Chapter 212: Storm's End: Two Stags Clash, Old Tywin Beset on All Sides

Storm's End stands beside Shipbreaker Bay, as it has for years past, unmoved and unyielding before the storm.

Legend has it that Durran, Godsgrief, fell in love with the beautiful Elenei.

Elenei was the daughter of the sea god and the goddess of the wind, and union with a mortal would cause her to lose her divine power of eternal youth and suffer the aging and death of mortals; thus, the sea god and the goddess of the wind opposed their daughter marrying the mortal Durran.

When Durran and Elenei chose to marry, disregarding the opposition of the sea god and the goddess of the wind, it thoroughly incited divine wrath.

Legend says that at the wedding feast of Durran and Elenei, the goddess of the wind sent a storm and the sea god sent a tsunami, destroying Durran's seaside castle; many of Durran's friends and family were swept into the ocean by the raging storm and buried in the bellies of fish.

Durran, Godsgrief, declared war on the gods, building a castle beside Shipbreaker Bay; every time he built it, the gods sent a storm to destroy it.

According to the Maesters, Durran finally succeeded on the seventh attempt. With the help of a small boy, Durran finally built a castle that was wind- and rain-proof, sturdy and magnificent: Storm's End. This boy was the future Brandon the Builder.

There is another version, that the Children of the Forest helped Durran build Storm's End, and magic is still woven into the walls of Storm's End to this day.

Durran, who held Storm's End, also became the first King of the Storm.

Regardless of whether the legends are true, later Maesters and Septas all agree that Storm's End is an architectural marvel. Such a magnificent castle, the giant stones on the walls are fitted so tightly that not even a single hair or needle could be inserted; it is airtight.

Storm's End stands tall by the sea like a stone giant, overlooking Shipbreaker Bay.

Once upon a time, Durran, Godsgrief, used Storm's End to declare war on the sea god and the goddess of the wind; now, Storm's End has become a fortress for Stannis to resist the army of the undead.

Stannis voluntarily withdrew his troops from the castles north of the Stormlands and relocated his people to Storm's End for refuge; Haystack Hall, Bronzegate, and other castles all fell into the hands of the Death Storm.

Robert Baratheon, who once won the Iron Throne relying on the Stormlands, has become the Death Storm after being resurrected by the Great Other, and now, the Death Storm has become the great enemy of all living things in the Stormlands.

Today, Storm's End has assembled over twenty thousand soldiers from the Stormlands, along with tens of thousands of commoners.

Because the undead have no fleet and cannot blockade the sea routes, Storm's End can receive supplies from the sea. The Stormlands south of Storm's End, including the Rainwood and the Marches, the largest town in the Stormlands, Weeping Town, Tarth, and Estermont, are all held by Stannis.

Stannis stood on the battlements of Storm's End, the walls crowded with archers, and pots of boiling oil were everywhere. Storm's End had an ample supply of ballista bolts, as the Stormlands were originally a region for archery, and the heavy crossbows of Westeros were most famous for the yew bows of the Stormlands.

After night fell, Melisandre lit the night fire on the battlements.

After autumn arrived, the nights were exceptionally cold, and some whispered that this was because of the undead.

The Hand of the King, Lord Alester Florent, said nervously: "We will be safe staying in Storm's End, right? Since ancient times, no one has been able to take this castle."

Once upon a time, Lord Alester Florent had dreamed that Stannis would wipe out the Reach and reward him with Highgarden; now, under the threat of the undead army, Lord Alester had lost interest in the Reach and Highgarden.

Stannis said coldly: "No one can take it? Back then, the Reach army surrounded Storm's End; if it hadn't been for my Onion Knight delivering onions, Storm's End would have fallen long ago."

"Records in history books are meaningless; history is updated every day. Today is the day to make history. The Death Storm has brought the army of the undead to the gates of Storm's End; this is the first time since ancient times."

