Chapter 19: Royal Execution
The throne room was completely silent as everyone had evacuated. The only people left inside were the King and his Kingsguard and the Starks who stood in the centre of the throne room with sweat pouring down their bodies. On either side of them was a column of green fire that was being emitted from the King as he floated in the air; The King was like a god amongst men, or a demon as most people saw him, his ability with aura was truly terrifying and even Brandon one of the most stubborn Starks after Lyanna felt some regret at coming to Kings Landing.
Rickard and Brandon both had their auras released in an attempt to defend themselves from the sheer amount of heat being generated by the King's aura. As it wasn't a conjuration ability but instead a transmutation of aura, they could defend against it by counteracting with their aura, but the problem was that the King was so overwhelmingly powerful and had such vast quantities of aura he was able to pour it out of his body and heat the room even further.
Rickard looked behind the King and noticed that even the Kingsguard was starting to breathe heavily as his aura was beginning to affect them as well. "I'm sorry father..." Brandon breathed out heavily as sweat coursed across his face.
"You are an idiot boy... but you have a good heart," Rickard replied with a rare smile as he placed his fist on Brandon's chest.
"I've killed us Father," he said his voice cracking slightly. He wasn't afraid of death, what he was afraid of was that his sister was still missing and he'd be dying before he could find her.
"Do not lose the first battle boy, fear cuts deeper than swords, we are still breathing and we will fight until we can't," Rickard said sternly as he withdrew Ice from its sheath before throwing the sheath down to the ground. Rickard lost his father early in his life and so he had to take the reins of House Stark from an early age. What this meant was that amongst the history of House Stark Lords, Rickard was one of the most proficient wielders of Ice and like Arthur Dayne, he based his Aura ability around wielding it.
"I give you these words King Aerys, should we both fall today know that the days of the Targaryen Dynasty are numbered, the Dragon shall be cast down to the earth and you will be remembered as the King who failed his ancestors!" Rickard shouted to King Aerys who looked at the Stark Lord with pure and utter hatred.
"After I am done with you I shall wipe the very name Stark from the history books, even uttering the name will be punishable by death, all those Stark will die!!!" The King shouted as his flames rose higher and got more intense. Brandon released the full power of his aura that nearly put him at the same level as a Kingsguard; when the King felt his aura he felt concerned, not for himself at that moment, but it made him consider how many people were hiding their true potential to strike him down.
'The Wolfs Blood'
Brandon activated his ability with a mighty roar. The King and everyone in the throne room felt his aura grow and they saw him get taller and gain more muscle. Brandon's ability increased his strength and power as well as his healing to incredibly fast rates but in return, he would slowly lose his mind until he was just a mindless animal. Even now Brandon placed both hands on the ground in a wolf-like posture as he prepared to fight the Targaryen King.
Rickard released his aura as well though it was markedly less than Brandon's though had a much more refined nature to it. He let his aura flow around Ice making it look more dangerous than it already was, he then got into a low stance as he started down King Aerys.
The King was not impressed at all, in fact, he laughed at their efforts to defy him. "If this is what you can muster, then you should just allow yourselves to die," he said as he laughed manically.
"You will be surprised at how wrong you are King Aerys, but I suppose you don't have to worry as you have the Kingsguard protecting you In case you lose," Rickard said with a smirk suggesting that the King was a coward. A purposeful play to try and get the Kingsguard out of the room as Rickard knew that if any of them joined in they would die straight away.
"The Kingsguard protect nothing!!!" He said as he turned towards them.
"Get out all of you! This is a trial by combat you will not get involved or steal my victory!" He shouted at them. They all bowed their heads and walked out of the throne room leaving the three of them in there alone.
The King turned back around and smiled "I'm going to enjoy killing both of you, in truth I've been so bored as of late, I do hope you can put up a better fight than the rest of the traitors I've had to deal with," He said arrogantly.
