Chapter 31: Stillness

7th Month of 298 A.C. Winterfell

Prince Aegon Targaryen

The dragons were growing larger and larger with every passing day, it was startling really, and he was not sure what was causing their growth but suspected that it was to do with the weather and the food. Regardless, it was something that gave him courage and strength with the changes that were coming to him and to the surrounding world. The dreams he was having were something else as well. He was not sure what to make of them, a girl with silver hair, her hands out stretched calling to him, asking him to hold her, but then moving away every time he tried to take her hand. There were other visions as well, of a great fire, and a fire demon coming toward him, and an ice demon coming as well, there was too much going on within these dreams and always there was the girl with silver hair, looking at him trying to bring him forth. It was unnerving, and with the events that were unfolding before him, he was starting to think that he might have some of his father's madness, and that angered him.

War had come through the actions of the false King on the throne, and he was determined not to allow anything else to come between him and revenge. As he looks around the solar that was once his uncle's and now belongs to Robb, he sees a similar determination within their faces. He takes a deep breath and then says. "What word has there been from the outer corners of the north?" It feels strange for him to be asking for information, that should be Robb's duty, but his cousin has been growing distant as of late, spending more time with his wife, than with Uncle Ned's former advisors. He knows that he cannot really blame his cousin, but still, it irks him slightly.

Maester Luwin speaks then. "It seems that the clans are coming down in strong force my prince. They are being led by one Theo Flint, a man who is well known for fighting and for drinking. He is a man who has some good skills with commanding the clans."

"The clans are coming to Winterfell?" he asks then surprised, he looks at Robb and asks. "Did you summon them my lord?"

His cousin nods. "I did my prince. I thought it best, if we are going to marching into the south to fight, I want to bring the whole strength of the north with us, I will not allow those southern ponces to bring something to the battlefield that we do not have."

Aegon can see the benefit in that, still there is something about it that makes him feel slightly uneasy. "Very well then my lord. Now, how many of the lords are there that are here already?"

Martyn Cassel speaks then. "Lords Hornwood, Bolton, Karstark, Umber, Cerwyn, Glover, Mormont and Stark are here now my prince. It seems Manderly and Reed shall be joining us on the way south near Moat Cailin."

Aegon nods. "Very well, that is good, and it is good to note that Bolton has not taken issue about the building of bridges and holdfasts near his lands."

"Aye, but he will drive a hard bargain soon enough." Robb says. "There is something that he is planning, and I am not sure what it is."

"I do not think it will be anything serious my lord." Martyn says. "The man would not dare do something as rash as cause trouble, not with the strength of the north gathered here."

His cousin is silent a moment and then says. "That is true, and yet I am not my father, and now he might well think that there is something worth pushing here."

Aegon looks at his cousin and says. "If you show any sort of doubt then yes of course there will be something for him to push Robb. There can be no showing of self-doubt now, not now. Now we must be strong and we must stand together to ensure that we are not blindsided by those who might otherwise come to attack us."

There is a moment of silence and then his cousin nods. "Of course my prince."

"Now, what other news is there from the realm at large?" Aegon asks.

"Tywin Lannister has summoned his banners and is beginning the march towards Riverrun. It seems that he thinks that Ser Edmure Tully is holding his sons prisoner within that castle." Martyn Cassel says.

"Fool, he is bringing war onto himself regardless of what else might be true. Ser Jaime went to Riverrun on his own free will, there was none who forced him to go there." he responds. "What damned reason does the man have for breaking the peace?"

"I think it might be more the case that he thinks that the Starks have done more harm than good, and that the family is trying to create a place of power for themselves. After all, Lord Eddard, they are saying, tried to remove the boy on the throne from his throne." Martyn responds.

"He was right to do that." Robb says then, his voice firm and filled with anger. "Joffrey is not the rightful King. He should not sit that throne, just as his father should not have sat the throne. Whatever lies the Lannisters are spreading about father, are exactly that."

"Of course my lord, but it will be hard to convince many potential allies of that fact. Especially considering they keep mentioning the armed force that Lord Eddard took into the throne room with him." Martyn says.

"Are you a Stark man, or a Lannister man Martyn?" Aegon asks sharply.

The man looks at him then, and Aegon is reminded once more of the fact that this man is a monster with a sword. "I am merely stating the facts my prince. Many will not know the true events of what happened within the throne room unless we force the Lannisters to speak the truth. That is what we must keep in mind my prince."

