Prologue

Garth loved Lannisport. Not because of abstract things like nature and love for the land or the sea. Neither because of its oh so stellar populace. The Seven know Lannisport had more than its fair share of scum who like to lord over them.

No, he loved it for the diversity, the hustle and bustle and the organised chaos. It might sound strange. It even did to his fellow workers. But as someone who worked at the docks, there was nothing more beautiful and intoxicating than the sheer enormity and magnitude of the place. Hm… perhaps he was strange. That was what his father said when he had found little Garth beating a stick against hardwood and tapping his own feet in sync with the rhythm he created. He liked strange things. Well… strange compared to the people be grew up around.

However, his strangeness didn't really affect his work as a dock worker. It might even have increased his efficiency. After all, not many dock workers did their work with as much enthusiasm or speed as he. The extra coins he got for those helped.

His eyes roamed over the line of newly docked ships. It had been a while since the whole of Lannister fleet had been home. Most of the time, there would be at least two or three missing, out on a voyage or another. He remembered once there had been only three Lannister ships at the dock, the rest out and about on the sea.

The sun was now touching the sea on the west side, spreading its red hue into the sea and the sky at the same time. "Garth!" A voice from near the ships bellowed. "Get yer arse over 'ere. We got to work!"

"Coming!" He bellowed back even as he made his way to the ships. Work… that about sounded right. Even unloading the cargo would ….. Garth couldn't help but sigh as he made an, close to accurate, estimation. This was going to take a while.

As he heaved one thing or another and took them into their designated warehouses, he couldn't help but notice all the different people that came down from the ships. Of course, there were your regular Westerosi and people from Westerlands. Those weren't what interested him. He had grown up watching them. No, what always caught his eyes were the features that you would see less and less the further inland you go.

Some people had brown skin, some had black, some bronze, some in between and some even shimmered golden in the sun. Some would have huge eyes and some small and some slanted, with varying colours you wouldn't see in a typical Westerosi. And their attires! If nothing else, one glance at their clothes and you would know where they were from. Some Summer Islanders even left a part of their upper body nude!

It was another reason he loved this place. It drove home just how big the world was. Especially to someone like him, who had never seen anything outside of this part of the Westerlands, the very thought of it was breathtaking. He had always dreamed about travelling the world, seeing all those different places and meeting all those different people. But alas! Some dreams remained dreams.

"Hello, Garth!" A voice chirped behind him.

Speaking of different people…. He turned around, coming face to face with a slender girl of Yi-Tish features. Angled face, slanted eyes but always with a smile on her lips.

"Hello, May," he greeted the girl, smiling. May Chang, as she had introduced herself, was somewhat of an oddity in Lannisport. In fact, her whole family was odd. She had appeared with her husband and his cousins about six months ago, saying that they were just travellers and needed a place to settle and replenish their resources and money for a while. And, just like that, the family integrated themselves into the daily lives of the people of Lannisport.

How, you ask? Well, Garth couldn't give a clear answer if he wanted to. One day, they were walking into the area of the port with a slightly lost look on their faces and the next, they were everywhere.

You need help repairing something at your house? The man with golden hair and eyes and an easy smile would be there. He would take the damaged object for a day and the next day, he would give it back, good as new. Oh you need to have clothes and ornaments made? May Chang would take only a few days to deliver whatever you ordered, whereas others would take weeks. Need someone to protect your caravan on the road? Those buff cousins of theirs would take the job. Oh, what's that? Your children want to learn their letters and numbers? Well that's a job for both the husband and the wife.

Not that they did it for free. Oh no. They took money. But unlike some thieves in the guise of businessmen and craftsmen, they took the exact prices of their services and not one penny more. And while in some cases - like protecting and teaching children - these were not always fixed, they were always reasonable.

No one who took their service could say they couldn't afford their service. Not to say, they were making jewelleries of golds and diamonds for peasants. No, whenever they made something for someone, it was always from materials they could afford. Garth wouldn't be surprised if they were actually making individual things according to the status and money of the people who ordered them. For people who were making their livelihood from offering all kinds of services, they were surprisingly pleasant. They weren't exploiting people and that, in itself, was odd.

"Need help?" May's voice cut through his musings and he looked at her. She was gesturing at the heavy bag on his shoulder and he realised his legs were buckling under him slightly under the weight. He must have been carrying it for too long. He quickly shook his head. Honestly he would love for some help but he wasn't going to ask for it, especially from a woman. The lie must have shown on his face because May rolled her eyes and sighed.

