A wave seemed to crash into deck of the boat drenching the sailors on the vessel. I gazed up at the sky and noticed that dark clouds were rolling in, masking the sky and giving a premonition of darkness to come. A wet towel suddenly slapped right into my cheek alerting me to my surroundings.

"Oi, you lazy cunt! Don't go driftin' off like you bloody own the place. Thinkin' is for those who can afford it!" A nasty looking man snarled at me. I looked over at him and gazed at his tattered clothes, long dampened and ruined by years of sailing. "Now bloody get back to work! That floor ain't gonna shine itself." The man badgered me before sneering and walking away.

I growled in anger. I turned my gaze to the cloth and clenched it tight, choking it and squeezing the water out. Was I truly that desperate to seek refuge among these filth? Sure, I mean at the time sailing and getting the hell out of dodge was the only thing on my mind after that notorious night of debauchery, but I could've at least planned things out a little better.

The act itself wasn't what disgusted me or even how it all played out. The men in that forest were vile creatures, preying on the weak for their own enjoyment, yet what disgusted me was how utterly stupid I was. After losing myself in my greed, I didn't want to just consume one or two hearts. No, I wanted them all. There was close to about forty-five salvageable hearts after the battle and I ate them all. Even the bodies down the cliff. Possessing the body of a cat proved to be pretty useful since the sheer dexterity granted made scaling the cliff almost too easy.

No, what was stupid was the fact that somewhere along the lines I got unconscious with Shadow still at the bottom of the cliff. So him being a baby cat, he would have been too afraid to scale the cliff without my help, and so I began the journey over to him when suddenly I noticed signs that someone had been in the camp recently. Some of the bodies had been stripped clean of their possessions. I began to panic and quickly started gathering all my things and then rushed towards the leader's tent. Inside, whatever money I could fit into my bag I took and then blinked towards the cliff to look for Shadow.

Only after I spotted him did I briefly look back and noticed a set of eyes and human-like features staring back at me from the forest. My heart skipped a beat and I ran forward right off the cliff and as I was falling, I blinked to Shadow, grabbed him and kept on blinking. I don't think I stopped for hours, I just kept on going. It was horrific and I wasn't sure, but I couldn't shake the feeling that if I'd stayed there then I would be blamed for all the deaths and be branded a criminal.

Who knows what other people stumbled upon me during the night. Perhaps some people saw the raging fire like a beacon and ventured into the woods to investigate. Whatever may have happened, I knew my time in the North was done, at least for now. I could never return to Woodstown or the surrounding area. The only respite was that I was caked in mud and blood and covered in plants. They may have not identified me, but I could not take that risk.

The tournament in the North be damned. I had been planning on entering it and making a name for myself, yet it was too small of a reward for such a high risk. No, the next time I would return would be when the king visits to recruit Ned as his right hand man. The tourney in the capital was grand as its prizes. I planned on taking at least the ones for archery and the melee.

I guess the only good thing about being a commoner was that no one really knew you and so you could remain anonymous. I sighed and recoiled slightly as I felt a slight tickle on my neck. I glanced over and noticed Shadow licking my neck trying to cheer me up. I cracked a slight smile and patted him ever so gently. We had known each other for so little time, yet we had already experienced a lifetime together. We had ate as one and that linked us forever.

"Shadow, stop that. You heard what that oaf said, I have to bloody scrub this ship like some common maid. The mighty Griffith reduced to cleaning up bird shit and scraping off barnacles, how the world likes to play with us." I sighed as I ranted quieted to Shadow. He jumped off my shoulder and decided to take a nap right where I had just cleaned. I sighed once again, this was going to be a long day.

As I bent over and began to scrape a barnacle off the side of the ship I flipped over expertly and contorted at an angle that would make a gymnast blush. Luckily the fruits of my labour had not been for naught. I had placed two points into swordsmanship and the other two into gymnastics. I could now perform cartwheels and handstands, perfect for the position of a clown that I had found myself in. Still it was quite fun to move so fluidly and be able to balance on the ropes that adorned the ship.

Gymnastics-Rank 2:

Able to move your body with precision. Able to elaborate flips and tricks. Can slightly contort your body and are more flexible. Slightly increased speed and strength.

Swordsmanship-Rank 3:

You are not a simple knight anymore, no you are one who has experienced battle and has learned tactics and where to strike to make it count. Experienced knight's ability.

Still I knew those perks would come in handy for a more nefarious purpose sooner or later. As I scrubbed the ship I noticed a tanned man with a curly mustache make his way towards me.

"Ah Griffith, how your hand seems to buff this shitty wood clean. I could almost see my reflection. Although I think you missed a spot." Derren japed at me in his annoying high-pitch voice while pointing at Shadow. He was a man older than me yet almost sounded like a women.

I scowled slightly at Derren. He was a Dornishman who had apparently decided to sail the world seeing its many wonders. He usually stayed on a crew for a year or two and then hopped on another that would be willing to travel further in waters more treacherous. He and I somehow clicked at mocking the brutish and disgusting nature of the majority of the crew. Some of the members of the crew would even shit right in the middle of the boat in broad-view of everyone. Then one of us 'temporary' members would need to clean it up. More often than not it was me since I had been the newest member.

"Damn you Derren. I'm in no mood for your southron ways. How long is this shit going to last?" I paused as I realized I was cleaning shit and flung my cloth overboard in anger. I looked over at Derren whose grin was threatening to split his face. His blackened teeth gleaming at me and revealing missing teeth. "Not a word out of you, I'm serious." I scowled at him.

He seemed to slink over to me and dropped right next to me. "Ara, ara, well the stars above tell me that we should be arriving on land soon enough. It has been a few weeks now and the wind has been favourable so if it keeps up then we should arrive in Dorne in maybe a day or two." He said while narrowing his single wrinkled eye at the darkening sky. I would always recoil at his left socket being empty, he would never tell me what happened and I never asked too disturbed by it.