Brandon growled at him as his aura pulsed with power, while Rickard looked at him with a mocking smirk "Perhaps we will lose or perhaps we will end the Targaryen dynasty right now," he said.
King Aerys roared and the columns of wildfire surrounding them started closing in on them. Rickard and Brandon both jumped into the air, but it seemed that this was what King Aerys had expected and the flames burst upwards towards them. Rickard and Brandon flipped midair and pushed against each other's feet which sent them to different sides of the throne room. Aerys growled as he saw they were still alive; he morphed the flames into two separate green serpentine dragons that chased after both Brandon and Rickard. Like a puppet master, he controlled them and smiled as he got close but scowled as they managed to get away.
Brandon like an animal charged at the King by pushing off the ground with all four limbs, jumping over the wildfire straight towards the King. "Brandon, No!" Rickard shouted but it was too late. King Aerys had already snatched Brandon by the throat; the Stark heir's throat began to blister and burn under the king's power. Rickard who was still barely avoiding the wildfire sweeping across the throne room could do nothing to help his son who roared in pain.
Then in an unexpected move, Brandon channelled aura away from his body and neck reducing his protection, but a moment after he connected a swift punch to the King's face which he had not been expecting and so he was sent flying back into the Iron Throne. The King's concentration was broken and the wildfire all dissipated leaving Brandon and Rickard some breathing room; Rickard rushed over to check on his son who had managed to get loose from the King. "Are you well boy?" Rickard asked.
Brandon growled an affirmative answer as he pulled on the collar of his shirt that was burnt and ripped off his shirt revealing a heavily muscled body. Rickard could see that the injuries he sustained by the king were already starting to peel off and new skin was growing underneath. Brandon picked up his sword that had been dropped to the floor when he had to avoid the King's first attack, they both then looked up to the Iron Throne where the King lay on the steps staring up to the ceiling.
"How long has it been since a man has struck me?" He said loudly, but it was clear that he was talking to himself.
"Not even in the war did I find myself struck by anyone, before Summerhall? Was it one of my cousins? I don't remember..." King Aerys stood up from the step touching his jaw and the small amount of pain he felt from it. Rickard looked concerned as he saw the King's eyes liven and a smile plaster itself upon his face. "You have made me feel excitement, something I haven't truly felt since I became a god, so do this last duty to your king and entertain me!" He shouted as his aura exploded out of his. The sheer weight and power of the King's aura was a sight to behold, it nearly blew both of the Starks away with its power.
"Father... I'll fight close... you support, I can take it," Brandon said as he struggled to formulate words —his ability already taking its toll on him.
Rickard was reluctant but understood to logic of Brandon's plan. Rickard did not have the ability to heal like Brandon did and so any injuries he sustained would affect him for the remainder of the fight. Rickard nodded towards Brandon who roared out in challenge to the Targaryen King, his aura started to grow and so did his muscles until he was a foot taller than he previously was and his aura had grown nearly a quarter larger than before.
King Aerys laughed before placing his hand on the handle of a sword from the throne and using his aura to superheat the metal he pulled the sword out —the hot steel glowed red as he flourished it. Brandon with his sword in hand near flew towards the King with his sword arcing as he attempted to cut the King in half. Aerys laughed as at an even faster speed he rushed towards Brandon impaling him through the stomach with his sword, but he didn't stop and he kept on running with Brandon impaled on his sword towards Rickard who had yet to move. The Stark Lord prepared himself for whatever attack Aerys might unleash, what he didn't expect was his son to be thrown towards him forcing him to catch him —which in turn launched him back. The king followed them as he formed a sphere of wildfire in his hand and threw it after them. Rickard saw the threat and managed to untangle himself from Brandon just in time to bring Ice up.
'Full Counter'
As soon as the sphere made contact with Ice it was sent back to the king at almost double the speed. Aerys could only block as his surprise at having his attack reflected at him reduced his reaction time, but he was not the strongest man in Westeros for no reason and with both hands he grabbed the sphere despite being pushed back on his feet, and using his aura he snuffed out the sphere of flames.
