Not Just a Kingslayer

Chapter 27

"Daena, you shouldn't be fighting right now. I don't mean to sound rude, but you look like you could pop."

Daena grinned. Brienne had been trying to convince her to stop her lessons until after the baby for weeks now. "Brienne, how many times do you think it will take to get me to say yes?"

"I hope every time it will just be once more."

Daena laughed. "Well eventually you must be right I suppose."

They went about their routine, sparring for nearly half an hour before Brienne suddenly stopped holding up a hand. "Wait," she whispered, looking around.

"Aw, I was finally going to be-" Daena broke off when she saw the fear in Brienne's eyes. Then she heard a voice.

"No, go on. It's rare to see two of the Kingslayer's women fighting."

"No it isn't," chimed in another voice from across the yard.

"Keep 'em going anyway." Another voice. And then more and more. Daena's eyes widened as Brienne's narrowed.

"Daena," Brienne said in a low, insistent voice,"you need to run."

"No!" Daena cried. "I'll not leave you!"

"Daena," Brienne said more urgently this time,"you need to go right now. Go to Jaime. He needs you."

"I won't leave you!" she cried once again. Tears had begun to stream down her face.

"Aw look at that," said one of the voices from the shadows. "They're trying to protect each other. Shame the third one doesn't do the same. Alright boys, out with ye." And with that, men stepped from the shadows in all directions. They were surrounded.

Brienne raised her sword with a grimace, pushing Daena behind her. "If you want her, you'll have to get through me first."

"Well boys, doesn't seem too hard, does it?"

"I'll have you know that I was a member of the Kingsguard of Renly Baratheon."

"Ain't he the one who died on your watch?"

Brienne let out a growl befitting of a bear and charged forward, locking swords with the man. He held his own for a time but her rage was such that he didn't last long. Then the others rushed in. She quickly had three men on her. She slashed with her sword, never letting her guard down for an instant. Meanwhile, Daena tried to put her training to use, but she soon found herself backed into a corner by two swordsmen. Brienne looked up for a moment and saw her from across the yard. She quickly dispatched of the man she was fighting and made to run towards Daena when her mouth opened in gasp. She fell to one knee, a sword sticking from her stomach, and then onto her face. She tried to continue forward by pulling herself along the ground, but that was quickly ended as the man reached down and slit her throat.

Across the yard, Daena let out a wail. "Brienne!" One man stabbed his sword through her stomach and out her back as the other cut her hand off. She fell to the ground, tears washing her face as she clutched her stomach.

The man laughed as he threw her hand across the yard, to where Brienne was still reaching towards Daena, even in death. "She can match her Kingslayer now." The other men laughed as well as they all slipped back to where they had come from.