Jayden passed through the main gates of the castle, in the courtyard, a small of men stood waiting for him. These were the men gathered by the half-wit; all of them seemed fairly able. Among their number stood Kevin, gleaming with excitement and that he would be joining them. The young knight cleared his throat, gaining the attention of the men present. Among their number were Merrett and Ashter. Keen as ever. As Jayden approached, the crowd fell silent and all turned their attention to the young knight.

'I require a party of men to join me on a task of great importance' Jayden spoke with calm confidence 'who among you will join me?'

Without hesitation; Ashter, Merrett, and Kevin all stepped forwards. Jayden was not surprised by their willingness to help. After a few moments, another of the crowd stepped forward, a muscular man a square brown beard and faded green eyes looked at him. He wore a Brigandine, a leather garment lined with small oblong steel plates riveted to the fabric. Over his head was an iron kettle helm strapped to his chin. Rested against his shoulder was a wooden shaft up to 10 feet long. Tipped with a relatively small head of steel.

'What's your name?' Jayden asked.

The man-at-arms relaxed and replied 'Elmar'

'Are you prepared to follow me and obey my commands?'

'You Ser Knight are sworn to House Rudge. If you follow Lord Rudge, I'll follow you'

A well-spoken answer, Jayden accepted that as a yes. The rest of the men remained silent. Now that he had his party he didn't care. All that mattered now was the journey and preparing his men for the task ahead. Jayden walked toward the four men and stopped once he was close enough, he addressed them informally.

'We leave for Castlewood soon. Gather what you need'

Three of the four departed. The crowd quickly dispersed. As Jayden was about to make his way to the main gates, he was intercepted by Ashter.

'May I have a moment Ser Knight?'

Jayden nodded. He stayed where he was and waited until the crowd had left. Once they were alone, Ashter shared his thoughts with him.

'If we travel along the kingsroad to Castlewood' said the bowman 'that will lead us closer to Herrenhal'

Jayden nodded 'I'm familiar with the route'

'I know for a fact Merrett and Elmar won't be pleased with that'

'As their commander, I will lead them through'

'What about the pup? Kevin knows little about the castle. What should I tell him if he asks, that there were wildings dwelling inside and will cut our throats if we dwindle too long there?'

Jayden then pressed a finger to Ashter's chest 'You will not scare the boy. We will go nowhere near the ruined castle. If he asks about it, you may tell him, but do not tell him all this just to strike fear into his heart'

The Bowman quickly brushed away Jayden's hand 'calm yourself, Ser Knight. I merely meant to advise you. I meant no disrespect to you or your decision. I only wish to advise you and offer my help'

Jayden's annoyance soothed over slowly. Like a fire slowly dying down. Jayden took a huffed 'I apologize Master Ashter. From how Lord Rudge reacted to my report from the village, he seems deeply concerned. Even as I spoke with Maester Conin, he would hardly speak about this Randyll'

'I'm sure there is little to fear. We will deal with this man when he shows himself'

'…I pray to the Seven that we can'

From the distance came the sound of footsteps. Jayden turned and saw the other three members of his company approaching. Slung over their shoulders they carried their supplies and whatever else they would need. Kevin had a traveling pouch over his back and in his arms had another one. Somewhat larger than his own, he held it out toward the young knight.

'I prepared your pack Ser Knight' Kevin spoke proudly 'Everything you might need for the journey ahead'

Jayden managed to hide his surprise as he took a hold of the pouch. Sliding his left arm through the strap, he let it hand over his shoulder then tightened the strap. He turned to Ashter 'Gather what you need Master Ashter'

Ashter quickly left for the barracks at a brisk pace. He had no intention of making the others wait for him. Merrett looked back to Ashter then to Ser Jayden.

'What were the two of you talking about?' he asked.

Jayden decided not to hide things from his men 'On our travels we shall pass close to Herranhal'

Elmar moaned in moderate protest but more out of concern. Merrett wasn't sure where to look.

'There are stories about that place' Merrett continued 'They say it's haunted by the ghost of that black-hearted king that built it. Burned alive by dragon fire'

'Not just that' Elmar interjected 'It's said the Wildling chief who fought alongside the White Wolf was made its lord, not long after the castle's curse consumed him. The wildings then fought among themselves. Most killed each other trying to replace that red-bearded bastard. Those that survived decided to return to their old ways. Now we have wandering wildlings.

Jayden put his foot down in front of every member of the company 'We will not be going to the castle unless I order us too! Is that clear?'

Within moments, the worry and back talk vanished. Kevin looked up at the two men; he saw their slack-jaws and how easily Jayden had managed to silence them. Gazing up at Jayden he was in awe. His bravery and confidence seemed boundless.

Jayden looked past the two, he saw Ashter emerge from the barracks. He staggered back to the group carrying a longbow and a quiver filled with arrows strapped to his back. When he was close enough, Jayden asked 'You are taking no provisions?'

Ashter re-joined the group 'My bow is all I need'

Accepting such an answer, Jayden felt they had wasted enough time as it was. Merrett then asked 'Are we not going by horse?'

Jayden impatiently replied 'We must reach Castlewood undetected. If Lord Rudge's enemy is stronger than we think then we must not do anything to alarm him. We will go to Castlewood without drawing attention to ourselves.

'Surely it would be wiser to get there with haste?'

'Right now we don't know where this Randyll is. If he and his men are watching Darry, we must do what we can to keep their eyes focused on the castle and not on us'

The men looked among each other, none of them had any other suggestions nor had the desire to challenge their leader. Once the matter was settled, Jayden turned toward the main gates of the castle grounds.

'Let us set off for Castlewood. Stay together all of you'

As he led the group toward the gates, guardsmen operating the gate had it gradually opened for the travellers. The five crossed the threshold of the gatehouse and strolled across the thick wooden drawbridge. Venturing out they heard the gatehouse close behind them, isolating them from the rest of Rudge's men. Jayden knew he would be solely responsible for these men under his command; he wasn't sure how he felt about that. While he had ordered other servants about during his youth, he had never held a military command. Maintaining his composer would be the best method. While serving Ser Clatton, he had never once seen his tutor display fear or uncertainty while sparing.

To his left, Jayden felt a presence. Glancing down, he saw Kevin standing beside him. His smile was so wide he could see all of the boy's teeth. Obviously, he was excited by the prospect of traveling to a different court, on orders by his master.

'I heard one of the men refer to you as pup earlier' Jayden shared with amusement.

Kevin seemed unaffected 'rightly so. My family's sigil is of a black dog on blue. Also, I'm young, hence the name pup'

'Kevin the Pup…hopefully it will change as you age'

'Hopefully. If the Warrior leads me to victory in battle or some other deed'

'Just perform your duty well and that will go a long way'

'As you say Ser Redfish'

Turning right as they reached the end of the drawbridge, Jayden led his company northward along the kingsroad. Unsure what the journey ahead would bring he did the best thing he could. He focused on the present, not allowing his mind and imagination to run wild. Trying to project an image of leadership was the best he could do to cloak his inner feelings.

'Prepared to see some wildlings pup?' Merrett asked Kevin in a mocking tone.

The young boy turned back 'I'm not a young bride before she's bedded. I'll fight anyone if I have to'

Merrett, Ashter, and Elmar all egged on the young lad in a boisterous manner. Elmar even patted Kevin on the back adding 'That's a good lad!'