Grand Melee

A.N: Sorry, I was busy last week due to the religious holiday in my country…

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298 AC, King's Landing…

Time flowed like water and the day of the tourney arrived quickly. All of the occupants of the castle and the city awoke early to take their places in the tourney ground.

The people were sitting on the stands watching the archery contest while the king was getting drunk after being banned from melee by his friend, Lord Eddard Stark.

However, everyone's mind was on the melee. It was said that the melee was going to be the biggest one in centuries. Generally, it was the joust everyone would talk about but this melee was different.

From Ser Barristan 'the Bold' Selmy to Gregor 'the Mountain' Clegane and Ser Jaime Lannister, every known figure was going to attend it. The king even increased the prizes for the melee after hearing the sheer size of attendance.

There were 500 men attending the melee from every corner of the Seven Kingdoms. Even Dorne that had a souring relations with the Crown was in attendance with its small lords.

From Dorne came notable lords and sers like Daemon Sand the Bastard of Godsgrace and son of Ryon Allyrion, Gerold Dayne the 'Darkstar', Ser Archibald Yronwood 'The Big Man'. There were many more minor lords or hedge knights accompanying the Dornish party and their coming was seen as a sign of good relations between the Crown and the Dorne.

From the Stormlands came Renly Baratheon the Lord Paramount of the Stormlands, Bryce Caron heir to Nightsong, Ser Rolland Storm the bastard of Nightsong, Beric Dondarrion 'the Lightning Lord', Ser Alyn Estermont, Ser Lomas Estermont, Ser Gladden Wylde, and Ser Balon Swan.

From the Reach came Ser Loras Tyrell 'Knight of Flowers', Ser Garlan Tyrell 'Garlan the Gallant', Ser Bryan Fossoway, Ser Parmen Crane, Ser Ben Bushy 'Big Ben Bushy', Ser Leo Blackbar, Ser Garth Hightower 'Greysteel', Ser Gunthor Hightower, Ser Horas Redwyne, and Ser Hobber Redwyne.

From the Westerlands came Ser Lucion Lannister, Ser Tytos Brax, Ser Robert Brax, Ser Gregor Clegane 'The Mountain That Rides', Sandor Clegane 'The Hound', Ser Lyle Crakehall 'Strongboar', Ser Merlon Crakehall, Ser Garth Greenfield, Ser Amory Lorch, Ser Addam Marbrand, Ser Cedric Payne, and Ser Harwyn Plumm 'Hardstone'.

From the Riverlands came Lucas Blackwood, Edmund Blackwood, Hendry Bracken, Ser Andrey Charlton, Ser Aemon Rivers, Ser Raymun Darry, Ser Harys Haigh, Ser Donnel Haigh, Ser Marq Piper, Ser Ronald Vance, Ser Stevron Frey, Ser Ryman Frey, Walder Frey 'Black Walder', Steffon Frey, Ser Cleos Frey, Ser Emmon Frey, Aegon Frey 'Bloodborn', Ser Hosteen Frey, Ser Danwell Frey, Ser Geremy Frey, Ser Raymund Frey, Ser Whalen Frey, Ser Jammos Frey, Ser Perwyn Frey, Ser Benfrey Frey, Ser Aemon Rivers, and Ser Walder Rivers.

From the Vale came Lord Yohn Royce 'Bronze Yohn', Ser Andar Royce, Ser Robar Royce, Ser Jon Redfort, Ser Creighton Redfort, Ser Ossifer Lipps, Ser Lymond Lynderly, Ser Eustace Hunter, Ser Gilwood Hunter, Ser Lyn Corbray, Ser Lucas Corbray, Ser Trys Sunderland, and Ser Glenn Sunderland.

From the North only came Ser Wendel Manderly but those staying in King's Landing as Lord Stark's household was no stranger to the practice so they also joined their brethren.