Rickard flourished his blade as he felt a little winded after using his ability. Full Counter allowed him to deflect any attack back at its opponent it didn't matter what the attack was, but he could only use the ability while wielding Ice and it would cost him 1.5x the amount of aura used for the attack to send it back. It was a costly move that should only be used as a trump card to end a fight quickly, but in a fight against such an overwhelming power he didn't have a choice but to use it liberally.
"A splendid ability, but did you think it would do anything? I bathed in the wildfires of Summerhall, my attacks will never arm me," King Aerys boomed out with a Laugh.
"We shall see..." Rickard said as he and Brandon got ready for the next bout with the King. Aerys was having such a good time with them, it seemed that one of them wouldn't break as the injuries he had delivered were gone and the younger Stark was fine.
Brandon stood up and removed the King's sword from his stomach, the wound closed up shortly afterwards. With a yell, he rushed towards the King with the sword in hand, and with a smile on his face, the King was ready to receive him. Surprising the King Brandon threw the sword toward him in a spin; Aerys sidestepped the sword easily and caught the punch that Brandon aimed to deliver though he had to admit he was surprised by the amount of power contained in the blow, this surprise was further augmented when Brandon smashed his head against the King's face which managed to hurt him slightly but not as much as it hurt Brandon, and yet the stark heir continued to smash his head against him splattering blood all across his face. The King grabbed him by the throat but had to let got avoid a swing from Ice; Aerys let his aura explode outwards, he then transmuted it all into wildfire and let it wash over Rickard, unfortunately for the King, Brandon had pushed his father out of the way and taken the full brunt of the attack.
Rickard pooled aura into his sword where he then released a slash of aura headed straight towards the King. With the back of his hand, he destroyed Rickards's attack and rushed towards the Stark Lord only to get tackled by Brandon who had healed the wildfire burns. Brandon smashed his fists against the king like a madman intent on doing the most damage possible. The King who was growing frustrated smashed his fist into the boy's chest breaking all of his ribs and sending him flying across the throne room. He then turned his attention to Rickard who was no longer in front of him; Aerys ducked as Rickard who had sealed his aura nodes snuck up behind him and tried to decapitate him. King Aerys smiled as he drew his fist back poured a significant amount of aura into it and sent it towards Rickard, intent on turning the man's face into a bloody paste.
'Full Counter'
Aerys felt his nose shatter and then felt himself fly back across the throne room crashing out of the wall and into the corridor. 'That damn ability...' Aerys thought to himself as he didn't believe it would work against physical attacks. He didn't have time to stand as a Berserk Brandon rushed towards him swinging a sword wildly, the King had to use his arm to deflect the blow and push the man away. He looked at his arm and saw a trickle of blood flowing down it and felt himself grow angry; his amusement at this situation disappeared in an instant as he saw his own blood on both his arm and his face.
"You are no longer entertaining I shall be eradicating you now," Aerys said with a growl as he rushed towards the Stark heir impaling him through the stomach arcing him up in the air and smashing him through the floor where they both fell down a level. Brandon had lost his ability to communicate verbally but was still able to intelligently assess the situation, he had to use more power but it meant that he'd lose more of his mental faculties. Not having a choice his aura exploded once again growing half as big making it 1.75x the size of his original aura, which easily gave him more aura than most Kingsguards.
Bringing both hands together he smashed the head of the King which pushed him back and it allowed him to get free from him. The hole in his stomach closed up and they both landed on the floor below; Brandon quickly recovered and wildly swung against the king who started the feel pain wracking across his body. He sent a torrent of wildfire across Brandon's body but it didn't stop the stark boy from attacking as he seemed to ignore the pain of his skin peeling off and his muscles burning. Aerys roared as he sent a large sphere of flame against Brandon which pushed him back against the wall scorching it black. However, this distraction allowed Rickard to slash his sword against the King's back as he dropped through the hole they made. Aerys backhanded Rickard sending the Lord flying down the hallway even though he managed to block it.
