Chapter 5; Rescuing the bear
Characters of the Chapter
Jeremy Maester of Bear Island
Jon Snow, also known as Aegon Targaryen and Jon Stark, King of the North Kingdom of the Twin Kingdoms
Kieran, Agent of the Inquisition, mage advisor to the court of King Jon
Lyanna Mormont, Lady of Bear Island
Ser Caleb Threestones, Knight of Westeros,Second to Lyanna Mormont
A dense fog hung in the air, with no wind to lift it. For the same reason the ocean was mostly still, with the waves calm. The fog concealed a small single sail ship, heading to bear island. As there was little wind the ship was carried onwards by oars. The pace was slow both to avoid hitting rocks or hidden shoals and slip unnoticed past any Qunari warships.
The mood on the ship was nervous. Everyone had already heard enough about Qunari dreadnaughts to know they'd all be dead in the first volley. Waiting for the proper weather to try the crossing had asked for patience, but it was well worth it, the mist helping to conceal their passage. Even so, the crew on board tried to avoid speaking, keeping their voices low when they did, knowing how voices could carry over water.
Within the bowels of the ship Jon walked past the sailors and the northern soldiers. He found his way to a secluded corner of the hold. There, surrounded by crates and sacks, he found Kieran. He was sitting cross-legged inside a circle of runes drawn onto the floor with chalk, his hands on his lap and his staff laid down before him. Kieran looked as if he was sleeping, his eyes closed and moving under his eyelids. However the faint white glow emanating from his palms indicated otherwise.
Jon reached out and gently shook Kieran's shoulder. The glow on the mages palms disappeared, followed by him frowning and opening his eyes, looking at the King.
Kieran cleared his throat. "For future reference, it is unwise to interfere with a mage in the middle of conducting a ritual Your Grace. I made sure that the rituals I was using did not present a danger of ill effects if interrupted. But with a different ritual, or a different mage, that could be a whole other story. Furthermore being suddenly yanked back into the waking world is not a pleasant feeling. And rather disorienting. That disorientation could make other mages lash out on instinct, which could lead to an accident." He said dryly.
Jon looked surprised at first, then ashamed. "I'm sorry. I did not realize."
"No matter. This was more my fault anyway. I should have told you ahead of time." Kieran said, standing up.
"So what did you have to say?" He asked, beating off some chalk stains from his clothes.
"We will be arriving shortly. You should get yourself ready." Jon explained.
"Understood." Kieran said, retrieving his staff.
"Did you find them?" Jon asked as the two of them were walking towards the upper deck.
"Not quite. My scrying ritual revealed a general location, enough to narrow down the area we need to search. But we will still have to go through the effort of locating Lyanna Mormont and her people." Kieran said.
"Hmm. That's unfortunate. When you mentioned this ritual I had hoped that we wouldn't have to spend time wandering about in enemy territory trying to find her." Jon said.
"I had hoped the same. I could probably get a more precise location given more time, but I don't think it is a good idea to wait around now that we are here. At least searching will be quicker now. If necessary I can repeat the ritual later and try to get a more exact area." Kieran said.
"Yes there's that. And who knows, maybe Lyanna's people will find us?" Jon said.
"There is a chance. Hopefully so." Kieran said. "Have you thought about what are you going to tell her?" He asked then.
"Still working on it. Much of it will depend on what state we find her and her people in. But I already know it won't be an easy conversation. Bear Island is her home, the ancestral seat of her family. She will be reluctant to leave it behind." Jon said.
"She cannot hope to win this fight on her own. If she stays then eventually the Qunari will track her down, then either kill her or capture her." Kieran said.
"If they haven't already. But yes, that is the reality of the situation. Hopefully I will be able to make her see that. But not too long ago I was in the same situation as she was. And I chose to stubbornly stay put. I was willing to die for my home if need be. And if there is anything I know of Lyanna Mormont it's that when she gets a notion in her head she can be more stubborn about it than I am."
