Sea Dreams // The Warlord's Day to Day
Mathen57
Shotgun for a brain
- Location
- Jakarta, Indonesia
Few days before the Volantene Revolt
Right at the end of this scene
"I promised your Maester to take you to Castle Black and no further", Osha marches off to the makeshift tent as Jojen and Bran stew in awkward silence.
Hodor stirs a bit in surprise before outright panicking. He gasps before he shouts "Hodor!" and runs towards the tent, pushing Osha away. Under the tent, Rickon Stark convulses violently, accompanied by the sound of his gurgling getting louder and louder.
Bran stares perplexedly as his face turns into a rictus of worry and concern. Jojen and Meera run towards Rickon to subdue his convulsing form.
Hodor grabs hold of Rickon's shoulders and pushes it down to prevent further shaking while Jojen holds the young lord's legs down as Meera puts a band in the kid's mouth.
Osha gets out her daze from being pushed down and looks at Rickon with worry, "what's wrong with him? Is he 'avin one 'em visions too!?"
Jojen replies, "Yes, Green Dreams can take a toll on a person."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Who're you?" A figure looks back at him, too far for him to discern any specific detail, all that Rickon sees are the stars below that figure and the bright sky.
It walks to him, creating ripples on the image of stars and a bright white light slowly forms behind it. A feminine voice speaks, echoing, " I'm Abigail" the figure says soothingly yet the echoes sound thunderous to Rickon's ear. There's a stillness after that as the Little Wolf trembles at the sudden volume. His head throbs mightily like someone's put their hands on his ears and begins to squeeze his head. "It's rude to not introduce yourself after I've given you my name."
Rickon closes his fists petulantly, but a strange compulsion forces him to respond. "Well, I'm Rickon...Rickon Stark!"
"Nice to meet you Rickon", the figure gets close enough for Rickon to see her features. Golden hair hangs down to her knee, her bright blue eyes and small nose makes her quite pretty in Rickon's eyes, but her many blue and yellow bows weird him out. She extends a hand to him, the small limb sneaking out of her very long sleeves. Rickon grasps the hand, so smooth and small, smaller than his own hands, and shakes it.
She smiles delicately, and Rickon hesitates before smiling back. "May I ask where you're going?" She says.
Rickon responds as if it was a natural thing to do, "We're going North of the Wall!" He says excitedly. "There's someone Bran has to meet so he can kill the White Walkers."
"Can't say I've ever heard of a White Walker."
"Well...uhm... Old Nan says that the White Walkers brought the long night. She says that the night lasted for years and years. That they brought spiders as big as hounds and made the snow a hundred feet deep in the North."
There's a hint of a smile on the girl's face, "And do you believe her?" Rickon nods. "That's a fascinating tale I must say..."
Rickon nods again, not understanding what she's saying or where she's going with this, "Yeah, and Bran is gonna stop them, so the White Walkers don't freeze the north and the Seven Kingdoms."
Abigail chuckles a bit, "Whether the world ends in Ice or Fire, they drown all the same. The ice either melts or grows, but water still kills."
There's a pause after that before Abigail breaks it.
"Sorry, Tangent..." She breathes deeply, "Well, since you were so kind enough to share me something, I think it's fair if I share back. Do you have questions specifically?"
"Where are we?"
"Well...we're in your dreams Rickon. I'm sure it's obvious." She answers coyly.
