Chapter 24

“There they are. They waited for those forces on the ground to get closer, weren’t they?” Daario Naharis inquired of Howland Reed and Benjen Stark as the boats carrying the Night King’s flotilla approached them.

“That they did, more’s the pity,” Howland Reed concurred, feeling nervous in spite of his attempts to steel his nerves as the wights on the water closed the distance.

“It’s a classic pincer move, of course. One flank attacks from the front, the other from the side. They hope to find a hole in our defenses somewhere, including a possible landing on the south side of the Wall. If they can get ashore without all drowning, we’re surrounded. We’re exposed and vulnerable south of the Wall, as you know. They can either bypass the Wall entirely, or else attack Eastwatch from the south. Likely, the Night King will do the latter, but the end result is doom in either case, unless they’re stopped somewhere along the way,” Benjen gritted his teeth in the frosty air as the enemy drew closer.

“It’s time, I think,” Daario proposed with no pleasure in the fact.

“That it is,” Howland concurred grimly.

“To our deaths, we go, then! Who knows what awaits us next, but we face it together, as men, as comrades, as soldiers,” Benjen confirmed as he began rowing toward the foe.

“Alright, you frozen arseholes, I’m coming for you!” Daario cursed aloud as he rowed with growing urgency and speed.

“Yeah, come and get me, you pricks! You got Jojen, but I’ll make you pay for it!” Howland spat out into the icy waters as he could feel the extreme chill caused by the proximity of the wights.

“They’re getting closer to the enemy, my lord,” Theon alerted Cotter Pyke, who nodded for the archers to fire their flaming volley at the trio and the Dead boatmen.

“What is dead may never die,” Cotter quoted the ancient Ironborn chant.

“But rises again harder and stronger,” Theon answered him, of course.

“All the same, I hope that they’re dead soon. Better death than fire, trust me,” the Hound retorted.

“In the case of this enemy, I wish as much fire upon them as I can, at the risk of offense,” Thoros shouted as he jumped into the chilly waters on another boat with his flaming sword.

“How in the name of the Red God did he make such a jump?” Beric reacted with astonishment.

“I think that you just answered your own question, Beric, my old friend! The Lord of Light empowered me! Have faith, my friend! Our God is real. He will guide me toward victory!” Thoros chided Beric, even as he grasped the reason for doubt.

Thoros could not revive himself as he had brought Beric back so many times from the dead. If he fell in this battle, it would be a very permanent death indeed. If Beric was slain afterward, there would be none to restore him to life, either, not like those seven times before. Thoros of Myr had resurrected him a lot over the years, though Beric always came back weaker than before, not stronger as the Ironborn might hope. Death always took a toll on the dead and risen. This time, that wouldn’t be an issue for him at least, would it?

The volley landed with incredible heat, fire, and mayhem now, setting several of the wights aflame along with their boats. As the various craft sank, quite a few of the wights drowned in the process, yet one managed to grab a hold of an already burning Benjen as he cut down others on his boat. It was obvious to Daario at least that the Ranger was a bit numb to the pain caused by the blaze compared to the others, no doubt due to being already half-wight himself somehow. Half of his flesh was already gone, yet he continued to slaughter his enemy for now. Now, however, Benjen jumped from the boat and took the wight down with him, both sure to drown in the icy waters just off Eastwatch-by-the-Sea.