"I do not think I have ever had a home like that. My mother is the travelling sort, so I came to think of wherever I was as home. So I suppose I don't understand how dear a place like that can be for someone, a home that has belonged to someone's family for centuries. But I can say this: Dying for a home like that is a worthy thing, but living for such a home is even worthier. Staying on this island will only make her lose what she wants to defend. Try to make her see that, and perhaps she will heed you." Kieran said.
"I'll try." Jon said. "You know, in the rare instances you say anything about your family you never mention your father at all. I take it you didn't know him?" He said then.
"No. I've never met him. And my mother only spoke of him a handful of times when I insisted. I know that he was a Grey Warden by the name of Alistair and that my mother and he didn't care much for one another. I was only conceived because my mother wanted to have me for reasons of her own and he agreed for his own reasons. They were not married, there was no affection between them and no reason to stay together once the deed was done, so my mother raised me on my own, just as she had intended. From time to time I have the entertained the notion of seeking him out for sake of simple curiosity. But that has never been enough motivation for me, and I have always been too busy to invest the time and effort needed." Kieran explained.
"They were unmarried? So you're…?" Jon asked.
"A bastard." Kieran finished for him. "But I think you and I both know that doesn't have to mean anything. People like us know that bastards are no different from the rest of us. Choices are what matters, not blood. Our choices and those of others. It is other people who make an issue of these things, who choose to make one's birth mean more than it does."
"Oh, I agree. Wholeheartedly. Didn't mean to insinuate otherwise. I was just surprised you told me that. Not many would if they have a chance of keeping it a secret, given how many still think poorly of bastards." Jon said.
"True. You can take that as a vote of confidence on my part. I rarely mention this to anyone, but I don't mind you knowing it." Kieran said.
"Thank you. Trust like that is quite meaningful." Said Jon.
"You said your father's name was Alistair? Is this the same Alistair mentioned in stories of the Fifth Blight?" Jon asked.
"The very same, if my mother was telling the truth." Kieran confirmed.
"I remember reading that he was a bastard as well. And I heard a rumor that his father was actually King Maric of Ferelden."
"That is actually something I'm told is true." Kieran said. "But that too is meaningless to me. If you've read Ferelden's history, then you know my father relinquished all rights to Ferelden's throne, for himself and his heirs. Even if I was a legitimate child I would not be the heir of any kingdom. Nor do I wish to be."
Jon chuckled. "I can understand not wanting it. I didn't really want to be King in the North. I only did it because I wanted to do right by my people and because I needed to protect them from the White Walkers. But it occurs to me our stories are a lot more similar than I even realized. I thought myself a bastard for many years. Turns out that I wasn't, but I certainly know what it's like. Later on I found out that I am actually the heir to the Iron Throne, which I definitely didn't want anything to do with. I was only too happy to pass that on to Daenerys."
Kieran nodded. "There are perhaps some similarities, if one thinks about it. Strange to think about."
With that the two had arrived at the prow of the ship, the coastline of Bear Island starting to appear through the mist. That was where the Davos came to see them. The Onion Knight had been given command of the ship, because Jon was not confident that another captain would not panic at the possibility of running into Qunari warships without their King to reassure them and flee the scene, leaving Jon and his group stranded. And because early on Jon had figured that his smuggler's tricks would be necessary to successfully get in and out of this place.
"Good morning Your Grace. Everything is in order." Davos said to Jon.
"Good morning." Jon replied. Then his attention was caught by a jagged rock sticking out of the water slowly sliding past the ship. It was not the only one of its kind. Every few minutes there were small rocky islands, most dark shapes in the mist, others close enough that the ship had to adjust course to avoid them.
"Not the most hospitable shore by the looks of it." He commented, still looking at the rock.
"That is more or less the idea. The rocks keep us out of sight. And it's too narrow here for bigger ships to come after us." Davos said.
"Ships like Qunari Dreadnoughts." Kieran said, nodding approvingly. "Plus since this is such an inhospitable strip of coast most people wouldn't think anyone would try to land here. So any Oxmen patrols around are unlikely to look for us here."
