Asha Greyjoy POV
After a voyage of nearly three moons since their departure from Dragonstone, they had arrived. They were finally at her home.
Standing atop the ship's prow, she observed as they approached the Island of Pike, her former home. Her home was with Stephen now, but she still held a great fondness for the place where she grew up.
Her former home had undergone significant changes in the past year, to the extent that she almost didn't recognise it at first.
Spoiler:A Detailed Map of the Iron Islands
Lords Port, once a bustling trading hub of Pyke, now lay in ruins. The buildings that once stood in the town had been demolished, their stones cast into the sea. In some cases, even the foundations had been removed.
The town, which held so many memories for her, had been reduced to a vast expanse of mud with only a few scattered stone foundations serving as a reminder of its past.
Without the Port town, there were obviously no ships in the Bay. Not that the Ironborn even had any ships to speak of. Not anymore. The Ironborn had lost all their vessels in the war, and their shipyards had been destroyed, their ship builders killed, and the scant trees they had were all cut down.
So far, she had only seen two fishing boats traversing the waters of the Iron Islands. The mismatched wood used in their construction suggested that they had been pieced together from salvaged materials taken from other destroyed ships and boats.
Fishing had been one of the primary sources of food for the people of Iron Islands. And without it… she could only imagine how the people were keeping themselves fed. If they were even eating something and not outright dying from starvation.
It was hard for her to see what her home had been reduced to. But little did she know that this was only the beginning.
They disembarked on their boats and soon landed on the stony beach of the Island of Pyke.
A small party of Greyjoy and Harlaw men had come to welcome them. The party being led by Harras Harlaw, a a distant cousin of hers who survived the 'purge' on the dint of being a Knight of the Seven.
There were few horses to go around, so most of Stephen's retinue, as well as the guards who'd come to welcome them, had to walk.
And thus begin their slow march toward the Castle of Pyke.
On the way there, she bore witness to the complete destruction of the Ironborn's infrastructure. Shipyards lay in ruins, bridges were broken, villages had been burned to the ground, and fields were left untended.
A cozy tavern that she remembered visiting often in her childhood, was now nothing but a pile of rocks.
A sturdy stone bridge that she'd crossed countless times, now lay in a crumbled state, with large wooden planks being used to cross the stream instead.
She did see a few people here and there, trying to rebuild their broken homes, but aside from that, Pyke seemed like a deserted Island. A cursed place where no one lived anymore.
After riding slowly for a few hours, she finally came upon the first settlement of Pyke, which was home to a decent number of people.
Calling this place a settlement was a bit of a stretch though, as the accommodations were made up of tents and straw huts that were placed around in a haphazard manner.
Pregnant women worked on a nearby field while unattended children played in the muddy surroundings. The same mud that was filled with faces and urine due to the absence of a proper sewage system and any rules regarding the disposal of human waste.
Despite being an inattentive student most of the time, she had learned enough from Steph to understand why this place would be a fertile ground for disease and infections. She decided to revisit this village and speak with the locals once she had reunited with her family.
She... tried not to think about why all these women were on various stages of pregnancy, a few moons after the war ended.
There was one other thing about this settlement that niggled at the back of her mind. So she turned to her cousin Harras and asked him. "Ser Harras, where are all the men?"
Harras, who had been talking with her man up until this point, turned and looked at her in confusion. "Pardon, my lady?"
"The men. There are no men in that settlement. Where are they?"
Harras grimaced "Dead. A good majority of them. The ones that survived have either gone off to other major settlements like Lannisport and Seaward in order to look for work, or they are working in the Iron mines."
"I see." She said, and remembered that Iron was one of the main reasons why Stephen even came to the Iron Islands. "Do people find a lot of work in those mines?"
"Aye," Harras replied, giving a side glance to her companion. "We've been mining a lot of iron ore these past few months. At first, I didn't understand why, seeing as no one was willing to trade with us fairly. It wasn't until I learned about Prince Stephen's ships arriving at our doorstep and Lord Rodrik explained it to me, that I finally understood why we were mining so much Iron Ore."
"How much Iron ore have you mined up till this point?" She asked curiously and Harras grimaced.
"We've dug out entire hills of that stuff." Harras said with a shrug, trying to look nonchalant about it even though she could see that he was rather then. Then he leaned in and spoke in a whisper. "My lady, do you think that the Prince would buy all that Iron Ore?"
"He would." She spoke with conviction. Mostly because she already knew of all his plans in regards to all that Iron. But also because even if he didn't want to buy that Iron, she would find a way to persuade him to do so.
She loved Steph with all her heart, and would never do something that would harm her. But she also knew that he was extremely rich. And it shouldn't be hard for him to fork over some money to help her people in their time of need.
Harras nodded, a relieved look on his face, and they rode in silence.
