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The morning had come too quickly over King's Landing. A few days ago a few of Euron's ships had been seen near the horizon. It didn't take much to guess that soon he would attack. Things happened quickly so we weren't unprepared for when the Greyjoy decided to try his hands at getting the Iron Throne. With two dragons it shouldn't be too hard to ensure the city's safety. But the man was clever enough to make me nervous about our chances of survival.
I was on part of the wall looking onto the docks. Even though I wouldn't be involved in this battle, I wanted to observe something. One last look at the people who had fought death itself to be here today. While my love would be focused on destroying Euron and his fleet, I would attack Bran. There was no time to look for Azor Ahai and so we could only hope that was me. Or maybe I was one of the few that could kill the traitorous.
Drogon and Rhaegal roared loudly as they completed one of their circles that went from the city to just beyond the horizon. I could imagine Khaleesi was restless as the waiting game of war did not suit her. She was in her prime when fire poured from Drogon's mouth. She was fire and blood like her ancestors before her. If only she weren't barren and I had my own body. What children we could fill the world with.
"If we win this battle and you lose yours, we are all ******." Tyrion said as he walked up beside me. "But all we ask is that you do your best."
The Imp looked odd with armor on. Though, if all went according to plan, he would not have to swing the sword at his hips. Instead he would be in charge of the cities defenses if any of Euron's ships tried to breech the city. The Lannister's actions in the Battle of Blackwater had ensured he got this position. Though by the scent of fear leaving his body, I think he would have much preferred to be drinking while blood was spilt.
"What if Euron invades the city while you are away?" Tyrion mused. "It is hard to kill a dragon as only their eyes are weak spots. The only reason the Targaryens had armor on their dragons was because they wanted to make sure an enemy dragon couldn't kill theirs. Euron is the sort of bastard who could shoot a dragon in the eye if he put his mind to it."
Yes, he could do that. He had managed to flee the dragons which meant he understood them more than most. Added to that he was fearless in a way few man are. It was a foolish way, but it would mean he could keep his wits about him as he took the impossible shot. Would it be possible for him to make two impossible shots? What if Daenerys died? What if Jon plunged into the water below? Would my mind crumble if I happened to go into Drogon as he died?
"We should have sent a raven to Winterfell." Tyrion said, his voice nearly a growl. "We need every man we can get."
Of course the Imp was saying that merely so his mouth could move. He knew, as well as I, that contacting Winterfell was impossible at this point. Winterfell was where Bran resided and if there was any chance of fooling him, we had to take it. It could be that his sight was focused on the battle itself instead of the individual pieces. It could be that he was so certain of victory he couldn't begin to imagine defeat. It could be that I was Azor Ahai and would end him this day.
My mind, as it had frequently today, turned to Jon Stark. He was someone deeply connected to family and those bonds had been strengthened due to nearly all of them dying. Eddard Stark had been beheaded for a crime he hadn't committed, Robb Stark had been killed for breaking a promise, Catelyn Stark had been caught in the wake of her son's mistake, and Rickon had died as a way for Ramsay Bolton to mentally torment Jon. Now only a few of the great House Stark survived. Arya Stark had become a killer for the love of her family, Sansa Stark had used every torment as a lesson, Jon Stark had been brought back to life for a reason no one had guessed, and Bran Stark had transformed into the enemy.
He would want to protect his family and I wished it wasn't me who told him the truth about Bran. The truth that very soon Jon's own brother would have to be killed. There was no way to comfort the Stark, especially as I was in the body of his direwolf. It was good I couldn't speak and could forgo trying to comfort him. The most comfort I had given him was making him feel like he didn't exist for a short while.
"You're sure that Ghost won't abandon me?" Tyrion asked nervously. "He'll stay by my side?"
I nodded my head and the fear scent started to fade away from him. If only I could reassure him that there was no force that would pull the direwolf from his side. They were smart and loyal creatures. While wolves were not dumb, direwolves could think like a human. They could form deep bonds. What bond had Ghost formed with me? Was it loyalty to Jon or actual admiration from the creature that had allowed me to survive? Maybe one day I could wake him up enough to have my answer. But mere moments before a battle was not the time to start asking.
The sounds started to die down as everyone had moved into position. Now all there was to do was wait and hope for the best. I looked at Tyrion and imagined coming back only to discover his corpse. He was annoying and yet he had grown on me like a disease. It would be a terrible thing to miss him.
"Stay safe, Jorah." Tyrion said as our ears picked up the sounds of an oncoming battle.
