Chapter Text
Extract from the writings of Grand Maester Lleric- Written in 454 AC
"When the world lied in the rows of death,
When the cold consumed with every breath,
When the winds of winter extinguished every hearth,
When the gods forsook us, and ignored the pleas of our hearts,
And when the dream of spring seemed distant and far,
You reassured us and led us again onto the true path,
You showed us the glory in defeat and wisdom in humility,
Yet reminded us that only in victory is there true nobility,
For a sword was forged and with it came light,
The sacrifice of our heroes ended the Long Night,
This is our song to you, the Anointed Four,
Honouring you will bring us peace forevermore."
---------- The Song Of Ice and Fire, an Elegy for the 4 Heroes, written by Archmaester Samwell in 347 AC
The Second Long Night ended the world as we knew it. Kingdoms, Great Houses and even entire Faiths fell in its wake. And when the sun began to rise again, it rose over a new world. Before the year 300 AC, the legend of the Long Night was simply that, a mere legend. Yet when the wall fell, and the Others led their wights to lay waste unto the realms of man, it became undeniable. The storied Others, beings of myth and legend had returned, to exact their revenge on all mankind for their defeat millennia ago.
While the specifics of the Legend of the First Long Night are unknown, the broad aspects of it have been subject to immense scrutiny since the day the Wall fell. It is said that over eight thousand years before Aegon was crowned at the Starry Sept, a winter like none before came over the world. The sun would be unseen in the sky for years, and children would be born and pass, without ever feeling the sun's warm embrace. Creatures of all kinds would grow gaunt and hungry, with the cold ravaging almost all forms of sustenance. Interestingly, this phenomenon was widespread. The Rhoynar pass down stories of a time when the Rhoyne froze as found in the tales of Lomas Longstrider. Even in Yi-Ti, they have their own story of the Long Night. The people of Yi-Ti believe that the Blood Betrayal, in which the Amethyst Empress would die at her brothers hand. At seeing this, the Maiden of Light would turn her back on the world, and the Lion of Night would send the Others to punish us all However, of all stories in connection to the Long Night, one is most prominent and stands as the most widespread of all. The story of a hero who would slay the demons and emerge victorious in the battle for the dawn. In Northern legends, it is the Last Hero who, along with the first members of the Nights Watch, would drive the Others back north. In the east, this hero is known by many names, the Warrior of Light, Son of Fire, Hyrkoon the Hero, Neferion and many more. Among these the most notable is Azor Ahai, the name given to him by the Asshaii and the followers of Rh'llor. Ultimately, the theme of these separate legends is the same, a hero would arrive to slay the demonic Others and usher in a new dawn after many year of darkness.
All these stories came to life where, at the wall, the born-again Lord Commander Snow would lead the Night's Watch's defence at the wall alongside King Stannis who, upon being recognised as the returned Lord Rickon Stark's rightful liege, was leading a sprawling host of Wildlings, Stormlanders, Northmen and many more. However, it all their efforts prove to be of no avail, as the Wall would collapse, and the Wights would barrel down onto the realms of Man. Upon retreating to Winterfell, ravens would be sent out to all edges of the world, warning of the impending doom. At the time, the presumptive King Aegon VI Targaryen had been ruling in King's Landing, and Queen Myrcella Baratheon ruled from Casterly rock. Across the seas, Queen Daenerys Targaryen was on her way to Westeros, at the head of a host of amazing size. King Stannis and Lord Commander Snow would send ravens to all high lords and claimants to the Iron Throne to gather at Harrenhall, to discuss the dangers of the Others.
Many Lords and Ladies would simply ignore such a message from a traitor's bastard and a False King, however a small minority took this threat seriously. King Aegon would send his hand, Jon Connington as a representative, while many Stormlander and Reach Lords would arrive. Queen Cersei Lannister, who stood as her daughter's regent, would denounce any and all lords attending the council. Lord Commander Snow had been named the regent for young Lord Rickon, and would arrive with caged Wights from the Fall of the Wall. The Archmaesters of the Citadel would send its own delegation of Maesters to verify the existence of the others. Archmaester Marwyn would write of this in a letter to the Citadel, "I had never seen such a grotesque thing. Its flesh let off a putrid smell as it clung onto its body. What skin there was remaining and taken a green-like hue. Bones were visible on many parts of the body, jutting out of its legs and arms. This creature is undeniably the Wights of legend, and if they truly exist, I fear for what else we are ignorant of."
From here, stories would spread among the nobility of Westeros, stories of an undead man, clinging to life through some unholy, demonic force. King Aegon VI Targaryen would immediately declare that he would suspend his hostilities with King Stannis, and tat he would command all leal subjects to follow. Following this, Lord Mace Tyrell would make a similar proclamation, as would the Lord-regent of the Vale, Petyr Baelish. After landing in Dragonstone, Queen Daenerys would send her own delegation to the ongoing Council at Harrenhall, led by Ser Barristan Selmy of the Queensguard. After receiving a letter confirming the truth of the claims of the Lord Commander, she would agree to the truce. Following this, on the sixth moon of 301 AC, Queen Daenerys would meet with the council at Harrenhall, followed by her three dragons. King Aegon would also make the journey, bringing with him a host 60,000 strong. Both would pledge their full support to the cause of fighting the others, with this three-way alliance between King Aegon, King Stannis and Queen Daenerys henceforth being known as the League of Harrenhall. After experiencing pressure from all her constituent lords, Queen-regent Cersei Lannister would also reluctantly agree to commit troops to the league. She would send Ser Adam Marbrand in her stead, and would refuse to leave Casterly Rock.
At the same time King Stannis would lead the battle for the Dawn. He utilised all resources he could, while evacuating the northenmost part of the Kingdom, sending a storm of refugees down south. By this point, the sky had become stuck in a permanent twilight, reducing visibility for all . King Stannis would utilise hit-and-run tactics. At each battle field, he would build deep pits for the Wights to fall into, and utilise flaming arrows to burn the undead. King Stannis aimed to minimise casualties, all the while reducing the number of Wights. Despite his best efforts, King Stannis would slowly be pushed back by the hordes of undead. Last Hearth would fall only a single moon after the Fall of the Wall. Ravens from Bear Island and Skagos indicate they had also fallen to the wights. King Stannis is said to have stall the Others' advance in Deepwood Motte, yet while King Stannis managed to hold those territories, Karhold and The Dreadfort would fall in quick succession. King Stannis would then retreat from Deepwood Motte, to focus on a last stand at Winterfell. By this point, six moons had passed since the Fall of the Wall, and King Stannis' host, while fueled by an almost fanatic fervour, simply did not have the numbers to launch a meaningful attack on the others. King Stannis had ordered all those unable to fight to retreat south of the neck, with Lord Rickon sent to White Harbour. The battle for Winterfell was where the weakness of the Others, the seemingly undefeatable demons, would be discovered. After a mere six days of fighting, King Stannis would receive a letter from The Citadel. In it, there were claims of dragonglass being the only weapon capable of vanquishing the Others. King Stannis would bestow upon Lord Rolland of Nightsong, who had joined with King Stannis after the fall of Dragonstone, a dragonglass dagger. After over two moons of fighting, an Other would be spotted, raising the dead. Lord Rolland is said to have attacked the Other, stabbing its neck with the dagger. Its said that the Other shattered into pieces mere seconds after this, and that many wights would simply slump over, finally put to rest.
It is at this point, on the last day of the eighth moon of 301 AC it is said that the permanent twilight in the sky had subsided, and the Long Night had truly begun.