A SONG OF BLOOD AND RINGS
Jon
"Keep hitting that ice! We have less than a week left!"
The wildings that were resting quickly got to their feet to obey Tormund Giantsbane but Jon Snow didn't pay them any mind, he was hard at work already using his pickaxe to clear the entrance of one burial. When he finished his work he eagerly looked for something, anything, in the long forgotten tomb of a long forgotten man. He found only bones.
"Damn," Ygritte cursed. "This one didn't even had weapons, a poor one."
After Mance Rayder accepted him Jon spent a couple of uneasy days waiting for a knife in his back, but nothing happened and he grew bored so he decided to join Tormund in the excavation looking for the Horn of Winter. The chieftain grew restless as he had only found weapons and a few ornamental works in bronze and the day the host would depart grew nearer. The King Beyond the Wall had promised his many captains, chiefs and warlords that they'd keep any treasures they could find for he only wanted the Horn, and Tormund's warband didn't have much luck, so the Mead-king of Ruddy Hall joined his men for the last few days.
'The freefolk are like that, he must lead by example,' Jon thought. He couldn't imagine the proud lords of the North, much less his father, using pickaxes alongside their men, at most the dutiful or the curious ones would supervise them.
Ygritte moved to next tomb but Jon decided to look for another place to dig, he climbed to the top of the small hill, too narrow to host a tomb, to get a better view but when was about to descend a shiver went down his spine, he felt the very earth beneath his feet calling to him, like a faraway voice of which he could only hear echoes. But he heard them.
Jon moved the rocks and pebbles until he felt a pressure in his temples and started to dig, soon the earth gave way to stone and a small tile of ice, and when he touched it Jon knew it was different from any other ice he had seen, it was smooth and clear to the point it appeared to be crystal. Something snapped inside him and he started to hit it with abandon, at that moment he wanted nothing more than to break the ice but no matter how hard he swung the pickaxe he couldn't make even a dent.
Jon was more frustrated and angry than he could remember ever being, he could feel the power there, close and yet unreachable. He threw the pickaxe and started hitting the ice with his fists, cursing how poor the tool was and how weak he himself was. 'If only I had steel instead of that useless rock shovel,' he opened and closed his sword hand. 'But I do have… I have more than anyone in this damn army.'
He unsheathed Longclaw for the first time since arriving in the camp, even here stories about valyrian steel were known and while Jon didn't think the wildings could recognize it from sight he wasn't so sure about Mance Rayder himself, so he was cautious as he didn't want his sword taken as tribute or stolen. None of that mattered now.
Valyrian blade in hand he began hacking at the ice but nothing changed and Jon felt despair beginning to surge again, then suddenly a crack formed in the casket and then another, Jon continued his attack with a grin in his face and when the cracks covered all the surface he gripped Longclaw with both hands and drove down the sword. The ice finally shattered.
Jon started to laugh as he looked down the small hole, there was an arm severed at the elbow, no muscle remained but all the bones were intact, even the fingers and there he saw it, in the index finger was a small golden ring.
Jon Snow had seen plenty of jewelry in his life, works with wolf motifs made for ancient Kings of Winter that Eddard Stark sometimes wore when his vassals came to pay him homage, the necklaces and rings with leaping trouts of Lady Stark, the obscene amount of gold around the royal family, but to him the small band of gold was far more beautiful. 'Mere trinkets compared to this… This is greater than anything done by the hands of men.'
The world was silent as he held the ring against the setting sun, shining like a second star in the sky, he brought the ring to his finger almost hearing it calling him, demanding him to wear it.
"Found something lad?" Tormund's voice broke the spell, he was beside Jon and saw the treasure in his hand. Jon stiffened.
"A pretty ring aye, but small, keep it I've plenty of gold," he said clutching one of his golden armbands. "I suppose a small ring fits a small member, should you want to put it there, that's why I wear these. Har!"
"What? How can he not see the greatness of this ring? Is he lying? Is he…"
Jon blinked. "Wear it around… the cock?"