I snorted. "No offense, but I plan on getting the hell off this ship the moment we hit shore. Even if they payed me a few dragons a day it wouldn't be worth staying among these pigs any longer." I said as I narrowed my eyes at the older members of the crew having a pissing contest.

Derren chuckled and ran his gravelly fingers through his reddish-brown hair. "Aye, I hear you mate. As you already know, Dorne is where I am from and therefore that would make me the best guide to some northern newcomer." He said while closing his eye, leaving the empty socket open.

I paused and looked over at him strangely, particularly on all the scars adorning the man's body. "I thought you were planning on sailing all the way to Lys to 'take a load off'. Why offer to accompany me, I mean sure we have our back-and-forth every now and then, but still why?" I asked slightly suspicious.

He smirked. "Dorne has some of the best women, it would be good to grace them with my presence." He bellowed out. When he saw my serious expression, he stopped. He seemed to pull his hat over his face hiding it. "I think my time with this crew is over and not for what you're thinking." He pulled his hat off and when confronted with my confused expression he elaborated. "Look at the sky above us. What do you see?"

I looked up at the sky and saw darkened clouds, but that was nothing new. "It looks like it might rain. I don't know, the wind is a little stronger. Why do you ask?"

"I can tell you're very new to sailing, yet I would not fault you even if you were an experienced one. You see the sky speaks to me, the wind whispers in my ear warning me of misfortune up ahead. My dreams lately have been filled with a darkness that is blacker than the very cat next to you. Then it always ends with a redness that seems to consume everything. I dreamt of riding on the back of a corpse risen and it attempts to drag me to the watery depths." He said seriously, watching my reaction.

"I had seen something like that in my time in the water, yet I doubt it is the same thing." He paused and then narrowed his eye at me. "When a man goes to fish in a river, he pulls a fish out of the water. It struggles as it squirms in the air, gasping for breath and looking on in torment as a higher being feasts upon it. Yet what happens when that fish fights back?" He asked suddenly.

I paused. "You mean like a shark, a beast in the water?"

He frowned. "I would've expected you to be a little more imaginative, Griffith. No, when that fish walks like a man, breathes his air and fights back. Yet, he is now the hunter instead of the hunted."

I was taken aback at the mention of his vision and reveal of a fish-man like creature. A few weeks ago I would've called this man nothing more than a crackpot fool, however, what happened before at that tree still confused me. It proved that other than the system and the Old Ones, there is definitely something strange in this world. There were people in this world who once held great abilities, perhaps a sliver survived.

"Your dreams? I was not aware that sailors relied on drunken dreams for guidance. You Dornish favour the bottle, I'm sure you may have seen something, but I think you might be exaggerating." I told him warily.

He narrowed his eye, his anger causing pus to spurt of his other. "You know for yourself that this world still holds secrets. Trust me, you've seen nothing yet. You're from the North so you should be well aware of having special dreams or even being particularly close to an animal."

"What are you implying Derren, speak your mind freely like a northerner not some southern cunt hiding in the shadows." I scowled at him. I was slightly nervous and noticed that a lump formed in my throat with the only thought of how he had found me out.

He stared right into my eyes. "You know you're a pretty shit mummer Griffith. You and I sleep in the same corner of the ship. I know when you think that I've drunk a few too many cups that you call to your cat."

I got up and stood a little away from him. "And calling to a cat is something to be mysterious about?" I asked nervously.

He narrowed his eye. "It is when you do not speak any words, at least not outward. I have voyaged far and deep across this world. I have seen things so strange and mystical in nature you would not believe me. That includes venturing into the North, and I mean the true North."

"Beyond the wall? How did you even manage such a journey? Could a ship even sail there without freezing into the icy waters?" I asked bewildered.

He chuckled slightly. "Yes beyond the wall and as for your other question you would need to sail as near to the wall as you could and then unload many smaller ship to navigate around the ice. You could sail around the ice in a big ship, however, it would add another week or two and you may not survive that long." He revealed.

I stood back and nodded. "Be that as it may, why would you even venture off there? That place has nothing of worth." I asked.

He again looked at me strangely. "That brings us back to the topic at hand. You see the only people willing to sail up there are unfortunately people who are not the most noble in nature. They go up there to procure rare animals up there and look for mystical artefacts from a time forgotten. Others travel for a more lucrative reason."

I was slightly taken aback at the mention of magical artefacts beyond the wall, yet it made sense if the Old Ones wanted to give me a reason to venture there. His last statement had me confused till it hit me and my expression darkened. "Slavers. You travelled up there with slavers." I stated.

He seemed slightly annoyed at me. "Yes, they were slavers, not me, so don't give me that shit. Besides you Northerners would even kill their children if you got the chance to, don't try to act like some morally-righteous person."

I had the decency to look away. If he had known just how far I had gone, would he be disgusted? I had tasted the flesh of man, although not directly it was still taboo. I had no right to judge. "You're right, I'm sorry." I apologized.

"Anyway, as I was saying I had often run into beasts that seemed to possess the intelligence of a man. They would know how to react to our weapons and tools. Sometimes even trying to take them and run off. I have run into men like beasts who snarl like a common dog. So yes, I know what you are. Skin-changers are pretty common in the North. More so beyond the wall." He revealed.

I was flabbergasted. "…How?"

He smirked. "I had suspected it from the moment I laid eyes on your companion. Shadowcats do not make for good pets, and you two seemed unusually close. If that was all then I wouldn't have bothered getting to know you. No, when one night I caught sight of eyes a milky white I knew right then and there you weren't ordinary. Yet, when I saw you disappear one night right in front of me only to appear in the crow's nest but a moment later I was truly shocked." He said and my eyes widened in disbelief. I could work with him knowing that I was a skin-changer, but the knowledge of my blinking was dangerous.

