Chapter 24

Chapter 24: Developments beyond the wall.

Tygett Lannister, 271AC, beyond the wall.

Tywin had been none too happy that he was going beyond the wall, he called it a fool's errand and urged him to be rational. He had informed him if he wanted to get his sword wet, he could kill pirates off the coast of the Westerlands or some other useful place. Tygett of course, disregarded this, telling him King Aerys himself was sending him north. His brother didn't seem to like that idea, claiming it was another passing fantasy of the kings that would likely be forgotten in the morning for more important tasks. Tygett knew that those important tasks would be deigned such by the hand himself, not the King. The Lord of Casterly rock was falling from grace and a younger more promising lion was rising from the depths, his brother would come to realize it in time, if he hadn't already.

The trip north had gone along with little problems, the weather turning ever colder as they traveled further north. Tygett did his best to stay clear of Helena the cursed, who was unfortunately going north along with them to Skagos. The foolish might think that Tygett avoided her, not wishing to be cursed, that was however, wrong. Tygett didn't believe in stupid peasant superstitions, and it spoke a lot of the Riverlands that they had even bought into it in the first place, it was no wonder they had never been kings like the Lannisters. No, Tygett stayed clear of her simply because he didn't like her, she was annoyingly bossy and had a certain sad dependence on the worldview from books. He had to admire her drive though, if he were an utter failure and disgrace like she was, he would likely have thrown himself off of Harenhal to his death.

When they had reached Skagos, it was surprisingly more developed than the mud huts he imagined, a sturdy looking town that looked to be coming along well, though it paled in comparison to Lannisport of course. Baldur's gate was a good name for the place, considering Baldur had forged the place by the iron of his will, something that should be respected, and one of the reasons the man was Tygett's friend. The large barbarian wasn't very civilized, though he had a certain aptitude for recognizing talent like he had done with Tygett.

After Skagos, they had sailed for the wall and with them, a formidable group of 500 savage warriors. The wall was everything Tygett had heard from in the stories. It was surely an imposing structure but also dreary and freezing, the last not coming as a surprise. The Nights watch had been welcoming, no doubt glad to see some support for their cause. Commander Qorgyle had the nights watch well disciplined and patrols keeping the wall safe as best he could, despite the declining numbers.

They had wasted little time in getting to the crux of the issues with the wall, which was fine with Tygett, as the luxuries of the 7 kingdoms were far behind them. It seemed in addition to the support and supplies they had brought, a number of various lords around the realm had begun pledging supplies to the watch, no doubt in hopes to gain the kings favor. Dungeons had been emptied and volunteers were arriving from many places to settle the gift, something pleasing to the watch commander.

Lord Qorgyle gave them a list of the most dangerous clans, each having a bounty on their heads, payable to whoever dealt with them. Tygett didn't really care for the money obviously, but cared for completing the task as quickly as possible and get back to kings landing a success. Baldur seemed in agreement, and plans were made to begin establishing trading posts north of the wall while Tygett and Baldur led a force beyond the wall to begin rooting out the more vicious clans and alleviating any pressure on the watch from raiders.

Baldur and Tygett had initially disagreed with who would lead the forces. Tygett may be Baldurs friend, but he was from a great house, while Baldur was from what many wouldn't even consider a house. It only made sense in Tygett's mind that he led the forces. In the end, it was decided that Tygett would lead the force of knights and black brothers, while Baldur would take charge of his own warriors and disperse them as scouts. The group would work their way to the east where the most troublesome of the clans were located, north between east watch by the sea and castle black.

As they trekked through the vast landscape north of the wall, they passed villages and small clans who were for the most part peaceful. Baldur's scouts often spoke to the wildlings in the foreign old tongue of first men, keeping any conflicts with any passing villages at a minimum and prompting some to move south around the trade posts. Baldur had his men effectively spreading news amongst the different heathens of the trade post where they could trade for food.

Their first battle came on a cold morning as the men of the watch, Skagossons and knights moved quietly through the forest in search of their first target. Baldur had pinpointed a troublesome clan of raiders led by a wildling named Lorkan, one of the clans that were on the list to stop. They had waited until night fall and had moved in, intending to ambush the clan.

