Chapter 47 – "Ashes and Echoes"
The sun rose over King's Landing with an eerie stillness, as if even the wind dared not stir the ashes of what had transpired. The Dragonpit, once home to fire-breathing beasts, now bore the mark of something far more terrifying: the wrath of the North.
They would speak of it for generations. The day a Stark fought a monster and became one.
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The Aftermath
Blood still stained the broken stones of the Dragonpit. Pieces of Ser Gregor's shattered armor lay scattered like discarded bones. Crows circled above. The scent of steel, sweat, and death clung to the air. No servants dared enter yet. No priests of the Seven came to bless the field.
Cregan Stark had left it drenched in blood and silence.
He walked back to the Red Keep surrounded by Northern guards and uneasy Goldcloaks, his black steel armor splattered red, face shadowed, eyes distant. His Valyrian steel sword and black steel axe hung at his sides, both slick with gore. He didn't speak. He didn't need to.
The city had crowned him with a new name:
"The Bloody Wolf."
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Small Council: The Panic
The Small Council chamber had never been so tense.
"This is an outrage!" Pycelle croaked, beard trembling. "The savagery—the barbarism! It must be condemned!"
"He won a legal trial," Jon Arryn said coldly, arms crossed. "You cannot condemn justice when it no longer favors your interests."
"He butchered Gregor like a wild dog!" Cersei hissed. "Is that what we allow now? Butchers? Wolves who speak to shadows and bleed gods in tongues long dead?"
Varys simply blinked. "He has become a symbol. Perhaps even more dangerous than a killer."
Littlefinger chuckled. "Symbols tend to get people killed, Lord Varys. Very useful. Very volatile."
Robert drank in silence, the goblet shaking slightly in his hand.
"He made fools of us all," Tywin said, voice sharp as a dagger. "Gregor was no knight, but he was my knight. And this savage slaughtered him like a goat."
"Your savage knight died in a fair duel," Jon Arryn reminded him.
"There is nothing fair about that boy," Tywin muttered. "He fights like an animal, bleeds like a god, and leaves chaos in his wake."
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Stark Reactions
In the Stark quarters, silence ruled.
Robb leaned over a basin, washing blood from his hands. Not his own, but Cregan's—from when they embraced after the fight.
"He won," Jon Snow said.
"Aye," Robb muttered. "But did we?"
Ned Stark sat nearby, not speaking. The fire beside him flickered, casting shadow and light across his worn face.
"I saw Brandon again," Ned said quietly. "I saw what rage does to a Stark."
"Cregan's not Brandon," Jon said. "He came back."
Ned looked at him in contemplating manner
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Lyanna Learns
In a quiet room far from the court, Lyanna Stark sat by a window, Shadow curled at her feet. She had not been allowed at the Dragonpit.
The guard came with a message: it was over. Cregan had won.
She didn't speak at first.
Then: "Is he hurt?"
"Some injuries, but... he lives."
She nodded slowly, whispering, "I knew he would win. He had to."
Shadow looked up, red eyes glowing.
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The Realm Reacts
Olenna Tyrell sipped her wine, unimpressed. "He certainly knows how to make an entrance. Though next time, I do hope he washes the blood off first."
Margaery looked thoughtful. "He did it for a girl. A child. That matters."
Oberyn Martell threw back his head and laughed. "He stole my kill, and I do not even mind. It was beautiful. Savage, but beautiful."
Edmure Tully could only murmur, "He killed the Mountain? Truly?"
Hoster Tully nodded. "The North has found its hammer."
Renly grinned. "All this over a pup and a girl. Wonderful theater."
Stannis, stern as ever, muttered, "He won fair and square."
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A Moment of Solitude
Cregan stood shirtless in his chamber, wounds half-bandaged, blood still drying on his skin. His weapons rested on the table. The firelight danced across his face, illuminating the predator lurking behind calm eyes.
Robb entered. "Rest. You're still bleeding."
"Let it bleed," Cregan muttered.
"They're calling you the Bloody Wolf."
"Let them."
"Some fear you now."
Cregan turned, a strange look in his eyes. "Good. Fear is armor when truth is no longer enough."
Jon entered behind Robb. "The Lannisters won't forget this. Nor forgive."
"Then let them come. One by one or all at once. We'll stack their bones beside the dragons."
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In the Throne Room
Cregan was called to court. His armor was polished, his blood cleaned, but the scars and shadows remained.
Tywin stood, face pale with fury.
Cregan didn't bow. He walked into the chamber like it belonged to him.
"Do you come to gloat, boy?" Tywin asked.
Cregan's voice was cold and loud.
"I come to give warning. You sent a monster to tear apart my kin. I sent that monster to your gods in pieces."
Gasps rang out.
"I again offer you this: send Jaime Lannister next. Or yourself. See if gold can shield you from what waits in the North."
Cersei stood, face red. "You threaten the Queen's family in court?"
"I promise consequences, not threats."
He turned to the hall.
"Let all hear me. Any who raise hands against the wolf's blood—man, woman, or crowned child—will know this: your bones will feed the snow. The North remembers."
He unsheathed his black steel axe, holding it high.
"Twenty years ago, the South burned when a Stark was wronged. We broke the dragons. Now, I have broken your Mountain."
The crowd whispered. Then someone shouted:
"The Bloody Wolf!"
Others echoed it.
"Bloody Wolf! Bloody Wolf!"
Tywin turned and walked out, cloak flaring like fire behind him.
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Varys and Littlefinger: The Spider and the Snake
Later, in the dungeons beneath the Red Keep:
"He cannot be controlled," Varys whispered.
"Then we must redirect him," Littlefinger replied.
"How?"
"Blood is louder than gold, but gold buys quieter blood."
---
Cregan and Shadow
That night, Cregan sat alone on the walls of the Red Keep. Shadow sat beside him, silent as a ghost.
He looked out over the city, firelight flickering across rooftops, the scent of blood still in the air.
"We made them listen," he whispered.
Shadow growled softly, ears twitching.
He placed a hand on the direwolf's head.
"Let them come, old friend. We'll meet them together."
---
The Song Begins
A bard sat in the shadows of a tavern, playing a lute.
"He came with axe and iron flame, A wolf that walked through fire and shame. He slew the beast with blade and breath, And whispered oaths of blood and death.
Now kings may plot and queens may weep, But wolves don't kneel, they only leap."
The song ended. A hush fell.
The Bloody Wolf had risen.
And the realm would never sleep easy again.
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