Hello everyone. This is a relatively shorter chapter.

Before you get on with reading, I would like to communicate something. The next chapter will be a big one, and will feature the clash between the Lannisters and Stannis. I would like you thought on the coming battle.

Anyways, here's the new chapter. Enjoy.

Chapter 37

The first thing Jon noticed was the taste of salt and sand in his mouth, and the cold breeze sending chills in his water soaked soaked body. Is this heaven, he wondered, it doesn't feel like it. He slowly opened his eyes to avoid direct glare of the sun, and found himself lying face down on a sandy shore. He got up and dusted off sand from his wet clothes, and observed his surroundings. It appeared to be an uninhibited land, but the vegetation was very dense, far denser than he had noticed anywhere in the North. I fell from the ship, he remembered, and knowing that he was right in the middle of Slaver's bay when he did, he inferred that he must have been washed by the waves to an island in the middle of nowhere.

Jon felt his stomach growl, and that was when he realized how hungry he was. He got up from the sand, and started walking away from the sea. He looked around for food, and all he could see was a diverse array of trees growing all over the island. Maester Luwin had once told him that some trees have poisonous sap, and one should know whether a palnt is poisonous before eating any part of it.

Jon was in luck. There were many familiar fruit trees there; plums, apricots and many others which Jon couldn't recognize. There must be some animals too in this island, Jon realized, and another thought hit him in quick succession; that there might be some animals on this island who may take him for food.

Uncertainity gripped Jon Snow, and he carefully made his way to the forest. He plucked a branch from the first tree he crossed, and fashioned a cudgel out of it; which might work as an instrument for plucking fruit, as well as for self defense just in case.

Jon plucked fruits, and ate to his heart's content. There was large variety of fruits, and there were peaches so sweet that they brought tears to Jon's eyes. He collected timber from the trees and built a fire to dry his clothes He walked in the forest, mesmerized in its beauty.

After that he scouted around for some time, exploring the new land. He saw some strange goats roaming in the forests, as well as some small animals whom Jon inferred to be monkeys. That was the first time we was seeing them. Fascinated, Jon approached them carefully, and the monkeys' attention turned towards. They watched him warily, their dark wide eyes wide with alert and suspicion. As he approached them further they bared their teeth at him, but that only made Jon laugh more at them.

Then all of a sudden one of them made a funny noise, like someone trying to suppress his laughter. Pretty soon the monkeys dispersed to the upper branches of the trees, now many of them making the same noise.

What was all that about, Jon wondered, disappointed to see the little ones go away. But his confusion was soon answered, when he heard a low growl and crackling of dry leaves from the forest. He turned to look in the direction of the noise, and saw a lion approaching him, his long pointed teeth bared and dripping with saliva.

Shit. Jon tried a foolish attempt to shoo the beast away, but it pounced at him roaring loudly. Jon sidestepped quickly, and the lion slammed against a tree behind him.

Jon ran with whatever speed his weary legs could muster, and heard the lion pursuing him with ferocity. Jon attempted darted behind trees to throw the beast off its chase, but it didn't let go. He didn't know much he had ran, when he felt suddenly that legs refused to move from the ground. Off balance, Jon tumbled to the ground, and noticed that his leg was stuck in a huge patch of wet mud.

The beast had caught up, and was now approaching Jon slowly, certain of its success. I have come this far, Jon thought, I won't die like this. He dipped his hand in the mud, and to his utter surprise it fell on a sword pommel. He pulled at it with all his might, and soon a greatsword emerged from the grey mud. The lion pounced, and Jon buried the sword in its head, killing the beast immediately.

Jon got out of the mud, and attempted to wipe of mud off him. It won't go unless I wash it, he realized, and that was when his attention turned towards the sword. He picked it up and examined it. Jon recognized the dull shimmer and the light weight of Valyrian steel quickly. He noticed the hilt, and saw that the pommel had a lion head on it, with rubies for eyes.

I killed a lion with a lion, Jon smirked. He couldn't help but remember his pet direwolf Ghost, and how he used to protect him when he was at Winterfell. "Wolfclaw," he whispered, "your name is wolfclaw." However he soon realized that for this name to hold he would have to get rid of the pommel.

Jamie had killed the guard who had escorted him as soon as his uncle had entered the tent. Now they both were looking at father's gruesome dead body.

"It must have been the red witch's work," uncle Kevan wailed, "what are we to do now?"

Jamie thought hard before speaking, "this changes nothing. If the men come to know that their commander has been killed, they will break."

"What are you proposing," Kevan asked.

"I have the same girth as father," Jamie replied, "I will wear his armor. No one has noticed me for who I am owing to my current…attire. The men will mistake me for my father, and the battle will go on."

"They will know that you are not Tywin the moment you speak. You have a different voice."

"That is why I won't speak," Jamie spoke, "you will give all the commands. No one will question it, they will think that Lord Tywin is having one of his grumpy moods."

Kevan considered Jamie's offer. "Alright," he finally spoke, "but be careful not to speak anything."

Arya kept looking at the Hunter gate of Winterfell with a numbness spreading in her chest. They took away my big sister, she thought, he took her away, Greyjoy, the one who lived with us for so long.

"Fire," she heard a shout from behind her, and she turned around to see that the stables were afire, as were the dungeons and the kitchens. She rushed there, and saw that the servants were already working on quenching it.

Soon the fires were stopped, and that was when Meera approached her.

"Are you alright," she asked, her green eyes wide with concern.

Arya shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Listen, Mona made it through the fight. She was looking for Sansa. Did you see her?"

"Aye," she answered, "Theon took her."

"What!" Meera was horrified.

"They bound her with ropes and carried her away like she was some goat," Arya shrieked, "and all I did was watch them take her."

"May be you are mistaken Arya," Meera said, and Arya shook her head in reply.

She moved around to search the castle, making Arya reluctantly follow her. She knew it was no use. She herself had heard them say it, they had found the princess and had taken her away.

They crossed paths with Maester Luwin and Mona. "Did you see Princess Sansa," Meera asked.

"No," Maester replied, panicking, "she is nowhere to be found."

"I know where she is," Arya said slowly, the Ironborn took her away."

Maester Luwin just stood there and gaped at Arya, while Mona moved away immediately. The Ironborn had left only 11 of the 60 guardsmen alive, and they confirmed that Sansa was not in the castle.

"Send out ravens immediately," Mona commanded, "tell the castles near the coast to look for these Ironborn."

"We should go and find her," Arya raised her voice, determined to bring Sansa back.

"We don't have any horses left Arya," Mona said with grief, "I will have the men sent out to look for new mounts."

What do you think?

PLEASE REVIEW. About the chapter, and what I mentioned before. That will help me A LOT!

TheSwordInTheDarkness310