They moved swiftly through the silent trees as Tygett could see the camp up ahead, a fire burning in the distance. In their group was 100 men lead by Baldur and himself. Other groups of men had splintered off in an attempt to hit a few of the other clans in the area that worked alongside the silver creek clan.

Baldur didn't shout any forms of attack, instead just waving his axe forward as the group of men charged into the camp, cutting down the few sentries as they caught them off guard and alerted the clan of invaders through the sounds of the clash of weapons killing their sentries. "Kill any who resist!" Baldur ordered, grabbing a torch and flinging it into a nearby tent as chaos began to be unleashed and the area lit up, providing them with ample sight for the coming fight.

Wildlings came running from their huts and tents, armed with nothing but furs and weapons of the weakest quality, sometimes not even in metal. Tygett had his knights form up around him as they began laying waste to any that approached. Tygetts steel long sword flashed in the firelight as he weaved throughout the savages, slicing them down with ease. The wildlings proved to be as little of a match for them as he suspected, their weak armor and weapons providing them little means of getting through his steel plate.

It wasn't long before Tygett came upon a woman wielding a spear as she thrust it at him. Tygett danced to the side, intent on disarming her. The wildlings were clearly desperate if they were employing women as soldiers against them. Tygett was saved from having to block another blow from the stone spear as the woman took a large axe to the side of her torso, crumpling her to the ground with a startled scream of pain, revealing Baldur standing behind her. "Just kill the cunts!" Baldur told him as he motioned around at his own men, who were indeed laying waste to any man, woman or child wielding a weapon and in some cases a few that were just unlucky.

Tygetts knights seemed hesitant to do so, though the rangers didn't seem to have any qualms with killing women as he saw them slaying quite a few. "Kill anyone who touches a weapon, spare those who surrender." Tygett ordered his men. Tygett didn't really agree with the concept of killing women and children, as they posed little threat, though it seemed that Baldur and the nights watch hadn't the same ideals as they laid the village low in little time at all.

After the battle, the surviving wildlings were brought to the center of the village as Baldur ordered the place looted of any valuables. Tygett himself stood at the center of the dwelling where his knights were keeping guard over the remainder of the occupants, all huddled together. They were a dirty and wild looking group who stared at the black brothers with obvious hate in their eyes.

"How do you do it?" Tygett asked motioning to the dead woman on the ground. When he had gone north, he never imagined that he would be slaying women and children as well. He had imagined wild men not so much unlike the bandits found in the Westerlands needing to be rooted out, not whole villages being put to the sword.

"Easy." Baldur said as a woman on the ground shouted something to him in the old tongue of first men. Baldur merely grunted back in what sounded amusement, motioning towards a spear as he did so. Tygett watched as the women scrambled forward, grabbing the spear and leaping at Baldur with a scream of rage, only to receive a swinging blow to her neck from his axe as she fell decapitated to the ground as the Skagossons around laughed heartily.

"I just aim lower, have to account for the size difference." Baldur explained with a chuckle, motioning towards the decapitated woman as Tygett grimaced. Apparently, the idea of chivalry didn't exist here, that much was obvious from the laughing Skagosson men. "North of the wall you will find that women can just as readily fight as a man." Baldur explained to him. Tygett would just have to keep reminding himself of why he was here, to step from the shadows, no matter what it took.

The months following their first battle carried on likewise as they raided clans and laid waste to any wildlings that opposed them or had been singled out by the watch. Tygett wouldn't say he ever got comfortable with killing women and children, but he had grown use to its necessity. As Baldur had pointed out, King Aerys gave them leave to handle to situation as necessary and Tygett did just that, keeping his mind on the goal and leaving the more heinous acts to Baldur, in case he did need to deny anything.

As they razed villages and groups of clans to the ground, they would send the survivors south towards east watch, where most peaceful villages existed. Baldur had told him some of the more peaceful clans were being allowed to migrate to Skagos from east watch by the sea to settle on his lands. Those interested in accepting the laws of the 7 kingdoms at least were.

