36

I had never waited this long for a sunrise. The minutes stretched on for eternities, and I wasn't sure that the increasing glow to the east existed anywhere but my imagination. The strain of the magic was immense, the power I'd gathered for the last steps felt like flames beneath my skin. I was hoping that as soon as I triggered the ritual I would start to recover, but I'd never done anything like this before and I'd already made one mistake about the cost I'd pay.

I held the horn in my hands and watched the city. It was peaceful now, the Ironborn were asleep along with the rest. Whatever they could loot was already in their ships or gathered in the Citadel for storage and for the past few days Oldtown had just been their base, no longer a target to be plundered. Lord Tarly's camp was stirring though, I didn't know if he truly believed in the plan but he seemed to be readying his men just in case. Maggie and I were safe on the top of the tower, at the first sign of trouble she'd demolish the stairs and make it so only birds could reach us. Our part in the siege would be over soon.

"Papa!" Maggie's cry disrupted my musing and I moved around to see what she had to say. "Papa, I've been Listening, I can hear the fighting and screams from below." She looked pale, Willas's injury at the tourney had shaken her and that hardly compared to hearing men die. "They're not all men too. What about Malora and the maids? Shouldn't we have brought them with us?"

I had been ignoring my guilt over leaving them, Maggie came first and I wouldn't risk her to save strangers. When we had been climbing I had thought about bringing people with us but I hadn't thought it would help them, they'd just die tired. Now that I knew we could have saved people by wrecking the wooden stairs that excuse was gone, but knowing what I did then I'd do it again. "If they appear at the stairs call them up, and you can break the flights below them, don't go down and if you see any Ironborn don't hesitate, just smash the stairs above them." She nodded but I wasn't convinced. She was my daughter after all, and before I had her I had taken immense risks for a lot of faceless people. "Promise me you'll stay up here, when dawn breaks I'll probably be able to rejoin the fight, I'll do what I can to save them then." I looked her in the eyes until she nodded again, right now I wouldn't be able to stop her if she did anything stupid, I'd have to hope Susan's genes were dominant.

The conversation had taken some time and when I went back to the east there was a glow just above the horizon. Dawn was here, the sunrise was imminent. In a perfect world I'd time it so my final lap and hornblow would be at the break of dawn, it would be the most efficient use of my power and achieve the best result. Unfortunately I didn't have a watch or know exactly when the sun would rise atop the Hightower, or even how long each lap would take. I'd have to wait until the moment felt right.

Ebenezer once mentioned that some spells cause echoes through time, he'd changed the subject hastily but for some reason I was thinking of it now. He was the Blackstaff, the Laws of magic were merely guidelines to his office, I wondered if he had ever knowingly felt his ripples in the currents of time. If any spell I ever performed would make a splash, it would be this one. I held my left hand out, despite it's burns it was sensitive to the flows of magic and was the one I used to gather energy. I didn't do that now, I just left it in the air, feeling for magic ripples that I wasn't sure would exist, hoping that I'd know them when I felt them, like the frets on my guitar.

It was a poor time for experimenting but doing a spell of biblical magnitude demanded more than my normal repertoire. I closed my eyes and waited, for a few terrifying minutes I stood with my eyes shut half believing I'd missed my shot, and then I felt it, my own magic, pulsing through the air only barely strong enough to detect. It was time.

I picked up the horn and began to march around the perimeter of the tower. "Submersus, Cadent, Submersus, Cadent" Each step I chanted a word, and it was easier this time. All week I'd been pushing a rock to the top of a hill and it was about to go careening down. The magic wanted to be released, all the energy I'd concentrated with my ritual was ready to burst forth and change the world. I reached the start of my loop and blew the horn, the call echoed forth. Almost before the sound faded I resumed my march, each step was easier than the last and I almost ran as the magic struggled to break free. The runes on the horn were blazing as I started my seventh lap. Each blast of the horn had been louder and taken longer to fade away and I had seen the camps of the Ironborn erupt as the horn's call reached them.

I reached the easternmost point on the tower and I knew that I had timed it correctly. The horn was shaking in my hands and I knew if I looked at it with the Sight it would be blinding. I held the horn in both hands and paused just a second. Right as the sun broke the horizon I put the horn to my lips and blew.

The runes were brighter than the sun and I would have shielded my eyes if both my hands weren't full. The horn's sound was different this time, a droning, low enough that I could feel it in my bones and loud enough that I was sure there was no one left sleeping in the entire city. I looked to the walls, they still stood firm and I almost panicked, and then with a jolt, a feeling that was a strange mix of plunging into ice water, burning and missing a gear, all the magic I'd stored over the week rushed through me.

I couldn't put the horn down now if I wanted to, its call grew and grew until the stones at my feet were vibrating. I could see the shockwave, a pulse hit the water of the harbor below, sails of ships went taut and then the city's walls began to sink.

The blast seemed to go on forever as the walls sank into a cloud of dust until finally the magic released me. I slumped to the battlement, the horn falling to the ground with it's runes still shining and waited for the air to clear.