Lastly, the Crown and the Crownlands was represented by Ser Barristan Selmy 'The Bold', Ser Jaime Lannister, Ser Arys Oakheart, Ser Boros Blount, Ser Mandon Moore, Ser Meryn Trant, Ser Preston Greenfield, Ser Aron Santagar the Master-at-arms of Red Keep, Ser Osmund Kettleblack, Ser Jacelyn Bywater 'Ironhand', Ser Lothor Brune, Ser Dontos Hollard, Ser Roger Hogg and Ser Balman Byrch.

All in all, there were men competing from every region of the Seven Kingdoms except for Iron Islands which was noted by the other nobles.

There was a special ground arranged for the melee as the numbers of attendees were too high for the regular tourney grounds.

After the end of the archery contest which was won by a Dornishman named Anguy, the crowd gathered their things and moved to the other ground for the Grand Melee.

Meanwhile, the ones who were going to clash against each other in the melee were sitting in their respective tents.

The grand tent of the North was situated on the northern side of the grounds. Rody and others competitors were already preparing themselves for the coming fight.

His armor was already on him, only his helmet was put aside for convenience. Of course, he was going to wear it when the time came.

As he was musing to himself, a hand touched his shoulder. Rody turned his head to look and saw a large walrus mustache and his bald head looking down on him.

"You look good in your shiny armor, boy!" said the man while smiling.

"Ser Wendel," Rody greeted the older man who he became fast friends with as soon as meeting, "How do our neighbors fare? Did they agree?"

"The Riverlanders and Valemen agreed to ally with us. However, our numbers still stay low in the face of the Westerlands, Crownlands and the Stormlands alliance."

"I heard a word that Stormlanders are divided, did you hear anything about that?" Rody asked.

"Aye, apparently some lords followed their liege, Lord Renly and joined the camp of the Reach."

"Reach?" Rody asked with a frown. "What about Dorne?"

Ser Wendel shrugged his shoulders, "I tried to pull them to our side but they didn't even deign to meet us. I heard only some hedge knights joined them.I guess they still hold a grudge because of the Rebellion."

"Their grudge won't do them any good when we fall upon them en masse." Rody snorted.

"Aye, but still we need to be careful." Ser Wendel sighed, "Our numbers will be our disadvantage. The Reach is alone in their endeavor but their numbers are even against the alliance of the Crown, the Westerlands and the Stormlands."

"Hmm," Rody nodded his head. "Though we still have a big advantage.

Rody smiled and looked at the huge mass of armor standing just beside him and talking with his men.

Like sensing someone talking about him, Crag turned and looked at the pair questioningly, "What?" he asked.

The pair laughed and Rody said, "Nothing, Crag. We just say that you are enough to take down the Reach by yourself!"

"That is true, those puny flower knights won't get past my new armor." Crag laughed and turned back to talk with others.

Ser Wendel watched the giant with wonder and after a few seconds he spoke, "When Lord Stark said an Umber bastard was working as his personal guard, I scoffed thinking that the guard was just big in stature. But seeing him in person proved enough. This boy has the temperament of an Umber and the body of them. I bet even the Mountain would look like a green boy besides this hulking mass of armor."

As they were talking amongst each other, a boy dressed richly came in and announced the beginning of the Melee. Both common and noble men were in attendance. Unlike other regions, the Northern side was composed of common men mostly.

The stands were filled to the brim. There was even a section reserved for commoners. The field quickly filled with nearly 500 men in armor with tourney swords.

However, they quickly separated into three parties. On one side were the Westerlanders, Stormlanders and Crownlanders. On another stood Northerners, Riverlanders and Valemen. On another was the Dornish with Reachmen who looked like they were in a temporary alliance decided at the last moment.

As everyone readied themselves, Lord Yohn Royce, or known as Bronze Yohn, spoke to the gathered people on their sides, "We will stay in defense and take down whoever comes close, don't spoil the formation. Only then can we come on top!"