He noticed my expression and raised a hand. "Peace Griffith, I mean you no ill. I would especially not harm a walker, that's what we call your kind in ancient tales and stories. But really why the hell did you think I somehow decided to get to know you? Because we bonded over talking shit about the crew? You do remember that I have been sailing for over twelve years, right? I'm used to barbaric behaviour." He revealed.

I took in what he said then immediately scowled. The bastard had played me like a fool. It all made sense now, he only wanted to get closer to me because of my power. "…You-you…"

He pulled his hat over his face again. "Ara, ara, now you must think I'm a pretty shitty person don't ya? It's ok I understand if you feel anger and hatred towards me, I would if I was in your position, but know this I could've kept that all to myself with you none the wiser." He came close to me and grasped my shoulders. Shadow suddenly sprang up feeling my dark emotions and growled at the man. "Listen, strong people should stick together." He pointed at the crew around us. "You see them, they are all trash; those who do not seek to better themselves and seek something greater than humanity." He pointed towards me. "You on the other hand have already started to surpass it." He grinned.

I frowned and I got up. "You…how are you any different than a man? All I see is a human in front of me, none the better. You wish to stand by the powerful, yet what power do you have to offer?" I asked him, he didn't look like some red priest, but he had to be part of some cult. If he followed the mad god than I would run or at least end him now.

He suddenly pulled his hat off and became serious. He got up and walked over to the railing and looked off into the distance. He muttered something under his breath. Then he turned to me. "It would seem fate had other things in store for us, perhaps you might even get an answer to your question." He chuckled darkly and walked away.

I ran over to the railing and squinted my eyes. I could not see anything. Yet the clouds were darkening and I could see a storm brewing in the distance. As a cloud ripped apart and a lone bolt of lightning crashed down, it illuminated an inky black dot in the distance. No, I squinted harder, it was not that far in the distance. The fog around us only made it seem so. Was that a-a ship? A cold shiver ran through me and my right eye started to twitch as it did when Griffith was in dangerous situations. I ran my finger across the deep scar below the eye and scowled.

I had been scarred all my life, whatever happened today I was not going to lay back and take it. What was power if it didn't mean you could surpass yourself and use it? As that thought ran through my head the rest of the crew seemed to take notice of the ship in the distance. Someone recognized it and started spewing horror in a language I did not understand. From what I could make out it was not a friendly ship.

I saw men dashing around grabbing whatever they could find to fend for themselves. Some grabbed spears meant to fish, others grabbed knifes and the like. Most of the men carried a cutlass or the like, but they were not ready to fight, this was too sudden. The men were drunk and some had only woken up.

Suddenly the man who had thrown the cloth at me from before had begun to shout. "Listen up you useless fucks! That thing in the distance is bad news so I don't want you women piss-AHHRRGGRHH!" He was suddenly cut off by a bolt as long as a man's arm ripping through his throat. I looked into his eyes and bile and blood spurted out of his mouth. He swayed and lost his balance and went overboard.

"Shit, they've got bloody scorpions!" Another man shouted out.

I was slightly frozen from the sudden death, but managed to shake myself off. "Shadow!" I shouted. He looked to me and jumped onto my shoulders. If the worst came to it then I owed these men no allegiance. The only thing was that we were stuck in the bloody sea with nowhere to go and Shadow couldn't swim.

"Shit!" I growled out. "Shadow, stick close to me, only leave my side if I tell you to, alright?" I told him and he seemed to understand.

While there was mayhem on board the ship, I ran towards where the man who just died dropped his sword. I grabbed it and looked it over, it was a saber, in slightly shit condition, but it would have to do for now.

People everywhere were panicking. Some even decided that going overboard was a better fate than facing what was ahead. As thunder boomed across the sky, the ship was finally in range. It was still a few minutes away, but I could now see it clearly. It was a rotten brown, yet was well maintained. It was large, larger than ours, yet it was also faster than ours, perhaps it was not carrying much cargo. The men above it looked ravenous and some even licked their blades in anticipation of the battle ahead. The men were mostly a darker skin, like you would find in Essos.

Some of the men above had markings and tattoos over their faces, and when I noticed some chains around some men, I knew why those men had chosen to abandon the ship, for ahead of us seemed like slavers and that might've been a fate worse than death.

I grit my teeth hard. There was no way that these bastards were going to make off with me and sell me like a common coat. I held my new blade tight and readied myself for the battle ahead. As the men on board tensed up, wary of another bolt coming to them, they waited for the ship to get closer. When no bolt came it seemed as if that bolt was only a warning to stand down. It made sense as they wouldn't want too many people to die lest no more could be claimed as slaves.

I backed off slowly and the men beside me didn't seem to notice as I slunk away to inside the ship. I slowly closed the door and waited. My breath was rotten and ragged, I could see cold wisps as the room filled with fog and smoke alike. There was a silence, too eerie to be natural. Suddenly, the first scream could be heard.

Steel against steel could be heard clanking against each other as the songs of death began. I smashed my fist in the withered door and pulled back my bloody fist, too anxious to care about the splinters in my knuckles. I peered through the cracks in the wood that I created. I looked on as the men on board were slaughtered one by one, the brown-skinned men toying with crew like they were children.

Two men backed a member of my crew near a wall. One started to swing a chain like you would a rope, cackling and licking his lips. It was odd since the man himself was a slave judging by the tattoos on his cheeks. Perhaps he wanted others to suffer his fate or was promised freedom. Whatever it was, he was not compassionate as he whipped the man bloody with the chain. The chain struck the crew member's chin and seemed to dislocate it as he screamed out.

