Version 2.0
After the fierce battle, the atmosphere was one of gratitude and honour as people worked together to clean up the battlefield and burn the fallen. People thanked the fallen warriors for their sacrifice, celebrating the victory they had achieved together.
Brandon made his way to the ritual area where Hawthorn and Elder Oak were. As he arrived, his eyes fell upon a majestic heart tree, its gnarled branches reaching towards the sky, adorned with crimson leaves with golden highlights. The two children of the forest were deep in prayer next to the heart tree, their bodies seemingly connected to the heart tree as they reached out to it.
Around the heart tree, a gathering of people stood in awe, witnessing the connection between the children of the forest and the ancient tree.
"Brandon, I'm glad you have come," Hawthorn says as he comes out of his prayer. "As you saw, the ritual worked. Though I originally didn't know how long it would last, I think I can create a way for it to last indefinitely."
"Let's do it," Brandon says.
Hawthorn shakes his head. "Wait, you are just going to go for it, but I have not explained it."
Brandon smiles. "You have already proven yourself, Hawthorn. I trust you."
"Thanks." Hawthorn smiles. "Well, after the ritual, the Other we used for it became this fine ice dust. I believe that we can infuse this along with some other ingredients and the remains of this ritual into something that will keep the banishment for longer. As long as the item stays strong and is not interfered with it should make sure the Others don't come back any time soon."
"Sounds great," Brandon says, continuing to ride on the high of victory and progress. "Any ideas for what could hold it?"
"It can be anything, though I think something bigger would help as it can gather more ambient spirit to hold the banishment."
"Maybe something symbolic then, a real 'fuck you' to the Others. We don't want them coming back to us, so how about a wall then, up to the far north, keeping them in that frozen landscape. Yeah, a massive wall telling them to fuck off." Brandon says smiling widely as he rubs his hands together.
"Sounds good to me," Hawthorn says. "Though remember Brandon, this banishment won't last forever. They will be back. And I don't think they will be too happy about being stopped."
Brandon's smile falls before he rubs his face.
"Right. Winter will come back." He says before he settles.
Brandon leaves Hawthorn and Elder Oak behind. He strides through the village, gathering his friends, his village chiefs, or leaders of villages around.
"I'll get straight to the point. I am going to become the King of these lands. Every village that I first gathered into the alliance will become my domain. Ah, before you start, let me finish," Brandon says, halting the village chiefs from talking. "The Others will come back; we only banished them, not killed them. The North was nearly wiped out, and the only reason we even got this far was just enough obsidian to have a fighting chance and the children of the forest, and even then, we were losing."
The Northmen stand awkwardly as they shift their feet looking down at the floor.
"The North is divided; kings fight for themselves rather than for all of the North. More people died needlessly than needed just because we didn't share enough food and weapons. Like you, I feel ashamed of our weakness. We were nearly wiped out so quickly. I won't let it happen again. I won't allow my future family and my sister's family to feel like that. I won't allow my friends to die not knowing their future children. I won't let my neighbour die in his sleep again because it is too cold. Winter is coming, and the north will be united against the winter."
"Nice speech, been working on it for a while," Jon says.
"Yep, whenever I had a break from battle," Brandon says, puffing out his chest.
"Works for me," Edric says.
Choruses of "aye" ring out from the other village chiefs. "You've done well for us in the past, kept your promises. Gave us food and protection when we needed it. You'd make an alright king, I suppose," Walton speaks out.
"Cool, I'm friends with a King," Jocelyn says aloud. She suddenly clicks her fingers and points at Brandon. "The King of Winter."
"Where winter was felled, Brandon did make it fall," Jon says.
"That was shit," Edric remarks.
"Thanks, Edric. I tried my best, ok."
"Not a bad idea, laddie," Walton speaks out. "The King of Winter, ruling from Winterfell. The very village where he saved the North from its death."
He then kneels. "My King." The rest of the Chiefs kneel, calling out 'My King.'
"Hey, no need for that," he says, getting them back on their feet. "I am just a man. No need to do that kind of crap. Come on, there is work to do."
"Oh, dis feels like dat proper shiet. Think I'll carve this. Make a nice art piece." One of the village chiefs says in a very thick accent.
As the victorious kings departed for their homelands, Brandon saw them off sharing his tale of becoming the King of Winter and building a colossal wall in the far north to prevent the return of the Others. The other kings embraced the idea, laughing at giving a colossal middle finger to the Others.
The Giants were not so quick to leave. They owed a debt to the small squirrel man. Thinking of necessity and seeing his destroyed home village, Brandon asked for their help in rebuilding his home village. Tun Wun Tun Dar Weg was confused about why they care for wooden boxes and told him to think of something better. Brandon thought it best to ask for stone then, and lots of it. Tun Wun Tun Dar Weg was happy with his decisions for strong and heavy stones promised him large quantities of stone blocks.
With his allies on their way, Brandon, accompanied by his men, friends, and some children of the forest, embarked on the journey to the northernmost reaches traveling with Hother and Harmond. The wake of the march of the Others greeted them, destroyed villages with broken homes they travel through,
Leaving Harmond at his home they arrived at the reaches of the far north and in the chosen location, they began the intricate ritual.
Days turned into nights, and the ritual progressed, with Hawthorn and Elder Oak channeling their spirits alongside the children of the forest. The air was filled with energy as the elements danced in harmony.
Then came the moment they had all been waiting for. In the distance, the seas stirred as if responding to a cosmic call. Waves rose and flowed, ebbing, and calling, guided by the ancient magic at play as they rocked to build up momentum. Swiftly, the water surged forward diving into the open planes before them like a child jumping into a fluffy bed. They surged into a massive line, stretching from coast to coast.