"""Aye!!!""" Everyone yelled in union. Lucky for them they had someone as experienced and reputable as Lord Royce because only someone like him could be accepted as the leader by these three regions who had family bond between them through their liege lords.

However, the others did not have that much luck. Dornish and the Reachmen were arguing amongst each other for the apparent leadership of their short-lived alliance. While Lord Renly was in support of his Reachmen allies, the Dornish was not one to listen to reason.

On the other hand, the Crown and Westerlands had a strong bond through their blood relations. Ser Jaime Lannister was pulling the head of the lords of the West while the Crownlanders were led by Ser Barristan Selmy himself who decided to attend the tourney at the behest of his king.

It was ten minutes later the Grand Melee began when the king yelled for them to start. The attendees blew their horns. Everyone brandished their swords and gripped their shields tightly.

Rody was standing besides his Northern brethren, there were sixty of them but only ten or so were nobles. However, the most shocking sight was Crag for the nobles. He looked scary enough with his massive armor to frighten most southerners who did not see him before.

"Stay steady, boys! Let them jump onto our shields." Rody yelled to his men as they yelled in agreement.

Ser Wendel brought with him some knights from White Harbor but even with their numbers they were not enough to compare the hegemony of the South. Still, they had their ferocity and valor on hand but it was to be seen how much that was going to count.

The first move of the Melee came from the Dornish side as they attacked the nobles of the Westerlands and the Crown. Of course, they were followed by the Reachmen counterpart and the field quickly descended into chaos.

"Are we going to sit out the fight, where is the honor in that?!" One of the Vale knights yelled out and urged his lord to get into the fray.

Rody saw that Lord Royce was in the same opinion with his subordinate so he readied himself for the coming fight.

Lord Royce came forward and turned his back towards the fight and looked at the people under his lead.

"The knights to our South have forgotten who won the Rebellion, let's show these green knights the meaning of fighting against real men! For the Vale!!!" Lord Royce yelled at the top of his lungs. He turned back to the fight and run towards it while the Valemen followed his lead. The Riverlanders also followed the suit and ran into the fight.

Ser Wendel raised his sword high into the air and then pointed it towards the chaos before them and yelled. "For the North!!"

Their war cries did not echo around but their faces were enough to deter the people standing before them to shield against their attacks. However, the North quickly lost their unity as the chaos wrapped them into its embrace.

Rody couldn't even utter a word before he was forced to deflect a blunted Dornish spear aimed at his face. He quickly shouldered the man with wrinkles on his face and forced the Dornish to stagger backwards.

Rody raised his sword and hacked at the Dornishman's arm and broke it. The man wailed in pain as his eyes bulged and he lost his grip on his spear. He did not bother with the Dornishman anymore and turned to fight another opponent.

The field was in disarray as even the Stormlanders were fighting amongst each other. Rody saw Crag thanks to the giant's height. He was swinging his warhammer from left to right and right to left. With every swing of his warhammer, he was taking down a man.

Crag's eyes were blazed red and at that moment, Rody realized that the young boy who looked like a giant was one of the berserkers who were known through the Northern Mountains.

Rody saw a Westerlander with blonde hair and green eyes attacking Ser Wendel. He did not wait to help his brethren. He kicked the back of the Westerlander's knee and hit him in the face with the pommel of his sword.

Ser Wendel laughed heartily and thanked Rody but did not linger long as he turned to swing his sword to a Crownlander.

Rody realized the commotion of the melee was different from what he experienced in fighting against bandits in the North or fighting against someone in one on one fight.

Nobles always said melee was the rehearsal of a battle but Rody never believed them. Now, he was seeing that this statement held some truth. And to his surprise, he was beginning to like it.

He turned his head and saw a noble from Westerland who had a shiny armor and purple unicorn as a coat of arms coming towards him with a grin on his face.

"Is that a green boy I'm seeing?" The Westerlander mocked as he readied his sword.