Before I could start to leave my body, the Lannister scratched me behind my ear. The simple act gave me more comfort than he could ever know. Ghost's body lost tension and my mind was treated to warmth. If only I could give Tyrion some comfort, but that wasn't possible. There was no human equivalent of being scratched behind the ear. Even if I could speak, there would be no words equal to what he had done.
It was effortless for me to leave my body now. I merely thought of opening a door and suddenly my soul was souring towards the clouds. Time broke apart as I tried to feel for Bran's mind. I saw many different outcomes of the battle but all ended the same. In some Daenerys lived while in others she was horribly disfigured before she found peace in death. In some Daenerys and Jon lost control of their dragons and King's Landing was burned down. In some Euron was victorious. But in all of them Bran was victorious and no one was able to stop him.
I felt Bran touch my mind and force me to focus on the future. He was a king beloved by his subjects. It was by his orders that weirwood trees were planted around Westeros so that he would never have to go anywhere without his power. His greensight allowed him to see the future and incur love or fear whenever he desired them. Bran's laughter seemed to shake my entire universe.
He showed me the many millennia of his reign until he decided to end humanity. Though the men who lived then would see it as themselves who destroyed each other. It was a story that would be easy to believe if you didn't see the monster in Bran's eyes. If I failed in killing him, this was the future that awaited the people of Westeros as well as the world. I doubted one as powerful or vengeful as the Three-Eyed Raven would be content if even one human was left alive.
WHY DO YOU FIGHT YOURSELF, JORAH? Bran asked.
I found myself in my body in front of a large raven with three eyes. His eyes were as bright as fresh blood and the three of them seemed to mock me. Ravens seemed to have joy in death that was unnerving after a battle. Now to look in Bran's eyes and know that the blood in his eyes would one day be reflected in humanity's demise made me want to run away.
YES, RUN. Bran hissed. THIS IS NOT YOUR FIGHT.
"Why?" I asked. "My love and my people will die if you have your way."
BUT YOU ARE NO LONGER HUMAN. YOUR FATE IS NO LONGER BOND TO THEIRS.
For a moment I thought Bran's voice sounded more like a concerned parent rather than an angry demigod. Had it been because he wanted to spare me from his wrath that he had made sure my body had been burned? Had he grown to like me and done the only thing to make sure I was spared? I doubted if he had such pity for me that the information could be a weapon. A monster like him couldn't be swayed from his chosen path.
"It is!" I yelled out.
I knew I couldn't pull out Heartsbane and attack Bran, I would have to do so with my mind. I focused on the large bird before me and imagined it being torn in two. The only thing to happen was that he laughed at me and my mind felt like it was shattering into pieces. I yelled out in pain as I attempted to attack Bran harder with my mind.
YOU ARE NOT A THREAT TO ME. Bran said with a loud laugh. YOU WILL NOT BE JORAH MORMONT FOR ALL OF TIME. ONE DAY YOU WILL FORGET YOURSELF. STOP ACTING LIKE YOU CAN ESCAPE YOUR FATE!
"You showed me the future if you live." I replied and felt as if I were sweating. "How can I stand aside and let everyone die?"
YOU WILL OUTLIVE DAENERYS TARGARYEN AND EVERYONE ELSE YOU EVER KNEW. YOUR BODIES WILL DIE AND YOU WILL LIVE. YOU ARE NOT HUMAN. WHY ARE YOU FOOLISH ENOUGH TO BURDEN YOURSELF WITH THEIR FATE?
"I may be mere spirit now, but that doesn't change who I am. The bodies I wear do not change who I am."
Instead of trying a purely mental battle, I took out Heartsbane and ran at Bran. He laughed as my sword bounced off of his flesh. Each time metal went against flesh, a sharp pain shot through my entire being. Pain did not begin to describe what he was doing to me. He was making me sad, angry, and every other emotion to their most extreme. The beauty and pain of every feeling made me fall down.
YOU KNOW YOU CAN'T DEFEAT ME. Bran said and closed a talon around me. YOU KNOW THE FUTURE AS WELL AS I DO. THERE IS NO POINT TO THIS FIGHT. THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO BUT CAUSE MORE HARM TO YOURSELF.
"You'll have to kill me if you want me to stop fighting." I replied. "I will not stop fighting you as long as I draw breath."
I WILL NOT DESTROY A MERE ANNOYANCE. THERE ARE BENEFITS TO KEEPING TOYS AROUND.