Tygett at times would catch glimpses of Baldur or one of his men talking to various wildling leaders, sometimes recruiting clans as a whole to move to Skagos, other times a few individuals were gathered to join the ranks of the Skagosi or move south to east watch by the sea, where they would no doubt take a ship to Baldur's home land. Sometimes, Tygett even caught sight of Baldur speaking with lone wild looking individuals often accompanied by strange beasts, men, women and the odd child that had been pulled from a village. He couldn't imagine what use they were, though he suspected it was how he was gaining his information on the locations of the more troublesome clans.

Tygett kept a steady flow of updates arriving at east watch by the sea to be sent to the king with their exploits. He made sure to inform the king of the thriving trade posts that had been established and the taxes already beginning to flow into the coffers of the seven kingdoms from the remote area, highlighting the successes and leaving out the darker tidings of whole clans being put to the sword, the king didn't need to know the finer details, only that his idea was successfully being carried out.

The trade posts were indeed thriving as clans had began laying down permanent dwellings within the vicinity of them, creating a buffer between the watch and the more aggressive clans. Seeds were being planted and farming villages were banding together to keep out raiders, lifting much of the threat beyond the wall away. It seemed that Baldur had been right, and many of the raiders did what they did for the need of food. Now that they had a safer place and had begun banding together, they would protect their food supplies and thus lift pressure on the watch.

The more aggressive clans however, had doubled their efforts to defeat the watch, becoming smart to night raids of their forces, making them invent new tactics to hunt them down as more than once they had been led into a trap by false information, forcing a bloody confrontation and losses they could have otherwise avoided. They had smartened up to this and Baldur had developed a few tactics to drawing them out. They had began setting up false camps themselves with burning bright fires to attract any attention in the area they knew the more bloody clans to be in, drawing them into ambushes, then moving on their lightly defended settlements and putting them to the torch after discovering their locations.

5 months into the fighting beyond the wall, they had generally fallen back to the trade posts and the clans surrounding them, keeping the peace between the clans and helping forge ties. Tygett never imagined he would be working to tie the wildling clans together in peace, but he persevered through having to deal with the rabble by keeping the thought of Tywin's sour face at his success within his mind.

It was finally around month 6 beyond the wall when word had reached them that a group of wildlings were gathering to make a move on the trade posts and defeat the incursion by the watch into the free lands as they deemed them. This was excellent news for Tygett, who had given up hope of any civilized encounters. Many of clans they had only managed to route north had regrouped and joined together farther north, gathering allies before marching south again, intent to match them in arms, welcome news to Tygett who yearned for some sort of decisive battle to inform the king about. 

The two forces would meet near the Antler river trade post, the farthest north trade post that had been established and the most defensible. The enemy force was said to number around 10,000 wildlings, with another 20,000 in tow consisting of those that were too young, ill or old to fight likely. In response, Commander Qorgyle had led 500 nights watch members and 500 other soldiers who had come north looking for bounty to proceed to the antler river to face their foes, where they would break their strength.

The surrounding area around the antler trade post was relatively flat, located on the banks of the river. Tygett took charge of preparing the defenses for the assault. He ordered the free folk, Skagosi, watchmen and men of the 7 kingdoms alike in working to establish solid defenses. It had taken time for the Skagosi to trust him, but he had earned their favor with his prowess on the field of battle. The Skagosi may be a hard group of men, but they respected a man for his deeds, not for his birth, which suited Tygett fine. They didn't care that he was the brother of Lord Tywin, they cared that he was an effective leader, many going as far as to call him the swift lion, for his speed with his sword at laying down his enemies, something Tygett could be proud of, as it had nothing to do with Tywin.

Already in the south, the exploits of rooting out the wildling clans and rebuilding the watch to its former glory had spread, and with it the name Tygett Lannister, not Tywin Lannister. Life may be cold and treacherous beyond the wall, but he respected it for giving him a chance to shine from the shadows and prove that given a chance, he was the true lion of the west.

Tygett, Baldur and Lord Commander Qorgyle had worked out a plan for the coming battle. They would draw the undisciplined wildlings into the area surrounding the Antler trading post and fight them from behind the barricades that had been built. The barricades and trading post would be defended by the Skagossi and the free folk who had joined their cause in defending the new trade post.

Once Baldur drew the wildlings in, the cavalry, under Tygett would attack the rear, while the nights watch would attack from either side, supported by soldiers of the 7 kingdoms. Though they were outnumbered 3,000 to 10,000, Tygett was confident that they would be able to lay their enemy low.