They had arrived; the Crown of the Stag banner behind the Death Storm fluttered in the moonlight. He rode on his warhorse, looking majestic, and shouted to Stannis on the wall.

"Stannis, open the gates and surrender immediately. Storm's End is the ancestral seat of the Baratheons, and I am your elder brother; by right, this is my castle!"

Stannis gave a light snort, "If you truly are Robert, then hurry and take your troops back to King's Landing. The Iron Throne in King's Landing is also yours; Joffrey Baratheon, Tommen Baratheon, and Myrcella Baratheon are all bastards born of the illicit affair between Cersei and Jaime; you should defend your own Iron Throne!"

The Death Storm said: "King's Landing is already the people of the Great Other; I have no interest in that place. I am only interested in conquering the castles of the living."

The undead began their siege, using battering rams, catapults, and ballistae. Thousands of archers on the walls of Storm's End fired flaming arrows in unison, lighting up the night sky.

When Stannis withdrew his troops, he chose a scorched-earth policy; the Kingswood was turned into a sea of fire, filled with thick smoke, flames, and ashes. But the undead army still transported siege engines from King's Landing; after all, Storm's End was too close to King's Landing, with the straight Kingsroad in between.

A stone smashed against the wall, but the wall remained unmoved; however, it struck an oil pot, and boiling oil rained down the wall. Several soldiers fell screaming, and two unlucky soldiers of House Florent fell from the wall, instantly surrounded and stabbed to death by the undead. Before long, those two Florent soldiers turned into undead, becoming part of the enemy.

Lord Alester Florent recognized those two soldiers; his stomach churned, and he crouched on the ground and vomited.

The archers and crossbowmen of Storm's End, looking down from above, quickly suppressed the enemy. Pot after pot of boiling oil was poured down, and the undead below screamed repeatedly; many were burned to death by the flames.

Undead burned by fire would turn into charred bones and die completely.

Seeing that he could not win, the Death Storm had no choice but to lead the undead army to turn southwest. Stannis watched from the wall as the enemy moved several miles away.

Sir Richard Horpe, Godry Farring, and Sir Simon Tarth gathered in the castle with a thousand cavalry.

At this moment, Melisandre came into the courtyard and said: "Warriors, cut your palms with your longswords and let your blood stain the blades; R'hllor will grant you his blessing."

Sir Richard Horpe, Simon Tarth, and Sir Godry Farring immediately complied, and their blood stained their longswords red in the moonlight.

Melisandre chanted a spell, the large ruby at her throat emitting a bloody light, and Melisandre's eyes burned like coals as the longswords were ignited one by one.

Stannis, on the wall, drew his red sword of heroes, and various eerie holy lights bathed the cavalry below. At this moment, those cavalrymen seemed to turn into dazzling holy knights.

On the walls, the soldiers, servants, craftsmen, and laborers in the castle let out shouts.

"Long live Stannis!"

The west gate of Storm's End opened, and a thousand warriors wielding burning swords launched a desperate charge toward death.

It was the first time the undead army had encountered enemies wielding burning swords. Fire was the bane of the undead, and because the Death Storm had too few undead cavalry, many of the undead were trampled under the feet of Stannis's cavalry as soon as they made contact.

After the cavalry fought the undead, Lord Fell led a squad of crossbowmen to fire flaming arrows at the undead in the rear, making them even harder to resist.

The Death Storm's undead left behind a pile of white bones and had no choice but to lead the remnants of his army to retreat northward, vanishing into the night.

After the army returned victorious, Stannis frowned, "The Death Storm tried to march southwest; what is he trying to do?"

The Onion Knight said worriedly: "Your Grace, Robert once won three victories in one day at Summerhall; could it be he wants to revisit the old site?"

Melisandre said: "I suspect the Death Storm wants to go to Summerhall to search for ghosts. As everyone knows, many people died in the Tragedy of Summerhall."

Stannis was astonished, "You mean, 'Duncan the Tall', Prince Duncan, and Aegon V could all be resurrected? But these people were buried in wildfire; logically speaking, they should have already been purified by fire."