"That's what I'm hoping." Davos said. "Of course there is a very good reason this is considered a bad place to try coming ashore."
"Will you be alright here until we come back?" Jon asked.
"I think so, as long as we stay put and are careful not to be found by the wrong types." Davos said. Then he leaned closer, lowering his voice. "I'm a bit more concerned about the crew though. These sailors are good people, I know. But we have asked them to do something extremely dangerous, and they don't know me well enough to trust my judgement. If they get nervous and decide to mutiny I'll be all on my own against all of them."
"I'd you're worried I could leave some of my soldier's with you. They'd give you an edge if there is trouble." Jon suggested, equally as quietly.
"You don't have enough. The Qunari are capable fighters. Trust me on this. If we run into the enemy we will need every soldier we got." Kieran whispered. "But there is another way." He added after a moment of further consideration.
"If they attempt mutiny you can tell these people that I put a spell into the frame of this ship, a spell that only I am capable of removing. Tell them that if they try to leave these shores while the spell is still active it will blow up the ship as soon as Bear Island disappears below the horizon. That ought to keep them from considering escape." He explained then.
"I-I would rather not threaten them like that." Davos said hesitantly. Jon meanwhile looked at Kieran in disbelief.
"You would not be. I would. You'd just be my messenger." Kieran said. "And don't be worried, there isn't an actual spell. But none of these people know enough about magic to know there isn't one. It will help keep them in line. Of course we will leave from the assumption none of this is necessary. It's just one more option in your arsenal should it come to that. I'll leave it up to you, whether or not you make use of it."
"Thank you. I'll remember what you proposed, but hopefully I won't need to do it." Davos said. "That… circle you drew in the hold though…"
"It's just chalk. Nothing that a good scrubbing won't clear. It isn't dangerous." Kieran said dryly.
"Good to hear. Bad enough that we replaced the ship's actual captain for this trip. It would be worse to damage it by leaving some magical hazard onboard." Davos said, obviously relieved. "If you don't mind, I'd like to set some lads to the task of removing it as soon as you've left."
"Feel free to do so. Or if you'd rather not inconvenience your crew then leave it be and I'll tend to it when I come back." Kieran said.
With that Davos returned to the task of guiding the ship through this treacherous final approach. Jon meanwhile was still staring at Kieran, caught off his guard by the plan his mage advisor had concocted.
"You know, for all that we have similarities, there are quite a few differences as well. " He said, keeping his voice low as before.
"So there are." Kieran said. "Deception is not your way. Most of the time intimidation is not either. I admire the fact that this is not the kind of King that you are. I would not have you change. I, however, have learned that on occasion a discreet bit of forceful coercion is both necessary and useful. At times it can get me the results I need when gentler methods would not, while at the same time freeing me from the need to use harsher methods."
"Is it that simple?" Jon asked. "If it came to it, would you carry out that threat?"
"What do you take me for? Of course I would not have. But they do not know me, or what I am willing to do. I don't particularly enjoy tricking people like this, but I do so when I feel it's necessary. This felt like such a moment. Much depends on this ship being here when we need it, and Davos just expressed concerns about the crew's reliability."
"It just seems bit extreme, considering. All Davos said was that some of the crew were uneasy going on this mission. Name one of us here who doesn't feel the same way."
"Perhaps you're right. Perhaps it was extreme. But I felt we cannot take the chance. When I can rely on the bravery and goodwill of others I do, gladly. That is what I prefer to do. But when I cannot, I look for other means to ensure reliability."
"But is that worth antagonizing the lot of them? Because mark my words, they will not thank you for this." Jon said.
Kieran scoffed. "You have seen the way the crew looks at me. They know what I am if nothing else, and they fear that power. Their minds are made up and it's not their good opinion I care about. And it's unlikely I will ever see this crew again after this mission."