The other man jumped behind him and grabbed his arms and placed iron cuffs on him. I thought that was it expect the man then ripped the beaten man's shirt and trousers and started to wrap it around his neck as his partner in crime undid his belt and seemed to angle himself behind the downed man.

I quickly pulled back as the screams of the man echoed out in the night. My eyes widened in disbelief. I suddenly realized that they were slaves and that meant they wouldn't be able to lay with a women. They were probably only granted relief in situations like these. As the man kept on screaming I tried to go deeper on in the ship, yet I just couldn't for the life of me help but feel pity for the man

No one should had to experience what he just had. "Shit." I cursed to myself. I knew what I was going to do was extremely stupid, yet I couldn't help myself. I aimed my foot up high and kicked the door open, causing the withered and decayed door to fly off the hinges. It burst right in the path of a few people fighting and sent two people overboard.

It was right in the midst of battle so most people didn't notice, yet the men going at it near the wall craned their necks towards me. In a motion I leaned back and drew my dagger and as I flung forward so did my blade. It flew through the air, hissing like a viper. The man holding the sobbing crew member down looked on in horror as it landed in his left eye. He wasn't dead yet, but he felt like it.

"AHHHH, MY-FUCRRKKKK! AGHHHHH!" He screamed out, thrashing about. I turned my head briefly towards the deck and noticed that we were not the focus of the enemy and then I blinked towards that man who had slowly stopped his thrusts and began to pull out. As he did, I materialized beside him and held my saber up high. As his eyes widened and he began to speak I lowered my blade harshly in a slash and gave him the Northern shave. As his meaty sausage began to spasm on the ground, he screamed out in horror as blood jutted out of his groin.

My eyes were cold as he screamed out. I lined my blade with his throat and took a swing. I swung once, digging a quarter into his throat slightly hitting the bone, then again driver it deeper and ripping out chunks of flesh and bone. The third and final swing took his head right off. It rolled off into the distance, the man's eyes had rolled back into his head. A second later another slaver stepped on his skull crushing it with a squelching sound.

As his partner kept on screaming, I blinked towards him and drove my saber through his throat ending his pitiful moans. I looked towards the violated man and realized that he would now live a life of misery, forever shamed by this incident. Perhaps in time he too would enact some kind of revenge on people and aim to do what was done to him. I shook my head in sadness and approached him slowly.

I knelt beside him and ran my fingers through his hair soothingly and he recoiled slightly at my touch. He turned around slowly and I roughly turned him over, to hide the pain of the dagger I had just pierced into him. He looked at me and tears were streaming down his face. He began to speak quietly and then started to mutter gibberish.

I held him down and silenced him with my gaze. "Look at me." His eye started fidgeting and he felt queasy. I suddenly shook him causing him to look back at me. "Look at me." After a moment I sighed and continued. "You're going to die, that's what happening." I told him.

His eyes started twitching and he rapidly moved back and forth. "Wha-" He questioned, by now the blood loss should have set in after his ordeal.

I started to rub his hair. "It's ok. It's ok." I whispered.

His eyes widened as he started to breathe harshly. He tried to back up. "No, no, no, no, no. That can't be. Please no wait." He denied.

I shushed him. "It's ok, it's ok. Look at me, keep on looking at me. It'll slide over you, it'll start to feel warm, nice and warm. Then it'll move over you. It's going to be alright. Let go of all your thoughts. Nice and easy, nice and easy." I whispered as he closed his eyes and I let his body down gently.

My eyes hardened and I eyed the rest of the men fighting, some of them had been killed, yet most had been shackled up. About twenty had died, but the rest were being carried off in chains. The battle was still raging on, the remaining men would rather die than live a life of slavery and I had to respect that. I decided to hell with it if it meant revealing my abilities to these vermin, then so be it.

I would rather be hunted like a dog than be shackled up in chains. With that thought I blinked forward in front of two men fighting and stabbed the one I identified as the enemy. As the men were shocked I blinked away, leaving my crewmate bewildered.

I appeared in front of another slaver and aimed a chop at his wrist which caused him to scream out and drop his blade, then I smashed his nose in with the pommel on my blade and chopped at his neck, causing a geyser to erupt.

I kept on going around the battlefield disappearing an appearing, leaving death in my wake. Soon the men around me ganged up and solely began to focus on me. I blinked around to the corner of the ship and then suddenly one of my own crewmembers took hold of me. "I got yew now, yew bastard! They said if we captured yew then we go free. Go ter 'ell yew bloody northerner!" He let out in a disgusting manner of speech, Grinning as spit dribbled out of his mouth.

I kicked him and tried to back up and smash him against the ship, but he was stronger than me. I blinked rapidly around, but it would seem that a life at sea made him immune to sudden travel and tremors. His fingers started to dig into my neck, trying to wring it like I fucked his mother or something.

"Fuck! Let me go you fucking cunt!" I tried to yell, but my throat was strained. I couldn't even blink high or even away as we were at sea. Suddenly as my vision was becoming blurry, I heard a wet gurgling sound.

I looked up and suddenly the man became a dead-weight. I pushed him off harshly and started to stab his corpse in hatred. "Fuck, fuck, FUCK!" I screamed out. My ragged breaths were the only sounds for a moment. Then a slight purr was heard. My head whipped around and my cold and wide eyes landed on Shadow's. I looked into his soft eyes and after a moment my shoulders relaxed.

I turned back towards the man and noticed that his throat had been torn out, gazing at Shadow's bloodied lips I knew who had saved my life. I motioned him forward and even in this life and death situation, I embraced him and held him close. "Thanks little guy. I don't know what I'd do without you." I chuckled morbidly.