The young lord looks frustrated at her deflection. "Where. Are.We? " He asks petulantly.
Abigail seems amused by his theatrics and feigns a sigh, "Fine, but you won't get it." Abigail tenses up and sweeps her hand to the sight behind her" You stand at the gate, little wolf, the gateway between this world and the other."
Rickon tilts his head and gives Abigail a blank stare.
"What do you mean other worlds? "
"Exactly that, there are other worlds with their own Essos and Westeros, their own Faith of the Seven, and their own Great Wall. I just happen to be the key for the gate between them. " Abigail cups her chin in deep thought and murmurs so softly that Rickon could barely make out her words, "though if I did open it..."
There's something about the girl that seems almost mystical to Rickon like she's more than what he sees. Though what she says confuses him greatly and he stares blankly at her, tilting his head.
"Tch, I knew a kid like you wouldn't get it, why did I even bother," Her face scrunches up in frustration, marring her silky white face. "Maybe if I showed rather than tell..."
The girl gets uncomfortably close to Rickon, their noses almost touching, "Look at me" she says. He does, and he sees something pop out of her rather big forehead. At first, he thought that it was a keyhole-shaped tattoo before an Eye appears, shocking him. The eye flashes a malignant purple light as it saturates his vision.
P͖̤̪̪̑̉͌ͮͭ͊͆ͩ̊ͦͯ̓͂̂̋́̀͘͘e̷̻͍͎͉̩̟̣̫̝ͣͭ̂̀ͥ̊͋̂̓̔͡͝e̩̩̮͉̩̹̥̥̓͋͑̌́́l̳̲̞͓̠͇̮̠͓͈͔̱̠̖͓͔̰̮ͤ̇̈́̋̏ͭ̽ͮ̌͜ ̷̢̨̨͉͚̬̳̗͕̝̘͔̞̫̘͇̒͌̋ͯ͌̒́͟t̷̛͙̞̺͍̬̖̗̳̪̽̈́̊̽̈̐ͬͬ̈́̌ͭͨ̔̈́ͭ̅h͚̳͉̞̝̩̯̗̹̭̰̹̫̤̓̽́͒́̕͟͟͡e̶̡͍͎̣̥͎͇͈̼̙̰̯͓̫͖͚̠̙̠͋͆̔̿͢͞͠ ̵̵̛̼̫̠͇̫̦̝͇͇̰̫̠̎̊ͭ̔͊͛͊̿̌͐͋͗ͬͧQ̥̥̪̼͉̞̩̺̹̗͔̪̗̤̬͇̽̍͆ͫ̒̃̒ͯ̑̽̒̀͢͞ḷ̨͚̤̯͈̟͓͙͚̦̠̲̪̹͚̍̈ͧ̇̾͋̿̈́͊̿ͯͥ͗̽͛͒̂͡ͅỉ̧͓̜̗̻̜̰̦͍̠̪̱̂̓̇̿͗͌ͥ̒ͯͮͧ̕͠p̵̧̼̰̬̟̬͇ͬͬ̆ͫ̐̈̿̃̓͗̌ͦo̴͐ͦͪ̐ͬ̋ͣ̉͑͐ͬ͊ͧͪ̾͌͑͡͝͏̭̙̝͖͎̣̥̜͔̥͎̗̩̘̹̠̳͢t̸̢͙͈̦̦̥͑ͣ̓̆̾̈̏̆ͦ̓ͧ̑̀̚h̷̷̢̧͚̝͕̼̤̼̦̲̦̲̻̹̥̣̽̓ͫ̓̒ͧ͑ͩ̓̌͐͐͐̎ͩ͝,̵̗͉̠͙̩̘̺̪ͤ̀ͬ̈́ͦ̓ͫ͝ͅ ̴̴̧̛͇̟͈̜̘͇͚̣̼͉̋͌̈́̾ͧͪ̏͛̒̔̀ͤ̄͆͐̐͝ā̵̧̫̱͓͙̬̣͈̜̮̜̤͕̠̲̀̿ͤ̊ͪ̾̆̿ͩ̌̈́͆̓̾̎ͧ̽͡n̡̩̲̠̳̱̲̮̠͉̐ͣ̓ͨ͘͢ͅḋ͍̰͓̺̜͓͔͂̿ͯͯ͂͗ͯͫ͋̽ͦ̀̔ͣ̏̍́͡ͅ ̷̡̘̹͍͖̣͎̹̺̳͓̣͕̿̅ͮͣ̉ͥ̈ͥͧ͠͡͞u̠͕̗̳̱̖͖̞̘͕̲͕̳̠̫͉ͤ͑ͯ̈́̉͆̔̊͊̇̌̌̚̚̕ņ̷̶͚̖͚̲̖̻̫̦̱̭̙͓̠̘͔͔̟͐͊ͪ̀̏̈́͊l̨̞̟͓̱̹̤̟̬̱̮̭̺̋̏̅̃̄͌̊͊ͪͤͥ̾̉̇ͦ̚͘͝ö̸̴̬͈̙̫̰͍̼̻̙̹̹̰̯̲͔̯̜͍̑ͧ̒ͧͦ͑͋̈́̋̎͜͞͝ͅc̶̴̢̛͓̺̙̜̱̟̝͙͔͇͉̭̣̜̜̔̂̍ͤ̿ͨ̂͑̓k̷̭͕͔̘̼͚̘͌̊̃̂̓͑̾́͌͆ͮ̅͌ͧ͗͘͡ ̨̧͌͆ͯ̔́̚҉̠̺͉̞̟͉̻͓͍̤͚̺̩̦t̡̡͚̬̰̯̫̻̺̼̫̭̥̟͚̫̩̳͋ͯ̚h̛̠͍̣̺͓̠̮̮͎͍͈̜͓̱̝̅̋̊̂͌ͦ̐̇́ȩ̴͔͖̘̙͎ͦ͆̉͌̀͞ͅͅ ̝͔͓̪̼͙̝̹͓̫͕̪͎ͭͥ̅͒̈ͧͥ̒̽ͩ̐̀ͮͫ͒ͦͩ́͟ͅf̛̛̛̭̣̫̹̬͖̝̳̖̹̣̣͚̑̐̉͊̿ͫ̓̄̇̔̐͆ͯ̉̓ͬ̀ͫ̀͝į̷̻͕͍̣̰̗͔̦͖̭̙ͮ̏̍͗͗ͣ̌ͫ͑̔́͑ͦ̃̌̇ͩ͟͢͝n̸̜͖̙̝ͭͤ̋͑ͫͨ̐ͭͯ̆͟͟ă̢̛̻̩͍̜̗ͥ̒ͯ̅͐͆̃l̶ͩ̊̇ͬ̾̔ͩ͢͡҉̲̦̬̝̝̹͎̼͖̠ͅ ̸̯̖̪͖̟̘̪͙̤̤̪̹̹̒ͦ̑̔͋̌ͨͮ́ͪ͂͌́͟͠g̨͒̽ͬͭ̽̿̐ͣ̋ͧ͏̵̭̗͇̭̳͉̟̱͚͎͙̘̲̼͖͟ͅa̴̴͆ͤ̂͒͑ͤ͂̽̇ͬͮ̊̃ͦ̅͟҉̭̥̮̥̦̝͕͉̠̹̲͍͔̦̦̭́t̸̷̢̡̘͔͉̼̳̪̰̣͍͖̯ͭͤ̊͐̏̑̆̾͊̅͐̓̍̓ͨ̄ͤe͕̥̞̲͉̱̣̬̰͎͕̐ͣ͋̉̎ͦ̐̓̋̇̀ͯ̊̀͢͝.̰̣͍͙͖̦̟̩͓̖̤͔̮͔̠͎͂ͦ͛ͫ̆̇ͯ̍̂̀̃̓̒̓ͪ̒ͭ̚͘͜͟͡ͅ ̵̞̩͔̩͉̮̗̟̐ͭ̊̆͋̾̓̽̊͢͡O̵ͦ̃̑͑͆̒͂̂͋͒ͣͤ̽ͨ̋ͪ̈̿̾͟͏̠̘̫͉̖̻̗̘̝͔̼͈̲̲̼̦͈̹̀h̷̶̡̛̹̭͕͕̪̤͙̬̜̟̲̑͒ͭ̋̾̂̎͆ͥ͝,̸̛̺̮̹̝̟͓̰̳͙̪͍̝͎̻̬̘̟̻ͬ͛̓ͯ͋̐̓ͨ́ͧ̅̋̾ͨ́ͧ͘͡ ̡͖̦͕͙̥̪̖͍͍͂͗̈́̍ͬ̃͂̓̆͆̾ͨͣ̀͠S̛̻̭͓̝̙͕̺̘̫͓̘̫͍̬̹͎͓͚̓͂̔ͨͧ͗ͥ̍͌̌̃́ͫ̐̆̚ͅì̵̴̧̡̞͚̦͙̬̱̪͔͕̝̭̻̪͕͉̄̅͑͐̇̂͡l̨̳̘͎̙͉̭̮̰̞̣͉̗̀͑ͭ̔ͦ̐ͯ͊ͨ͌ͨ̄ͭͅv̧̢̭͕̗̹͈̰̗̀̅ͥͨ̾̆̆̓͛̌̅ͫͬ̓͊̆͝e͐̐ͩͩ͊́ͭ͋ͤ̒͗̅̿͏̛̛̮̲̮̩̻̖͕͍̺̹̥̜̞̜͎̤̖̬r͒̇̾̊̀̔ͪ́͏̖̙̫̪͔̪̺̪̜͍̞̹ ̶̵͚̬͚̦̲͔̙̤͖̭̳̘̹͇͓̮̟͊̆̌̓̿ͤ̉ͪ̚ͅḰ̊̑̌̀͢҉̴҉̩̱͎̕ͅe̡̼̤͍͙͎͈͚̟̙͈͇̣̗̫̲̖̞̹̐̾͐͛̍ͫ̐͋͠ͅỳ̵̭͙̞̮̖̙̟͇͎̣͚̃̊ͫ̐̎̅̎̀͟͝,̶̃ͣ͆̏̄ͪͭ͌̒̓̔͒͗̃̄͛ͨ͝҉̖͙̜̗̯̣̣͎ ̢̺̞̝͈͙̼̘̲̬͔̾͑ͬ̏̔̔̇͌̃ͣ̽͐̌̆̚S̢̬̻̤̘͈̭̥̭͔̺̦͍̪̝͇̊ͥ̔̍͒̑̾ͤ̋̉̋̚͞ḭ̶̴̭͍̰̱̦̱̜͎̘̳͔̯̰̆̌̄͞͝ͅlͦ̅̒̓ͧ̿̆͋̃͌͆̇ͥ͒̎͏̴̙̹̱͕̬͘͜͞vͦ̌̋ͦͯ̿̉̽̾̄̆̓ͣ̑̎̓ͧ̓̆̀͡͏͏̣̼̮̟̰̖͓̖͞ͅͅe̴͓̪̦̝͚͇͔̱̫̜̯̣̯̦̹͙͕̥ͯ͂̏͒̈́̈̓͌͜ͅr̵̻̜̘̗̋̾̃̿̀ͭͣ̎̐̿̈̈́̑̄̕͜͝ͅ ̷̵̗̜̻̖͓͂ͤ̈̓̅ͧ̕̕ͅG̴̖͓̥̦̦̗̪͚̦̮̳̮̩̮̤̹̘͋̃̅̓̐́̑̉̐̉͋͛͛̌̉ͩ͐͜͜a͑̄ͮ̓̔̅̉̂ͨ̇́̓ͧ̚҉̶͞͏̰̖̘̰̬͓̺̮̭̺̭̮̗̪̘̗͚ͅt͙̳͎̤͍͈͕̃ͯ̄̓̄ͬ͗̃͒̊ͯ̂̀͞e̥̣̱̘̻͑ͮͪ̉̍͌ͨ̅͡,̵̛̽ͦ̎̂ͨͦ̆̅̒̐͗̉̋̍ͤͯ҉̸̳͓͓̹̬̝̝̠̠͉̤̬̺ ͗̊͒ͮ̓̾͌̔ͧ̑ͭ̋ͣ̉̾̓̊͏̷̗̥̗̗͔̼̱S̨͍̭̤̲͕͉̘̝̼̝̰̻̜̠̞̈́̍ͪ́͋ȋ̛͕̞͓̪̲̗̠͓̺̪͚͔̥̦̰̐̈ͫ̈̍̐ͯͤ́ͅͅl̒͒ͨ̿́҉̣͕̞̩͖̩̠̠͍͡vͭͥͮͥ̌̇ͥ̍̂̑̔͂͟͏̺̳̱̬̼͚͇͖̳̭͎͚͓̮͉̥e͂̅̂͗ͭͫ̒̎̋҉̸͙̱͚͚̰̤͈̘̳̩͘͘r̷̡̧͉̝̘̻̭͙͓̣͙̤͍̰͓̺͐̈́̅ͩ͂̚͢ ̢̳̣̪̞̦̜̰̰͑́̈͂̋̔ͩ̓͛͢͟͜G̛̣͕̫͖̠̜̝͎̖̰̼̣͖̬̲͉͗͛̄͊̀ͥ̓̓̏̀ú͚͎̲̤̻͓̭̼̠͉̳̬̤̥̇̿ͤ̋̋͆͛̃̓̑ͣ́ͩ͗̚͘a̛̛̦̞̹̹̻̤̬̹̪̮̦̗̱̬̻͛͌̽̿̍͑ͬ̓ͦ̓͊͒̓̄̀r̵̛̛̤̱̲͓͍͔̱̘̥̹̺͉̼̦̦̦̠̓̆̔͌ͭ̔̎ͥ͋͠d̴̟͕̦̣̳͈͒͆̂̓͟͠͝i̡̭̳͓̳͍̞͇̗͖͖̟̦̞͉̥͔̊̑̔̆͌̽̇ͯ͆̾ͪͩͯͮ͑ͧ̚͘͜͠͞a͕̟͉̗̰͇̘͈̗̜̖̹̻̦̎ͨͯͥ͗̓́ͨͮ̍͆͑ͥ͋̾̚͟͟ͅn̢̢̛̩͕̯͔̞͙͖͖͉̯̯̾͌͒̈́ͫ̚͢͠.̧̙̯͇̜̒͊̒̅̒͊̍̒͌̓ͪ͘͟͜ ̷̯̳͎͖͙̰̌̎ͧ͌̓̍͑̓̃̎ͧ̔̌̂͑ͯ̂́́Ó̧̽̈́͂̌̐ͣͧͯ͐́̚҉̘͎͔̪͍͚̖̘̥͕̙̯̖̻̠͚̳P̵̅̂ͨ̓̍́̌͋͘͏͍̹̗̺̟̕͜E͑̐͌ͩͧ̌̎̾ͪͦ͏̶͚͚̜͍̱͎̩̟͍N̨̦͙̗̮̪̩̮͎̯͔̪̱̱͍̗͋̽̒̀ͫ͂͆̀