Aegon looks at the man and sighs. "Of course, my apologies Martyn." he runs a hand over his face, and then asks. "What word has there been of Sansa and Bran? Have they been found yet?"

"It seems that they managed to get away from King's Landing during the chaos that erupted following King Robert's death my prince. Jory managed to get them out with some thirty men from the household guard, and as such the last time my sources saw them, they were heading northwards." Martyn responds.

Aegon looks at the map before them and says. "Were they taking the Kingsroad?"

"I do not think so my prince. I do not think Jory would be as foolish as to take the direct path back toward Winterfell. No, most likely they are taking the scenic route through the riverlands." Martyn replies.

"That in itself will raise issues." Robb points out. "If Tywin Lannister is marshalling men and will soon be arriving at Riverrun, if he is not already there, then he most definitely will be sending men out to look for them."

There is a moment's silence and then Aegon decides to speak. "And the Baratheon boy on the throne will most definitely be sending men out to look for them as well, if he has not done so already." he pauses then, considering his options. "Have we managed to make contact with the Darrys?"

"Yes my prince, Lord Darry has agreed to keep men on the lookout should they pass through his lands. The Goodbrooks have also agreed to do the same. Though I fear it might not be enough, especially with the Lannister army coming from the Westerlands and marching toward Riverrun. Soon enough the call to arms will go out, and it is possible that they might be missed." Martyn says.

Aegon runs a hand through his hair in frustration, his hair had been getting more silvery than brown as of late, and it is slightly disconcerting but nothing serious. He takes a deep breath and then says. "That is true, I suppose it is a risk we shall have to take." He looks at his cousin and says. "I am sorry for that Robb."

His cousin shrugs. "There is nothing to apologise for my prince, it has to be done. We are marching to war, we cannot be stuck worrying over something that is now out of our control."

Aegon nods and then says. "Now there are a few more issues that need to be discussed before we meet with the lords below." He takes a deep breath and then continues. "I want to know what the situation is like within the lakes. Will there be trouble whilst we are away?"

Aunt Catelyn, who had been silent through the discussion until then speaks then. "I have had men patrol the lakes my prince, and so far they have reported nothing out of the usual happening there. Though of course knowing these scum as we do, I am sure that is just what they want us to think."

Aegon looks at his aunt and asks. "Do you think they will have something more planned then?"

"Oh I think so. I think they shall either wait for you to march out before they do it, or they will do it just before you are about to leave. They will want to make a statement, and with Ned dead, there is none there to fervently stop them anymore. At least that is how they shall see It." his aunt says.

"Why couldn't father just have dealt with them when they were causing trouble last time? Why did he leave them alive?" Robb asks, and Aegon finds himself wondering the same thing, not for the first time. His uncle was many things, and he could be ruthless when the need arose, as seen by his destruction of the Ryswells, but this, this was something else. Keeping such an obvious threat alive and surviving, even if they hid in the shadows, it was not something he felt comfortable with.

"Your father did not know how much of a threat they could be. They had not done anything for centuries after all, and he had no reason to think that they would act anyway. It was better to keep them there within the mountains than to drive them out completely. After the rebellion, it would not have been wise to cause a direct confrontation with them." aunt Catelyn replies.

"And after what happened?" Aegon asks then, his voice soft, he can smell the burning as clearly as he did that day. "After that, why did uncle Eddard not do something then?"

A haunted look crosses his aunt's face, and Aegon regrets bringing that up, especially with Arya's death still hanging over them like a fresh wound, still he has to know. There is a long silence and then his aunt replies. "I do not know. But I think that Ned kept them alive to remind himself what was at stake."

Aegon sighs then. "It does no good now to think of what could have been done and what was done. We must act now. They are going to be a serious threat, I think now is the time to ride out to deal with them."

"How though? Dividing the host would not do any good, it would simply cause tension between those who would test you and those who would undermine you. There would factions that would develop, I do not think that is the course to take my prince." Martyn says.

"Then what do you recommend Martyn?" Aegon asks his frustration growing.

"Send Lord Benjen out with his men to deal with them. He was tasked with guarding the passes, it his responsibility now." Martyn says.

Aegon sighs and looks at Robb. "It is your call my lord, you are Lord of Winterfell."