I placed him inside my coat and told him to stay inside. I looked harshly at the men around me. I know knew everyone was an enemy. As I began to blink around and struck my first target, suddenly a flash of lightning struck extremely close to the ship. The waves around us began to rock unnaturally like a great disaster was soon to fall upon us.

I turned around and looked over at shoulder. Derren had come out of whatever hole he had hidden himself in and was armed with twin short-swords. They seemed to gleam in the light and I could almost see the sweat off his scarred chest steam. Derren swung his sword and blood seemed to splash off it. I was greatly shocked as no one was near him, did he somehow encounter someone below deck.

"Arggh!" Someone cried out behind me. I turned from Derren and saw a clutching at a wound in his chest. He fell to his knees and the men around him backed up as if he was somehow infected. He soon fell over, blood staining the wood below him.

Silence greeted us. Only the cracks of thunder seemed to jolt us back into reality. Derren began to walk almost with a swagger and almost effeminately. It almost seemed like the walk a bird might take.

As he reached me, I stood on guard. Whatever he had just done was unknown and that meant it was dangerous. I had thought him to be a mummer seeking power like a bastard, but it seemed like he was something more.

"Fine evening we're having, aren't we Griffith?" He seemed to chuckle madly and came up to me and suddenly sniffed me. "Ara, ara, you smell like shit Griffith, learn to wash up every now and then." He smirked.

I backed up from him and then took in what he had said. I pinched the bridge of my nose and began to feel irritated. "That smell is not me, you lunatic. It is perhaps the stench of the bloody slavers and all this fucking blood around us! And where the hell were you anyways?" I said irritated.

His eye widened in glee as he patted my shoulder. "Aye, then perhaps we should give them a hand then." He then stepped forward right into the fray and stopped and pointed at the crowd. "Alright, who wants a bath? First one's on the house…or should I say boat." He then began to enter a deep thought as if philosophising about that very concept.

A bald man with a twitching eye pointed his fat finger towards Derren. "He's barkin' mad! He's a bloody madman. Get 'im befawer 'e does 'is tricks!" The man bellowed out, spit flying out as he shouted.

Suddenly two burly men rushed forward aiming for him. I looked over at Derren and was somehow worried for him. He was just standing there. As I readied myself to blink over towards him to help, Derren suddenly raised his left sword and flung it towards one of the men. It travelled at an almost unnatural speed as a sudden wind seemed to pick up aiding the blade in its trajectory. It swung forward and seemed to slice right through the fat man's neck. The blade made a clang as it bounced on the ground.

He suddenly shouted in an almost songlike fashion. "Elēnar." He cried out and then a sudden wave crashed into the side of the ship, the wave was a heavy one, it nearly capsized us. As I stumbled and attempted to regain my balance, I noticed Derren's sword had rolled back to him and he kicked it up and grasped it easily.

It seemed just in time as the other man had been delayed by the wave and soon began his charge once more. This time Derren actually moved forward and with grace. As the man reached him, he raised his heavy sword up high telegraphing his move like an amateur. Derren danced around him, jumping at the last second, mocking him. He jabbed forward with tiny pokes and slashes as fast as he could without outright killing him.

He then suddenly one of his blades through the man and pierced his heart. As the blood dribbled and the blade, Derren's unnaturally long tongue jutted out and licked it clean off the blade. The man who had just gotten stabbed was somehow still alive even after getting his heart pierced. As the man gasped for breath, clutching at his throat and flailing his limbs, Derren looked over to me.

He looked me in my eyes and I knew then that he wanted me to watch what he did next. I nodded slowly and he looked away to the dark sky above. "Jelmāzma māzigon naejot issa, heed issa ēngos, pryjagon issa foe ilagon. Nyke tepagon ao glaeson." He seemed to sing out, almost like a swan.

I looked on and then my eyes widened incredibly before shutting themselves due to the blinding light that appeared. I creaked my eyelids open and noticed lightning crashed down to Derren and seemed to envelop the man that had his heart pierced. The smell of burnt flesh invaded my nose as the man fried.

I looked on and saw that that sword that was stuck in the man started to crackle with electricity and Derren suddenly seemed to gain this rippling aura. He raised the other sword and slowly waved it around and then pointed it at a slaver. The blade soon turned blue, then darkened. Smoke seemed to radiate off the blade as lightning crackled for but a second and then it shot out forward right into the man in the distance, blowing a hole right through him.

The looked down and suddenly fell overboard and a splash could be heard as his corpse was lost to the sea, becoming the next meal of some fish. The men above the ship were full on panicking now, some of the men jumped overboard and the others jumped back to the bigger ship.

I looked over and noticed that the men on the other ship were throwing jars at our ship and as they broke, liquid seemed to splash out. I crouched down and felt it and the smell was familiar. "Shit!" I cursed as I realized that what they were throwing at us was most likely oil. I ran to Derren and stood side-by-side with him. "These bastards plan on cooking us like a meal. Any ideas! Have any southron tricks up your sleeve?" I asked him desperate for a solution.

He pulled his hat over his face briefly and nibbled on the cloth. "I have one idea, but you need to do exactly what I say. Make sure you hold onto that cat of yours because it's going to be one hell of a bumpy ride. Say you can swim good, right?"

I looked over at him and subconsciously held Shadow in my arms tightly. "Wait, what?" I asked confused.

He smirked. "Details, details, I'm sure you're going to be fine." Then he suddenly tensed up. "Ōños va perzys." He sang.

"What are you…?" I was cut off as a huge bolt of lightning ripped out of the sky and blasted right into the boat. The force launched me backwards and suddenly I felt someone grab hold of me and throw me overboard with tremendous force, saving me from the flames.

Wooded planks exploded and started flying away and the ship burned like a funeral pyre. The shock of the explosion sending me deep in the water, thrashing about like a common fish. I gasped and fought against the waves as I couldn't breathe. I had accidently swallowed some water and was now on the verge on having a spasm attack. I suddenly looked up towards the surface and blinked towards it.