Melisandre said: "The body may die, but the soul remains. Necromancers are constantly sacrificing the living to the Great Other, and the power of the Great Other is growing stronger; anything is possible."

"Your Grace, we must sacrifice some living people to R'hllor, otherwise R'hllor is destined to be suppressed."

Stannis said gloomily: "You told me that R'hllor is the mortal enemy of the Great Other; why do these two have such similar tastes? Very well, I will hand over some criminals sentenced to death to you to sacrifice to the Red God."

Melisandre said: "If it were Edric Storm, it would be even more perfect."

The Onion Knight said with disgust: "Melisandre, Edric is merely a bastard, his bloodline born of lust and deceit. If you are so obsessed with king's blood, why not go overseas and hunt down Daenerys? Daenerys has the pure Targaryen bloodline."

Melisandre said: "Daenerys is half a world away; to find her, one must cross the Narrow Sea. Speaking of the Narrow Sea, I saw it in the holy fire: a one-eyed man, savagely slaughtering his way toward a coastline, the crabs around him flowing with blood."

Stannis pursed his lips, "Crabs? A one-eyed man? What does that mean?"

Melisandre said: "According to my interpretation, I suspect pirates will attack Claw Isle or Crab Isle. I have seen this one-eyed man in the holy fire before; he was violating three beautiful sisters by the sea."

Stannis turned to the Onion Knight, "Davos, you were a smuggler for decades and have always been familiar with pirates everywhere; tell me, how many one-eyed pirates are there in the Stepstones?"

The Onion Knight said: "Too many. Many pirates are not truly one-eyed; they wear eye patches to adapt to dark environments to facilitate fighting. You know, the light changes greatly inside and outside a ship's cabin; wearing an eye patch to cover one eye can protect the eye."

Stannis said with disgust: "The undead army is ravaging the Stormlands; what mood do I have to fight pirates? Salladhor Saan's Lysene pirate fleet and the Royal Fleet will protect Crab Isle and Claw Isle."

In the Westerlands, at Castamere, a light rain began to fall.

Duke Tywin, over sixty years old, sat there, his deep gaze looking back at the shadow of himself at nineteen.

At nineteen, Tywin, then the Heir to Casterly Rock, had returned from the Stepstones; dissatisfied with the weakness of his father, Duke Tytos, Tywin led troops to suppress Lord Roger Reyne of the Reyne family of Castamere and the couple of Ellyn Tarbeck of Tarbeck Hall.

Tywin adopted a policy of "extermination," where every member of the Reyne family and Tarbeck family was executed, and the halls were reduced to ruins. "The Rains of Castamere" became world-famous.

Now, Tywin had revisited the old site, arriving at Castamere just in time for the autumn rain, but in this rendition of "The Rains of Castamere," Tywin had already been reduced to a defeated lion.

Westerlands crossbowmen used fire arrows to repel the giant eagles, and a cavalry unit of House Frey pursued relentlessly; Tywin set an ambush in the valley, attacking with crossbow bolts and rolling stones, causing heavy casualties to the Frey cavalry.

At this moment, Lyman Frey led another Frey cavalry unit, bypassing the valley in an attempt to outflank the Westerlands crossbowmen on the mountain. Jaime was furious: "Are the people of House Frey so eager to die? They actually dare to try to surround us."

Jaime led hundreds of Lannister cavalrymen, charging down the mountain; Lyman Frey's cavalry could not withstand them and broke toward the east.

After repelling the House Frey cavalry, the real test had only just begun; the Wolf King's Rockborn, Cave Dwellers, Mountain Clans, and Northern Mountain Clans kept charging out from the mountains to attack. The Riverrun cavalry and Dreadfort cavalry commanded by Barristan were clearly much harder to deal with than the House Frey cavalry. The enemy's momentum was vast, and their banners were endless. Jaime had no choice but to retreat westward.