His cousin does not respond immediately, and then when he does respond his voice is soft. "Let us see what happens in the meeting with the lord before making any decisions." With that he moves toward the door and Aegon accompanies him, with Martyn and Ser Arthur behind them. They walk to the great hall, where the lords are all gathered, they rise, and then sit down when Robb gestures for them to sit down. Robb takes his father's seat and Aegon sits to his right, knowing that the lords before him known the truth of who he is, but knowing they will not do anything until told to by Robb.

The silence stretches on for a time, and Aegon notes how Lord Umber looks as if he might curse, but then Robb speaks, his voice soft but firm. "My lords, thank you all for coming. You know why you have been summoned here, and why you have brought your men with you. The Baratheons have caused a grievous wrong to be done to my family and to the north as a whole. They have murdered my father, and sat someone on the throne who does not deserve to be there. Tywin Lannister marches on Riverrun now, making accusations which he knows are not true, to justify the destruction he will cause. This abuse of power is not right and should not be allowed to stand. It is time the Baratheons and the Lannisters learned the error of their ways." A murmur of agreement goes up at that, and Robb continues. "The realm has suffered under the Baratheons and the Lannisters. It has been allowed to run to ground and it has been allowed to suffer numerous hurts. We cannot allow that to continue, we must make a difference and we must make a change. The time is right to remove the corruption within King's Landing."

A murmur of agreement goes up at that, and then Lord Umber speaks. "What would you have us do my lord? Fight in the south to put another southern ponce on the throne?"

"No my lord, I would not bother fighting this war if I was going to put a southerner on the throne. Whilst I want revenge for my father's death, I also know that we must see someone on the throne who would ensure that the north is not forgotten in the chaos that is to come. And because of that, I know that my cousin, His Grace, Prince Aegon Targaryen would make a fine King." Robb responds.

Aegon feels something flitter through him when he hears the lords murmur their agreement, and when the call goes out. "Prince Aegon King, King Aegon Targaryen. Bring the dragons' back." the call is taken up by many within the great hall, and it only stops when he stands up.

His dragons are circling the air now, hissing and spitting fire in bursts, Ghost is at his side, and he feels his heart hammering. "My lords, Robb, I thank you all for your kind words. And if you wish for me to be your King, then by the old gods and the new, I shall not stop until the wrongs done to us are avenged." A cheer goes up then, and Aegon continues. "But, a King cannot be considered a King without a crown. Where is my crown?"

A man hurries forward then, a man Aegon knows has come from the Isle of Faces especially for this purpose, he comes forward, bowing before Aegon and then offering the crown that he has chosen to him. The golden band of Aegon the Dragon, the band his ancestor had forged following his conquest of the Seven Kingdoms is before him, he feels his heart hammer in his chest as he takes the crown and looking at the men before him, he places the crown atop his head. His voice shakes slightly as he says. "I, Aegon Targaryen, Prince of Dragonstone, Summerhall, and of the blood of ice and fire, do hereby proclaim that with the power before me, and with the will of the gods, I shall take the throne by might and by fire and ice. I shall not stop until I sit the throne and the wrongs done to my people have been avenged. Will you, the people of the north support me?"

A roar goes up at that, and Robb comes to kneel before him. "I am your man through life and death, through success and pain. Through all that might come before us, I am your man."

Aegon places a hand on his cousin's shoulder and says. "I thank you Robb Stark, Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North. Now who will join him in fighting for me and for justice?"

"I will gladly fight for you my King." The Greatjon says getting down onto bended knee.

"As will I." Lord Karstark says.

"Long Live the King." Lord Jorah Mormont says.

"To the King and to the dragons once more." Lord Hornwood says.

"Let us bring fire and ice down on our enemies." Lord Bolton says bending before him.

Aegon looks at the man and he swears that he sees the man's eyes turn ice white then, but before he can say anything, one of his dragons roars, and blue like fire comes out of their mouth engulfing the top of the hall in it. He laughs then, feeling alive, truly alive. "I thank you all my lords for this. Let us prepare for war, we shall feast and drink tonight, and then we ride for war tomorrow." A loud cheer goes up at that, and so the feasting and drinking begins, and Aegon speaks with his uncle then, and though he is not happy, uncle Benjen understands the need to remain on guard.

The next morning, the men are mounted and ready, their heads sore, but their hearts eager for war. They ride out from the gates of Winterfell, a horn sounding behind them, calling them to war.