As I took in a deep breath of fresh air, I started to cough out harshly. I choked out the water that had gotten in me. As I calmed myself, I suddenly felt a deep worry. Shit where was Shadow? "Shadow!" I shouted. Luckily he seemed to hop onto my head at that very moment. I let out a sigh in relief, it was a good thing that Shadow could probably hold his breath longer than I could.

I then noticed something in the distance that caught my ire. It was not the burning ship or the slavers dancing on board, but rather a certain Dornish bastard. I swam furiously towards him and he turned around to greet me.

"Ara, ara, Griffith good to see you…" He was suddenly interrupted by my fist smashing right into his cheek. He turned over to me and grinned before spitting out a blackened tooth. "Ara, ara, now is that any way to greet your friend?" He asked annoyingly.

I grit my teeth. "You southern bastard, what the hell did you do?" I shouted at him.

He raised a brow. "You mean aside from saving us, providing knockback to bring us closer to the enemy ship all while destroying any evidence that we may have survived so the slavers wouldn't expect us coming for them?" At his cocky words my anger faltered for a moment, what he said was true. "Aside from that I tried to cool your blasted Northern ego off, but clearly even the gods cannot work such a miracle." He japed, and I scowled once again.

He raised his arms in surrender. "Look we can discuss tactics and the like later, but for now the enemy is getting away." He pointed behind him and I realized that he was right. After witnessing and the mystic shit that took place during the battle, clearly the slavers had thought they had bitten off more than they could chew and were getting the hell out of dodge.

I looked over to him and then shook my head and began to swim close to the ship. The only problem was that we would never be able to catch up to a ship just swimming against the tide. I scowled and looked over to Derren. "Oi, hold on to me, I'll get us closer to the ship, it might take a few jumps though." I ordered him.

He paused in his strokes and looked at me, his lone eye putting me off balance. He smirked. "Well I'm the first aren't I?"

I looked at him in confusion, what was this crazy bastard thinking of now? "My first what…?"

"Why, the first person that you have taken with you and experienced your power." He exclaimed.

I gave him a deadpan look. "You do remember the man on the boat that I blinked around with…right?"

He seemed to deflate as if remembering the very situation. "Oh right…"

I shook my head at his antics. "Look just grab hold of my arm before I change my mind and leave you to become fish food." I ordered and he quickly latched on.

I blinked away, it took me three times, but I managed to reach the side of the boat. Derren quickly pulled his blades out and stabbed them into the wood and started to climb the ship. "Well, you just gonna stare or are you going to get a move on?" He asked. I sighed and moved towards the ship and plunged my blade deep into the wood.

As we climbed up, we soon reached the railing, and as a slaver passed by us, Derren quickly reached out and pulled him overboard. His screams were muffled by the storm raging overhead. We jumped over the railing and onto the deck. The fog seemed shadow us and we scurried across the ship like rats preying on their next meal.

He ran towards a dark part of the ship and waited. As a few men passed us by, we grabbed them and slit their throats. "Listen Griffith, no time for morals and the like here, we kill them all, understand. Use your power to blink around and kill them silently. As soon as we kill the ones above deck we can move on." He told me and I nodded gravely.

I blinked across the deck like a painter, painting strokes of blood on the canvass that was this ship. After the bodies piled up, Derren motioned towards me signaling that there were no more men above. I blinked back to him and we began the descent into the ship below.

As we cleared the halls of men, we realized that most of the men were probably dead, this ship was probably only now filled with what slaves they managed to capture. After searching the last of the rooms, we noticed a room leading to the bottom of the ship. We creaked the door open and noticed whipped and beaten men and women chained up like common animals. Luckily no children shared their fate.

I closed the door slowly. I backed up and noticed that Derren had been staring at me. "What is your price?" He asked suddenly.

I was taken aback. "My price?"

He narrowed his eye. "Yes your price, as in your price for using your gifts. All higher powers cost something, for instance death is needed for my gifts. The red priests light some poor fool on fire whenever they need something. So the question is what the hell do you require to gain power?" He asked me. "And do not presume to lie to me, I can tell if you do." At that moment pus seemed to worm out of his empty eye socket.

I swallowed a lump from the disgusting sight ahead of me. I could lie and then he may or may not find out and that might result in a fight I do not know I could win. Or I keep it to myself and somewhere along the lines he figures out later. I can't keep what I do a secret forever, somehow someone will eventually find out. I could only hope that this sadistic bastard isn't repulsed by what I do.

"…Flesh…the heart…" I let out weakly.

He looked at me strangely and after a moment he grinned. "Cannibalism? I knew Northerners were barbaric, but not to this extent." He seemed to cackle. At noticing my clenched fists he lost his grin. "Look calm down, I've been to Asshai before. Trust me I saw there made what you do for power seem like a field of flowers. But really, in Essos cannibalization is done a lot not only for power, but just to dominate a person, and it is done often. People have always held a belief that the consumption of another would grant them power, for if a fish grants you the ability to survive for a day, so what will the man who caught the fish give you?" He revealed.

I looked at him. "What are you talking about?" I questioned him.

He smiled. "We are what we eat. If one eats a lot of swine, they slowly begin to develop features like a pig, so does a man gain powers when presented with a buffet of his friend. But worry not I do not judge Griffith. Others might, but I never will. I will always favour those who seek out power, for there is nothing that I hate than when someone chooses to remain weak. So get ready." He said.

"Get ready for what?" I asked.

He rolled his eyes. "Get ready to grow in strength there is feast aplenty. Corpses litter this ship like rags and there are more ready to be made waiting below in chains." He declared.

"But the men are innocent below. They've done nothing." I tried to reason.