Fortunately, after a series of blocking battles, the Westerlands Army finally arrived at Castamere.

Like Casterly Rock, Castamere was a castle formed from mine tunnels expanded from excavated mineral veins. Back then, the surface halls of Castamere were burned to the ground by Tywin, and the "Red Lion" Lord Reyne retreated with his clansmen into the caves of Castamere castle. Relying on the impregnable castle and years of stored grain, Lord Reyne thought he was perfectly safe.

Tywin sent craftsmen to seal the exits with mud and then flooded Castamere; the last of the Reyne clansmen all died in the halls. Legend says their ghosts still wander in Castamere.

Could Eddard also deal with Casterly Rock this way? Since ancient times, Casterly Rock had never been breached, but the Wolf King Eddard was a man who created miracles; he had conquered Beyond the Wall and hatched a Magic Dragon, having already created many firsts.

At Castamere, the scattered remnants of the defeated Lannister forces gathered one after another. These were the remnants broken in battles at Hollow Hill, Crag, Deep Den, Golden Tooth, and elsewhere. The Payne family, the Plumm family, and others brought an army of over a thousand men, and the Westerlands army recovered some of its vitality.

After losing Golden Tooth, the broken Westerlands army faced a severe shortage of grain and fodder.

Lord Damon Marbrand said: "Many soldiers have almost finished their dry rations; why not send troops to requisition them from nearby villages?"

Duke Tywin shook his head, "My Westerlands army, unable to resist the invaders from the North, the Riverlands, and The Vale, and unable to protect the people, is already a disgrace. If we go to seize the people's food, the Lannisters will fall even faster."

"If the grain is not enough to eat, we can slaughter the dead horses and use horse meat to satisfy our hunger. Once Sir Addam Marbrand's scouts clear the road by the sea, our army will retreat to Casterly Rock, and the grain problem will naturally be solved."

Duke Tywin ate some black bread. At this time, nearby villagers offered some cheese and ale. Tywin accepted the items with a look of gratitude and ate the cheese with mud-stained hands.

For a long time, Duke Tywin had always used Arbor Gold to rinse his mouth and hadn't drunk ale for decades, but now, the ale actually tasted like a fine vintage in his mouth.

These farmers did not offer the gifts because of Duke Tywin, but because of Ser Kevan. When Ser Kevan was young, he had served as a squire for Roger Reyne. After the fall of the Reyne family, Ser Kevan had led a knightly order to clear out local bandits, so he had a good reputation in the area.

Because he had witnessed with his own eyes the chaos brought to the Westerlands by his father's weakness and cowardice, Duke Tywin was always overly harsh to the people. Now that he thought about it, Duke Tywin should have been a little better to the people.

At midnight, Addam Marbrand returned from the southwest. One look at Sir Addam's expression, and Duke Tywin knew the situation was dire.

Sir Addam said apologetically: "Duke Tywin, the enemy has sealed off the road by the sea."

Tywin said in shock: "Impossible, the enemy's cavalry is still being held back by Jaime in the east."

Sir Addam said: "It is the Mountain Legion."

Tywin said indignantly: "The likes of the Mountain Clans, Rockborn, Northern Mountain Clans, Cave Dwellers, and Night Runners don't even have cavalry. Your cavalry can't even handle these infantry?"

Sir Addam said: "The Goat Girl, the Cat Girl, and others are all in the enemy's camp. The enemy also has giant eagles attacking from time to time, and worse, the Wolf King Eddard and the Magic Dragon are there too."

"I led the cavalry in a dozen charges, and a third of my men were killed. Some knights fled into the night as deserters. My men are getting fewer and fewer, so I had to retreat."

"It is all my incompetence; I could not restrain my subordinates."

Duke Tywin sighed, "It is not your fault. Cersei and Joffrey are in King's Landing, blaspheming the Seven and slaughtering the believers of the Seven; they are destined to have this day."

