Chapter 18

  CREGAN STARK

  Ever sihe m had begun, Cregan had been feeling rather ominous. It was as if he khat something was wrong. Or rather, something was going to g.

  Yet he did not know what. He had woken up early, and for once his sleep was not disturbed by the nightmares of the three eyed raven, much to his surprise.

  The nightmares had been taking a toll on him for months now. Ever since he had stepped foot in the North they had pgued his dreams, growing more and more inteh every passing day as they warned him to stay away.

  Not that he had listeo them.

  Thankfully, his habbit of waking up early had stuck with him, and he was just in time to stop Brandon from reag the top of the broken tower, knowing full well what such a thing would entail.

  He did not care for the three eyed raven or his warnings, and cared little for his pns. Cregan had decided to save his family, and Bran was one of them. He was not going to abandon him to a cripple’s life.

  And so, he had rushed into the backyard as soon as he had woken up, only to find his little brother climbing up the wall of the broken tower, and he was a good climber. Better than any he had seen.

  The rest was easy. He had talked him down with a mixture of threats and promises, not that their mother would ever let him join the hunt. But his brother was down, and safe.

  It was all that mattered.

  And then they had broken their fast, and the ominous feeling had only growe his little triumph, and he was surprised at Sansa’s preception of Joffrey, on how his words had taken their effect.

  She had always been smart, knowing full well how to py her little games with the dies and so forth. But it seems he had poisohe well when it came to Joffrey, and given that she knew all of his tales of valor and bravery to be nothing more thahe little prick was uo impress her.

  It was another victory for him. Joffrey had been Sansa’s biggest weakness, someone who made her blind to the games and plots that were hatched around her.

  And though she was no master of the great game, he was relieved to see her using her mind.

  And then had e the hunt, and Cregan could do little but participate in it given the King’s and. As always he had tried to scout out the hunting grounds through his powers, had tried t into a crow, or any other bird to see the game around the area.

  A for the first time in many years, Cregan had failed.

  His powers of warging, the one’s he had been using and trying to master ever since he had first awakehem had failed him. He tried again, and again a failed.

  His e to his direwolf was still there, he could still feel Aurora but any other animal, bird or otherwise, he could not warg into. It was a surprise. An ominous surprise.

  And that should have been warning enough. It should have been, but his little succeses had blinded him, and now he found himself gripping his shoulder as he y there on the ground as a smiling Joffrey pointed his cross bow at him.

  He had been shot once already, and the pain from the fall and the arrow were making his head spin, while the world around him was dyed red because of the blood that was running down his face.

  “What are you doing, my Prince?” he grunted as Joffrey smirked.

  “Teag you barbarian a lesson,” he raged as he smiled down at him. And Cregan tried again, and again, and again t into the prick’s horse, and that failed.

  His own horse had long run away after Joffrey’s little ploy made it thran off. His e, with his bde was a few paces from him, a would do him no good.

  “I don’t uand, my prince,” Cregan tried to buy time, hoping that something would give.

  “Don’t py coy with me! I know all about your pns, you cripple,” he spoke as he focused the crossbow straight at him, and inpetent as he was, it did not matter here, given that Cregan was but a few meters away from him.

  “You thought you could take my pce. Repce me! You barbarian cripple! You thought you could marry Myrcel, and bee the king you bastard!” he thundered, and he khat this idiot was not smart enough to think of this.

  Someone had fed it to him. These were not Joffrey’s words.

  “I don’t know what you are talking about, my prihese words, they are lies!” and he screamed in agony as the bastard loosened another bolt at him, this one pierced his leg, making him scream.

  “HELP!” and he saw Joffrey’s face pale as he realized that he did not have much time.

  “You dare call her a liar! Call my mother a liar!” he screamed as Cregan fought through the pain, screaming as Joffrey jumped down his horse and reached for his sword.

  “But don’t worry, I will make it quic....” and then it happened in the blink of an eye, as a dozen men came upon them in an instant.