Rody did not give any answer. He learned from the best and he knew there were many opponents who would mock him for his status and try to get a reaction from him. However, he always kept his silence and let the man mock him while getting frustrated for not gaining a reaction from him.

Rody raised his shield and welcomed the blow while pushing it towards the Westerlander to create a distance between them. However, the Westerlander stood his ground and was only pushed back slightly. He tried to counter with a swing of his sword but it was no avail as Rody's sword already clashed with his iron helmet and the Westerlander fell to the ground.

Rody did not hesitate and repeatedly struck at the man's helmet until he fainted from the blows.

The melee continued for two hours. There were bodies everywhere on the field. Some were groaning in agony while waiting for people to help while others were blacked out and it was unknown whether they were dead or not.

Only eighteen or so people were left in the field and they were the best Westeros could offer.

From Dorne, only Gerold Dayne the 'Darkstar' remained. Their numbers would have been greater if Dorne's last standing member did not have stabbed his brethren on his back.

From the Stormlands, Beric Dondarrion 'the Lightning Lord', Rolland "The Bastard of Nightsong" Storm, and Ser Balon Swan were standing on the field. Their liege lord was defeated against his own bannerman after siding with the Reach.

From the Reach, Ser Loras Tyrell 'Knight of Flowers' and Ser Garlan Tyrell 'Garlan the Gallant' were the last ones to remain. They had the most challenging situation as most other regions focused on them to reduce their numbers. Still, the Tyrell brothers were standing in the field with little to no injury.

From the Westerlands, Ser Gregor Clegane 'The Mountain That Rides' and Sandor Clegane 'The Hound' were the only ones left on the field. However, they were more like enemies facing each other as their hateful glares were enough to melt icy rivers of the North.

From the Crownlands, Ser Barristan Selmy 'The Bold', Ser Jaime Lannister and Ser Lothor Brune were on the field. Both of the Kingsguard did not seem to tire as they were leisurely waiting for their next opponent to swing their swords towards them.

From the Vale, Lord Yohn Royce 'Bronze Yohn' and Ser Lyn Corbray were left but it was apparent they did not like each other as Lord Royce was putting a distance between his brethren.

From the Riverlands, Walder Frey 'Black Walder' and Ser Marq Piper were the last men standing in the field. However, the animosity between the houses were like the bright sun of Dorne as Ser Marq Piper was standing with Lord Royce while the Black Walder was standing alone and looking around with wary eyes.

From the North, only three were standing on the field; Ser Wendel Manderly, Rody Greyguard and Crag who was called 'The Northern Giant' after causing the death of several knights with only swings of his warhammer.

Surprisingly, Rody noticed that the first ones to clash were Ser Barristan Selmy and Ser Jaime Lannister. There was word around that Ser Jaime strived to prove himself better in sword than his Lord Commander and from the looks of it, the words spoken around held some truth in them.

Clegane brothers were fighting against each other. The only Dornishman was trading swords with the older Tyrell brothers while the young Tyrell brother was raining sword strikes on the two Riverlanders.

Crag was busy dealing with the three Stormlanders but he still had the upper hand as none of the battle-hardened men were able to get their swords close to the giant.

On the other hand, the others were at each other's throat while Rody's eyes crossed with a Crownlander who had a brown bearpaw on a white field, beneath three apple cores, red, green, and red, on a gold chief as his coat of arms.

"Looks like we are the only ones left without an opponent," said the Crownlander.

"Aye," Rody nodded his head after wiping the sweat on his brows. He put his sword before him and took a stance. "May the best one win."

No more words were exchanged as both of them were upon each other. Unlike Rody's previous opponents, this Crownlander was a sneaky one as he swung his sword low, aiming for his legs instead of his upper body.

Rody was quick with his steps as he swiftly pulled himself back and thrusted his sword forward. The man was older than Rody but he was still young in his years. He sidestepped and dodged Rody's strike and answered with a wide swing of his sword.