̶̵̻̠͖͔̑̂̀̊̎͒̎ͭ͛̿̌̀͊ͩ̕ͅͅȮ̸̢̱̭͓̩͖̥̭̣̎̇͑̐̿͑̇ͪ͛̏̒ͅṖ̹͚̠̳̙̰͚̪͚̼̳̘̫̖͚̙̺̫̝͐ͨ͌̅ͬ́̕͟Ȩ͍̻͈̪̟͈̘̞̟̠̹̦͓̻̮͓̿ͣͨ̑̎̀̚͜ͅN̵̤̱̜͚̍̇͋̎́̏͡O̴̯̲̰̰͚̙̩̺͕̖̰̲̩̠̭̥̬ͮ̒̎ͩ̑̓͗̎ͤ͗̎̅̌ͣͥͯ́͟͟͠ͅͅP̵̶͖͓̺̫͉̙̙̅͒́̏͑̅̿̑ͥͨ͊̌͞Ĕ̤̞̱͈̞̹͚͔̱͙̦̗ͩ͐̈́͐̾͒ͦ̐ͮ̉ͯ̓̿͑̐̌̚̕͡N͑͌̿̊̓̒҉̸͎̲̼̩͙͔͓͕̮͉̺̫̹̰͇̺͠Ŏ͇͍̥͈̜͙̦̺̤̼̹̻̪̬͋̓́̌̍͛̉͂ͯ̅ͤ͞P̵̸͋̔̀͛ͣ̎̋̔̂ͪ̄ͫ̏ͪͭ̾͢͏̤̻̻͚̙͖̬̠̱͈͍̱̦̲̫̹̩E̢̨̡̫͉̅͊͛̓̋̾ͅÑ̩̟̩̺̯̦͕̮̫̔ͥ̌̓ͧͬ̈́̔͆̀͜͟ͅO̵̯̤̙͚̭̗̻̠̮̮̐̆̿͗̇̐̽ͧ́̀͡P̸̴̙̣̤̰̣̦̗̙̱̼̮̯̬̙̰͎͐̔̎ͫͣ̑͂̽͌͋ͩ͋͐ͦ͆͘ͅͅE͒͆͐ͤ̃̿̂̾ͮ̿̐ͣ̓ͥ̿̚͏̵̻͎̙͕̝͘͟N̵̺̤̝̻̝̞̮͈̎̄̏̔̅́͛̋͒̀͟Ǫ̢̻̤̱̰͈͙̖̣̦̯̼̟̰̞̟̆̍̿̉͊̐͊̄̊̏͒ͣͧ̔̿ͬ͞͞P̨͚̥̬͇͉̘͓͈̼͎̱̙̹͉͚̘̳̖ͩͨ͊̽͗̕͟͠͠E̷ͧͬ̍ͥ̓ͩ͋͋́̌ͪ͏̳̳̥̻̗̼̱͚͜ͅN̵̖͍̖̱̪̎̓̂ͥ̉͗̈́ͩ̾̆ͩ̋͛͐̔̏͒̿̋͞O̧̜̹͚͉̩ͤ̌ͤ̽̓͢ͅͅP̸̤̤͉͓̜̰͚̝̒͑̃̌͒ͪ͐͊ͨ̓ͯͮ̓̂ͫ̆̑͡Eͭͫͧ̈́͊̈ͯͯ̍̃ͩ̒͏̷͓̬̮̳̤̜̜̟͇̩͓̻̝͉͉̫̺͝ͅN̸̡͇͉̺̗̞̻̤̙͈̮̫̥͖̥̝ͧͩ̍ͅO̴̷̡̥̫̠̖̘̯̝̟̫̲͈̭̬͖̙̮̟̞ͧ̔͗ͮ͑̃͐̑̆̆ͫ͒̾̏̑ͪ̍̚̚ͅP̧̳͙̖̙̫͖͖̙̙̣̱̮͖̫͒̔̏͆̈́͌̆̎̄͐̈̏ͥͪͩͩ͊ͯ̀̕E̾ͫ̏̅ͤͯ̒̍̽͗̂ͧ͑̑ͩ͗̌͝҉͖̼̤̜̰̠͚̪̀N̛̮̫̤͈̘̖͎̣͕͔̘̻͎͍̻̞̖̙ͥͯ́̚͞Ő͍͖̮̬̭̤̩̞͎͙̰͑̃̽ͫ͢͜͞Pͣͨͥͦͫ͑̇ͤ͂͐̎͌̔͗̔̀͢҉̝̼̥̘̬̱̰̠̙̦͝E̷͒ͭ̾̂ͭ̀̈́͛ͪ̔͑ͯ̎ͩ̄҉̖̞̝̝̝̙͙̯͚͍̜̰̠̞͖̥̮̤͇͝Ņ̶̳̳̱ͭ̽͋̋̓̃ͩͬͪ͋̔̆ͫͩ̑ͮ͝O̡̜̝̣̝̤̬̅ͬ̔̈́̔͐̔̃̏̃ͭͦͧ͛̐P̯̦̹̭̻̖̻̄͊̽̀̌ͨ̚̕͠͞Ȩ̜̖͎͖̙͉͖͚͋̀̍͋̽ͮ̈ͥ̍̈͢N̴̝̞̭̬̣͓̥ͪ̽ͧͣ͌̀ͮͬͧͩ̏͐͑̅̆͒̈͟Ỏ̧̝͍̩̻̯̖̬̩̤̙̌̌̋͂ͮ̈́̑͋̅̐ͬ̀͞͝P̶ͨ͐͊̏̋͊̽ͣ̂͜͏̮̜̘̼̟̩̻̟̜͉̭͇̙͙̮͈̀͟Ę͎͎̙͓͉̹̼͕̯͇̼͓̹̦̺̭̭̜͚͂̌̈́͆ͪ͆͘Ň̵̊ͭ͆̐̋̈̇̒̀̐͗͡҉̣̫̦̦̟̜͔̦̗̳̩̣
Rickon looks on transfixed, there a banging in his head now but he can't turn away. Images appear before him, visions of towering buildings, giant white ships, and a huge mushroom cloud. The vision changes again, but he can't discern them all. There's a sharp stinging pain in his head like someone was trying to force a hot rod into his head. Eventually he succumbs to the bright light.
He hears a faint voice, "I'll observe your journey with interest..."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"RICKON! RICKON!"
"HO-HODOR"
The shaking stops as Rickon Stark slowly open his eyes. Shaggydog whimpers in worry for the young lord beside it.
Jojen urgently asks, "What did you see!"
"Oh give the black magic shit a break, can't you wait till he's ok!" Osha shouts indignantly.
"I saw her!" Rickon says with laboured breath. "I think I saw the three-eyed Raven, Bran!"
Both Jojen and Bran's eyes widen at that. How!?! "What did it look like in your dreams?!" Jojen asks.
"A three-eyed raven obviously you fuck-wit" Now Osha's just being insufferable now. Meera gives her a hardened stare.
"It was a girl. A pretty girl!"
Osha groans, "The little boy was just dreaming about girls--"
"Osha! Just Stop! Please!" Bran demands. And Osha backs off.
"The girl had gold hair!" Rickon's voice slowly calms down into a suitable volume, " she had blue eyes, but she was wearing this weird dress. "
"What did the girl say?" Jojen asks brimming with curiosity.
"She said...uhh...that I was dreaming, but she was lying because I never have seen that in my dreams."
"Seen what?"
"Stars, and a lot of swirly things, I felt like I was floating and looking at bright lights everywhere. There was this white sky too!"
"What did this girl say," Bran asks, slowly losing his patience.
Rickon speaks a mile a minute as he gathers his thoughts, "She said that I was in the Gate...Gateway! Gateway between uhh worlds! And that she was the key. uhmm...Before she only had two eyes, but then another popped out of her big forehead! Then it went all flashy, and I saw stuff, and then I woke up!"
"What stuff?" This time its Jojen that asks.