With a freezing chill, the water solidified into ice, and layer upon layer of frozen sea stacked upon itself, forming an imposing barrier. The wall grew. As the last layer solidified, the frigid monument stood tall, an indomitable obstacle standing guard against the return of the Others.
As the final layer of the wall fell into place the sun shone brightly more than it had in years, so bright then people even removed a lay of clothing.
"Oh, how to feel the divine sunlight," Lyanna said.
"Quite so," said a voice emerging from behind them. Quickly, they turned, only to be greeted by Royce, the Red King. "Apologies, Brandon, but I just had to see this for myself. A rare opportunity to witness 'magic,' wouldn't want to miss that."
"Royce, how nice of you to come," Brandon said.
"Quite a beautiful creation," Royce remarked. They stood in silence, pausing in the shade of awkwardness for a moment. "Well, I shall leave you now, Brandon. A pleasure meeting you again," he said, walking off into the distance.
"How odd," Edric said.
"Suspicious," Lyanna added.
"Hey, Brandon," Hother says, gaining his attention. "I've decided, I will stay here. We know the Others will return, and when they do, we must all be ready I already gathered all these men to fight the Others why not keep them around."
Brandon just smiles at Hother. "I think your son would be proud of what you become Hother. Don't be a stranger then Hother, come visit when you can. What will you call yourself then."
"The Nights Watch. To wait for the moment the Others come back with their Long Night and to warn the world of their return."
"You're a good man Hother," Edric says.
"Aye," Jon says. "I wish you luck."
With their purpose in the north complete Brandon, and his ensemble journeyed back home, with a hop in their step. The creation of the massive ice wall to deter the Others was a success. It was on their way back home not far down the road they encountered a group of figures on the road.
The men were well-equipped and organised themselves on the road where a tree now blocks it. As the party drew closer, the leader with a cold, calculated tone, spoke, "The Red King sends his regards."
A chill ran down their spines. "He specified that he wanted you to know that. Takes great pleasure in it." He says as he notches a cut on his arm. "Time to add you to my tally," his eyes etched onto the group.
"Protect the king," Theon said as he drew his sword.
As the Red King's henchmen charged towards them, a snarling howl, echoed from the dense forest.
Predatorily emerges from the shadows of the trees. Covered in a thick coat of fur, it stood as tall as a large man, and the body of one too, its powerful muscles subtly visible beneath the fur. The creature's head bore the distinct features of a wolf, with keen, intelligent eyes and a set of sharp, predatory teeth.
Moving gracefully on two legs, it effortlessly transitions to a swift four-legged gait. Its claws, resembling elongated fingers with jagged tips, glinted menacingly in the dappled early moonlight. The creature's focus sharpened as it homed in on the scent of blood in the air, drawn to the man with the visible cut. Its keen nostrils flared as it licked its sharp teeth as he sniffed the air.
The werewolf lunged forward with a ferocious burst of speed, tearing through the underbrush and charging towards the Red King's men. The men caught off guard by the sudden appearance of this beast, barely had time to react before the creature was upon them.
In a horrifying display of raw power, it unleashed a relentless assault, its razor-sharp claws rending through the air. Arms were torn off with brutal efficiency, heads were bitten clean from their shoulders, as the creature's slashing attacks left torsos shredded into ribbons. The once well-equipped and trained assailants found themselves helpless in the face of this supernatural onslaught.
It slaughtered the party as its fur became more stained with blood, it moved swiftly and mercilessly through the Red King's men. The Red King's men were hunted as it entered into a frenzy and decimated the group, the second one man left the group to escape it would pounce never allowing them to escape. It butchered the group in seconds before turning its long snout towards Brandon's party its gleaming fur and snout smeared in blood showed not a single scratch.
The creature's predatory eyes gleamed as its powerful muscles tensed for another onslaught.
With savage swiftness, the werewolf surged at the group, effortlessly dodging the feeble attempts to strike it down. Bronze swords and axes clanged uselessly against its fur. Panic set in as the group struggled to fend off the relentless assault.
"Obsidian is the only thing that can harm it," Hother shouts out, as he charges down from the road towards them.
Drawing obsidian arrows from his quiver, the men swiftly nocked and fired at the werewolf. The obsidian arrows, found their mark, penetrating the creature's hide with a piercing accuracy.
The werewolf recoiled in pain as the obsidian arrows struck true. It snarls at them before howling as another werewolf exists from the forest before they both take as much of the first hunt as they can. They snarl one last time before they carry their hunt back into the forest.
"Be on the lookout men, it might come back," Hother says as he catches up to Brandon.
"Do the same men, and switch to your obsidian if that was not obvious enough," Brandon says.
"Well Brandon, I leave you for a moment and you manage to get yourself into a fight with a Werewolf."
"It's that what it was. Let me guess, this is what you fought before, another of Aloe's gifts."
"Got it in one Brandon," Hother says smiling a sad smile. "He called it a Werewolf, was originally a man that he has now permanently fused with a wolf. Crazy strong, incredibly deadly, and scarily intelligent. Said it was the perfect hunter he created. Why did we have to have both the Others and Aloe hate us." Hother sighs.
"And only obsidian can hurt it?" Jocelyn asks.
"Aye. Everything else doesn't work. Aloe is getting better at making his creatures, and now that the Others are gone, we need to hunt him down and stop him. I'll send some of my men to see what they can do." Hother says.
"I'll do the same then. Thanks again Hother, you always seem to save me. Alright, I need to get back home, goodbye for now Hother."
"Aye, stay safe Brandon."
"You too," Brandon says as he pats his shoulder before continuing down the road.