"Nonsense," she muttered as she reached forward and grabbed the bag, heaving it and then putting it on her own shoulder with a grunt of effort. He stumbled slightly and panted, feeling relieved.

She rolled her eyes again. "See? Was that so hard?" She muttered something under her breathe that went along the lines of 'stupid'. He didn't know whether to laugh or get offended.

"Now come on! Show me the way!" She said as she started walking in the direction he had been going, the usual frown of effort and concentration he'd been sporting until now absent on her face. That was another odd thing about this girl. Her slender figure belied an enormous amount of strength. More so than most men he'd known his whole life. Definitely more than himself. Most women didn't lift anything heavier than one or two pitchers of water.

Garth guided her to the warehouse. It was only after she put the bag down and they made their way out that he asked the question that was on his mind.

"Are you done with the dolls?"

"Yes. I'll give them to you tomorrow. Your sister will be a very happy girl."

A grin split his face. His sister, only turning ten this month, love playing with dolls. But all her dolls were damaged and cracked. He had been saving up money to buy her a good one for a while. But he had decided to try and ask May first. That was the best decision he could have made. Three silver stags for three good quality dolls. It was a good deal. May was right. Little Ellie was going to be very happy.

"That's great!" He exclaimed. "Honestly I don't know what we're going to do when you leave."

The look on her face as he said that made him pause. "Wait… are you leaving soon?"

A nod was his answer.

"When?"

"In a few days. Jerso and Zampano should be back soon."

Ah, those cousins of her husband's. To be frank, they looked nothing like the man. One even was as black as a Summer Islander. So either his grandfather was a manwhore who took in all his kids or they were lying. Both of those were possible but if Garth had to bet, he would bet on the latter. He wouldn't begrudge them if that was the case. Everyone had a secret or two.

He reached the ships and ascended the stairs, only stopping at the top before turning to look at May, who was a few steps below him. He gave her a small smile. "Well, I wish you luck in your journeys."

She expected her to smile back and thank him and wish him luck, as she always did in these kinds of conversations. But she didn't. Instead, her eyes widened in horror as she looked at something beyond him. He frowned and turned around, trying to find what she had seen to give such a reaction. He didn't have to try for long.

In the distance, he could see a huge flagship and someone was standing on the deck, against the railing, with a torch in his hand. Said hand was pulled back and then pushed forward as the man threw the torch with all his might, aimed straight for - his breathe hitched - the ship he was standing on!

'MOVE!', his mind screamed at him. But his body refused to obey, his legs frozen in place, even as the torch got closer and closer and closer. And he knew - he just knew - that it was going to hit him. But his thrice damned legs refused to move and all he could do was wait and meet his end.

And then something blurred into his view and, suddenly, May was there, worry and concern yet fierce determination in her eyes as she threw herself towards him. Before he knew it, there was a hand around his waist and he was being pulled off the ship. For a moment, it seemed like he was flying, as he and May sailed through the air. And then they were on the ground, with May rolling both of their bodies so they wouldn't break anything.

The breathe was knocked out of him and he took a moment to regain it before looking towards the ship. His eyes widened at the sight in front of him. The touch had struck the place he had been standing on and now the fire had spread, consuming the hardwood that made the ship.

He stared for a few moments, uncomprehending, before screams and bellows cut through the haze in his mind. He looked around frantically, seeing the other ships similarly ablaze and workers running across the deck to try and get away.

"Under," he whispered, "there are workers under the deck. THERE ARE WORKERS UNDER THE DECK!" He had never screamed so loud but he needed someone to know and they needed to stop running around like headless chickens and help! People were going to die!

He turned to look at May, to ask her to leave, only to find she wasn't there. She had only turn a bit to find her - she was running towards the ships. "No!" He yelled as he got up and ran after her. He needed to get her away! "What are you doing, you idiot?!"

But she either didn't hear him or ignored him. She kept running and he could strange knives slide into her hand from seemingly nowhere, setting between her fingers. What was she going to do with those? Stab the ships?

He paused in his run in the next moment because that was exactly what she did. Five knives sunk into the hardwood of the ship in a circle and five others sunk into the ground just beside her feet, which blurred, creating a pattern inside the circle of the knives. She then knelt and pressed a hand in the middle. Garth would never forget what he saw next.