"Har! There are some tribes that swear by it, I never tried it myself, but..."
"I leave for a moment and you start talking about your cocks, can't say I'm surprised," Ygritte interrupted them. "Mance gave word, we're done for the day."
They returned to the main camp to eat, tell stories and sing songs, but through it all Jon could only think of the small gold band, he could feel it burning in his pocket. Night fell and Jon was waiting and dreading the moment when everyone would fall asleep and when Ygritte tried once more to join him in his furs he was too distracted to turn her away, but even as he laid with a woman for the first time, even as he felt her body and she felt his, Jon could still hear the ring's calling.
When Ygritte fell asleep Jon wasted no time and got out of the makeshift tent, he took out the ring and with trembling hands he put it on his finger. The world blurred and to any who was watching Jon Snow disappeared.
He felt how everything became more, his sight was sharper, the sounds were stronger, the very stars shined brighter and none shined more than the small band in his finger, which glowed as if it was made of fire.
Jon saw his own body shining softly and he laughed. He looked around the camp of thousands and saw none who could match him, there were a few with small sparks inside them, but there were all weak. He then felt a greater presence, like an itch in his mind. Jon looked in that direction and he was flying, moving while his body stayed in place.
Close to the center of the camp was a man with beasts around him, a great bear and three wolves. 'Varamyr,' he tough. Jon was strangely pleased that while the Sixskins' glow was the greater he had seen in the camp, he was still less bright than Jon himself.
He felt a second call then, to the east there was something clamoring for his attention, something that felt intimately familiar, as if his own hand was beckoning him. Jon closed his eyes and when he opened them he was running in four strong legs, with the taste of blood in his mouth, he'd have marveled at his night vision, but the ring had made every star as bright as the moon. The smell of decay hit him then, he turned his head and sniffed.
Jon was pulled north and like a sailor sees a lighthouse in the night, he saw a beacon of light and awe and horror. As he came closer he began to shiver, even though he had no body, then he saw the lights turn into silhouettes, long limbed and clad in translucent armor. They moved so gracefully that there were no footprints left in the snow, and their bodies were bright, far brighter than Jon's.
He had tarried too long, one of them turned his head and Jon saw two shining blue eyes and he felt small, as small as a fly before an eagle, not worth any attention. Except that another pair of eyes looked upon him, and then another, soon he was in a field of stars, cold and cruel, each piercing into his soul, each judging him. Jon felt like a spike was piercing his skull, from the middle of his forehead to the back of his head.
'My head. Get out of my head!'
Jon closed his eyes and began clenching his teeth so hard he thought he may break them when he felt the ground beneath his feet again and the small rocks hitting his knees, he open his mouth to screen but he couldn't make a sound, he tried to breath but no air came. 'The ring.'
He violently tore the ring from his finger and was once again kneeling outside his little tent surrounded by a camp of a hundred thousand men. The world appeared as it was before, but something in the air, in the stones and in his own body had irrevocably changed. Jon fell to the ground in the deepest slumber.
The red leaves were swinging in the wind while two boys were running around the white trunk of the weirwood, swinging their sticks like swords.
"Getting tired brother? Don't tell me that little race did a number on you!"
Robb was older and was always taller than him, currently by half a head, but Jon only snorted.
"You wish! That way you could land a hit or two, maybe," he responded with a smile.
Jon swung his stick at his brother, but instead he found a crow flying in front of him, Robb was still as a statue.
"Wake up, Snow!" the bird called.
Jon grew angry and tried to hit the damn bird in the eye. 'An eye in the middle of the head,' he though.
He looked around him and his brother's blue eyes were now glowing, his stick was a blade of ice.
"Wake up and fight!"
"Jon, Jon!"
He awoke with Ygritte shaking him, the sky was dark and the night cold.
"What has… how long…" Jon tried to ask, but his voice was rough and he started coughing.