Tygett sat upon his warhorse as he watched the motley rabble of wildlings swarming around the fortifications, being engaged by the defending Skagossi in choke points throughout. Steam from the heat of the men around him was seen misting through the air as they readied for the charge. Tygett held a presence of respect at the head of the column, dressed in black and silver colors, a great silver lion billowing on his black cape. He had adapted to wearing furs over the last months, a must beyond the wall, but he made them work along with the colors he had taken as his own. No longer would one look at Tygett as Tywins younger brother after this day but instead as his own man who had defeated a great threat to the seven kingdoms and aided in rebuilding the watch.

"Ser Tygett, the nights watch has launched their attack on the flanks of the enemy force." The man next to him informed him.

"Ready the charge!" Tygett yelled out as he rode down the line in front of the assembled horseman, a force of 400 strong, many of which had come green boys, only to be forged by Tygett into seasoned knights of worth and success. He had gained a following in his time beyond the wall as a warrior and a leader of men, something that would aid him in the days to come.

"Our king has called on us to do our duty and crush these savages. No longer will they raid the good people of our lands, laying waste to our people and carrying off our children." Tygett yelled to the assembled group as they cheered. "For King Aerys!" Tygett said, raising his gleaming sword above his head. The men answered with cheers for King Aerys and even Tygett himself, the swift lion.

"Unfurl banners!" Tygett ordered as all around them Targaryen banners dropped to be seen among the men on standards along with his own silver and black ones as the leader of the charge. Tygett had no intention of letting the wildlings forget who broke them this day and sent them back to their frozen wasteland. "Charge" Tygett yelled, pushing his warhorse into a trot as the men formed up behind him on his lead.

The wildlings in front of them were hardly a challenge to a good horse charge as they were disorganized and presented little to no front against them. The wildlings were caught off guard as the wedge formation of the horse blasted into the rear of their column, trampling through them like a knife through hot butter, Tygett riding at the front, twisting his sword left and right with quick slashing movements as he put the savages where they belonged, below the hoofs of his horse.

They fought deep into the center of the group of wildlings, fighting for what seemed like ages as they rode their enemies down, reforming up on various occasions to do so again, causing chaos in the ranks of the wildlings as they did so. Tygett lost count of the men that had been killed by his sword alone as they arrived at the front of the lines to meet the Skagossi defenders who had held firm in the face of superior numbers. 

"I'm not late am I?" Tygett asked as he spotted Baldur walking forward with a grin on his face, helm held under his arm. The fortifications seemed to have held quite well as bodies were strewn all along them, some peppered with arrows from the defenders, others butchered by the Skagosi in a large kill pit in the center, where no doubt some very intense fighting had gone on, judging by the piles of bodies and lose limbs. Baldur had certainly been in the middle of it, his armor dented in places and a spear tip embedded in a chink in his armor that looked to have drawn a bit of blood as well. None the less, the man looked fit to still fight.

"Just in time, if we move quickly, we can round up their camp before they flee, break them here and now." Baldur said as Tygett motioned for a man beside him to bring forward a spare horse for Baldur, whom reached out and pulled himself up.

"Let us crush our foes here and report success to king Aerys then." Tygett agreed as Baldur mounted the horse.

"Ivar, have the men push forward to the enemy camp, you know what to do." Baldur directed his second in charge. Tygett remained quiet as the orders were relayed back amongst the Skagosi warriors. They would certainly ensure any remaining resistance was broken, Tygett himself had partaken in actions that he would rather not repeat in polite company, though that was the price of rising in the world sometimes.

Thus the fighting beyond the wall had winded down with the defeat of the wildling host at Antler river. Tygett would return in the kings good graces, and hoped Aerys would begin to shift his praise to a different lion. He would stay for a brief time to clean up some small bands of wildlings that remained troublesome and then depart for the south.

Baldur had returned home as well, dealing with the captured settlement of close to 25,000 wildlings. Some were settled along the wall, agreeing to peacefully exist after their defeat, though many were relocated to Skagos, willing to bend knee to Baldur and through him, the king, in the process. Baldur had plans for the trade posts, all of which were operated by Skagosi. His plans would have to wait though, with a trouble stirring on Skagos among the wildlings clans, he was forced to return to dispense justice and ensure people were well motivated to follow the laws laid down.

