The Trident was historic ground.
Here Robert Baratheon had killed Rhaegar Targaryen. Here the rubies of the Prince's breastplate had washed into the river giving the ford its name.
Daenerys Targaryen stood on the muddy bank.
She did not look at the water. She looked at the sky.
Drogon lay behind her. The black beast was the size of a small ship now. His scales were hot to the touch. He hissed smoke curling from his nostrils.
"They are late," Daenerys said impatiently.
"A King is never late," Tyrion Lannister said drinking from a flask. "Nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to."
"He is not a King," Daenerys corrected. "He is a rebel Lord."
She looked at her army. Eight thousand Unsullied stood in perfect ranks. Their spears were sharp. Their discipline was absolute.
"Do you hear that?" Grey Worm asked suddenly.
He tilted his head.
A low vibration was coming from the North. It was not the sound of hooves. It was a rhythmic thumping sound like a giant heart beating.
Thrum thrum thrum thrum.
"Is it a storm?" Daenerys asked looking at the clear blue sky.
"No," Tyrion whispered. His eyes widened. "It is the Engine."
A dark shape emerged from the clouds.
At first it looked like a cloud itself. Then the sun caught the aluminum gondola.
The Leviathan descended.
It was colossal. Three hundred feet of black canvas and rigid spruce frame. It cast a shadow that swallowed the entire Unsullied vanguard.
Drogon stood up. He roared a challenge.
ROAAAAAR!
The dragon spread his wings. He prepared to fly to attack this intruder in his domain.
"Hold!" Daenerys commanded.
She saw the gondola clearly now. She saw the glass windows. And she saw the barrels of the machine guns tracking her dragon.
The airship did not land. It hovered five hundred feet above the river.
A smaller vehicle detached from the bottom. It was a steam launch lowered by cables.
It splashed into the river and motored to the bank.
Robb Stark stepped onto the shore. He wore his bronze crown and the grey wool uniform of the Northern Army. Beside him walked Andar Stark wearing a black leather coat and dark sunglasses.
They walked past the Unsullied without fear.
"Your Grace," Tyrion bowed slightly. "Robb Stark. And... Lord Andar."
"You are the Imp," Andar said looking at the dwarf. "I expected you to be taller."
"And I expected you to be a wizard," Tyrion retorted looking at the hovering airship. "But I see you are just a balloonist."
Daenerys stepped forward.
"You stand in the presence of the Queen," she said coldly. "Kneel."
Robb looked at her. He saw a girl younger than him but with eyes as old as stone.
"I am a King," Robb said. "We do not kneel to equals."
"Equals?" Daenerys laughed. She pointed to Drogon. "I have a dragon."
"And I have a dreadnought in the sky," Andar interrupted.
He pointed up.
"That ship carries five tons of high explosive. If I give the signal it drops a bomb that will turn this entire riverbank into a crater. Your Unsullied will be mist. Your dragon might survive the blast but he won't survive the follow up."
Andar gestured to the treeline on the opposite bank.
Camouflage netting dropped.
Four 88mm Flak guns were revealed. Their long barrels were already tracking Drogon.
"Flak," Andar explained. "High velocity anti air artillery. Proximity fuses. They don't need to hit the dragon. They just need to get close. They fill the air with steel rain."
Daenerys stiffened. She looked at the guns. She looked at the airship. She realized she had walked into a kill box.
"You threaten me under a flag of truce?" Daenerys hissed.
"I ensure peace through superior firepower," Andar said. "We are not here to fight you Daenerys. We are here to hire you."
"Hire me?" She looked insulted. "I am not a sellsword."
"No," Andar said. "You are the Breaker of Chains. And right now the ultimate slaver is marching on the Wall."
He pulled a photograph from his pocket.
It was the first photograph ever taken in Westeros. A daguerreotype plate captured by a scout drone balloon near the Wall.
It showed a White Walker. The blue eyes shone eerily even in black and white. Behind it stood thousands of wights.
"This is the enemy," Andar said handing her the metal plate.
Daenerys looked at the image. It was hyper realistic. It was not a drawing. It was light captured on silver.
"The Night King," Andar said. "He brings the Long Night. He brings death to every man woman and child. Highborn and lowborn. Westerosi and Essosi."
"He has breached the defenses?" Tyrion asked looking at the photo with horror.
"Not yet," Robb said. "We held the Wall. But they are testing the magical wards. They are looking for a way in."
Andar stepped closer.
"Your dragons are fire made flesh. My machines are steel made form. Alone we might hold them. Together we can burn them off the face of the earth."
Daenerys looked at Drogon. Then she looked at the silent metal guns pointed at him.
She realized the world had changed. The wheel she wanted to break had been replaced by an engine.
"If I help you," Daenerys said slowly. "What happens after?"
"After the dawn," Robb said. "We decide the fate of the kingdoms. But there will be no kingdoms if we are all dead."
"I will not bend the knee," Daenerys said firmly.
"Neither will we," Andar replied.
They stared at each other. A stalemate of power.
"A truce then," Tyrion suggested quickly. "An alliance of necessity. We fight the Dead first. We settle the chair later."
Daenerys nodded once.
"To the North," she said.
Andar signaled the airship. A flare shot up. Green.
The Flak guns lowered their barrels. The tension broke.
"One condition," Andar added.
"Condition?" Daenerys raised an eyebrow.
"Your dragons," Andar said. "They fly fast. But they have no radios. They have no navigation lights."
He pointed to the sky.
"The air over the North is crowded. We need to coordinate. I don't want my pilots shooting down your children by mistake."
"Radios?" Daenerys frowned.
"We will teach you," Andar said. "Welcome to the modern world Your Grace. Try not to get left behind."
[Quest Update: The Last Dragon]
[Alliance Formed: The Pact of the Trident]
[Dragons Added to Arsenal: 3]
[Technological Exchange: Radio Comms for Dragon Riders]
Robb turned to Daenerys.
"Come," Robb said offering his arm. "Ride with us on the airship. It is warmer than a dragon."
Daenerys looked at the luxury gondola. She looked at the muddy back of Drogon.
"Very well," she said. "But Drogon follows."
As they ascended into the sky Daenerys watched the ground fall away. She saw the Flak guns being limbered up by trucks.
She realized that the game of thrones had ended. The industrial war had begun.
..….
Author Note
Hi guys! Thank you for reading my fanfiction.
I wanted to let you know that I'm releasing bonus chapters for Power Stones. Here are the goals:
50 Power Stones: 1 Bonus Chapter
75 Power Stones: 2 Bonus Chapters
100 Power Stones: 2 Bonus Chapters
120 Power Stones: 3 Bonus Chapters
Thanks for the support!