Ever since Cersei and Joffrey began slaughtering the believers of the Seven in King's Landing, the hearts of the people in the Westerlands had been wavering. The High Septon in Oldtown called upon all the knights and good men and women of the world to overthrow the Lannisters, and many knights were unwilling to continue selling their lives for the Lannisters.

Tywin stood on a hill, looking around. Except for the sea to the west, there were enemies to the north, south, and east; enemy campfires were everywhere.

From afar came the song "Song of the Seven," sung in unison by thousands of people.

Tywin recognized that some of the voices had Northern accents and was deeply depressed, "A bunch of Northern savages who worship Heart Trees are actually using the 'Song of the Seven' to bewitch people's hearts."

Ser Kevan said helplessly: "I don't know how many more knights and squires will abandon the Lannisters tonight because of the 'Song of the Seven'."

After singing the "Song of the Seven" seven times in a row, the next song was "The Rains of Castamere," which Duke Tywin knew incomparably well. The chorus of thousands shook the sky over Castamere.

"And who are you, the proud lord said,"

"That I must bow so low?"

"Only a cat of a different coat,"

"That's all the truth I know."

This was the signal for the general offensive. Giants, Rockborn, giant eagles, Riverrun knights, Deepwood Motte crossbowmen, Raventree Hall spearmen, Riverrun cavalry, and Longbow Hall crossbowmen began to charge simultaneously.

The rain fell harder and harder. Jaime fought desperately to kill one enemy after another, but it was difficult to stop the collapse of the Westerlands army.

"In a coat of gold or a coat of red,"

"A lion still has claws,"

"And mine are long and sharp, my lord,"

"As long and sharp as yours."

Duke Tywin trembled with rage, feeling only that the rain hitting his face was exceptionally cold.

A row of Westerlands archers shot at the giant eagles in the air. The giant eagles were covered in blood. In an instant, Terrorbirds, Direwolves, and Snow Bears arrived. Mammoths knocked over the archers, and before the archers could reload their Crossbows, their throats were torn open by the beasts.

"And so he spoke, and so he spoke,"

"That lord of Castamere,"

"But now the rains weep o'er his hall,"

"With no one there to hear."

Jaime rode to Tywin's side; his hair, battle robe, armor, and warhorse were all covered in blood.

"Father, our army is defeated."

Ser Kevan said: "Hurry and retreat to the seaside; I have already prepared a few fishing boats there. The sea route is not safe because the fleet of Harlen is everywhere, but this is the only way out. Our army can go to Fair Isle first, and after obtaining supplies, we can find a way to retreat to Casterly Rock."

Back then, Fairman had once resisted Duke Tywin's orders. Duke Tywin sent a singer to perform "The Rains of Castamere," and Fairman was so frightened that he immediately submitted.

Now, Duke Tywin had suffered another crushing defeat at Castamere and actually had to ask his own Vassal for help; Tywin's heart was as dead as ash.

"A liege lord who relies on his vassals is not a true liege lord. When the liege lord is weak, the vassals can betray you at any time. Since we are defeated today, death is the worst that can happen."

Tywin drew his golden sword, intending to commit suicide, but Kevan hurriedly stopped him.

"If you die, Casterly Rock and the Lannisters of Lannisport will all be uprooted by the Wolf King. Do you think the Wolf King Eddard will spare us?"

"Without a doubt, the Wolf King Eddard wants to turn Casterly Rock into the next Castamere."

Jaime advised, "Father, today's crushing defeat in the Westerlands is entirely because Cersei slaughtered the Seven. Now that Cersei and Joffrey Baratheon are running amok on the Iron Throne, King's Landing has become a city of the Undead. If you die, it will be very difficult for the Lannisters to gain a foothold in the Seven Kingdoms."

Tywin grew angrier the more he thought about it, "I worked hard to put Cersei on the Queen's throne, only for her to ruin everything. Fine, I want to see how much longer Cersei and her Undead sorcerers can continue to wreak havoc."