"What's the matter with you? The hell were you doing out?" Ygritte asked.
Jon's breath was ragged, but he forced himself to speak. "How long did I sleep?"
"Not long, there's still a few hours until dawn, I think."
He was kneeling in the hard ground and looking from one side to another, searching for shadows, he then looked up to the stars. 'Eyes as uncaring as stars.'
Jon felt his whole body shiver violently, for worse things than the cold. He got up and started dragging Ygritte away.
"We must find Tormund or Mance, they are coming. We must tell them!"
"Who is coming? The crows?" She said, suspicion in her voice.
"Them," he hissed. Jon began to run and shout for Tormund or the king, many men woke and jeered at him, but he only ran faster. Finally he could see Mance Rayder's tent and the king was coming out alerted by the commotion. Tormund and Varamyr were with him.
"Snow? What is it?"
"They are coming, we must wake everyone, we must run until the sun comes up," he was trembling.
"Run? From crows?" Mance arched an eyebrow.
"Not fucking crows, them," he never felt more fear in his short life. "I saw them, in my dream I was ghost."
"Your wolf? Where is he?" Said Ygritte, slowy. "He's a warg Mance."
Jon moved closer to the King Beyond the Wall. "The white shadows, armored in ice. Their eyes were stars." His voice was a barely a whisper, but they heard him all the same.
Mance Rayder grew pale. "Tormund sound the horn for the watchers."
"We were about to replace 'em," the Giantsbane was grim.
"Hurry then," he turned to Varamyr. "What do you see?"
As the horn was blowing Varamyr's eyes turned white. Everyone stood still, the air growing colder and the night more silent.
Ghost was already running in the forest, all his instincts told Jon to do the same. No one answered the horn blows.
"Mist, it's gathering," said Varamyr.
Mance's expression turned dark and he started bellowing orders.
"Wake up whoresons! Get me the magnar and Rattleshirt!"
"You and you with me," said Tormund as the warriors picked up their weapons.
Jon saw the camp slowly move, there were screams and some fights, children began crying and many animals were trying to escape. 'They'll never make it in time… I could be crossing the river by now, I could…'
He didn't realize he had the ring in his hand until Varamyr spoke.
"What is that? How did you get something like that?" The sixskins was coming closer to Jon. "Give it to me, you're not worthy. Give it to me!"
"You'll have to pry it off my cold, dead hands," Jon growled, he pointed Longclaw at the skinchanger, all fear forgotten.
Varamyr's eyes widened, he was looking from one side to the other. 'His bear, I must call ghost to fight him'.
"What in the hells are you two doing?!" Mance turned his attention back on them. "Varamyr go to the scouts, Snow with Tormund, now!"
Jon and Ygritte followed the chief, all around them people were stirring, picking up weapons or herding animals. The news had spread, some warbands were preparing to fight, others were already moving towards the Milkwater in an effort to escape.
Many warriors were trying to enlarge the fire pits, feeding it what little could be spared, but the winds were growing colder and a mist was starting to fall over the camp.
When they arrived to their tents, while the Freefolk were gathering what supplies they could, Jon saw a crow perched above a rock.
"Ring! Ring! Ring!" It cried.
He remembered his dream, and although the crow only had two eyes, Jon could not ignore it. 'I must be going mad.'
He took the ring out, and swallowing his apprehension, put it in his finger once more. The world blurred and he saw everything again, every lick of flame and every snowflake, and when he turned west to the mountains he saw shapes of light, moving under and behind them.
He took the ring off, afraid that they could've seen him, he looked for Tormund, but could only find his son, Toregg the Tall.
"The mountains," he was almost screaming, "they will attack from the mountains!"
"How do you know, Snow?" Said Toregg.
The mist had covered the Frostfangs by then, and arrows started raining down, there were screams in the outskirts of the camp.
'They saw me,' Jon considered running then, his horse was nearby and could carry him and Ygritte both, he could reach the Fist of the First Men, then to other side of the wall, he would never have to see those eyes again.
