I do not own any George R. R. Martin articles and or any aforementioned literary articles.
230 After Conquest
Third person pov:
After a week had passed since the Frey party came to Greywater Watch, Alora and the kids enjoyed the time there while Walder was more likely to set it on fire.
On the eighth day of being at Greywater Watch, Walder and his party left back to Agartha by boat from the Neck down the Green Fork.
When they docked on the eastern bank, Maester Harran and a retinue of guards were waiting for them on the dock.
Stepping onto the dock, "Maester Harran it is good to be back." Walder said, helping Alora from the boat
Bowing to him, "It is good to have you back, how was the trip?" Maester Harran asked
"The trip was good, but will not be my last trip." Walder said, helping the twins from the boat
"Let's head to the Eastern keep." He said, beginning to walk away
Time skip:
Sitting in his solar, he was doing a rough design for the Causeway road.
What he planned was pretty simple in planning, the Causeway is just a narrow-raised embankment.
The plan was to widen the embankment thirty-four feet wide at the base, and then build a twenty-four-foot-wide road with a dirt slop to either side of the of it.
Putting down the parchment to dry, "Maester Harran while I am gone, I would like for you and Jarrad Rivers to calculate the estimates for the projects." Walder said, handing him a piece of parchment
"For the Causeway road use these numbers to find costs, and the have the engineers refine the design into a practical plan." He said handing him the other parchment
Maester Harran left room; Walder rang a bell of his desk.
A guard stepped in, "Yes Milord?" He asked
"Tell the head servant and head guard to meet me." Walder said, sitting up straight
"Yes Milord, I'll bring them." The guard said, leaving the room
He had the head servant and head guard prepare another caravan heading north with more supplies and the gifts for Northern houses.
He would leave the next day by land to Winterfell, but Alora and the children were staying at the Twins instead of following him north.
The next day the caravan and him left for the North, but before they went onward to the north, Walder had them stop at the Vineyard to check on the first batch of boys.
Walder had taken to calling the vineyard the Garden, the place where his Huntsmen will grow and take root through the world.
The instructors had assembled the boys in lines before him, there were four dozen boys that stood before a raised wood platform.
Walder was about to give a speech to them.
"You are all Foundlings"
"In the future you'll be given the choice"
"To leave or to stay"
"You stay you'll be sworn in"
"Not just to my house but to the way of the hunter"
"Swearing to the way of hunter is to also be prey"
"Leave you will always be allowed to return"
"Either choice you make will be up to you"
After the speech he had the teachers add somethings to the curriculum for the trainees, once their training is over, they can in the future choose to take a foundling as their own.
They train while wearing lead weights since it would be too expensive to make armor constantly every time the grow.
When they graduate, they are given a tattoo on their forearm of a serpent eating its own tail surrounding a singular eye.
They would be given armor, weapon of their choice, gold, a courser and Damascus dagger on graduation even if they choose to stay or leave.
The armor would be a spartan helmet with the eyes only exposed and a mail aventail attached to it, plain colored gambeson robe ending at knees, brown leather boots and a chain mail hauberk ending at the knees.
They would also be given a lamellar cuirass, metal strip vambraces, and metal strip leg guards.
All of the solid metal armor would be painted dark grey with an enamel paint.
The all of the chain mail would be treated with copper nitrate to stave off corrosion or rust, it would give the chain mail a copper color.
He added the code they would swear to.
Strength Is Life
For the Strong Have
The right to rule
Honor Is Life
For with no honor
One may as well
Be dead
Loyalty is life
For without one's clan
One has no purpose
Death is life
One should die
As they have
Lived
This is the way
He is pretty much trying to make his own version of the Mandalorians for this world, after his speech and his additions to the curriculum and the plan, he went back on his journey north.
Time skip:
It was a week before they reached Winterfell, riding into the court yard of Winterfell Walder saw Melantha Stark nee Blackwood waiting for them with some guards.
Climbing off his horse, "Hello lady Stark, thank you for this meeting." He said, handing the reigns off to a servant
One of his servants handed him the gift for the starks along with the letter.
He took off his sword and his belt quiver handing them and his bow off to the servant.
Walking up the steps to stand before Lady stark, he was slightly taller than her, she had dark brown hair, amber brown eyes, and pale skin.
She wearing silver jewelry around her neck and wrists, and simple blue dress with thick furs around her shoulders, Walder Frey was wearing black pants, dark grey tunic, black boots, and a lizard lion knee long coat with a thick fur lining the inside of it.
A stark servant came forward offered bread and salt to Walder, dipping the bread into the salt he ate.
The servant went onto offer guest rights to the rest of the party.
"Let's take our meeting to the solar." She said, walking through the double doors
Following beside her through the doors to the Great Hall, he followed her to the solar.
The solar was furnished decently, walls covered in hunting trophies, an iron brazier with red embers of coal, dark stained high back chair, and a matching polished desk.
"Lord Reed wished for me to deliver this to you, and the bundle is a gift." He said, placing the parchment and the bundle on the desk
She sat down in the high back chair, breaking the seal of the parchment.
Walder sat across from her waiting for her to finish perusing the letter.
"Since you have agreed to the deal, when will the construction begin?" She asked, grabbing the bundle
"The construction of the road hopefully next year, the waters in the Neck are lower and less likely to run into a lizard lion." He said, eyes following the bundle
The dagger had a curved scabbard made of polished black stained wood with polished silver Islamic geometric filigree on the facets at either end.
The cross guard was a small square shaped made of a silver/steel alloy, the handle was a spiral textured black stained wood with a silver cone pummel.
Looking at the blade, "It looks like Williams sword ice." She said with visible sadness in her face
"Sorry to hear about your late husband, he should've gone out better." He said sincerely
Placing the dagger back in the scabbard, "What do you mean by that?" She asked
Leaning forward out of his chair, "I believe everyone should strive to die of old age." He said solemnly
She sat there silently for a minute.
"Before this deal you want to speak to me?" She asked, placing the dagger on the desk
"I thought it prudent to speak to you before continuing business with your vassals." He said, crossing over his fingers
"I wish to expand the Grey towers company northward into a variety business, and that some of these may go beyond the wall." He said, looking her in the eyes
Grabbing a quill, she started to jot something down onto some parchment.
"What are these businesses and which vassals?" She asked, scratching the quill
"Fur, whale oil, walrus ivory, walrus hide, seal hide, and some trade in the future." He said, watching the top of her quill move
"I wish to establish an outpost/port beyond the wall and on the island with the Mormonts." He said, waiting for her to finish to write
"Close to the same with the Karstarks, but not beyond the wall." He said
She finished writing, "I think we should continue this tomorrow." She said, placing her quill down
"Have a nice night Lady Stark." He said, standing up from his chair
Walking out of the room, a servant led him to his room to sleep.