The Mountain of Ice and Fire

The Iron Islands have seven main islands: Great Wyk, the largest and richest in iron ore; Old Wyk, home to the Seastone Chair; Blacktyde, barren and desolate; Salt Cliff, known for its bitter-tasting and crudely produced rock salt; Harlaw, the most fertile and populous, the only island capable of raising small horses; Pyke, the seat of House Greyjoy; and Orkmont, with little more than rocks, moss, and a few trees.

The lord of Blacktyde is Ser Baelor Blacktyde, a highly skilled and courageous knight, loyal only to King Balon. After Balon's death, he transferred his allegiance to Balon's daughter, Asha. When Asha and Theon fled, and the powerful Iron Fleet commander Victarion Greyjoy switched his support to Euron Crow's Eye, Baelor also chose to flee, but was captured by Victarion and delivered to Crow's Eye.

Crow's Eye decided to march on Clegane's Keep the next day, so he held a banner-raising ceremony today. Baelor Blacktyde was brought to the training yard outside the main hall. Defiant to the end, he was forcibly held down by Crow's Eye's pirate guards. The executioner, following Crow's Eye's orders, hacked Baelor into seven pieces, then impaled them on spear tips, displaying them to the pirate captains and Ironborn leaders in the yard.

Like Theon Greyjoy, Baelor had been a hostage for eight years after Balon's failed rebellion. During those eight years, he changed his faith, converting from the Drowned God to the Seven.

Baelor commanded great respect among the Ironborn leaders. His martial prowess, his skill in the finger dance, his loyalty, and his unconditional support for his fellow Ironborn, inspired admiration in both his opponents and supporters.

Crow's Eye noticed the collective silence of the Ironborn leaders, but he laughed it off, unconcerned.

The Ironborn are all greedy. Crow's Eye offered them vast wealth that they couldn't have plundered in over a decade. Even Victarion, who hated him the most, chose to kneel and pledge allegiance, let alone the other Ironborn.

Crow's Eye surveyed the crowd and smiled, "Brothers, after we take Clegane's Keep, and kill the Mountain, we can enter the Red Keep. All the leaders will become the noblest generals of the Seven Kingdoms. I personally promise to lead you to become the wealthiest, most powerful, and most prestigious generals in the Seven Kingdoms. You've already seen the wealth. You're not the richest now, but the time to become the richest is tomorrow. Kill the Mountain, and wealth, status, and power will all be yours."

The pirate captains cheered!

The Ironborn also echoed the cheers, many Ironborn leaders who didn't align with Crow's Eye were even more fearful of him.

The death of Lord Baelor of Blacktyde was too tragic!

"Tomorrow, whichever Ironborn leader is the first to charge into Clegane's Keep, I will reward him with Blacktyde."

The Ironborn leaders roared in response!

They loved battle and craved rewards. Crow's Eye understood the Ironborn. These people were easy to control, just like Victarion. Crow's Eye knew that Victarion secretly wanted to kill him, but he still obediently knelt and led the most powerful Iron Fleet to swear allegiance to Crow's Eye.

Crow's Eye gave Victarion wealth that he could never have plundered in his entire life. And he promised even more. Wealth had limited appeal to Crow's Eye now. He was focused on entering the Red Keep for two reasons: first, to gain power, supreme status, and authority; second, the unparalleled beauty of Cersei was a fatal attraction for him.

He wanted to hold the Queen Regent beneath him and ravage her to his heart's content. This was the most important goal of his life, and he was willing to pay any price except his life to achieve it.

*

Ser Harys, Ser Humfrey, and Ser Bonifer, with six hundred men under their command, left Lannisport before dawn, slowly heading towards Clegane's Keep.

If they were riding swift horses, they could reach Clegane's Keep in half a day. The six hundred men of the three knights all had two small horses each. Although the small horses were short and couldn't carry heavy loads, they were lightly equipped and moved quickly.

But Harys decided to proceed slowly.

Behind them, the second wave was three thousand light archers. Then came a 'ragtag army' with all sorts of weapons. The bugles sounded, and the army of tens of thousands lined up in three divisions, left, center, and right, ready to leave the city.

Archers were Crow's Eye's favorite troops. Whether in naval battles or land raids, archers could attack enemies from a distance. As long as the arrow rain was dense, even the strongest enemies would be severely wounded. After the arrow rain, the army would charge and kill, and Crow's Eye always won a great victory.

The armies that Crow's Eye had fought against were either pirates or the 'rabble' of island nations. He had never encountered a large army with a strict formation like those on the continent of Westeros. In the Battle of Lannisport, Crow's Eye won a great victory and boosted morale. Even with the warnings of the blind priest, Aeron Blacktyde, Crow's Eye and the leaders didn't care.