He seemed to close his eye. "In this world power can only be gained through struggle and death. Kings fight bloody wars sacrificing common men for their own desires of ruling above them all. Is it somehow better that they don't deal the final blow to the men they send out to die. No it isn't. At least with us their sacrifice truly means something." He said soothingly.

I looked at him weirdly. "What, but I can't…" I let out.

He scowled at me. "And why is that?

"For one thing the moon needs to be out as I consume the heart." I revealed.

He seemed to scratch his chin. "What strange conditions, well we can certainly work around that. Follow me." He said as he walked into the slave quarters.

I followed him and we came across a beaten up slave. Derren seemed to pull out a key out of nowhere and suddenly unlocked him. He fell into his grasp and started to thank him profusely for freeing him. He told him not to worry, that he was only doing his duty. I slightly frowned at his blatant lies. The man was going to die for sure.

He led the man up the stairs and onto the deck and told him to stand in the middle. As the man did, Derren suddenly stabbed him right in the lung. "Gīda jēdar." He sang out and the fog and clouds seemed to part.

As the moon glittered onto us the man gasped one last time. "W-why? You-you have no honour." The man rasped out as he fell.

Derren stood over him and scowled at him in disgust. "Honour? Honour is just a lie that you tell yourself to feel better about murder." He spat out as the man was no more.

He walked over to me and pushed me towards the body. "Grow stronger, you have no excuses now." He said.

As I began to call out Shadow, he suddenly stopped me. "No shortcuts. I see now that you've somehow managed to bypass a requirement and gain sustenance through your cat, but you're only neutering yourself in doing what you do. You walk on crutches like a cripple and will fall to the ground crying like a babe if you lose this method. No you need to eat like a man." Derren said.

I narrowed my stare at him. "Or else what?" I asked.

He looked at me coldly. "Or else I will kill you as you slip into the skin of your cat. I already said I hate weak people above all else. Now eat." He threatened.

I held in a breath and turned away from him. I knew I couldn't run away from this and as much as I wanted to hate Derren with all my heart for doing to me, I couldn't fault him. I could not rely on Shadow for my hunger forever. With a sigh I raised my dagger and cut the flesh off him. I tore away at the bones and suddenly the heart was in my grasp.

It was wet and squishy like a grape, yet smelled like iron and piss. With a slight tremor in my hands I brought the cursed flesh towards my lips and took a deep bite. Sweet juices flew into my mouth as my tongue seem to lap at the blood spurting out like a faucet. I tore greater chunks off and wondered why I hadn't done so before.

Heart Consumed.

I licked my lips as a madness seemed to consume me. I had tasted the flesh of man and I wouldn't be able to go back. I looked over at Derren in a daze and he smiled. "Well what are you waiting for there's a feast waiting for you just down the stairs." He let out.

I almost ran giddily down the stairs as the hunger threatened to consume me. Derren creaked open the door and we were greeted with faces full of hope. The people begging us to free them. "We will free you alright." Derren chuckled. "But first, let us let in a little light." He grabbed a women and stabbed her in the stomach. "Pryjagon se dōros." He sang out and lightning seemed to crack through the wall breaking it and letting in the rays of moonlight.

As I gazed at the moon above I smiled. After the first few minutes the screams seemed to muffle themselves as I filter them out. The only thing on my mind being power. I was so close to evolving.

Heart Consumed.

Heart Consumed.

Heart Consumed.

Heart Consumed.

Heart Consumed.

The notifications kept on coming in and at last I was done my feast. The bodies that littered the ground stank up the ship, but I could not care, I began to ascend the stairs to stand above it all and gaze at the heavens. Derren followed me up.

He soon took hold of the wheel and began to steer. "What are you doing?" I asked him.

He kept on staring ahead into the distance. "We're going to Essos, the land of magic and mystery. With you at my side Griffith, nothing can stop us. I have a special tomb in mind to stop by at first." He cackled out.

I shook my head. "Should prove to me interesting, I think I'm going to sleep for a bit." I told him and he nodded towards me.

As I entered a cabin, I fell and laid down in a bed. Suddenly I willed the system to come to life.

CONGRATUALTIONS!

You have just earned your first Special PERK point.

Use it well.

Your choices are below:

Esper Awakening:

Upon awakening, espers possess the natural abilities to utilise psychokinesis, allowing them to manipulate things with their mind. They all have the basic ability to see spirits, sense others with psychic power and also create a protective barrier around themselves. Other abilities may be gained through training. Most espers will develop a unique ability.

Symbiote:

Ancient civilizations have often spoken of a darkness that was so demonic in nature that even those that dabbled in the dark arts were wary of seeking it out. Even those in Asshai and the bravest of shadowbinders would not dare to be possessed by this ancient creature. In truth the darkness is an ancient alien symbiote that lived in the deep dark recesses of space and in essence has evolved what would seem like supernatural abilities in this world. It needs a host to stay alive so the only requirements are that you are alive, being a thrall will cause the symbiote to reject and then turn on you.

Pocket Dimension:

The pocket dimension is an extra-dimensional ability which allows the user to store things into it. Its special ability is control the dimension and its contents. It connects the space of reality to the pocket dimension, opening an "invisible door" between dimensions that allows for the contents to pass through upon their owner's command.

Devil Fruit:

Devil fruits are fruits that give the consumer of said fruit a supernatural ability. These range from morphing into animals, to becoming a rubber man, to even becoming the living embodiment of ice. These fruits are only held back by the user's creativity. You can choose the category of fruit you wish to receive, then you will get a random fruit from that category. The user loses the ability to swim and his devil fruit ability will become null in the water.