Rushing towards Brandon the king yelled as he pummelled the boy releasing his rage against him. Brandon tried to retaliate but the King was breaking him faster than he could recover; Aerys unleashed a devastating kick against his head which caved in the Boy's skull and made him go limp. Rickard could only watch in horror as Aerys turned his son into a bloody puddle. "Brandon!!!" He shouted as he rushed towards his son sending powerful swings of aura at the King but to no effect. Rickard tried to impale Aerys, but the king grabbed the blade stopping him dead "What will you do now, your son took all of my blows, without him you won't last a minute," Aerys said with a malicious grin.
Aerys backhanded Rickard which sent him to the other wall. The older Stark spat blood onto the floor before standing up —using his sword as a crutch. He hadn't taken many blows from the king but the ones he had managed to hurt him badly; the power difference between them was astronomical and if the King didn't find their struggle amusing he imagined that he wouldn't have lasted as long as he did. King Aerys approached Rickard cautiously as while he wasn't afraid of any attacks the Stark might muster, he knew his own attacks could be used against him.
'Is this the end...' Rickard asked himself as he breathed heavily, as even using his ability twice had managed to tire him. His heart hurt as he looked at his son who was slumped against the wall with blood splattered across his body.
'Give me the power to withstand his blows and in return I shall give my life.'
'This I Vow.'
Rickard's Aura started to turn a dark colour as it started to increase in size. One, two, three times it grew, growing bigger than Brandon's did and reaching heights Rickard never thought possible. The King for the first time in many years felt a pang of concern etch itself into his heart as he watched the man with nothing left to lose give everything he had. Deciding to risk falling victim to Rickard's ability the King shot towards him sending a punch straight to his stomach sending him crashing out the wall and out of the Red Keep. Rickard slammed hard into the courtyard of the Red Keep and he had to quickly move to avoid a large torrent of wildfire that was shot by the king, though the skin and clothing from his arms managed to burn off; it hurt but he managed to tolerate the pain and keep his sword held high as the King slammed into the courtyard. 'Focus all on defence,' Rickard reminded himself as he used 'Fortify' and prepared for the King's onslaught.
"Father!!!"
Both the King and Rickard looked up to see Brandon standing in the Red Keep where the massive hole was. His ability had burned out and he was only able to heal the worst of the damage that the King delivered towards him, Rickard recognised this immediately and went to go tell his son to run, but in his distraction, he failed to avoid another torrent of wildfire shot by the King, his aura did well to stop most of the damage but it still managed to burn him heavily. The King followed up by creating a sword made from wildfire that he tried to use to impale Rickard through the heart; Aerys was powerful but he wasn't a swordsman and so in this case Rickard had a small advantage as he had trained his entire life with Ice.
Brandon watched from above as he saw his father barely defending against the King —only his superior swordsmanship allowed him to stay ahead. Brandon wanted to help but he had nothing left; without his ability, he knew he wouldn't last long against the King, he wasn't a cautious fighter like his father.
'I want everything, give me all the power my ability has to offer now and forever, and I shall give you my mind.'
'This I Vow.'
Rickard managed to slice through the King's sword, but it didn't matter as he started receiving blow after blow. Each one was too fast to stop and powerful enough to crack his bones even with his newfound power. Rickard lazily swung his sword at Aerys who caught it between his fingers before conjuring a concentrated flame in his and slamming it into Rickard who screamed in pain and fell to his knee as his nose was filled with the stench of his own flesh burning.
"There is only one destiny for a traitor, none of you could ever hope to defeat me," Aerys said as he formed another sword with wildfire and raised it high. An earthshaking roar distracted him though and he was tackled from the side by Brandon who looked different than normal, he was nearly 8ft tall and muscled enough to put the mountain to shame. He made bestial roars as he pummelled the King underneath him; Aerys had to protect himself from his fists as they did damage. Brandon slashed his claws across Aerys arm —drawing blood as he did— the King roared as he blew Brandon back with an explosion of wildfire.