"There were glass towers that were sooo tall, and clouds coming from the ground up, and also I was under the sea. Or at least I think I was under the sea, do seas have stars?"
"No, they don't Rickon." Bran answers.
"Well, I saw this monster with huge blobs and tentacles, and they were looking at me, and then I peed a little."
Bran and Jojen stew in shock whilst everyone else stares in confusion.
Bran wonders if there's another being like the three-eyed raven and if it has plans for Rickon...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Present
The sun rises to its zenith, as light seeps into the windows of Nobunaga's study.
The conquerer's hat, and ornament-filled cape hangs on a stand right beside her desk, which itself is composed of sturdy mahogany, acquired from Yi Ti's lush jungles. Her katana lays squarely on the top-left corner of her desk, as it gives off a golden sheen under the risen sun.
Nobunaga is sat down on a quaint wooden chair, busying herself with the shuffling and signing of scrolls. The day to day work of empire-building. Her hair is unkempt as it falls messily to her feet. Not once has she showered since the crack of dawn.
She moves on to a specific scroll and smiles. The parchment speaks of the successful assimilation of the native Bayasabhad city. It's been some months since she's annexed that particular successor state of Hyrkoon, which had been a messy business. An army of fanatical warrior women is an army that will seldom rout unless more thorough measures were taken. Fortunately, Nobunaga had been nothing but thorough during the whole affair.
But that was then, now the city's more peaceful. The Demon Emperor had employed a policy of integration in her corner of Yi Ti ever since the annexation. Laws were rewritten, and the military was reformed, but the most drastic change of all was the improved economy. Nobunaga had sent merchants looking for new markets and cheaper labour to the conquered city, now with less trade restriction under Nobunaga's rule they flourished. Naturally, she faced opposition borne from millennia of antagonism, but that matter was dealt with thoroughly. Thus, innovation and enterprise were brought to Bayasabhad, and that had begun to yield many benefits.
The contents of the scroll before her informs Nobunaga of one of those benefits. The newfound prosperity had bettered her people's relations with the warrior women. Thus, said women from that fortress city will be integrated into the local garrison by the month's end.
The scroll also notes how far the scholars are progressing in their attempts to educate the people. The newly founded schools have seen many students attend, and there's an increase in literacy rate among the native population. Though it is still too early to conclusively state the general effectiveness of such an attempt at the moment.
The scroll also notes of some setbacks that the scholars have faced. Most particularly their failure to remove ritualised gelding from the city. It's a cultural practice that had existed since the city's founding, so it's expected that such a practice will not be removed overnight. But the speed in which the tradition is being removed is much too slow for Nobunaga. She has plans for the city, big plans, and all of them requires the city to grow magnificently and fast. Presently, the involuntary castration of children severely hinders the city's ability to grow; thus it needs to be removed.
She writes a note to strengthen the garrison of Bayasabhad and new orders for the governor there. Ritualised gelding must be gone by the end of the month, even if it requires a repeat of Nagashima.
She knows the pacified warrior women shouldn't be too much of an issue to the removal of such a practice, in fact, they openly accept it. No, it's these "Great Fathers" of the city that will be an obstacle to her. So used to being on the top of this weird mosh-pit of Patriarchy and Matriarchy, they will inevitably resist. Nobunaga contemplates on ways to purge the city of them without rousing too much dissent.
"What would Okita do..."
She shakes her head and moves on to another scroll. She'll spend more time pondering a bit on the issue.
She picks up another scroll and smiles at the blueprint attached to it. The Yi Tish architects have followed her instructions to the letter it seems. The designs for a mountain outpost for the Bones looks to be very promising. "The men are ready to build it on the areas surrounding the Sand Road," the text at the bottom says. "It'll take three to four months to build one, the materials for such an undertaking are....", Nobunaga skims through the list and reaches for an empty scroll.
On it, she writes, "To the ever so capable Feng Guo, I permit the construction of ten of these outposts around the Sand Road. They will be manned by elements of An He's division once the situation in Bayasabhad stabilises. Make sure to pick An He's best men to guard the mountain outposts, if he makes any noise about it, tell him it's under my authority. Go, Feng Guo, go and take the first step to spread our glory to the west." And with that, Nobunaga stamps her seal on it. She puts the letter on the "To Send" box placed near her katana. Hopefully later today, a servant will pick it up and give it to the eunuch assigned to this estate where he will send the letters by way of eagle.
She moves on to another group of scrolls and skims them one by one. One scroll from Nobunaga's spymaster speaks of the sacking of the slaver city of Astapor, and how the slave army there now follows one 'Daenerys Targaryean'. The letter speculates that Mereen will be her next target in the coming months, if not weeks. 'Good', Nobunaga thinks, slavery is such a waste of human resources, about time these cities stop practicing it. One day, once she heads west, she would like to meet this "Breaker of Chains" in person and offer her an administerial position for the region after she conquers the area. But for now, Nobunaga just has to be satisfied with sending letters. For now.
Hmmm, So her whole deal is on freeing slaves...Nobunaga bites her ink brush in contemplation. What if she sends her the Declaration of Human rights, that'd be interesting...Though the issue is, is that Nobunaga can't really remember any of it. In all honesty, she wasn't really paying attention to Gudako's lecture on it during their time in the Camelot singularity. How did that even pop up during the conversation?
Hm, guess she'll just write a letter of goodwill, that would do for now. "To the Breaker of Chains, Daenerys Targaryen..."
She finishes writing the letter and moves on to the next report, this time it's one written by her Marshal. It speaks off whispers from the Mountains of Morn, of a beastly army being assembled in Carcosa. That the army is composed of half men and cannibals and is lead by the Sorcerer himself. Hmm, well, if the Yellow Emperor wishes to contest his stake on the crown with his abominations, she welcomes him to try. She hopes that he's used to disappointment though, monsters don't do so well against muskets, she's seen. Especially the big ones.
There's also mentions of trouble in the Five Forts. Something to do with a mass westward migration of Shrikes, whatever that is.
She shrugs and moves on to read the report from one of the local commanders assigned to the Zhī jiān province, located southeast of Trader Town (Gosh she really has to rename her temporary capital city someday). "There is a clear esprit de corps among the peasant soldiers. We have trained them day in and day out and they have not disappointed us. I must say, Your Imperial Majesty, that your suggestion to put these peasants into specific units is ingenious. They have formed close bonds with one another and have encouraged growth and discipline within the ranks. In a few short months, they have become as skilled and disciplined as the Dawnguards of the Five Forts. The peasant soldiers have gained the respect of the professionals here too, and more and more village boys are flocking to the recruitment centres, willing to fight for our most just causes. You will have three thousand new soldiers by this week's end, that I can assure you."
This puts a bright grin to the former Daimyo as she writes the plans to expand this program on a blank parchment. Once she finishes, she puts it into the "To Send" box, and moves on to another scroll. Her reading is interrupted by a loud knocking at her study room door.
"Come in!" She shouts.
A man in silk robes enters, sweating profusely with a horror-stricken expression. "Imperial Majesty," He speaks shakingly "forgive this one's misconduct, but I have received grievous news from the North!"
Jeez, grievous news or not, she wished he had used his inside voice.
"Speak"
"Your generals garrisoned northwards say that your plan to assimilate the Jogos Nhai is working very well, too well in fact. They have united under a single King and are marching south to fight their common enemy, us. The Generals have retreated and have lost their territorial gains in the plains as a result. They do not want to repeat Emperor Lo Bu's mistake and have consolidated their forces fifteen leagues north this city. Back to where they had started in this campaign."
Close, too close, She had hoped her ceasefire with the Southern Princes would give her breathing room to strengthen her army and her realm. But now she has to contend with these Mongol wannabes. No matter, she'll end the Jogos Nhai here and now and come back to Trader Town a victor. Maybe she'll emulate Ceasar's way of celebrating victory too, her few encounters with him in Chaldea has taught her that there's nothing like good Triumph after winning a major battle.
"How many of these Zorse riders are coming down south?" Nobunaga inquires.
"The scouts estimate at least five hundred thousand or more."
Nobunaga inhales deeply, sighing. Half a million, what a number. "How goes the Weapons Development Division's progress in the Shrinking Sea?"
"The bronze cannons are still in the testing period your Imperial Majesty, but they have been successful in firing, just not during battlefield conditions."
"Good, they'll get to test them by this month's end, if the Jogos Nhai marches south faster than expected."
This reeks of Nagashino to Nobunaga, only this time its savage zorsemen rather than the esteemed Takeda cavalry.
"You can't mean--"
"Yes, I'm bringing those cannons with me to battle. Its time to see if these scholars are worth the gold I'm paying them. Now go, servant, tell my royal division to mobilise, their Emperor marches north."
QM Note: The chess pieces are ever so slowly getting together. Also oof, this post required a lot of reading on my part.