Stand:

Stands are the personification of a person's fighting spirit and will whose abilities are given visual form. It generally presents itself as a figure hovering over or near the user and possesses abilities beyond that of an ordinary human, which, depending on the Stand User, can be wielded for good or evil. These abilities can range from weird to godly, however, every single stand has the potential to become the strongest; your imagination is the only limit. You are given one based on your life choices and personality.

Dead Bone Pulse:

It allows the user to freely manipulate their bones. You gain the ability to control your osteoblasts, osteoclasts and the ability to regulate your bones' calcium density. You can grow bones anywhere on your body and they will regenerate indefinitely.

Vampirism:

A strange stone mask appears before you, you decide to put it on like an accessory. Your finger grazes across the cold stone and pierces itself upon the edges. Suddenly everything goes black and you fall into a deep slumber. When you awake, you are something else, something more. However, beware the light.

Mirror-Man:

You gain the power to bend light around you in order to disappear from sight. With enough training you can redirect light in order to make illusions appear. The user gains the ability to absorb light and then can release the stored energy as a burst of plasma or focused like a beam. Much more lays behind this, yet the greatest boon to this ability is to negate the deadliest weakness of a vampire. In essence you will be immune to sunlight.

Caller:

You hear a ring in the distance. A phone is ringing in an abandoned booth. You approach and pick it up. It asks if you accept the call, like an operator connecting lines. However, in this case the reception has a little more range. You can summon random beings from other realities to your current dimension, if they will play along is another question altogether. Cannot choose who will answer the call.

Those were a lot of abilities, I couldn't help but feel that all the chaos was worth it in the end. I wanted them all, yet when I saw it I could only choose one first. I wanted a devil fruit, yet it would be stupid as hell to choose it while I travelling on a boat, so it would have to wait.

No the only thing that caught my mind was the 'stand'. They held unlimited power in bizarre ways that could be unlimited. Your imagination truly was the limit for such an ability. With that in mind, I selected it. "Stand!" I shouted out.

[Stand] Chosen!

Congrats Player you have taken the first step in your long journey to the top!

The mutation will soon take place, do not panic as you begin to lose consciousness.

Determining stand…Done:

Tsk, tsk, you've been a naughty boy, eating things that you shouldn't have, yet you desire power above all else.

Stand: Grand Cuisine

Powers of stand remain up to you to discover, yet a clue will be granted upon awakening from your slumber.

Remember the stand is only limited by you.

Farewell Player! For now oblivion awaits.

As the message faded away so did my vision. I could only dream of what power I now held. The future was in my grasp.

AN: Alright so I don't usually do author notes since I feel some type of way towards author notes. Regardless, I felt that it was necessary here. Look, as you can see in my bio I write fics mostly for myself whenever I'm bored. This particular fic was written after my friend had asked me to write for ASOIAF, but wanted the power to have a price that was unforgivable. Murder nowadays is seemingly tame as 5-year-old kids shoot each other online and the fact that so much death occurs in our world today. Me and my friend sat down for a while and really thought about what was so horrible it could never be justified. We ended up on cannibalization after replaying Until Dawn. The game follows choices you make and sometimes the choices you make can give you power, yet take something away in the process. When you eat flesh in the game you turn into a wendigo, something that is almost impossible to kill, you gain so much power, yet lose your humanity in the process. That is what I was trying to encompass with Griffith. If you hadn't realized he's the mix of two different personalities, his old self, and the reader of the series.

Look I know some of the power might seem a little overpowered, but the very fact that it is a gamer fic makes it OP by default. The way to succeed in writing strong characters is to write even stronger villains. Also fun fact, In the first draft of this fic, Derren ended up getting killed by Griffith, but as I started to write Derren's backstory, his dreams and ambitions, what happened to him as a childhood, etc., I came to the realization that he would be a key part of Griffith descent into madness/power. At least in this fic, I try to add psychological elements when I can. For those who cannot realize it. Griffith is not fully in control of his emotions, he's being swayed by a higher power. I would not generally reveal something like this, but people keep on bringing shit like that up. If something dropped you a fictional universe, it would expect you to do what it wanted to, not give you a choice, it would only give you the illusion of a choice.

If you also cannot realize it, the OLD ONES are essentially the mad gods of Lovecraft's creation. If you know anything about his style of writing or his stories, you all know that the characters usually descent into madness after experiencing the supernatural. There are some things that shouldn't have been tampered with. If you also don't know, Lovecraft is one of GRRM's fav authors, he actually references several times in the series, which I'll try to include and expand on.

So look if you don't like the fic, no one's forcing you to sit down in a chair and read it. I know this fic isn't for everyone and that is alright. There is plenty of other fanfic on this site, you should read one of them. I mostly create fic for me to read in my spare time, as it's a convenient way to read what you want when you want. I have a second GOT fic that doesn't use sacrifices for a power source and is more based around D&D, if you feel that this might be a little too edgy for you, then check that out. I promise you this is the only psychological fic that I've written. The next fic I'm probably going to upload is along the lines of a happy tone. You can ask for it by PMing me or writing in the review.

Again let me know, your thoughts. Also please don't mindlessly bash it if you don't like it, I'm not writing it for you, it's mainly for my friend, if you want to read it then sit back and enjoy, if you don't then you can see yourself out. Also, I apologize if I don't get back to people's questions in the reviews, I rather like to show you through the storytelling rather than outright give you an answer. Also, know that the updates will be on and off. I have a full-time job in real life and only write sometimes when I'm free as a hobby. Again my fics are mostly for me, but I believe in giving back, I've been reading fanfic for a long time and enjoy it. So I publish my fics on Fanfic for the chance that others might enjoy.

So yeah, I might continue to do author notes from on, so if you have any questions and concerns feel free to let me know. I might reply right away as I only log back in when I'm either in the mood to read or publish something. So again, happy reading, if this is not your cup of tea then I hope you find something you like better after all this is fanfiction.