Rody blocked it with his own sword and for a second their swords tangled in a strength contest.

The Crownlander was quick to back off as his arms were already giving out due to his previous clashes. Rody was quick to realize it so he played it well and rained him sword strikes.

The Crownlander staggered backwards and Rody used this to tackle him to the ground. The sword left both their hands but Rody swiftly pulled out his long dagger and put it to his enemy's throat. The middle aged man grunted but yielded after seeing there was no return for him.

Rody rose to his feet and looked around to see everyone still fighting. He extended his hand to the Crownlander and the other party accepted it after looking at Rody with squinted eyes.

"I'm Lothor Brune, hope you can have some time to drink afterwards. It is rare to see a noble without a prick stuffed in his arse, not looking down on us people from Crackclaw." said the Crownlander.

"Gladly," Rody said. After all, as the man who taught him everything said, it was always a good thing to gain some friends wherever you go.

His ears nearly went deaf due to the cheering of the crowd and clashing of the swords but the sounds coming from the stands were still booming around the field. The excitement of the Grand Melee was growing each second as it was nearing its end.

The Crownlander left the field while Rody picked up his sword and looked around for a new opponent.

He realized that the three Stormlander were slowly but surely gaining the upper hand against Crag so Rody ran towards them to help him.

The three Stormlanders backs were facing towards him so he used this to attack one of them. He kicked him on the back of his knee and put his sword to the Stormlander's throat.

The man was surprised and looked at him with wide eyes. He had red-gold hair and a longsword in his hands. However, he threw it to the ground after realizing he left his back open to others.

Rody pulled his sword back and turned to the other Stormlanders who realized that now they were facing two Northmen.

Hope was gone from their faces as the Northern Giant already made them sweat enough to fill wooden buckets. And now their numbers were less and they were forced to contend with a Northerner who was rumored to have defeated the Kingslayer single handedly.

It did not take long for Rody and Crag to defeat the Stormlanders. By the time they were done with them, only five people were left on the field; Rody, Crag, The Mountain, and Ser Barristan.

To the surprise of the crowd, Ser Barristan was able to defeat the Kingslayer without giving much effort. Despite his age, the old Lord Commander of the Kingsguard was still one of the best swords in the Seven Kingdoms.

On the other hand, the Hound took a severe blow to his head from his brother's sword and fainted. No one knew whether he was going to wake or not.

Rody already knew who was going to be his opponent. This chance was something he seeked since coming to King's Landing.

"Ser Barristan, I guess there is no one to get between us, now?" Rody grinned.

However, just beside them was another legendary confrontation that was going to take place. The Mountain against the Northern Giant. But Rody's eyes only had the old Lord Commander standing before him.

"It seems so," Ser Barristan said as they began circling each other.

The first one to attack was none other than Rody. He thrusted his sword in a swift motion and tried to end things in just one move but his opponent was unlike any other.

Despite his growing age, Ser Barristan's speed was even with Rody. He parried the sword easily and quickly swung with his own.

Rody was surprised as he saw the sword coming closer and closer to his face. He threw his head back but the sword's tip left a light scar on his face.

"Ahahaha!" Rody laughed at his own mistake. This was it, a real fight worthy of remembrance, a real fight in which he could use his skills until he passed out.

Rody opened his legs in a shoulder-wide stance and gripped his sword with both hands. The grin on his face was matched by the cold look in his eyes. They were promising a worthy duel.

Just as he was going to throw himself forward, he felt the wind graze his face. Something long flew before him from right to left and his eyes grew wide.

A roar ran through his ears as he turned to look. Crag was standing there roaring while thumping his chest with his hands. On the other side of the field was the rumored giant of the south, the Mountain. Lying on the ground and trying to get up.

Rody felt another wind graze past him as he saw Crag running towards the Mountain with bare hands. However, his eyes turned back to Ser Barristan who also took his eyes back from the giant pair and looked at Rody.