Right at the end of this scene
"I promised your Maester to take you to Castle Black and no further", Osha marches off to the makeshift tent as Jojen and Bran stew in awkward silence.
Hodor stirs a bit in surprise before outright panicking. He gasps before he shouts "Hodor!" and runs towards the tent, pushing Osha away. Under the tent, Rickon Stark convulses violently, accompanied by the sound of his gurgling getting louder and louder.
Bran stares perplexedly as his face turns into a rictus of worry and concern. Jojen and Meera run towards Rickon to subdue his convulsing form.
Hodor grabs hold of Rickon's shoulders and pushes it down to prevent further shaking while Jojen holds the young lord's legs down as Meera puts a band in the kid's mouth.
Osha gets out her daze from being pushed down and looks at Rickon with worry, "what's wrong with him? Is he 'avin one 'em visions too!?"
Jojen replies, "Yes, Green Dreams can take a toll on a person."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Who're you?" A figure looks back at him, too far for him to discern any specific detail, all that Rickon sees are the stars below that figure and the bright sky.
It walks to him, creating ripples on the image of stars and a bright white light slowly forms behind it. A feminine voice speaks, echoing, " I'm Abigail" the figure says soothingly yet the echoes sound thunderous to Rickon's ear. There's a stillness after that as the Little Wolf trembles at the sudden volume. His head throbs mightily like someone's put their hands on his ears and begins to squeeze his head. "It's rude to not introduce yourself after I've given you my name."
Rickon closes his fists petulantly, but a strange compulsion forces him to respond. "Well, I'm Rickon...Rickon Stark!"
"Nice to meet you Rickon", the figure gets close enough for Rickon to see her features. Golden hair hangs down to her knee, her bright blue eyes and small nose makes her quite pretty in Rickon's eyes, but her many blue and yellow bows weird him out. She extends a hand to him, the small limb sneaking out of her very long sleeves. Rickon grasps the hand, so smooth and small, smaller than his own hands, and shakes it.
She smiles delicately, and Rickon hesitates before smiling back. "May I ask where you're going?" She says.
Rickon responds as if it was a natural thing to do, "We're going North of the Wall!" He says excitedly. "There's someone Bran has to meet so he can kill the White Walkers."
"Can't say I've ever heard of a White Walker."
"Well...uhm... Old Nan says that the White Walkers brought the long night. She says that the night lasted for years and years. That they brought spiders as big as hounds and made the snow a hundred feet deep in the North."
There's a hint of a smile on the girl's face, "And do you believe her?" Rickon nods. "That's a fascinating tale I must say..."
Rickon nods again, not understanding what she's saying or where she's going with this, "Yeah, and Bran is gonna stop them, so the White Walkers don't freeze the north and the Seven Kingdoms."
Abigail chuckles a bit, "Whether the world ends in Ice or Fire, they drown all the same. The ice either melts or grows, but water still kills."
There's a pause after that before Abigail breaks it.
"Sorry, Tangent..." She breathes deeply, "Well, since you were so kind enough to share me something, I think it's fair if I share back. Do you have questions specifically?"
"Where are we?"
"Well...we're in your dreams Rickon. I'm sure it's obvious." She answers coyly.
The young lord looks frustrated at her deflection. "Where. Are.We? " He asks petulantly.