  “Who are you?” Joffrey asked as Cregan looked around and saw them surround both of them.

  “Now what do we have here, two little prings trying to kill each other,” a gruff looking man with an axe in his hands spoke up, as Cregan broke the arrow, and tried to push himself back up.

  “Leave me! I am the Prince! Move!” Joffrey shouted and, in his idiocy, chose to swing his bde at one of them; the man raised his own, trying to block the attack, yet i moment, Joffrey’s feet slipped, and Cregan watched as the bastard’s head hit the edge of the axe.

  FWISH!

  And split open in the blink of an eye, sh them all with blood.

  “SHIT!” “WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!” “I DID NOTHING!” “THE BASTARD SLIPPED!”

  They turned on one another as Joffrey’s body fell down into a pool of blood as Cregan watched it all with a thumpi, uo uand what was going on.

  “He was the Prince you idiot! They will kill us all!” the leader of the men shouted as he poi Joffrey, as they all paled and began to fidget before the killer’s eyes turowards him.

  “We will just bme it all on him! Tell ‘em it was him who killed the boy!” he suggested, and for hired killers, the bastard had made a good suggestion, but Cregan had enough time to reach for his e as he stood up shakily, his sole e with his direwolf growing stronger and stronger.

  ‘He had to buy time,’ he thought.

  “Let’s get him! And after we have that money, we will put it all on this bastard and leave him in a ditewhere!” the leader shouted as one of them rushed towards him, and Cregan quickly twisted the handle of his e and pulled out the bde.

  ‘Money’ he heard. M could mean only...but this was all for ter, as he swung his bde at the hand reag for his neck.

  “AHHHH!” and the man reag for him screamed as his hand fell down. His arm bled as they looked at him with renewed i.

  “What!” he screamed as they all took out their ons, hatchets and axes and spears. And poihem all at him.

  “Who hired you?” he asked, even as his body seared with pain.

  “What it matter to you! You are in’ with us boy!” the leader shouted as he pushed his spear.

  “I am not,” Cregan shook his head, praying that someone would e to his aid. That someone had heard his screams.

  “You think you take us all!” and as his back hit the bark of the tree, the men closed in before suddenly they halted as Aurora pushed herself through them and stood infront of him, baring her fang at them all.

  “A wolf!” “We don’t have much time!” they whispered as Aurora barked at them, ahey pushed their spears, cutting them and swung their bdes until they were all stilled by a scream.

  “HELPPP!” and all of them looked to the side, and his heart stilled as he saw just who it was.

  “Myrcel...” he gasped as he reized those golden locks. As their eyes met, he screamed based on instincts only.

  “RUN!” she ran, and the men realized the danger.

  “Chase after her!” and one of them did, as the others all jumped on him. Cregan killed one and took another’s arm as a spear pierced his injured leg once more.

  “AHHH!” he screamed and watched as Myrcel turned around, the man chasing her now but a few steps away, and as his vision began to falter, he gave a siug at his thread with his direwolf as he screamed.

  “DON’T LOOK BACK!” and he slipped ao the ground, and before he could utter any other word, he felt something hit his head as his vision darkened and he fell to the ground, and the st thing he saw was the bleeding lifeless body of Joffrey Baratheon.

  0000

  EDDARD STARK

  They rode through the forest with haste, as the men spread out in search for the Prind his son. He rode with Robert, as Eddard tried to ease his mind, tried to assure himself that all was fine.

  Yet it was a lie. He k in his heart.

  Something was amiss here. And suddenly both him and Robert stilled as they heard a scream.

  “NOOO!” and it was closer to them, as they both turheir horses and followed after the voice.

  “That voice,” Robert began with a gasp, as Eddard nodded reising it as well.

  “It was Lannister,” he added as Robert nodded, and a few mier, they saw him as well.

  The Kingsyer sat there on the ground sobbing as he held a boy’s body in his arms. His fad hair were now dyed red as blood gushed out of his split skull, a even with them colored, it was hard to mistake that doublet as anything else but Lannister.