An hour later, she witnessed yet another settlement. This one was larger than the previous one, and had at least a few men in it. It was also better organised, with a few stone and mud buildings being built at the centre of the settlement.
She could see a few Septons and Septas helping around in this settlement, distributing gruel to the hungry, and malnourished children.
Her eyes narrowed at the sight of those Faith clergies. A part of her rebelled at the idea of the Faith taking over the Ironborn culture. Displacing their Drowned God with their own false ones.
But then again, it was not like serving the Drowned God has served them well either. No, it has only led to their doom. At least the Faith of the Seven does not encourage piracy, or a revival of the Old Ways.
"How many Septons and Septas have arrived in Pyke?" She found herself asking and Harras looked thoughtful for a moment before he shrugged.
"I don't know, my lady. But there are definitely far more of them than the Drowned Priests. Especially after your uncle put the last remaining Drowned Priests to the sword. The ones who escaped the purge during the war anyway."
His words struck her like a bell, leaving her staring at Harras in shock. The idea of her uncle using violence was strange on its own. But for him to do so against the Drowned Priests...
"Why would he kill the Drowned Priests?" She asked, her voice filled with horror and Harras blinked at her surprise.
"You don't know?" He asked, sounding more confused than anything.
"I haven't exchanged any letters with my mother, so no." She said, "But, what happened?"
Harras grimaced at her words and looked away. "I'm not sure if it is my place to tell you, my lady."
"Well, you've told me this much, and I'll find out the rest soon enough anyway. So you might as well save me the trouble and tell me."
Harras squirmed uncomfortably under her gaze but then sighed and started speaking up. "Things… have not been easy for the Iron Islands in the aftermath of the war."
"Obviously. But what does that have to do with my uncle killing the remaining Drowned Priests?"
Her cousin rubbed his chin, looking downright uncomfortable under her stare as he explained. "No, things have been 'really' bad here. The peopl have been struggling with food shortages, lack of a proper shelter, and to make things worse, the trade between the islands have all but shut down." He said, sighing heavily. "What's even worse is that the power vacuum left by the Lords has given rise to rampant banditry and piracy across the Isles."
She was taken aback by his revelation. "What?" she exclaimed, shocked. She was aware that her people had a reputation for being seafarers with a penchant for raiding, but the idea of resorting to piracy within their own territory was almost unimaginable to her.
"Aye, my lady. Chaos and poverty had been at an all time high in the aftermath of the war." Harras explained. "It was during this time that the remaining few Drowned Priests gathered at the Nagga's bones and.."
"And…?" She asked, getting slightly impatient.
"And… they blamed House Greyjoy for everything that has gone wrong with the Iron Islands."
Her jaw dropped and it felt like heavy iron nail had been spiked into her chest. "…what?"
She distantly felt Steph putting a hand on her shoulder in a show of support as Harras continued. "Yeah. More specifically, they blamed your mother for being a weak regent. The claimed you and Theon Greyjoy were greenlanders now and… unfit to rule them. So called for a Kingsmoot so that the lords can select a better leader for themselves."
Her eyes widened in horror and rage at the blatant treachery of those fucking Drowned Priests. How dare they!? "That's… that's madness!" She shouted, unable to help herself, though Steph's supporting hand on her shoulder calmed her down somewhat. "What happened then!?" She asked impatiently.
"Madness is the right word, my lady. Though I think that the Drowned Priests were simply acting out in desperation at that point." Harras said solemnly. "Regardless of their reason, their outcry received little support from the lords. These lords had just fought and lost a war that devastated their lands and families. Selecting a new leader at the Kingsmoot, would be the declaration of another war. Something that no one wanted to take part in."
"What happened after that?" She asked. "What did my mother do?"
Harras grimaced at her words. "House Greyjoy suffered the most in this war, my lady. Almost all your house guards were put to the sword. And even now, your House does not have enough men to guard the castle of Pyke, let alone send a group of men to chase down these Drowned Priests."
"I see." She said. She was not happy with this outcome but she could understand. "I take it that that this is where my uncle stepped in?"
"Just so my lady." Harras said with a grim smile. "House Harlaw suffered in the war as well, but not as badly as many others did. And when your mother asked her brother for help, Lord Harlaw sent a group of 500 men to chase down these Drowned Priests and bring them in to answer for their attempted rebellion."
"I take it that the Drowned Priests refused to come along in peace?" She guessed, knowing well enough just how proud and arrogant some of these men were.
"Just so my lady." Harras said with a sad smile. "Upon arriving at the Old Wyk, the Harlaw men found out that the Drowned Priests had spread misinformation about their presence. Telling the people that they were here to destroy the Naga's bones, to murder them, rape their women and take their children as thralls. With their lies, those Drowned Priests managed to rally up a small militia of some 200 men. As you can imagine, the battle did not end well for those Drowned Priests."
"I understand," she replied, feeling speechless in the face of the Drowned Priests' treachery. Not only had they betrayed House Greyjoy, but they had also betrayed the ordinary Ironborn men and women with their lies.
Any sympathy that she might've held for the Drowned Priests and the Drowned God died in that moment, as she asked. "What happened to these Drowned Priests?"
Harras gave a bloodthirsty grin at her question. "Most of them died in the battle. And the few that managed to survive, were captured and brought to your mother for judgment. Their heads still decorate the pikes of your castle gates."
"Good!" She exclaimed, feeling vindicated at the death of those treacherous bastards. Though she also wondered how this would affect House Greyjoy in the future.
Would the lords blame House Greyjoy for the murder of the last Drowned Priests? Or would they be respectful toward House Greyjoy and Harlaw for dealing with their enemies in such a decisive manner?
She supposed that it'll be up to Theon to deal with this clusterfuck. And for her nuncle to help him through it. She just hoped that her little brother would be up to the task of leading the Ironborn into this uncertain future.
By that point, the sun had begun to set below the horizon. With no taverns left standing in the aftermath of the war, they had to pitch their tents or risk sleeping under the open sky.
She slept with Stephen in his tent, not even bothering to hide her relationship with him. She was not going to stop fucking him during her stay at Pyke, so they were going to learn sooner or later. Better they learn now than later.
That night, Stephen listened to her and comforted her as she ranted and raved about the Drowned Priests and went on graphic details about what she would do to them if she ever got her hand on one of them.
She eventually fell asleep in his arms and dreamed of the day when Stephen shared his power with her.
—
Flashback
"You called for me?" She asked as she entered the room and was greeted with the sight of Stephen sitting on his chair behind his mahogany desk, with Tyene's blond hair bobbing up and done on his lap as he closed his eyes and groaned in pleasure.
He absentmindedly gestured for her to take a seat as he took hold of Tyene's hair and used them as a make shift handle to hold her head in place as he bucked his hips and started to hammer her throat with his cock.
Tyene gagged and spluttered at the sudden deepthroating session while she herself sat and watched them in amusement.
There was a time when she used to be jealous of Tyene. Of the time that Steph spent with the blond Sand Snake. Time that he could've spent with her instead.
But these days, she simply enjoyed the sight of Stephen fucking other women. The jealousy that once used to cloud her heart was all but gone, and she even went as far as to think up of ways in which she could help Steph sleep with more girls.
The way her thought process has changed these past few days was still strange to her. But she has come to the realisation that as long as she loved Steph and as long as he loved her, everything else will be alright.
Her fingers slipped down her leather trousers and she rubbed the swell of her pussy lips, slick pleasure slowly overriding her senses as Steph continued to hammer into Tyene's throat until he evenentually came inside her throat.
It was beautiful thing to watch, as Steph release spurts upon spurts of his seed down the blond's throat and then into her mouth. Despite gagging a bit, the blond consumed every single drop of that tasty, virile seed, not letting even a single drop fall to the ground.
It was unfortunate that she couldn't get herself off in the time it took for Steph to cum down Tyene throat… but there was always a next time.
"Good job girl." Steph said as he petted Tyene's cheeks before he dismissed her. Tyene bristled at the dismissal and gave her a somewhat annoyed look but obediently left the room and closed the door behind her.
She looked at Steph in the resulting silence, and tilted her head. "You summoned me. It is very rare for you to do such a thing, Steph. Is everything alright?"
Stephen seemed amused at her words but nodded. "Yeah. We'll reach Arbor by tomorrow morning. And I would prefer it, if you to stay on the ship. For both your own safety and to avoid upsetting the Redwynes by bringing a Greyjoy into their halls."
There was a time when being asked to stay back like this would've pissed her off, even if the request was understandable. But since it was Steph who was asking her, she simply nodded.
"Don't worry about me. You go on ahead and do whatever it is you need to do in Arbour. And then we'll set sail north." 'To my home.' She thought.
"I'm glad that you understand." Steph said with a smile. "But admittedly, that was not the main reason why I called you here."
"It wasn't?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah. The main reason I called you here, is because I wished to share one of my powers with you."
"Your powers? As in… the shining sword thing. Or are you talking about your blessings?" She asked as she went around the table and sat down on his lap, her fingers coming down to tease and play with his semi-hardened cock. "Or maybe you're talking about how well endowed and virile you are."
Steph smiled at her words, as his arm snaked around her waist and pulled her closer to him.
"It is a mix of things." Steph said as he took her hand and removed it from over his cock, making her realise that this was serious.
She looked at him in slight confusion and curiosity. "A mix of things?"
"Yeah. This particular power is the main reason why I'm as strong and as fast as I am. It is also the reason why I can use so many different kinds of magic. Or why I learn things so quickly."
"You want to share this power with me?" She asked, before she realised what he just told her. "And... are you saying that you have more powers than one."
"I do. And the one I'm going to share with you today, is called the Gamer." He said before he proceeded to give her a brief summary about the Gamer System and how it worked.
After the explanation, Steph did something… and there was suddenly a blue flat thing in front of her. Steph asked her to press the accept button and she did, joining the 'Stephen's Harem' Party. A Party that she was the third member of, preceded by Melisandre and Stephen himself.
"Okay, now think 'Status' in your mind, and another screen will pop up in front of you." Steph said and then proceeded to introduce her to the various aspects of Gamer System for the next half an hour.
In the end, when she well and truly understood just how the Gamer System worked, she looked at him with excitement and asked. "Okay, what next?"
Steph gained a mischievous smile at her questions and she felt a slight trepidation in her heart at that expression before he reached into his Inventory and brought out… a large stack of books.
Like… there must be 100 books in that stack, at least.
"Now, I want you to read through all these books." Steph said, an amused look on his face as he beheld her horrified one.
"No." She said with horror as she looked at him with a pleading expression. "Anything but this. My uncle made me read more than enough books in the Ten Towers. Please, Steph. I don't want to go through that experience ever again,"
Steph, the sadistic bastard that he was, merely enjoyed her pleading before he picked up a thin book from the stack and forced it in her hands, asking her to start with an easy one.
She begged and pleaded with him but it was all in futile. He didn't budge from his position and she was soon forced to sit on the side and read through that book.
This is where she came across the first benefit of having a Gamer System when halfway through the first page, she gained the 'Reading' skill, which made it easy for her to read books and understand the contents within that book.
Five pages later, she gained the 'Speed Reading' skill and ten pages in, she gained the 'Memorise' skill.
By the end of her first book, her newly gained skills had already by been levelled up to Reading Lvl 3, Speed Reading Lvl 2, and Memorise Lvl 2.
Not only that, but she also gained another great benefit from reading the book, which gave her 2 levels to Navigation, 1 to Trade, 1 to Deplomacy, and 1 to Long Distance Voyage.
All from reading one single book.
Steph rewarded her for finishing the book by making out with her for the next five minutes before he pushed her back on her chair and put another book on her lap.
And thus, her days as a scholar begun.
...her uncle would be so proud of her.
Flashback End
—
She awoke the next morning nestled in Steph's warm embrace, taking in his musky scent and the lingering fragrance of their brief bout of lovemaking from the night before. She buried her face into his chest, feeling content and at ease in his arms.
The way Steph tightened his arm around her told her that he was awake as well but didn't want to get up just yet.
It wasn't long before the others in the camp started walking up though, and once the early rays of dawn started to filter in through their tent, both of them finally decided to get up as well.
As she stepped out of the tent, she was greeted by a beautiful sight of the red hue of dawn on the horizon. The chilly morning breeze reinvigorated her, and she could hear the sounds of men breaking their camp and the smell of breakfast being cooked.
An hour later, they had packed their tents, eaten their breakfast, fed their horses, and had set out on their journey to Pyke once again.
They reached the castle during noon and the sight of the broken walls of her home was just as disheartening to her now as it was back when she and Theon were brought here to receive judgement from King Robert.
The fact that no attempts had been made to repair those walls even after all these moons would've revealed how dire the situation in Pyke was, if she had not already witnessed all those devastated villages and farmlands with her own eyes on the way here.
It was then that a group of people emerged from within the castle, her uncle at that head of that group.
And while she was very happy to see her uncle Rodrik Harlaw once again, a book tucked beneath his arms as always, she couldn't help but wonder at the absence of her mother.
Shouldn't her mother come out to greet them in her capacity as a Regent? And because she was her mother? She hoped that her mother was alright
Regardless of her worries, it was time for them to face the music.
The two groups approached each other, but instead of acknowledging her, her uncle's attention was fixed on Steph.
His eyes betrayed a mix of emotions as he stared at the man who had killed his sons. He then shifted his gaze towards the sword in Stephen's belt - the Valyrian sword named Stag Song, formerly known as Nightfall, which had once belonged to House Harlaw.
She could only imagine how difficult it must be for her uncle to face a man who killed one if not both his sons. And now held the Valyrian steel sword of his house as his personal weapon.
If it were any other man, then she would fear betrayal and an ambush. But knowing who her uncle was, she doubted that it'll come to it. Still though, this made her question the absence of her mother even more.
The stand off against her uncle and Steph lasted for a long while before her uncle finally let out a sigh, his expressionless mask falling to reveal a tired and grieving man.
He then turned to look at her for the first time since their arrival and gave her a soft and sad smile, which she returned with one of her own.
Then her uncle turned to look at Steph once again, a defeated expression on his face as he spoke up. "Welcome to the castle of Pyke, Prince Stephen Baratheon."