They ignored the gruntings coming from beside them and only looked at each other. Rody threw himself forward with his hands gripping his sword tightly. His swing was parried by Ser Barristan's sword and was answered with a strike from him.

They continued to trade blows for a few minutes but could not find an opening. Both of them were sweating like horny donkeys and they were beginning to tire.

Rody breathed deeply as he pulled himself back and tried to gather his strength that was beginning to seep out. The duel was taking its toll on him and after fighting for hours, his muscles were aching.

However, he realized the same thing was also happening to Ser Barristan. Either he was going to fall due to his exhaustion, or Ser Barristan was going to fall for the same reason.

Rody did not hesitate to strike out with his sword again. He tried to find an opening in the old man's stance but it was to no avail.

Ser Barristan parried each of his sword strikes and answered with his own. He was raining upon him blow after blow and Rody was having a hard time to parry each of them.

Rody knew if things continued this way, he was going to lose. Thus, he needed to find a way to end things swiftly.

He even tried to use the move taught to him by Uncle Duncan but after seeing him use the same move on Syrio Forel, Ser Barristan was wary of it.

That was why Rody decided to use the oldest of the moves taught to him. He ran towards Ser Barristan like he was going to strike out with his sword and he saw Ser Barristan readying himself for the coming strike but it did not come to that.

Instead of stopping or using the momentum to swing his sword, Rody let it fall to the ground and grabbed Ser Barristan's sword arm. He tackled him to the ground using the weight of his body.

A surprised yelp came from Ser Barristan as his back touched the ground. Rody did not give any chance for the old man to gather himself and headbutted him. Then, he swung a mighty fist to the old man's face.

However, instead of passing out, Ser Barristan gripped Rody's arm and threw him off and mounted himself onto Rody. This time, it was Rody's turn to defend himself against the old man's fists but they were heavy enough to burst his brows.

Blood freely flowed down from Rody's brow to the ground and it clouded his eyes. Rody blinked to see clearly but his left eye saw only red. He felt the strength leaving his arms as each blow landed on them. He wanted to give up and let the pain end.

At that moment, he heard a lone voice yelling out his name. And they were followed by others joining it.

"Rody, Rody, Rody!!" He looked sideways with his open eyes and saw his men cheering for him while holding their wounded arms and legs.

However, his eye did not only see the cheering men but also his long sword which he used earlier. It was lying just beside him.

Ser Barristan was still swinging his fist towards his face and ribs. Rody knew if he tried to reach towards the sword and fail, he was going to black out because of the old man's next fist.

However, this was a risk he needed to take. He waited for the old man's next fist to his right side. As soon as the first connected with his elbow, Rody extended his hand and gripped the handle of the sword.

He tried to swing it but there was no strength left in his arm so he did the only sensible thing, he pulled the sword's hilt towards himself and hit Ser Barristan's face with it. The old man fell to the side and Rody did not wait for him to gather himself.

He swung the sword taking advantage of his body weight and the sword connected with the old man's helmet.

Rody did not have any strength in him anymore so the sword left his hand with the blow. He waited for the old man to rise his feet and finish what they started but it never came.

Rody looked towards Ser Barristan and saw his eyes were closed and there were no movements coming from him except for his rising and falling chest.

Rody grabbed his sword. He rose up and leaned on the sword to stand on his feet. His eyes were growing heavy and he was feeling the blood seeping from his forehead clouding his gaze.

He looked to the stands and saw them gaping towards him without a word. Even a drop of needle could have been heard in such silence. Rody thought it was because of his victory over the Lord Commander Ser Barristan. However, a roar came from behind him.

Rody turned his head with great difficulty and saw a scene that left him with a gaping mouth like the crowd.

The last thing he saw before passing out was Crag standing there with blood dripping from his mouth and beneath him a man with a deep gash on his throat…

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A.N: So how was the chapter? I bet you didn't expect this ending(Crag). I am waiting for your opinion!!