"Sword! Sword!" The crow called.
'Why didn't we listened to that deserter? They might of the North should be here, of all the seven Kingdoms.'
The cries of a child could be heard above the wind, all around him people started to flee, ignoring Toregg's orders.
'Why am I here? What could I possibly do against them? I'm a simple bastard.'
"Sword! Shield!" It continued.
'The sword in the darkness,' he thought with irony, flexing his right hand. 'The shield that guards the realms of men.' The cries were louder. 'Ha! A sword that can't strike, a shield that won't rise, wielded by a coward.'
"Can a man be brave if he's afraid?" A voice asked. "That is the only time a man can be brave," Ned Stark answered.
Jon shocked his head and let out a small chuckle. 'I get it now.'
He took out Longclaw and with a yell he charged in the direction of the screams. Soon he saw a shambling wight who was about to strike fallen child with an axe, Jon ran and swung Longclaw in a wide arc. 'They can stand with a blade in the hearth, a stab won't do.'
The valyrian sword cut through furs, frozen flesh and bone, and broke the wight in two, the upper half keep trying to use the axe, so Jon kicked it away.
He turned and saw Toregg and a spearwife hacking another corpse to pieces.
"We must cover their retreat." He told the warrior.
"It's not worth it, Snow, most won't make it."
"Some will," with that he attacked another wight, cutting its arm off and then cleaving it from shoulder to hip.
"He fancies himself a hero, Toregg," Ygritte arrived at their side. "And he's got a damn good sword, may as well help."
They continued through the perimeter of the camp, picking up warriors as they went. "Keep moving, don't let them get close!"
There were more than thirty men following Jon and an increasing number of woman with children and elderly behind them, seeking the safety of the warriors. When he saw no more people in the western edge he decided to pull back deeper into the camp where he met Tormund,
"South!" Bellowed the warchief. "To the giants!"
"These people won't make it," said Jon. "And there's more coming from the north edge."
"Nothing to do."
Jon gritted his teeth. "The stakes of the tents, we put them up and kill the wights."
"Mance's orders…"
"He'll need a rearguard, give him time to get the giants in order," Jon argued, but Tormund seemed unconvinced. "Come on Giantsbane, afraid of some walking bones?"
Toregg laughed. "Easy to say with such a sword, but I won't let a little crow outfight me. Go on old man, the king needs you to blow his horn."
"Har! Very well you runt."
With that the warriors started putting up some rudimentary defenses. 'This should've been done since the beginning, damn it all.'
Jon rushed to the frontlines once more, he ran besides a raider struggling with a wight, slicing it in half, then turned and beheaded another out of instinct, but the headless corpse tried to bury a hatchet in his face all the same.
Luckily Ygritte was there, parrying the weapon with her axe, giving Jon the chance to finish it off.
"Normal people run from the dead Jon, not to them!"
"Well, you followed me," he said with a smile.
"I stole you, but maybe you're too much trouble."
"Why did you do it if not for the trouble?"
With that he turned to a dead ranger, clad in black chainmail like Jon's, so he cut off both arms and let the rest to the warriors behind him. He went north where screams where louder and destroyed wight after wight, but when it appeared that the free folk had retreated behind the stakes a new wave of people came running. 'A hundred thousand in the camp. How many have died already?'
Jon then heard growls and saw undead wolves chasing the newcomers, he tried to render them immobile like the human wights, but couldn't get a good angle. One of the beasts leap at him and he could only put Longclaw between his face and the jaws.
Suddenly the weight of the wolf was no more, and Jon saw Ghost rag dolling the wight, breaking his spine.
He let out a laugh. "With me boy!"
They finished the retreat, stakes were planted in the ground to channel the wights on narrow gaps and the warband did not waste the opportunity, Jon lost count on how many torsos he had separated from their legs.
The fire pits had been lit and torches were used to burn the enemy, Ghost was a white blur, too fast for the corpses to catch, leaving them in pieces. The endless stream of wights seemed to stop and for a moment it seemed they could hold, but then the mist creep over them.