  “No,” he gasped as he saw Robert’s face pale. The Kingsyer sat there holding the body in his arms, and Robert jumped down his horse.

  “No! NO! It ot be!” his friend and King gasped in worry as he looked towards the Kingsyer.

  “It ot be!” his friend screamed in grief, a even the King’s words could do little to ge the reality.

  “Joffrey! Joffrey!” Robert screamed, ahe boy was dead. His body was limp, and the boy did not move as Eddard turned his eyes to look around before his eyes nded on something rather familiar.

  “Who did this? WHO!” Robert thundered as the Kiood up while Eddard picked up the e and saw that it was indeed Cregan’s e. His son’s e.

  He was here in a well, and beside it y a bde that was thin and long, ohat could be fixed i. It was bloodied, speaking of a battle, and there were a few broken arrows lying around as well, with much blood beside them.

  There was a battle here.

  “Ask him?” The Kingsyer’s words broke him out of his trance as he roared to his feet.

  “What do you mean?” Robert thundered, his rage palpable as he looked around.

  “That bde and e. They are his son’s and he was the only one who rode with Joffrey!” he added, and he was stilled as he saw those green eyes fill with rage.

  “Do you have any idea what you are saying Kingsyer!” Robert thundered, but Jamie Lannister was not listening as he gred at him hatefully.

  “He hated him. He always hated Joffrey, and now he has killed him! Killed him and run away that coward! But I will find hi...”

  “My son did not kill the Prince!” Ned halted him in his words as he pushed forward staring the Kingsyer in the face.

  “Why would he kill the Prince?” WHY?” he asked, his ow growing weary with worry as Robert watched his son’s dead body with a pale face.

  “You know why! But I will find the boy. I will find him, and kil...” the Kihreatened, and Eddard’s blood boiled as soon as he heard those words—the daring of this man to threaten his son while he stood in his nds.

  He saw the Kingsyer reach for his bde, and he did the same.

  “You dare threaten a Stark while standing on my pn....”

  “Keep your bde sheathed, Lannister!” Robert screamed in agony, and as the Kiried tue.

  “Your son! The Prince is dead, killed by that boy, a you...”

  “SILENCE!” Robert thundered as he reached down, and they both turowards their King, whose face was filled with the fury and rage that had once made him King.

  “Mind of what you speak, you idiot! You dare accuse Ned’s son of this. Have you lost your mind!” he roared, and the Kingsyer seemed to back down as Robert turo the gathered men.

  “GO! FIHE BOY! FIND HIM AND BRING HIM TO ME!” he roared, as he moved towards his own horse and mou.

  “I will take his body to the castle,” and Ned joined his friend as he rode beside him.

  “Cregan did not do this,” he added, and Robert’s eyes were filled with tears as he nodded.

  “I know, but only the boy knows who did. And I will kill them, whoever did this....”

  “I WILL KILL THEM MYSELF!” he thundered as he looked at his son’s remains.

  0000

  Hours passed, and Cersei waited with bated breath for any news about her daughter. As per her and, the Lannister guards searched the forest while the Starks and their men searched the castle and the town around it.

  Winterfell was massive, and its lengths and widths had never bee lengthier and wider than today as she waited for any kind of word on her daughter.

  And it was hours ter that she heard it. The sound of hoofs ing from the forest as she rounded off and ran forward.

  “Myrcel,” she gasped in worry, hoping to see a guard with her, a as she ran into the forest and saw the rider ing towards her, she stilled.

  A was not. Her prayers had not been answered, for it was her her nor Jamie. No. It was Robert who rode back, though her eyes did not linger on her husband for long as they reached the lifeless body in his arms as she stilled a her world end.

  “NO!” she gasped, as she fell to her knees as she reized that fad those golden locks so simir to her own, all covered in blood.

  “NOOOOO!” she screamed as Robert’s horse stopped, and she ran towards him ahe face of her son, which lit into half while his skin had long cold.

  “JOFFREY!”

  0000

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