The breeze off the sea began to sweep the dust away but before it finished I heard other horns, sweeter than mine had been, and the sound of drums. The dust finally dissipated and I saw ranks and ranks of infantry, leavened with knights in literal shining armor, marching towards the collapsed walls. The siege of Oldtown was over.

I gave myself a moment to recover, with the ritual over I was felt much better but I had just done more magic than any other time in my life. After the all too brief rest I walked back to Maggie, who waited for me with wide eyes. "Did it work? I felt it but are the walls down?"

I grinned, even though the only reason I was still standing was the adrenaline rush, and pulled her into a hug. "The walls are down, Tarly's men are headed into the city now."

She smiled back and then looked down the stairs. "The fighting has been getting louder, they stopped for a bit when you blew that last one but they're back at it." I looked down the steps and thought, right now I could turn the tide, I could knock the Ironborn back enough to lock one of the doors and then seal it, I trusted my own stone welding abilities more than Maggie's but with the Mantle I could just freeze the corridor, it would give us long enough to rest and then we could simply wait for reinforcements.

"I'll see what I can do." I picked up my sword, when I brought it up here, I had thought that it would simply be a last resort but now with steel in my hand, I loosened the bindings on the Mantle.

The world sprang into focus, sounds, smells and sights were all more intense and the surge of winter's power almost left me breathless. I went from the brink of exhaustion to ready to fight for days and grinned at Maggie. The reavers wouldn't know what hit them. We had three escape potions, I held two and Maggie had her own for when we were worried about losing. I pulled one free and toasted Maggie, she was staring at me, before taking it like a shot.

The world dissolved into wind and I with it. I gloried in my Queen's element as I left frost in my wake sweeping down the tower. The sounds of fighting men carried themselves to and through me, I burst through the last of my allies and materialized between the groups.

"Forzare!" A wedge of energy targeted at their legs went forth, the Ironborn toppled en masse. One particularly quick one threw an ax at me from the floor, my mind was still moving like the wind and I idly watched it tumble towards me. I effortlessly caught it right before it would have split my head and laughed. My allies shrank back away from me, Baelor and a limping Oberyn were still alive I saw, before I turned back to the stunned pirates. "Infriga." The merest touch of my Lady's power was enough to bind all of them to the floor. I focused my will on their metal weapons and ripped the heat from them. Men screamed as their swords shattered in their hands, there was no law against maiming, and I grinned. "Remember Winter's power scum! Count yourselves lucky you aren't worthy of my full attention."

With the heat I'd pulled from their weapons, I slashed my hand at the floor. "Flammamurus!" I left a trail of molten rock a yard wide across the corridor and then I turned leaving the screaming men behind.

"To the next door, I'll seal it and we'll wait for Tarly to kill the rest of them." The remaining guards were quick to follow my instructions, with the vanguard of the Ironborn frozen to the floor and blocked by lava we had plenty of time.

We reached a door, I estimated we were still a few stories from where the wooden stairs started, and a man barred it behind us. I motioned everyone back and drew on the wellspring of Winter's power within me. "Infriga!" I used a touch of soulfire, I didn't know how long it would take to cleanse the tower and the fires of creation would make the barrier practically invincible, it would be cold enough to shatter hammers and picks if they could even get through the ice-backed door.

With my work done I started the climb back to Maggie, only Oberyn followed, Ser Baelor remained with the guards, his sister and some maids. Oberyn stayed a few steps behind me as was proper before speaking. "Harry what was that? And did you bring the outer walls down?"

"That was the barest hint of my and my Lady's power. Of course I brought down the walls, didn't you hear my horn?" Idly I wondered how tired Oberyn must be, he didn't usually ask such stupid questions.

I kept climbing the frost covered stairs, Oberyn was moving slower, lacking my grace on the ice. He was silent as we ascended, this climb was far easier than the last stumbling affair and we reached the top in no time at all.

Maggie nearly knocked me down from hugging me before launching a barrage of questions, I reassured her that the maids were fine and the Ironborn stymied as Oberyn wandered around to the east side. I heard him call my name and I tugged Maggie with me.

He was pale beneath his dark skin, staring out at the slightly larger than I intended breach and the men pouring through. With my sharpened vision I could see knights fighting vikings all through the streets and the vikings were losing. Already some ships were casting off from the shore, headed for greener pastures. "You did all this?"

"Well not all, the army isn't mine," I replied modestly, "but for the most part yes." He swore and looked back at the city, dawn had fully broken and the sun's rays lit the city as its liberators stormed it. "Not bad for a week's work I think." He glanced back at me and swore again more vehemently. I had larger concerns though.

In a low voice I called to Maggie, "Maggie, I'm going to bind the Mantle again, watch me alright?" She nodded and I reached into my head to try to relinquish the awesome power my Queen had given me. I struggled for a grip and got it before starting to push it down. Icy spears pierced my mind, and I dimly heard Maggie cry out as I collapsed.