"Maybe not. Just… be careful with that. When I was in the Night's Watch I thought I could make an unpleasant decision and weather the disapproval of my brothers, just like you are doing now. Turns out they disapproved a lot more than I had thought and I ended up stabbed repeatedly." Jon said.
"Noted." Kieran said.
"You survived being stabbed repeatedly? I had heard the rumors, but I did not believe them. How did you do that?" He asked then.
"…It's complicated." Jon said after trying and failing to think of a way to explain it.
"Sounds familiar. Fair enough then." Kieran said with a sly smile.
The ship finally dropped anchor. Getting everyone ashore took a moment, since the boats that brought them had to make two passes. As soon as they reached the shore they headed inside the treeline, out of sight. The ship meanwhile headed to a better hiding spot behind the rocks they had passed. From that place they would be very hard to spot from the direction of open water.
As soon as they were all inside the forest Jon gathered everyone around him. "This is where we start looking for signs of Lady Mormont and her people. Kieran has some notion of where we need to go, so he will be our guide. As we move spread out a little, but keep within sight of each other. Keep your voices down and avoid walking through open areas. Communicate any discoveries you make with hand signs. If you are attacked, shout and we will all converge on you. Most of all remember to avoid contact with the enemy if at all possible. Our biggest advantage here is secrecy and the longer we can keep it the better." He told them.
Everyone nodded their agreement and the group proceeded deeper inland, Kieran and Jon at the lead. The rest of the day passed fairly uneventfully. They searched for clues to follow, now and then stopping to rest. For all their effort they found very few tangible signs of Bear Islanders in the area. Now and then they did spot Qunari patrols, but always in the distance and easily avoided.
The dusk was already setting, the group passing through a section of forest surrounded by small rises when Jon caught up with Kieran, motioning for his soldiers to gather round as well.
"Kieran, are you sure we are in the right area?" He asked.
"Yes. These are the same places I saw in the Fade." Kieran replied calmly.
"And are you sure Lyanna's people are still here? We've been here the whole day and have found nothing." Jon said.
"By all reason they should be, though they may have moved recently. But I wouldn't be discouraged just yet. For someone to survive free on a Qunari occupied island this long they must be very good at hiding themselves." Kieran said.
"Perhaps you should try that magic of yours again, just in case." Jon suggested.
"I could do that. Let's just find a smooth, solid surface for me to draw the circle on…" Kieran said before stopping suddenly, trying to listen for something, eyes scanning their surroundings.
"What?" Jon asked.
"Did you hear that?" Kieran asked. Jon tried to strain his hearing, listening for anything out of place. But he noticed nothing out of the ordinary. He was about to tell Kieran as much when suddenly a blur of motion startled everyone. From behind the rises people emerged, appearing as if from thin air, bows drawn and weapons in hand. Jon and his troops brought their hands to their weapons, but they would have all been shot dead before they had a chance of reacting had a voice not rang out at that exact moment:
"WaitwaitWAIT, STOP! Don't shoot!"
The people surrounding Jon's group looked confused, but didn't attack. Then Jon noticed Lyanna Mormont running to the forefront.
"Lyanna, what are you…?" Asked a man in green plate armor.
"God's dammit Caleb, use your eyes! That's the King!" Lyanna said irately, pointing at Jon.
"What!? Oh shit, we almost…" The man named Caleb said. "Stand down, all of you!" He then told the ambushers. Lyanna's people lowered their weapons and as she walked to speak with Jon motioned for his soldiers to calm down as well.
"Your Grace, I'm so sorry about that. We did not think there would be a friendly armed group out here. Haven't had those for some time. Thank goodness I recognized you before we attacked. I'd really hate to be the one to accidentally pincushion the King in the North." She explained in a tirade of words.
"Woah, slow down a little." Jon said, holding up his hands. "I'm surprised you almost didn't realize we were northerners. It's not like we have horns or anything."
"The Qunari aren't a race Your Grace. They are a religion." Kieran said.