The circle of knives in the ground flashed green and, as if in response, the knives attached to the ship flashed as well. The next moment, there was a loud crash as the wood seemed to explode inside out, leaving a hold large enough for two grown men to get in or out. And the workers who had been trapped there took full advantage, jumping out in throes. Some landed on the dock while others jumped into water but they got away.

He was too busy gaping at the scene to notice the man approaching them until he heard him yell out in a strange language. He turned to see Alphonse Elric - the woman's husband - run towards her with a panic and worry in his eyes.

He didn't even seem to see Garth as he ran to the woman and hugged her tightly before pulling back and running his hands all over her, clearly checking if she was injured. He was speaking in an unfamiliar language - perhaps that was the tongue of his home, though he couldn't quite tell what the language was; panic was evident in his voice. May murmured reassuringly in the same language. The man seemed to slump in relief before he kissed her forehead.

If only every man loved their woman so, he mused.

It was then May pulled back and spoke again in the same language, looking around. The man then seemed to finally see his surroundings, his worry replaced by grim determination. It was then May decided to speak in the Common Tongue.

"You take care of the fire," she said, "I'll get the workers out."

A few minutes ago, he would have scoffed at the notion that only two persons, one a woman at that, would be capable of such a feat. But now, after seeing what May did, he wasn't so sure.

Finally, May seemed to notice his presence. She made his way to him, a frown of worry in her face. "What are you still doing here? Go before you get hurt!"

"But…. There are people… I can help get them out!"

"No buts! You won't be able to help them and you'll only get yourself hurt."

He bristled at being dismissed so lightly by a woman. He was about to snap at her when Alphonse came up behind her and smiled reassuringly at him.

"Go! You have a sister at home, right? She'll be worried about you. We'll take care of this."

The thought of little Ellie finally got through to him. That was right. Ellie was waiting. If - when - she heard about the fire, she would definitely come looking for him. And if that happened…. No, he wouldn't risk her getting hurt.

He looked at the two of them. "Are you sure?"

The two nodded in sync. "Go!" May ordered and this time, he couldn't bring himself to get offended. He turned and ran as fast as possible towards his house.

He met Ellie on the way. She had been running towards the docks to see if her 'big brother Gar' was okay. He hugged her tightly, murmuring softly in her ear that he was okay and that he wasn't hurt. For the first time in a long time, he picked her up and put her in his arms as he walked to his home.

His father and brothers were home, frantically searching the house and Donnie was about to leave to search for them. The moment they saw them, they jumped on them, tackling them and telling how worried they were and don't they ever scare them like that ever again and they were going to get the beatings of their lives if they did. He laughed and clutched them tightly. He had never been more glad to be home.

The next morning, he found three beautiful dolls on his doorstep with a note lying on in between them. 'For your sister,' it said, 'Goodbye.'

The next morning, the news of the fire spread like the fire itself and so did the reason behind it. The Greyjoys had attacked the Lannister fleet in an act of war, rebelling against the Crown. And smallfolks who could handle themselves at the sea would be recruited for the war.

The next morning, Garth went to the docks and most of the Lannister ships burned. Those ships had huge holes in them. Holes, he found, that the workers that had been under the deck had used to escape. There were casualties, of course. But most survived. That was what mattered.

The next day, he heard rumours about how, after a while, the fire had started to seemingly put themselves out. No one knew how but some say they saw a cloaked and hooded figure appear and disappear within moments, leaving nothing but a whisper of wind and snuffed out flames behind him.

There was no doubt in his mind who was responsible for that. You take care of the fire, I'll get the workers out.

"Who are you?" Garth wondered for the thousandth time. Even as he murmured the question to himself, he knew the answer they would give. It was the answer they had always given when asked that question.

We're just travellers.

Author's Note: Hello, everyone! I've been wanting to write this crossover since forever but there has never been any significant ASOIAF crossover with FMA and this is largely experimental for me. I've never written a crossover of two epic stories like this. So I was unsure. I've found that this is a good place to get a feedback. So I've decided to finally sit down and write a prologue after deciding at which point of the ASOIAF timeline I should start. I still haven't decided a lot of things and I'll just make it up as I go.

On that Note, I need a beta to check over my work and discuss plot. Preferably someone who has read ASOIAF books and knows them thoroughly because I haven't. Don't kill me! I know a fair bit from wiki and fanfics but I need someone who knows in depth so that I can discuss plot points and ideas with them and have them confirm if they would work with the book material.

Anyways, thanks for reading and please do tell what you thought of it so far.