Abigail seems amused by his theatrics and feigns a sigh, "Fine, but you won't get it." Abigail tenses up and sweeps her hand to the sight behind her" You stand at the gate, little wolf, the gateway between this world and the other."
Rickon tilts his head and gives Abigail a blank stare.
"What do you mean other worlds? "
"Exactly that, there are other worlds with their own Essos and Westeros, their own Faith of the Seven, and their own Great Wall. I just happen to be the key for the gate between them. " Abigail cups her chin in deep thought and murmurs so softly that Rickon could barely make out her words, "though if I did open it..."
There's something about the girl that seems almost mystical to Rickon like she's more than what he sees. Though what she says confuses him greatly and he stares blankly at her, tilting his head.
"Tch, I knew a kid like you wouldn't get it, why did I even bother," Her face scrunches up in frustration, marring her silky white face. "Maybe if I showed rather than tell..."
The girl gets uncomfortably close to Rickon, their noses almost touching, "Look at me" she says. He does, and he sees something pop out of her rather big forehead. At first, he thought that it was a keyhole-shaped tattoo before an Eye appears, shocking him. The eye flashes a malignant purple light as it saturates his vision.
P͖̤̪̪̑̉͌ͮͭ͊͆ͩ̊ͦͯ̓͂̂̋́̀͘͘e̷̻͍͎͉̩̟̣̫̝ͣͭ̂̀ͥ̊͋̂̓̔͡͝e̩̩̮͉̩̹̥̥̓͋͑̌́́l̳̲̞͓̠͇̮̠͓͈͔̱̠̖͓͔̰̮ͤ̇̈́̋̏ͭ̽ͮ̌͜ ̷̢̨̨͉͚̬̳̗͕̝̘͔̞̫̘͇̒͌̋ͯ͌̒́͟t̷̛͙̞̺͍̬̖̗̳̪̽̈́̊̽̈̐ͬͬ̈́̌ͭͨ̔̈́ͭ̅h͚̳͉̞̝̩̯̗̹̭̰̹̫̤̓̽́͒́̕͟͟͡e̶̡͍͎̣̥͎͇͈̼̙̰̯͓̫͖͚̠̙̠͋͆̔̿͢͞͠ ̵̵̛̼̫̠͇̫̦̝͇͇̰̫̠̎̊ͭ̔͊͛͊̿̌͐͋͗ͬͧQ̥̥̪̼͉̞̩̺̹̗͔̪̗̤̬͇̽̍͆ͫ̒̃̒ͯ̑̽̒̀͢͞ḷ̨͚̤̯͈̟͓͙͚̦̠̲̪̹͚̍̈ͧ̇̾͋̿̈́͊̿ͯͥ͗̽͛͒̂͡ͅỉ̧͓̜̗̻̜̰̦͍̠̪̱̂̓̇̿͗͌ͥ̒ͯͮͧ̕͠p̵̧̼̰̬̟̬͇ͬͬ̆ͫ̐̈̿̃̓͗̌ͦo̴͐ͦͪ̐ͬ̋ͣ̉͑͐ͬ͊ͧͪ̾͌͑͡͝͏̭̙̝͖͎̣̥̜͔̥͎̗̩̘̹̠̳͢t̸̢͙͈̦̦̥͑ͣ̓̆̾̈̏̆ͦ̓ͧ̑̀̚h̷̷̢̧͚̝͕̼̤̼̦̲̦̲̻̹̥̣̽̓ͫ̓̒ͧ͑ͩ̓̌͐͐͐̎ͩ͝,̵̗͉̠͙̩̘̺̪ͤ̀ͬ̈́ͦ̓ͫ͝ͅ ̴̴̧̛͇̟͈̜̘͇͚̣̼͉̋͌̈́̾ͧͪ̏͛̒̔̀ͤ̄͆͐̐͝ā̵̧̫̱͓͙̬̣͈̜̮̜̤͕̠̲̀̿ͤ̊ͪ̾̆̿ͩ̌̈́͆̓̾̎ͧ̽͡n̡̩̲̠̳̱̲̮̠͉̐ͣ̓ͨ͘͢ͅḋ͍̰͓̺̜͓͔͂̿ͯͯ͂͗ͯͫ͋̽ͦ̀̔ͣ̏̍́͡ͅ ̷̡̘̹͍͖̣͎̹̺̳͓̣͕̿̅ͮͣ̉ͥ̈ͥͧ͠͡͞u̠͕̗̳̱̖͖̞̘͕̲͕̳̠̫͉ͤ͑ͯ̈́̉͆̔̊͊̇̌̌̚̚̕ņ̷̶͚̖͚̲̖̻̫̦̱̭̙͓̠̘͔͔̟͐͊ͪ̀̏̈́͊l̨̞̟͓̱̹̤̟̬̱̮̭̺̋̏̅̃̄͌̊͊ͪͤͥ̾̉̇ͦ̚͘͝ö̸̴̬͈̙̫̰͍̼̻̙̹̹̰̯̲͔̯̜͍̑ͧ̒ͧͦ͑͋̈́̋̎͜͞͝ͅc̶̴̢̛͓̺̙̜̱̟̝͙͔͇͉̭̣̜̜̔̂̍ͤ̿ͨ̂͑̓k̷̭͕͔̘̼͚̘͌̊̃̂̓͑̾́͌͆ͮ̅͌ͧ͗͘͡ ̨̧͌͆ͯ̔́̚҉̠̺͉̞̟͉̻͓͍̤͚̺̩̦t̡̡͚̬̰̯̫̻̺̼̫̭̥̟͚̫̩̳͋ͯ̚h̛̠͍̣̺͓̠̮̮͎͍͈̜͓̱̝̅̋̊̂͌ͦ̐̇́ȩ̴͔͖̘̙͎ͦ͆̉͌̀͞ͅͅ ̝͔͓̪̼͙̝̹͓̫͕̪͎ͭͥ̅͒̈ͧͥ̒̽ͩ̐̀ͮͫ͒ͦͩ́͟ͅf̛̛̛̭̣̫̹̬͖̝̳̖̹̣̣͚̑̐̉͊̿ͫ̓̄̇̔̐͆ͯ̉̓ͬ̀ͫ̀͝į̷̻͕͍̣̰̗͔̦͖̭̙ͮ̏̍͗͗ͣ̌ͫ͑̔́͑ͦ̃̌̇ͩ͟͢͝n̸̜͖̙̝ͭͤ̋͑ͫͨ̐ͭͯ̆͟͟ă̢̛̻̩͍̜̗ͥ̒ͯ̅͐͆̃l̶ͩ̊̇ͬ̾̔ͩ͢͡҉̲̦̬̝̝̹͎̼͖̠ͅ ̸̯̖̪͖̟̘̪͙̤̤̪̹̹̒ͦ̑̔͋̌ͨͮ́ͪ͂͌́͟͠g̨͒̽ͬͭ̽̿̐ͣ̋ͧ͏̵̭̗͇̭̳͉̟̱͚͎͙̘̲̼͖͟ͅa̴̴͆ͤ̂͒͑ͤ͂̽̇ͬͮ̊̃ͦ̅͟҉̭̥̮̥̦̝͕͉̠̹̲͍͔̦̦̭́t̸̷̢̡̘͔͉̼̳̪̰̣͍͖̯ͭͤ̊͐̏̑̆̾͊̅͐̓̍̓ͨ̄ͤe͕̥̞̲͉̱̣̬̰͎͕̐ͣ͋̉̎ͦ̐̓̋̇̀ͯ̊̀͢͝.̰̣͍͙͖̦̟̩͓̖̤͔̮͔̠͎͂ͦ͛ͫ̆̇ͯ̍̂̀̃̓̒̓ͪ̒ͭ̚͘͜͟͡ͅ ̵̞̩͔̩͉̮̗̟̐ͭ̊̆͋̾̓̽̊͢͡O̵ͦ̃̑͑͆̒͂̂͋͒ͣͤ̽ͨ̋ͪ̈̿̾͟͏̠̘̫͉̖̻̗̘̝͔̼͈̲̲̼̦͈̹̀h̷̶̡̛̹̭͕͕̪̤͙̬̜̟̲̑͒ͭ̋̾̂̎͆ͥ͝,̸̛̺̮̹̝̟͓̰̳͙̪͍̝͎̻̬̘̟̻ͬ͛̓ͯ͋̐̓ͨ́ͧ̅̋̾ͨ́ͧ͘͡ ̡͖̦͕͙̥̪̖͍͍͂͗̈́̍ͬ̃͂̓̆͆̾ͨͣ̀͠S̛̻̭͓̝̙͕̺̘̫͓̘̫͍̬̹͎͓͚̓͂̔ͨͧ͗ͥ̍͌̌̃́ͫ̐̆̚ͅì̵̴̧̡̞͚̦͙̬̱̪͔͕̝̭̻̪͕͉̄̅͑͐̇̂͡l̨̳̘͎̙͉̭̮̰̞̣͉̗̀͑ͭ̔ͦ̐ͯ͊ͨ͌ͨ̄ͭͅv̧̢̭͕̗̹͈̰̗̀̅ͥͨ̾̆̆̓͛̌̅ͫͬ̓͊̆͝e͐̐ͩͩ͊́ͭ͋ͤ̒͗̅̿͏̛̛̮̲̮̩̻̖͕͍̺̹̥̜̞̜͎̤̖̬r͒̇̾̊̀̔ͪ́͏̖̙̫̪͔̪̺̪̜͍̞̹ ̶̵͚̬͚̦̲͔̙̤͖̭̳̘̹͇͓̮̟͊̆̌̓̿ͤ̉ͪ̚ͅḰ̊̑̌̀͢҉̴҉̩̱͎̕ͅe̡̼̤͍͙͎͈͚̟̙͈͇̣̗̫̲̖̞̹̐̾͐͛̍ͫ̐͋͠ͅỳ̵̭͙̞̮̖̙̟͇͎̣͚̃̊ͫ̐̎̅̎̀͟͝,̶̃ͣ͆̏̄ͪͭ͌̒̓̔͒͗̃̄͛ͨ͝҉̖͙̜̗̯̣̣͎ ̢̺̞̝͈͙̼̘̲̬͔̾͑ͬ̏̔̔̇͌̃ͣ̽͐̌̆̚S̢̬̻̤̘͈̭̥̭͔̺̦͍̪̝͇̊ͥ̔̍͒̑̾ͤ̋̉̋̚͞ḭ̶̴̭͍̰̱̦̱̜͎̘̳͔̯̰̆̌̄͞͝ͅlͦ̅̒̓ͧ̿̆͋̃͌͆̇ͥ͒̎͏̴̙̹̱͕̬͘͜͞vͦ̌̋ͦͯ̿̉̽̾̄̆̓ͣ̑̎̓ͧ̓̆̀͡͏͏̣̼̮̟̰̖͓̖͞ͅͅe̴͓̪̦̝͚͇͔̱̫̜̯̣̯̦̹͙͕̥ͯ͂̏͒̈́̈̓͌͜ͅr̵̻̜̘̗̋̾̃̿̀ͭͣ̎̐̿̈̈́̑̄̕͜͝ͅ ̷̵̗̜̻̖͓͂ͤ̈̓̅ͧ̕̕ͅG̴̖͓̥̦̦̗̪͚̦̮̳̮̩̮̤̹̘͋̃̅̓̐́̑̉̐̉͋͛͛̌̉ͩ͐͜͜a͑̄ͮ̓̔̅̉̂ͨ̇́̓ͧ̚҉̶͞͏̰̖̘̰̬͓̺̮̭̺̭̮̗̪̘̗͚ͅt͙̳͎̤͍͈͕̃ͯ̄̓̄ͬ͗̃͒̊ͯ̂̀͞e̥̣̱̘̻͑ͮͪ̉̍͌ͨ̅͡,̵̛̽ͦ̎̂ͨͦ̆̅̒̐͗̉̋̍ͤͯ҉̸̳͓͓̹̬̝̝̠̠͉̤̬̺ ͗̊͒ͮ̓̾͌̔ͧ̑ͭ̋ͣ̉̾̓̊͏̷̗̥̗̗͔̼̱S̨͍̭̤̲͕͉̘̝̼̝̰̻̜̠̞̈́̍ͪ́͋ȋ̛͕̞͓̪̲̗̠͓̺̪͚͔̥̦̰̐̈ͫ̈̍̐ͯͤ́ͅͅl̒͒ͨ̿́҉̣͕̞̩͖̩̠̠͍͡vͭͥͮͥ̌̇ͥ̍̂̑̔͂͟͏̺̳̱̬̼͚͇͖̳̭͎͚͓̮͉̥e͂̅̂͗ͭͫ̒̎̋҉̸͙̱͚͚̰̤͈̘̳̩͘͘r̷̡̧͉̝̘̻̭͙͓̣͙̤͍̰͓̺͐̈́̅ͩ͂̚͢ ̢̳̣̪̞̦̜̰̰͑́̈͂̋̔ͩ̓͛͢͟͜G̛̣͕̫͖̠̜̝͎̖̰̼̣͖̬̲͉͗͛̄͊̀ͥ̓̓̏̀ú͚͎̲̤̻͓̭̼̠͉̳̬̤̥̇̿ͤ̋̋͆͛̃̓̑ͣ́ͩ͗̚͘a̛̛̦̞̹̹̻̤̬̹̪̮̦̗̱̬̻͛͌̽̿̍͑ͬ̓ͦ̓͊͒̓̄̀r̵̛̛̤̱̲͓͍͔̱̘̥̹̺͉̼̦̦̦̠̓̆̔͌ͭ̔̎ͥ͋͠d̴̟͕̦̣̳͈͒͆̂̓͟͠͝i̡̭̳͓̳͍̞͇̗͖͖̟̦̞͉̥͔̊̑̔̆͌̽̇ͯ͆̾ͪͩͯͮ͑ͧ̚͘͜͠͞a͕̟͉̗̰͇̘͈̗̜̖̹̻̦̎ͨͯͥ͗̓́ͨͮ̍͆͑ͥ͋̾̚͟͟ͅn̢̢̛̩͕̯͔̞͙͖͖͉̯̯̾͌͒̈́ͫ̚͢͠.̧̙̯͇̜̒͊̒̅̒͊̍̒͌̓ͪ͘͟͜ ̷̯̳͎͖͙̰̌̎ͧ͌̓̍͑̓̃̎ͧ̔̌̂͑ͯ̂́́Ó̧̽̈́͂̌̐ͣͧͯ͐́̚҉̘͎͔̪͍͚̖̘̥͕̙̯̖̻̠͚̳P̵̅̂ͨ̓̍́̌͋͘͏͍̹̗̺̟̕͜E͑̐͌ͩͧ̌̎̾ͪͦ͏̶͚͚̜͍̱͎̩̟͍N̨̦͙̗̮̪̩̮͎̯͔̪̱̱͍̗͋̽̒̀ͫ͂͆̀