The Westerlands army had been fighting for three years, and most of the famous generals, knights, and nobles had already died in battle. Even Tywin, whom Crow's Eye feared, was dead. Crow's Eye didn't take a reckless and vicious Mountain seriously.

Crow's Eye's knowledge of the Mountain was still based on past rumors.

The blind priest, Aeron Blacktyde, was a priest of the Drowned God, not a priest of the Red God, the Seven, the Sky God, or the Earth God. He was the most respected priest of the Drowned God on the Iron Islands besides the High Priest Aeron, and he was also a relative of Baelor Blacktyde, who had been hacked into seven pieces by Crow's Eye. Because Baelor had abandoned the Drowned God to worship the Seven during his eight years as a hostage, Aeron's animosity towards Baelor was like the sea, surging endlessly. Aeron was sitting next to Crow's Eye when Crow's Eye ordered the executioner to hack Baelor into seven pieces.

Crow's Eye's Ironborn needed priests to lead them in paying homage to the Drowned God and receiving guidance before, during, and after battles, so Crow's Eye invited Aeron to be his army's Drowned God priest.

The sky was already bright when Crow's Eye and High Priest Aeron set out. The army of fifty thousand men stretched endlessly, with one legion after another marching forward, raising swords, axes, and halberds high. In the morning sun, the blades of the swords, axes, and spears gleamed coldly, reflecting a bright light. The ranks were lined up neatly, and the battle intent was like the waves of the sea, the sound of the marching was astonishing.

*

The vanguard, Harys, Humfrey, and Bonifer, although not marching quickly, were still pulling further and further away from the infantry behind them. The small horses were fast and had good stamina, making them the best way to conserve energy on the Iron Islands.

As they marched, a group of men caught up from behind. Looking at the banner that fluttered in the wind, it was the soldiers of House Blacktyde of Blacktyde. This Ironborn legion of about two hundred men all came from Blacktyde and were warriors under the command of Lord Baelor, who had been hacked into seven pieces.

The leader was also riding a small horse, and the family's coat of arms on the fluttering banner was a pattern of black and green fur.

"Captain Gardner," Harys reined in his small horse.

*

Gardner, the new leader of Blacktyde. After Baelor was hacked into seven pieces and sacrificed, Baelor's captain of the guard, Gardner, knelt on one knee and swore allegiance to Crow's Eye, and asked the blind Drowned God priest to perform a baptism, immersing him in seawater until he fainted, then dragging him out to perform crude CPR. If he woke up, it meant the Drowned God had sent him back; if he didn't wake up, it meant he had gone to the Drowned God's watery palace.

Gardner withstood the blind priest's baptism and passed the test of loyalty, rising from an ordinary soldier to become the leader of Blacktyde's soldiers.

Gardner and Harys and the others were all riding small horses.

The Iron Islands' unique small horses looked comical to the Westermen who were used to seeing the warhorses of the Seven Kingdoms. It looked as if adults were riding ponies, which seemed awkward no matter how you looked at it. But the Ironborn were already used to it, and no one felt embarrassed.

*

"Lord Harys, the King sent me to assist the three vanguards. The scouts' raven reported to the King that there are Clegane's cavalry ambushing in the woods not far ahead. The King wants us to be careful," Gardner said.

The three Harys brothers had a deep-seated contempt for Gardner. This kid watched his lord being executed and not only didn't die with him, but instead knelt down to Crow's Eye to seek fame and fortune. Any Ironborn with blood wouldn't do such a thing, at least not kneel before Crow's Eye in front of the lord's corpse and blood.

The three Harys brothers only had one Iron Islands King in their hearts: the escaped Asha Greyjoy.

"Captain Gardner, how many cavalry are in the woods ahead?"

"Not many. The King told me to come up and tell the three lords that there are only less than a hundred cavalry in the small woods, probably scouts from the Mountain."

"Didn't the Mountain's scouts discover the King's scouts?"

"Lord, I don't know the specifics. The King told me to come up and assist the three lords in battle. I'm just relaying the King's reminder. Since enemy cavalry have been discovered in the woods ahead, we must not underestimate them."

Harys chuckled coldly: "Captain Gardner, since you're here to assist us, please lead your men to the front and see what's going on in the woods ahead. If there are only less than a hundred cavalry, please trouble the lord to drive them out."

Harys's tone was strange, full of sarcasm towards Gardner.

Gardner wasn't angry. He bowed on his small horse and said: "As you command, Lord."

Gardner spurred his horse and led his guards, two hundred men of the so-called cavalry, towards the woods ahead.