Hundreds of cavalry and infantry from the Westerlands protected Tywin and Kevan as they retreated to the seaside, boarded several Fishing Boats, and fled into the night in a wretched state, heading toward Fair Isle.

Cersei sat on the Iron Throne, clutching a velvet cushion.

"Prince Rhaegar failed to take Harrenhal, and the death storm was also defeated at Storm's End. Why is this?"

The Undead sorcerer Ogbeta said, "The Red Cloak Melisandre at Storm's End is difficult to deal with, and the walls of Storm's End itself possess ancient Magic; it is normal for the Undead to be defeated."

"As for Harrenhal, don't look at it as having only three hundred years of history; this magnificent castle sits right next to the Gods Eye, and the Isle of Faces in the Gods Eye is a Weirwood Forest where the Old Gods possess great power."

Cersei said solemnly, "Then send an army of the Undead to cross the Gods Eye and burn the Weirwood Forest."

The Undead sorcerer smiled obsequiously, "Your Majesty, I fear things are not as simple as you imagine. Back then, the First Men and the Children of the Forest signed a pact, and since then the Isle of Faces has been guarded by the Green Men. The so-called Green Men are a protective organization composed of the Children of the Forest; it is rumored that the Wood Dancers and Green Seers among them are extremely powerful."

"If the Weirwood Forest on the Isle of Faces were so easily destroyed, then the Isle of Faces would not be the holy land of the Children of the Forest and the Old Gods."

Cersei said gloomily, "The walls of Storm's End have Magic, and Harrenhal is next to that damned Isle of Faces. Then don't waste too many troops at Harrenhal and Storm's End. Take Harrenhal for example; you can divide your forces to sweep through Duskendale and Maidenpool, then use the corpses to create Undead to form a larger force to besiege Harrenhal."

The Undead sorcerer said, "Your Majesty, I have explained before that the resurrection of any Undead requires the consumption of the Dark Artifact's Magic. If there is insufficient Magic, we cannot resurrect the Ice Dragon."

"Controlling the Undead involves the issue of Mind Control. Currently, the Great Other's power south of the Neck has not yet reached the point of blossoming everywhere; we can only concentrate our strength to capture strategic locations like Storm's End and Harrenhal."

"As long as we capture Storm's End, it will signal the total failure of Stannis in the Stormlands, and Storm's End also holds mysterious power waiting for the Undead army to unearth. And by capturing Harrenhal, the Undead can capture Catelyn, Sansa, and Arya, and also obtain the Magic Dragon Koi, Eagle Eye, and seven Griffins; I will also be able to forge a giant Undead army for Your Majesty."

Cersei was not convinced, "The problem is, when will Harrenhal and Storm's End be taken? Hurry up and resurrect the Ice Dragon! If this continues to drag on, the Koi and Eagle Eye at Harrenhal will have grown up."

The Undead sorcerer said, "Your Majesty, rest assured, the plan is proceeding in an orderly manner. We sacrifice followers of the Seven to the Great Other every day, and the Great Other will naturally bestow upon us killing machines. Although the Great Other is temporarily unable to resurrect the Ice Dragon, he can give Your Majesty this."

A hunger flickered in Cersei's eyes, "What is it?"

The Skull Scepter of the Undead sorcerer Ogbeta emitted an eerie blue light, the Dark Artifact let out a series of low moans, and as a blue light flashed, vampire bats the size of giant eagles appeared.

The Kingsguard Flame Nurus and Black Kong Tabit were both stunned.

The Undead sorcerer Ogbeta said, "Vampire bats, presented to Your Majesty!"

Pus flowed from the scar on Joffrey Baratheon's head as he revealed a ferocious grin, "These bats are no smaller than giant eagles. Back then, Eddard's giant eagle tore open my scalp; you should send these bats to Harrenhal to kill Sansa and Arya!"

Ogbeta smiled, "Your Majesty, rest assured, they are on the death list!"

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(End of this chapter)