̶̵̻̠͖͔̑̂̀̊̎͒̎ͭ͛̿̌̀͊ͩ̕ͅͅȮ̸̢̱̭͓̩͖̥̭̣̎̇͑̐̿͑̇ͪ͛̏̒ͅṖ̹͚̠̳̙̰͚̪͚̼̳̘̫̖͚̙̺̫̝͐ͨ͌̅ͬ́̕͟Ȩ͍̻͈̪̟͈̘̞̟̠̹̦͓̻̮͓̿ͣͨ̑̎̀̚͜ͅN̵̤̱̜͚̍̇͋̎́̏͡O̴̯̲̰̰͚̙̩̺͕̖̰̲̩̠̭̥̬ͮ̒̎ͩ̑̓͗̎ͤ͗̎̅̌ͣͥͯ́͟͟͠ͅͅP̵̶͖͓̺̫͉̙̙̅͒́̏͑̅̿̑ͥͨ͊̌͞Ĕ̤̞̱͈̞̹͚͔̱͙̦̗ͩ͐̈́͐̾͒ͦ̐ͮ̉ͯ̓̿͑̐̌̚̕͡N͑͌̿̊̓̒҉̸͎̲̼̩͙͔͓͕̮͉̺̫̹̰͇̺͠Ŏ͇͍̥͈̜͙̦̺̤̼̹̻̪̬͋̓́̌̍͛̉͂ͯ̅ͤ͞P̵̸͋̔̀͛ͣ̎̋̔̂ͪ̄ͫ̏ͪͭ̾͢͏̤̻̻͚̙͖̬̠̱͈͍̱̦̲̫̹̩E̢̨̡̫͉̅͊͛̓̋̾ͅÑ̩̟̩̺̯̦͕̮̫̔ͥ̌̓ͧͬ̈́̔͆̀͜͟ͅO̵̯̤̙͚̭̗̻̠̮̮̐̆̿͗̇̐̽ͧ́̀͡P̸̴̙̣̤̰̣̦̗̙̱̼̮̯̬̙̰͎͐̔̎ͫͣ̑͂̽͌͋ͩ͋͐ͦ͆͘ͅͅE͒͆͐ͤ̃̿̂̾ͮ̿̐ͣ̓ͥ̿̚͏̵̻͎̙͕̝͘͟N̵̺̤̝̻̝̞̮͈̎̄̏̔̅́͛̋͒̀͟Ǫ̢̻̤̱̰͈͙̖̣̦̯̼̟̰̞̟̆̍̿̉͊̐͊̄̊̏͒ͣͧ̔̿ͬ͞͞P̨͚̥̬͇͉̘͓͈̼͎̱̙̹͉͚̘̳̖ͩͨ͊̽͗̕͟͠͠E̷ͧͬ̍ͥ̓ͩ͋͋́̌ͪ͏̳̳̥̻̗̼̱͚͜ͅN̵̖͍̖̱̪̎̓̂ͥ̉͗̈́ͩ̾̆ͩ̋͛͐̔̏͒̿̋͞O̧̜̹͚͉̩ͤ̌ͤ̽̓͢ͅͅP̸̤̤͉͓̜̰͚̝̒͑̃̌͒ͪ͐͊ͨ̓ͯͮ̓̂ͫ̆̑͡Eͭͫͧ̈́͊̈ͯͯ̍̃ͩ̒͏̷͓̬̮̳̤̜̜̟͇̩͓̻̝͉͉̫̺͝ͅN̸̡͇͉̺̗̞̻̤̙͈̮̫̥͖̥̝ͧͩ̍ͅO̴̷̡̥̫̠̖̘̯̝̟̫̲͈̭̬͖̙̮̟̞ͧ̔͗ͮ͑̃͐̑̆̆ͫ͒̾̏̑ͪ̍̚̚ͅP̧̳͙̖̙̫͖͖̙̙̣̱̮͖̫͒̔̏͆̈́͌̆̎̄͐̈̏ͥͪͩͩ͊ͯ̀̕E̾ͫ̏̅ͤͯ̒̍̽͗̂ͧ͑̑ͩ͗̌͝҉͖̼̤̜̰̠͚̪̀N̛̮̫̤͈̘̖͎̣͕͔̘̻͎͍̻̞̖̙ͥͯ́̚͞Ő͍͖̮̬̭̤̩̞͎͙̰͑̃̽ͫ͢͜͞Pͣͨͥͦͫ͑̇ͤ͂͐̎͌̔͗̔̀͢҉̝̼̥̘̬̱̰̠̙̦͝E̷͒ͭ̾̂ͭ̀̈́͛ͪ̔͑ͯ̎ͩ̄҉̖̞̝̝̝̙͙̯͚͍̜̰̠̞͖̥̮̤͇͝Ņ̶̳̳̱ͭ̽͋̋̓̃ͩͬͪ͋̔̆ͫͩ̑ͮ͝O̡̜̝̣̝̤̬̅ͬ̔̈́̔͐̔̃̏̃ͭͦͧ͛̐P̯̦̹̭̻̖̻̄͊̽̀̌ͨ̚̕͠͞Ȩ̜̖͎͖̙͉͖͚͋̀̍͋̽ͮ̈ͥ̍̈͢N̴̝̞̭̬̣͓̥ͪ̽ͧͣ͌̀ͮͬͧͩ̏͐͑̅̆͒̈͟Ỏ̧̝͍̩̻̯̖̬̩̤̙̌̌̋͂ͮ̈́̑͋̅̐ͬ̀͞͝P̶ͨ͐͊̏̋͊̽ͣ̂͜͏̮̜̘̼̟̩̻̟̜͉̭͇̙͙̮͈̀͟Ę͎͎̙͓͉̹̼͕̯͇̼͓̹̦̺̭̭̜͚͂̌̈́͆ͪ͆͘Ň̵̊ͭ͆̐̋̈̇̒̀̐͗͡҉̣̫̦̦̟̜͔̦̗̳̩̣
Rickon looks on transfixed, there a banging in his head now but he can't turn away. Images appear before him, visions of towering buildings, giant white ships, and a huge mushroom cloud. The vision changes again, but he can't discern them all. There's a sharp stinging pain in his head like someone was trying to force a hot rod into his head. Eventually he succumbs to the bright light.
He hears a faint voice, "I'll observe your journey with interest..."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"RICKON! RICKON!"
"HO-HODOR"
The shaking stops as Rickon Stark slowly open his eyes. Shaggydog whimpers in worry for the young lord beside it.
Jojen urgently asks, "What did you see!"
"Oh give the black magic shit a break, can't you wait till he's ok!" Osha shouts indignantly.
"I saw her!" Rickon says with laboured breath. "I think I saw the three-eyed Raven, Bran!"
Both Jojen and Bran's eyes widen at that. How!?! "What did it look like in your dreams?!" Jojen asks.
"A three-eyed raven obviously you fuck-wit" Now Osha's just being insufferable now. Meera gives her a hardened stare.
"It was a girl. A pretty girl!"
Osha groans, "The little boy was just dreaming about girls--"
"Osha! Just Stop! Please!" Bran demands. And Osha backs off.
"The girl had gold hair!" Rickon's voice slowly calms down into a suitable volume, " she had blue eyes, but she was wearing this weird dress. "
"What did the girl say?" Jojen asks brimming with curiosity.
"She said...uhh...that I was dreaming, but she was lying because I never have seen that in my dreams."
"Seen what?"
"Stars, and a lot of swirly things, I felt like I was floating and looking at bright lights everywhere. There was this white sky too!"
"What did this girl say," Bran asks, slowly losing his patience.
Rickon speaks a mile a minute as he gathers his thoughts, "She said that I was in the Gate...Gateway! Gateway between uhh worlds! And that she was the key. uhmm...Before she only had two eyes, but then another popped out of her big forehead! Then it went all flashy, and I saw stuff, and then I woke up!"
"What stuff?" This time its Jojen that asks.
"There were glass towers that were sooo tall, and clouds coming from the ground up, and also I was under the sea. Or at least I think I was under the sea, do seas have stars?"
"No, they don't Rickon." Bran answers.