King Aerys 272AC, Kings landing

Life in Kingslanding over the last year couldn't have been any better for King Aerys. His mood had improved greatly upon the first signs of success as reported by Tygett from beyond the wall. Trade had been established amongst the heathens of the north, and the name Aerys was certainly on their minds as for the first time, Targaryen banners flew in the wild regions of Westeros.

His idea had been a resounding success and the watch had been strengthened and on a path to its former glory. Aerys had never been more popular amongst the northern parts of the seven kingdoms than he was now. His decision to rebuild the watch and make an income from previous useless lands was hailed throughout the north with much praise and fanfare. In the North, they referred to him as a champion of the watch, something that pleased him greatly.

Aerys had a certain pride recently no matter how sour his hand was. It felt good being right and his hand wrong. For the first time in a long time, word around the red keep had been talk of Aerys triumphant ideas and not that of Tywins. He had proved that his hand wasn't infallible, probably much to his hands chagrin. Tywin hated any form of weakness, and the praise for Aerys success was no doubt weighing on his mind.

Of late, Aerys had taken to bringing others into his confidence about decisions, besides that of his hand. His great uncle Aemon proved the wisdom of his years, giving Aerys encouragement in his personal life as well as that of running the realm. Aerys ensured to take all of his suggestions under advisement, as the man was one of his few kin remaining.

He had also taken his wife Rhaella into closer confidences and their relationship had improved since Aerys newfound success. He had given her funding to head projects of her choice in kingslanding and he could tell that she was visibly happier. They had never been happy with their arranged marriage, but they did their duty to the crown.

Rhaella had given birth to a young Aerea Targaryen in late 271AC and Aerys was pleased with the young girl, ensuring he spent time visiting her each day. Rhaella was also pleased to have herself a daughter, though they both were hoping for another boy next. The Targaryen line was depleted enough, it would be on their shoulders to try to replenish it, that they knew. Great uncle Aemon had been helpful on that front, providing some insight to both of them as his wife began writing the elder Maester as well.

As Aerys sat in the small council chambers, he took his seat as all bowed around them. "Your grace, I have received a letter from Ser Tygett at the watch." Pycelle informed the King. 

"Well, let us hear what my friends at the watch have to say." Aerys said brightly. Tygett rarely failed to give him good news, and the news was never bad. Worst case, the letter would be filled with troop movements and updates on trade posts from the watch, letters coming at least once in a moons turn, some written in his hand, others by Lord Commander Qorgyle or another prominent member of the watch.

"Your grace, 30,000 wildlings have marched on the Antler river trade post. They were routed by a combined effort of the watch, free riders, Ser Tygett and Lord Baldur. They have been taken prisoner and dealt with accordingly." Pycelle informed King Aerys, nervously casting a glance towards Tywin who's jaw clenched. Aerys didn't indicate his noticing it, but internally he was feeling quite smug at the moment.

"Excellent, that should clear any trouble in the area in the near future." Aerys said pleasantly.

"Lord Chelsted, see to it that you keep in contact with east watch by the sea about continued trading opportunities. I expect with the region turning to peace, there will be much potential.

"Lord Tywin, see to it that Ser Tygett is awarded that position of Master at arms for the red keep, he has more than proven his valor beyond the wall." Aerys ordered. Tywin seemed well enough pleased by this, though Tygett more than deserved the position for his success.

"Your grace, I will see it done." Tywin answered loyally. "What of Lord Crowl?" Tywin asked.

"I will come up with something as well for Lord Crowl, he has proved quite useful." Aerys agreed.

"An excellent choice your grace, too bad about that girl of his." Pycelle said with a shake of his head.

"Girl?" Aerys questioned curiously.

"Yes your grace, a girl of the river lands if I recall correctly. Certainly unfortunate, considering her Lord father would likely never award her hand to a distant northern Lord." Pycelle said with a sad shake of his head.

"Since when has your job title been the rumor monger of Kings Landing Grand Maester Pycelle?" Tywin said scathingly as Aerys held up a hand.

"Tell me of this girl" King Aerys insisted of the grand Maester.