It was still far from the Mountain's Clegane's Keep, but enemy traces had already been discovered. The Mountain's scouts had come out extremely far. Some people saw a small group of scouts watching on the small hills outside the east gate of Lannisport, only a few riders, but they weren't afraid at all, laughing and talking on the small hills. When Crow's Eye's army left the city, the riders galloped away. The warhorses were extremely tall, twice the height of the Iron Islands' small horses.

Gardner led two hundred men forward bravely. A shout came from the small woods ahead, and about fifty cavalry rushed out, each like a wild wolf or lion. The warhorses were so magnificent and strong that they made the Iron Islands' small horses 'tiny'.

A young general at the head brandished his bow and arrow, reining in his horse and shouting: "Is the leader who has come Captain Gardner, the captain of the guard of Lord Baelor of Blacktyde?"

Gardner was shocked. How could the other party know his name?

Unless, the Mountain had his own spies in Lannisport.

Although Crow's Eye had occupied Lannisport, he hadn't ordered a massacre. He had bigger plans, to befriend the Lannister family who controlled the Red Keep. Earl Olyver hadn't been able to reach a military agreement with him, but that didn't matter. With his own strength, he could easily take down the Mountain. There were two advantages to not joining forces with Earl Olyver: first, he could rightfully plunder Lannisport, which was a windfall; second, all the credit would be his.

When Crow's Eye appeared in King's Landing carrying the Mountain's head, Crow's Eye believed that he would be welcomed by the people of the entire city. None of the courtiers and generals in the Red Keep could restrain the Mountain, but he did it.

No one could kill the Mountain. The entire royal family was helpless against the Mountain, but Crow's Eye Euron managed to kill the Mountain. This was a heroic deed that would be written into the history of the kingdom and sung throughout the Seven Kingdoms by wandering singers.

Also because of these 'long-term plans', Lannisport wasn't massacred, and some citizens who didn't have time to escape still lived in the city without fear for their lives.

But this also had a disadvantage. If the Mountain had suicide soldiers in the city to gather intelligence, then Crow's Eye's military deployment would be in danger of being leaked.

Now Gardner had this dangerous feeling. The other party called out his name, but he knew nothing about this young general.

"Who is the general?" Gardner shouted. He was riding on a small horse, and compared to the fifty strong and tall cavalry opposite him, it was really ridiculous, as if he was acting in a slapstick comedy.

The young general answered irrelevantly: "Gardner, Lord Baelor was hacked into seven pieces by Crow's Eye, and you actually knelt down to seek fame and fortune when the blood of the lord you swore allegiance to hadn't even cooled down. You have absolutely no honor."

Gardner felt very uncomfortable. He was compromising, but in reality, the true King in his heart was Asha. Like Lord Baelor, he was a supporter of Asha, but he was forced to do so in order to survive.

After Crow's Eye killed Lord Baelor, with a displeasure, with a thought, he wouldn't frown even if he killed all the soldiers of Blacktyde. If Gardner hadn't knelt down, the centurions and soldiers of Blacktyde might have all been beheaded by Crow's Eye.

Although Gardner wasn't loyal to Crow's Eye, he didn't have a good impression of the Westerlands and Clegane's army either. Gardner kicked his small horse, and the small horse screamed in shock, rushing forward first.

Behind him, two hundred small horse cavalry rushed forward in a swarm. These Ironborn shouted and raised their axes high.

Ironborn, whether infantry or cavalry, were all masters of the finger dance, throwing axes with perfect accuracy. Many cavalrymen had already drawn the short throwing axes from their waists. As long as they reached a suitable distance, they would throw the axes to severely injure the enemy.

However, before they could get close, a sharp whistling sound suddenly rang out in the air. At first, the sound was like a fly. Before anyone could react, the sound of the fly turned into a sharp whistle. Experienced warriors knew from the sound that the enemy was raining arrows on their side.

"Swish!"

An arrow flew and struck Gardner's neck. The armor-piercing arrow was powerful, and the arrowhead protruded from the other side of Gardner's neck, carrying crimson blood.

Gardner had been the leader of Blacktyde's troops for less than a day before being shot to death by the enemy's young general.

咻咻咻! 咻咻咻!

A rain of arrows suddenly fell, covering Gardner's legion. Pfft pfft pfft, pfft pfft pfft, the arrows pierced through the armor, and in the first volley, fifty-odd cavalry shot dozens of enemies, and screams rang out one after another. Many small horses were also hit by arrows, and the uneven army formation was immediately thrown into chaos.

The fifty-odd cavalrymen were archer cavalry trained by Anguy, and everyone shot a good arrow. Anguy was even more accurate, shooting three arrows in the blink of an eye, instantly killing Lord Gardner and two centurions.