"Well, I saw this monster with huge blobs and tentacles, and they were looking at me, and then I peed a little."
Bran and Jojen stew in shock whilst everyone else stares in confusion.
Bran wonders if there's another being like the three-eyed raven and if it has plans for Rickon...
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Present
The sun rises to its zenith, as light seeps into the windows of Nobunaga's study.
The conquerer's hat, and ornament-filled cape hangs on a stand right beside her desk, which itself is composed of sturdy mahogany, acquired from Yi Ti's lush jungles. Her katana lays squarely on the top-left corner of her desk, as it gives off a golden sheen under the risen sun.
Nobunaga is sat down on a quaint wooden chair, busying herself with the shuffling and signing of scrolls. The day to day work of empire-building. Her hair is unkempt as it falls messily to her feet. Not once has she showered since the crack of dawn.
She moves on to a specific scroll and smiles. The parchment speaks of the successful assimilation of the native Bayasabhad city. It's been some months since she's annexed that particular successor state of Hyrkoon, which had been a messy business. An army of fanatical warrior women is an army that will seldom rout unless more thorough measures were taken. Fortunately, Nobunaga had been nothing but thorough during the whole affair.
But that was then, now the city's more peaceful. The Demon Emperor had employed a policy of integration in her corner of Yi Ti ever since the annexation. Laws were rewritten, and the military was reformed, but the most drastic change of all was the improved economy. Nobunaga had sent merchants looking for new markets and cheaper labour to the conquered city, now with less trade restriction under Nobunaga's rule they flourished. Naturally, she faced opposition borne from millennia of antagonism, but that matter was dealt with thoroughly. Thus, innovation and enterprise were brought to Bayasabhad, and that had begun to yield many benefits.
The contents of the scroll before her informs Nobunaga of one of those benefits. The newfound prosperity had bettered her people's relations with the warrior women. Thus, said women from that fortress city will be integrated into the local garrison by the month's end.
The scroll also notes how far the scholars are progressing in their attempts to educate the people. The newly founded schools have seen many students attend, and there's an increase in literacy rate among the native population. Though it is still too early to conclusively state the general effectiveness of such an attempt at the moment.
The scroll also notes of some setbacks that the scholars have faced. Most particularly their failure to remove ritualised gelding from the city. It's a cultural practice that had existed since the city's founding, so it's expected that such a practice will not be removed overnight. But the speed in which the tradition is being removed is much too slow for Nobunaga. She has plans for the city, big plans, and all of them requires the city to grow magnificently and fast. Presently, the involuntary castration of children severely hinders the city's ability to grow; thus it needs to be removed.
She writes a note to strengthen the garrison of Bayasabhad and new orders for the governor there. Ritualised gelding must be gone by the end of the month, even if it requires a repeat of Nagashima.
She knows the pacified warrior women shouldn't be too much of an issue to the removal of such a practice, in fact, they openly accept it. No, it's these "Great Fathers" of the city that will be an obstacle to her. So used to being on the top of this weird mosh-pit of Patriarchy and Matriarchy, they will inevitably resist. Nobunaga contemplates on ways to purge the city of them without rousing too much dissent.
"What would Okita do..."
She shakes her head and moves on to another scroll. She'll spend more time pondering a bit on the issue.
She picks up another scroll and smiles at the blueprint attached to it. The Yi Tish architects have followed her instructions to the letter it seems. The designs for a mountain outpost for the Bones looks to be very promising. "The men are ready to build it on the areas surrounding the Sand Road," the text at the bottom says. "It'll take three to four months to build one, the materials for such an undertaking are....", Nobunaga skims through the list and reaches for an empty scroll.
On it, she writes, "To the ever so capable Feng Guo, I permit the construction of ten of these outposts around the Sand Road. They will be manned by elements of An He's division once the situation in Bayasabhad stabilises. Make sure to pick An He's best men to guard the mountain outposts, if he makes any noise about it, tell him it's under my authority. Go, Feng Guo, go and take the first step to spread our glory to the west." And with that, Nobunaga stamps her seal on it. She puts the letter on the "To Send" box placed near her katana. Hopefully later today, a servant will pick it up and give it to the eunuch assigned to this estate where he will send the letters by way of eagle.
She moves on to another group of scrolls and skims them one by one. One scroll from Nobunaga's spymaster speaks of the sacking of the slaver city of Astapor, and how the slave army there now follows one 'Daenerys Targaryean'. The letter speculates that Mereen will be her next target in the coming months, if not weeks. 'Good', Nobunaga thinks, slavery is such a waste of human resources, about time these cities stop practicing it. One day, once she heads west, she would like to meet this "Breaker of Chains" in person and offer her an administerial position for the region after she conquers the area. But for now, Nobunaga just has to be satisfied with sending letters. For now.
Hmmm, So her whole deal is on freeing slaves...Nobunaga bites her ink brush in contemplation. What if she sends her the Declaration of Human rights, that'd be interesting...Though the issue is, is that Nobunaga can't really remember any of it. In all honesty, she wasn't really paying attention to Gudako's lecture on it during their time in the Camelot singularity. How did that even pop up during the conversation?
Hm, guess she'll just write a letter of goodwill, that would do for now. "To the Breaker of Chains, Daenerys Targaryen..."
She finishes writing the letter and moves on to the next report, this time it's one written by her Marshal. It speaks off whispers from the Mountains of Morn, of a beastly army being assembled in Carcosa. That the army is composed of half men and cannibals and is lead by the Sorcerer himself. Hmm, well, if the Yellow Emperor wishes to contest his stake on the crown with his abominations, she welcomes him to try. She hopes that he's used to disappointment though, monsters don't do so well against muskets, she's seen. Especially the big ones.
There's also mentions of trouble in the Five Forts. Something to do with a mass westward migration of Shrikes, whatever that is.
She shrugs and moves on to read the report from one of the local commanders assigned to the Zhī jiān province, located southeast of Trader Town (Gosh she really has to rename her temporary capital city someday). "There is a clear esprit de corps among the peasant soldiers. We have trained them day in and day out and they have not disappointed us. I must say, Your Imperial Majesty, that your suggestion to put these peasants into specific units is ingenious. They have formed close bonds with one another and have encouraged growth and discipline within the ranks. In a few short months, they have become as skilled and disciplined as the Dawnguards of the Five Forts. The peasant soldiers have gained the respect of the professionals here too, and more and more village boys are flocking to the recruitment centres, willing to fight for our most just causes. You will have three thousand new soldiers by this week's end, that I can assure you."
This puts a bright grin to the former Daimyo as she writes the plans to expand this program on a blank parchment. Once she finishes, she puts it into the "To Send" box, and moves on to another scroll. Her reading is interrupted by a loud knocking at her study room door.
"Come in!" She shouts.
A man in silk robes enters, sweating profusely with a horror-stricken expression. "Imperial Majesty," He speaks shakingly "forgive this one's misconduct, but I have received grievous news from the North!"
Jeez, grievous news or not, she wished he had used his inside voice.
"Speak"
"Your generals garrisoned northwards say that your plan to assimilate the Jogos Nhai is working very well, too well in fact. They have united under a single King and are marching south to fight their common enemy, us. The Generals have retreated and have lost their territorial gains in the plains as a result. They do not want to repeat Emperor Lo Bu's mistake and have consolidated their forces fifteen leagues north this city. Back to where they had started in this campaign."
Close, too close, She had hoped her ceasefire with the Southern Princes would give her breathing room to strengthen her army and her realm. But now she has to contend with these Mongol wannabes. No matter, she'll end the Jogos Nhai here and now and come back to Trader Town a victor. Maybe she'll emulate Ceasar's way of celebrating victory too, her few encounters with him in Chaldea has taught her that there's nothing like good Triumph after winning a major battle.
"How many of these Zorse riders are coming down south?" Nobunaga inquires.
"The scouts estimate at least five hundred thousand or more."
Nobunaga inhales deeply, sighing. Half a million, what a number. "How goes the Weapons Development Division's progress in the Shrinking Sea?"
"The bronze cannons are still in the testing period your Imperial Majesty, but they have been successful in firing, just not during battlefield conditions."
"Good, they'll get to test them by this month's end, if the Jogos Nhai marches south faster than expected."
This reeks of Nagashino to Nobunaga, only this time its savage zorsemen rather than the esteemed Takeda cavalry.
"You can't mean--"
"Yes, I'm bringing those cannons with me to battle. Its time to see if these scholars are worth the gold I'm paying them. Now go, servant, tell my royal division to mobilise, their Emperor marches north."
QM Note: The chess pieces are ever so slowly getting together. Also oof, this post required a lot of reading on my part.
Last edited:
%20holding_axe%20looking_at_viewer%20paul_bunyan_(fate_grand_order)%20short_hair%20skyscraper%20yellow_eyes.jpg)