The fires started to go out, and Jon could hear little steps in the rocky ground. 'No, if it were them I wouldn't hear a thing.'
A shape leap from the mist and landed over a warrior on Jon's right, his screams were short lived. He saw eight shining eyes and fangs as cold as ice. The ice spider, as big as his chest, let out a shriek and attacked Jon, he tried to slice it open with Longclaw but the spider retreated, too fast for him to follow.
It started circling him and Jon could do little more than keep his sword in front of him, all around him people started dying and running in terror of the spiders.
"River! River!" the crow called.
Jon looked up to the circling bird and the spider leap at him, it was about to land in his face when an arrow pierce it.
"Fuck this things, we must flee," said Ygritte panicking.
"River!" It continued.
"East!" Jon bellowed. "Ford the river, fast!"
"Are you insane?! The crossings are south, so is Mance!" She protested.
"Look there," the mist had covered the south of their position. "We're surrounded, there's no choice."
Toregg grunted, and bellowed the orders.
"A fighting retreat," Jon insisted. "These things will kill us if we show them our back."
So with crude spears they slowly creep to the river, trying to keep the spiders at bay, but many were falling to them. 'This is no battle formation, I'd give an eye for some pikes.'
The Milkwater was in sight when a strong gust of wind brought the mist over them, Jon looked all around him for the spiders, but everything was quiet. Suddenly a voice called. "Jon!"
He turned and saw Ygritte, some distance away, looking at him, trembling. "We..."
Two fangs the size of short swords pierced her neck and hearth, and an ice spider twice the size of a man appeared behind her, as if conjured from the mist.
The monster started killing whoever was closer to it and all order broke, everyone ran to river and Jon was beside them. 'I'm sorry.'
He could hear the monster coming closer, its inhuman shrieks growing louder, suddenly he saw himself running and the giant spider about to bite his head off.
Jon opened his eyes and jumped to the side, barely avoiding the fangs. He got up and pointed his sword at the creature, his arms were trembling. 'Not even with a pack of direwolves could I kill it.'
"Ring!"
He swallowed and drove to the side again, a few arrows started hitting the spider. 'Weren't they the size of hounds? Fuck it all.'
He let go of Longclaw and put on the golden band. Jon Snow disappeared and ice spider looked from one side to the other confused, searching for its lost prey.
'It cannot see me,' Jon thought as he picked up Longclaw. 'It's over.'
He rushed forward at the monster intent on piercing its skull, but when he about to kill it its eyes changed to the cursed blue and he knew he they were looking at him.
The spider jerked to the side, with unnatural speed for something of that size, and the valyrian blade pierced it in the side, spelling frozen guts.
It did not die however, the creature ran away from Jon bleeding and with the sword stuck on it. He was about to chase after it but beyond the mist, in the direction the spider was fleeing, Jon saw the shining specters of the Others.
He took the ring off and continued his escape to the river, Jon would swim all the way to the Frozen Shore if need be.
"You disappeared and killed it. What are you?!" Jon only noticed Toregg when he spoke.
"No time," he was out of breath, like he had spent a whole day running. The cold was almost unbearable when they arrived at the river, hundreds of men, women and children were in the shore, the most desperate trying to cross.
As Jon stepped into the water, ready to be swept by the current, the crow shrieked. The waters, fast and unforgiven, started to slow until they were no stronger than a small stream. 'Gods, what is this place?'
The Free Folk noticed as well and between screams and prayers they crossed. The mass of humanity entered into the haunted forest as the current picked up behind them.
Jon was barely able to walk and his head was pounding, yet he struggled for some time until his legs failed him and he collapsed, the last thing he saw was the crow perching on a tree branch above him.
AN:This story was inspired by Dragons of Ice and Fire, the first chapters may seem similar but it will quickly go its own way. No characters from Lotr will appeared, only the Rings.