Was that sadness I felt in his mind? Sadness about having to kill me while knowing it was in his best interest to end my life now? Was that fear I felt in his voice? Yes, it was far back but the fear was there. That had to mean there was a chance I could kill him! Even if I weren't Azor Ahai, maybe I could kill him. Even the Night King was a danger to him.
I yelled at the top of my lungs as I again attempted to harm Bran with my sword. We were both spirit and our attacks could only be as powerful as our beliefs. If I merely thought of myself as a danger to Bran, I would be. He had made a mistake of destroying my body and making me mere spirit. I now could harness the same power as him if only I believed.
AH! Bran yelled out in pain.
Before I had time to swing Heartsbane again or rejoice at the blood falling on me, my soul was thrown across time in an attempt to defeat me. He must have hoped that doing this would knock me out, or as much as I could be in this form, and I would awake to a world made in his image. I tried to focus my mind but it was hard with how far the Three-Eyed Raven was throwing me.
Some of the images were of things that were familiar to me, even if they didn't happen. Such as Khaleesi and myself ruling the Seven Kingdoms. The thing that made me want to forget myself in this future was the child in my arm. She had my hair and her mother's eyes. It was so beautiful but I had to fight to get back to Bran, even though the deepest parts of me were telling me to stay.
After a lifetime I was able to pull myself away from that impossible future. Whatever I was seeing couldn't happen. I was living on an island with something in my mouth that had smoke coming off of the end not in my mouth. Adding to this oddity was the clothing on myself and others.
This was easier to race away from and soon enough impossible and possible futures were racing all around me. Yet no matter how much I tried, Bran was not in my reach. He would never be in my reach until he willed it to be so. Feeling guilty, I gave up the fight and allowed myself to drift endlessly in this world I found myself in.
As my mind became lost I saw the only face that truly mattered to me. Daenerys Targaryen. Khaleesi. She stood stood by me as I continued to fall down. A tear went down my cheeks as I watched her hair blow in an invisible wind. There was such hope in her eyes and I wondered why anyone thought I could have ever hoped to win this fight. I could fight as long as it was my body against another. My spirit was not strong enough for this battle.
"Jorah." Khaleesi said with such joy in her voice that I cried out.
I wanted to justify my surrender to her but my mouth couldn't form the words. Everything that would've left my lips rung hollow. Just as I found words that seemed best, a dragonglass shield formed in her hands. My memory of the Battle of Winterfell filled my head and a shiver went down my spine. The image on the dragonglass was a red dragon with three heads, the symbol of House Targaryen. She wanted me to have a piece of her for protection.
"Thank you, Khaleesi." I said once she handed it to me.
"I wish I could fight with you, Jorah." Khaleesi replied. "I owe you so much that can never be repaid."
"You ha-"
Before I could hope to reassure my love, she had disappeared. In her place was a woman I had never met but seemed familiar in a way I didn't understand. Her skin was as pale as Khaleesi's which made me think she was of Valyrian descent. Her fiery and bloody red hair confused who her ancestors could be. I had never heard of a Targaryen that had hair like that. And her eyes were a shade of green that no House could lay claim to. Who was she? Why was she so familiar as if my soul knew her?
The woman took her sword from its scabbard and handed it to me. The hilt was silver with a gold dragon wrapped around it. Unlike the Targaryen dragon it only had one head. My hands tightened around the hilt as I looked in her eyes.
"Name it." She said in a voice that sounded like a harsh Northern wind.
"Lightbringer." I answered and fire enveloped the blade.
I nearly dropped it as the meaning of what happened did not escape me. I was Azor Ahai and it was my fate to kill Bran Stark. But how? Suddenly the knowledge of how to win the battle was in my mind. I knew what had to be done but now...now it seemed much too cruel to be true. Yet no matter how I wanted to deny the truth, I couldn't.
Suddenly I felt Bran release me from his talon and my back crashed onto the floor. The dragonglass shield and Lightbringer were nearly freed from my grip upon impact. For the first time in the entire fight I felt fear pulsing from the Three-Eyed Raven. I got up and prepared myself for the slaughter that would soon happen. The slaughter that had to happen for Westeros to be safe.
"Are you afraid now?" I asked with a grin as we circled around each other, his talons silent as they made contact with the floor.
YOU ARE AZOR AHAI, AS I KNEW YOU WOULD BE. Bran said angrily. DON'T MAKE ME KILL YOU.
"You won't have the chance."
I CAN SENSE YOU KNOW HOW TO WIN THIS FIGHT, BUT I ALWAYS FIGURED YOU TO BE MUCH TOO HONORABLE TO CLAIM YOUR PRIZE.
"That was your mistake."
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