He stood up and watched as Brandon healed at a remarkable rate "If I could use my ability you would've all been turned to ash long ago," the King growled out before unleashing more aura. He and Brandon rushed towards each other, while Brandon had strength that could rival the King he did not have the mind to use it and so he threw wild punches that Aerys was able to avoid. The King covered himself in an Aura that was completely composed of superheated wildfire; Brandon's skin was constantly being burnt off and healed as they fought. The guards that were in the courtyard were blown back at the sheer power of their punches, even Rickard who was still on his knees felt himself being blown back.
"JUST DIE YOU BEAST!!!"
"EAHHHHHHHH!!!"
Brandon managed to get close and slashed Aerys face. The King shoved his hand into the man and unleashed fire within his body, but Brandon was able to heal as fast as his organs were disintegrated. He got in close and bit the King's ear off which made him roar and push Brandon back "You northern cretins, I will kill you all for what you've done here today!" He shouted at Brandon as his aura grew. A large hand composed of wildfire grabbed Brandon and started to crush him as well as burn him; Aerys slammed him onto the ground and across the courtyard but as he was flinging him around he had to avoid a thrust from Rickard which made him lose his concentration once again. Brandon was flung clear of the keep and into Blackwater Bay.
Aerys growled before sending an extremely powerful punch into Rickard's face which sent him rolling across the courtyard. Aerys looked at Rickard in a new light since the beginning of the fight, at first he was a mere ant that happened to step in his path, but now he was a dog who had bit his master's hand and needed to be put down. "Have you any last words you wish me to relate to your family before I burn them alive?" Aerys asked as he stepped closer to Rickard who had just stood up.
Rickard looked at the King revealing a face that had been deformed from his blow. He spat his teeth onto the ground and started laughing at the King "Aerys... you've forgotten what it's like to be weak... you've never known what it means to sacrifice," Rickard gurgled out through mouthfuls of blood.
The King looked at Rickard, a man who could barely stand, a man who had no possible hope of winning with concern. The small pangs of fear he felt before had been enflamed and instincts that had dulled a long time ago rose up once more; Rickard was defeated, the King was on the cusp of victory and why did he feel like he was about to lose.
"Watch as I show the world what it looks like when a god bleeds," Rickard said with a deformed smile as he held his sword up in the air.
'Full Counter: Vengeance'
Using all the accumulated damage he had received from Aerys. Rickard poured it all into a single strike that he unleashed against the Targaryen King; Aerys watched as the slash larger than anything he'd ever seen rushed towards him at incredible speed. The only thing he could do was release the entirety of his aura and defend himself 'He's been leading this battle from the start,' Aerys thought to himself as the slash connected. A large explosion rang out through the courtyard nearly destroying the place.
*Thump*
Rickard who was now using ice to stop himself from falling looked towards Aerys, and the arm that had disappeared from his left side and was now on the ground. The King looked at his stump in confusion, his vision then travelled to his arm that was on the floor and then to Rickard who stood in front of him.
"I-I... W-What?"
*Thump*
Rickard fell to the ground and Ice clattered next to him. His heartbeat started to decrease as the vow started to take effect, he was glad that there might be a chance that Brandon was still alive. 'I wish I could see you again... Lyarra... my love.' The last thought that ran through his mind was of his family. He slowly closed his eyes smiling as he heard the King start to scream in both anger and pain.
(AN: So that's it, Father Rickard is gone and Brandon is MIA. I don't think this fight was too good, but it's hard when you're doing weaker people against an overwhelmingly strong opponent. I hope you guys enjoyed it regardless. Roberts rebellion will be beginning soon, This injury is what tips Aerys over the edge to madness.)
If you like my stuff consider supporting me.
Patreon.com/Captainalfie78Works
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone