26 Chapter 26
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If what Gregor heard was true, King Robert and Queen Cersei were smitten with each other.
That could have been interpreted as merely the elation typically experienced by newlyweds, but it was a hopeful sign.
Maybe the marriage between Robert and Cersei would actually work out. They were already showing more affection to each other than they ever had in canon.
Not long after the Royal Wedding, the first volunteer for the Legion without Banners appeared in Moat Cailin. Interestingly, it was Gerion Lannister, youngest brother to Lord Tywin.
That came as a pleasant surprise to Gregor. He greeted Gerion warmly. He was glad to know that he had not lost face with all the Lannisters.
Based on the books, he had been Jaime and Tyrion's favorite uncle, and by far the most equitable of Tytos Lannister's brood.
A few days after Gerion arrived, the Essosi architects got to Moat Cailin, as well. Gregor presented them with the outline he had drawn up for the moat's renovations.
The architects followed his outline almost flawlessly.
They drained part of the swamp and built a canal so that passage between Moat Cailin and the Narrow Sea was possible.
They also built a harbor just outside the moat. The canal began in that harbor, and it ran all the way to the Bite, just a few leagues southwest of White Harbor.
The primary purposes of the canal would be to transport supplies and provisions to the moat, and to enable the Legion to travel by sea when they had to.
The harbor was large enough to station over a score vessels. In order to uphold the moat's defensive capabilities, the canal was made very thin; even if an entire armada tried to lay siege to Moat Cailin, they would have to enter the canal one at a time.
There was also an iron gate at the entrance of the canal that could only be opened from the inside. Those precautions and the swamp's exploitable surroundings would make sinking invading ships fairly easy to do.
The architects also built an aqueduct so that fresh water was more readily available. That would be critical, based on how large he expected the Legion would ultimately become.
Additionally, the walls were reinforced, the towers were strengthened, and the gates were reconstructed. By the end of those six months, Moat Cailin truly was a magnificent sight to behold.
Even after Moat Cailin was restored, Gregor had the architects stay on for future developments he had planned. They were willing to remain in Westeros, so long as he had work for them.
Gregor's forces had also gotten larger in that time. The Legion without Banners was up to eighty recruits.
So far, no one from the Iron Islands or the Crownlands had signed up. Apart from Gerion, only a couple Westerlanders had showed up.
A handful of people from the Vale, the Riverlands, and the Stormlands had enlisted. The Reach and Dorne had a slightly larger turnout.
More volunteers came from the North than any other region by far. That was probably due to how Eddard Stark had vouched for Gregor.
There was one other change Gregor made: his sigil.
His father and the future Cleganes of Clegane's Keep would keep the original sigil of the three hounds. Gregor needed a new sigil for the Cleganes of Moat Cailin.
For the new sigil, Gregor adapted the illustration of a mountain with nine small figures at its base. The mountain, obviously, represented him.
The nine small figures were supposed to represent one person from each of the regions of Westeros.
They were a symbol of what was to come. He did not explain that bit to anyone else, but they were free to guess.
The first two years of Gregor's tenure as lord of Moat Cailin were mostly uneventful.
The Legion without Banners was called upon often enough, but their errands were generally composed of little more than hunting down bandits, rogue lawbreakers, and the occasional band of outlaws.
Overtime, however, the crime rate in Westeros steadily rose. Gregor saw that as a sign that things would get worse before he and his soldiers could make them better. Strangely, he felt relieved.
That implied he would have plenty of opportunities to demonstrate the Legion's aptitude. The more opportunities he used, the greater impact he would leave on Westeros.
In the third year after Gregor assumed lordship of Moat Cailin, a lone rider approached the moat from the north.
The rider was hooded and cloaked. When the rider reached the gate, the guardsman called out "Who goes there?"
The rider declared in a deceptively deep voice "I would have words with your lord."
"Whatever message you have, I can relay to him," the guardsman claimed.
"I would prefer to speak to him face-to-face," the rider rejoined, "I will not waste his time, I promise you."
The guardsman stood thinking on what to do for a moment. Then he told the rider "I will send for him. I cannot guarantee he will come straightaway, though."
"I can wait," the rider asserted.
At that time, Gregor had been conversing with his council, which was composed of Sylas Vikary, Maester Kennick, Erryk Ruttiger, and Rodrik Cassel.
Since Rodrik's brother had not perished in Dorne in this universe, Martyn now served as Winterfell's master-at-arms instead.
That gave Rodrik the freedom to join the Legion without Banners. Now he also served as Moat Cailin's master-at-arms.
The council was just finishing a meeting when the guardsman sent a servant to find Gregor.
Right before they exited Gregor's solar, the servant entered the room and informed the Mountain that a rider with a concealed face was at the northern gate, and this rider desired to speak with him directly.
Gregor had nothing of immediate precedence on his agenda, so he decided he could spare a few minutes to interact with this mysterious rider. The members of his council accompanied him.
By the time they reached the northern gate, the doors had been opened and the portcullis had been raised.
Gregor gradually passed the threshold of the gate. He did not stop walking until he was less than ten feet from the rider.
He noticed very quickly that the rider's head was higher than his. That did not happen often, even when the other party was mounted.
He also noticed that the figure had a very slender figure, although the chest was exceptionally pronounced.
Gregor folded his arms and asked rhetorically "You asked for me?"
"Yes, my lord," the rider replied in the same false, deep voice, "I'm here to offer you my services."
Gregor lightly shrugged and stated "There's plenty of work to be found here. But might I see your face first?"
The rider promptly took ahold of the hood and threw it back.
Immediately, Gregor discovered why the figure was so slender. Behind that hood was not a man's face, but a woman's.
Actually, "woman" may have been a stretch. The rider was more a girl. Judging by her countenance, she had to be in her teens.
Then again, she may have been a girl, but she did have a womanly figure. She was tall, she was strapping, and her form was rather curvaceous.
She had black hair that went down to her shoulders. Her face was a little long, but it complemented her physique nicely.
"You've come a long way to serve as a kitchen wench," Erryk Ruttiger japed.
Sylas Vikary snickered at that. Maester Kennick lightly rolled his eyes and Rodrik Cassel glared at the castellan. Gregor simply ignored him.
"I'm not here to work in the kitchens, ser," the female rider stated bluntly, "I'm here to enlist in the Legion."
That surprised everyone there except Ser Rodrik Cassel and Gregor Clegane. As a Northman, Ser Rodrik was used to the concept of warrior women. The Mountain had been looking forward to having some women enlist in his army.
He was actually surprised that it had not happened sooner. Especially when considering that a larger percentage of his numbers came from the North than anywhere else in the Seven Kingdoms.
Although no women had joined the Legion yet, Gregor had never doubted for a moment that some eventually would. Now, one finally had.
After a bit of silence, Gregor stepped forward, gave a nod of his head, and stated "Very well, my lady."
While the expression on the rider's face suggested that she had fully expected to be welcomed into Gregor's army, she seemed a little stunned by how readily accepting he was.
She cocked her head and said assumingly "You have no objections to a woman serving in the Legion?"
"Of course not," Gregor professed, "It is well known that the Legion does not discriminate on basis of status, age, reputation, birth, or religious beliefs. There is no reason why we should discriminate on basis of gender, either."
"Fine argument, my lord," the rider admitted, giving a shrug of her shoulders.
Gregor smiled at her, held his hand out to the gate, and bade her "Come, please."
The rider grinned back and urged her horse forward. She followed the Mountain back through the gate. After the portcullis was lowered and the doors were shut, Gregor led her over to the stables.
As the stableboys took charge of her horse, she dismounted. When she was on her feet, Gregor realized just how tall she really was.
He had initially supposed that she simply appeared that tall whilst mounted. Perhaps she had been sitting on a blanket or two.
As it turned out, she had not. There was nothing on her horse's back other than its saddle. So her height had not been embellished. It was all her.
On foot, she still had to look up at Gregor. Of course, everyone else did. But they would probably have to look up at this girl, as well.
She was over six feet tall. She had to be the tallest female he had ever seen, and one of the five tallest people he had ever seen.
He was surprised even further when the girl opened her cloak, revealing her surcoat. Emblazoned on it was her sigil: a bear standing on its hind legs with its teeth and fangs bared. Furthermore, the girl's cloak and clothes were predominantly green.
Right then, Gregor knew who was standing before him. He stated assumingly "You're from Bear Island?"
"Yes, ser," the tall girl answered, turning back to Gregor, "My name is Dacey Mormont."
She then extended her hand to the Mountain. He grasped it, shook it firmly, and told her warmly "Welcome to the Legion, Lady Dacey."
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