their assailants did their utmost to break through.

The large wooden doors wouldn't hold on for long, but they'd done plenty enough by then.

I looked at the so-called brigands from behind them as they turned to notice my presence, "By Marika, that's..."

I caught sight of an absurdly tall man, a good two heads taller than even me, wearing dull, grey steel plate armor that was littered with scars from battle... He held a longsword the size of a grown man in one hand, and a shield in the other.

A slitted helm masked his features.

"That's a... disappointment."

Marika was taller than him.

Malenia was taller than him.

...

I snickered, still cradling the babe in one arm, "Some mountain."

"Come on, boys." I held out my bloodied sword, "Let's get this over with. Let me show you how it's done... I won't even tear you in half, promise."

I was more interested in cutting them apart, so they could see what the common folk had felt like.

Again, this was incredibly odd.

My way of fighting had always been a decisive, thorough, crush.

"What the fuck is wrong with that old bastard?" 

"Nothing."

It took... a lot less time than I'd been hoping for to cut down the few men that approached me before the rest of the group noticed the nature of their situation.

"I'm Karl." I chuckled, pulling my sword out of a man's chest, "And I'm beating you with a baby in one hand."

They'd surrounded me almost immediately after the first few died, encircling me, which was smart on their part... They watched in silence, exchanging hesitant glances.

The silence was interrupted by a voice that sounded akin to a breaking stone, or gravel.

"Move."

They parted like flies as the 'Mountain' made his way to me, longsword resting on his shoulder. Dark eyes peered at me through the slit in his helm, "Little fly, annoying."

I shrugged, "Me no speak fucking idiot."

As soon as I finished, he moved, far swifter than a man his size realistically had any right to but... I'd eaten dragons for a living. I ducked under his swing, and swung my sword with the strength one would expect from a human.

"Of course."

My blade simply bumped off his plate armor.

In the same motion, he raised his sword high and brought it down. I held my sword at an angle, manipulating his trajectory in a way that made his blade slink off to the side as I flipped my own around, changing the grip to stab the gap in his armpit.

sI felt my sword rip into muscled flesh.

Barely fazed, Gregor grunted and swung his sword upwards in a bid to cut me in half, along with the babe in my arms but I once again moved, jerking my body to meet his swing with my own sword.

With his weight and size of his longsword, my blade was liable to break under his strength so I once again blocked at an angle, using his own momentum to throw off his strike, before jamming my sword into his knee.

His balance crumpled almost immediately, and the final nail in his knee's coffin was me kicking it.

The plate armor buckled and Gregor roared in pain and fury, bashing his shield... or trying to. I met his shield with my own forehead.

Unsurprisingly, the shield broke, along with the arm behind it.

The one moment he reeled in pain was enough for me to toss my sword to the sky and force my fingers into the slit in his helm. I tore it off his face with a grin, and forced my fingers into his mouth to tear off his jaw.

"I heard you liked raping kids."

My sword came down and I pushed its hilt with my palm, jamming the sword into his nose and through his brain.

"...Fucking disappointment."

He had strength greater than any man in this world and he used it to rape, pillage, and be a monster.

I kicked his fresh corpse away with a scoff before turning to face his men.

"Any one of you want a go?" I asked, even though I had no intention of allowing any of them to escape.

They learnt that not a moment later when I snapped my fingers and crimson lightning scorched them.

Done with the Mountain and his men, I put on my neutral smile and faced the keep.

"Well, open the door. I expect some good food for my services."

It took some time, time I spent standing in the rain but I didn't feel annoyed. It was completely understandable that they were too stumped to know what to do.

I'd cut down so many men while holding a baby.

The doors opened to reveal a familiar face.

"Addam, man, how was your first taste of war?"

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Hope you enjoyed.

Comment your thoughts and/or suggestions for the story.

The real plot twist was that Addam was safe and that Karl was on time... cause fuck that cheap ass way of character development on GOD.

The brutality of someone who's known only war for millennia but kept a human heart.

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Guys, we've crossed 60k words on this book. Drop some real reviews about the story come on. And I swear to God, if you drop spam, I will drop this story.