"That's right. They have a lot of races in their ranks, humans included. We've had to face that fact first hand. A lot of the people that have been living on this island have been taken, converted into followers of the Qun, then sent to infiltrate our camps. I don't know how exactly the Qunari make them so loyal, but they fight like they are possessed. I've lost far too many like that, even after we started taking precautions. And we've encountered more than a few groups dressed in northerner gear in an attempt to confuse us, to make us think that reinforcements have arrived only for them to attack us when we reveal ourselves. So you can see why we might be… on edge. Until I saw you Your Grace I had no way of knowing this wasn't another trick. " Lyanna said.
"I see you know something about the oxmen. That is good. Might I ask who you are? I don't believe I know you." She said to Kieran.
"My name is Kieran. Of no house you would be familiar with." He replied.
Lyanna raised an eyebrow. "The magical advisor? I have heard mentions of you. Hmm. If you are good with your magic, you might be very useful in this fight."
"Of course I am pleased to have all the rest of you here as well. Every little bit helps. I haven't got a lot of trained soldiers left in my command. It will be good to add to that." She added.
"I must say I am surprised you decided to come yourself Your Grace. The war on the mainland must be going exceptionally well if you felt you could be here in person. The Orlesians, have you defeated them? The last news we heard on that was when they were yet to make landfall and you had called your banners. We were going to join you, but the Qunari hit us first. After that we have been completely in the dark." She said.
"Yes. There were some very difficult battles during that war, but we stopped their invasion." Jon said.
She smiled. "I'm glad to hear it. All the more because it means you will be able to focus all your attention to defeating the Qunari. At long last we will have a chance of taking this island back. We have been waiting for this day a long time. You don't know how much of a gift you being here is. It's been hard, fighting the Qunari all on our own. My people are proud and brave, but neither of those things could defeat the Oxmen on their own. We have fought back as hard as we could, but we knew victory could only come with help from the mainland. Yet we were so worried that you had all but forgotten about us, that all the sacrifices we had been making would ultimately be in vain. But now you are finally here. My people… it will be good to see hope in their eyes again."
Jon briefly closed his eyes and stopped himself from sighing, his face one of sorrow. He would have to disappoint her so badly…
Lyanna did not miss the King's change in expression, though she did not know what it meant. Nevertheless it was enough to make her frown.
"As glad as I am that you are here, I must note that there aren't all that many of you. Hopefully more of you are coming later? We will need great numbers to push the Qunari out of here. That much I can tell you out of hand." She said.
"It's probably best if we discuss that somewhere safer, where we can be sure the Qunari will not disturb us." Jon said as his response.
"Oh. Yes, yes of course! We will show you to our main encampment. We will be safe there. Or as safe as is possible under the current circumstances. So far the Qunari have never managed to find us there. Come along then." She said
And so the lot of them set off on their way in single file, following the lead of Lady Mormont. The trek was still quite long, their path twisting and turning, changing direction several times, passing through dense thickets of trees and crossing small streams.
"Your Grace. I feel like I should apologize for the ambush. I should have been able to recognize you." The knight in green spoke out as they walked on.
"It sounds like you have understandable reasons and no one was harmed. So no need." Jon said.
"I don't think we have met before. But I recognize your sigil. You're one of the Threestones aren't you?" he asked. The threestones were one of the new noble houses he had created to replace the ones lost during the War of the Five Kings and the Second War for the Dawn. A lesser house by all accounts, with a holdfast and perhaps a hundred men-at-arms to call upon.. A bannerman of a bannerman to House Stark, Jon did not recall which one. Had Jon not raised them to lordship himself he might not even have recognized his house.
"Yes Your Grace. Ser Caleb is my name, the second son of Lord Aldrich of House Threestones. "Caleb said. "Your Grace, as Lyanna… that is... Lady Mormont said we haven't had many news from the mainland. So I was wondering if you've any news to share of my family? Or a message from them?" He asked.
Jon though back. "No message sadly. There might have been one, but your family could not have know that there would be an opportunity to contact you. I told as few people as possible that I intended to come here to make sure the Qunari would not hear of it. But I think their name showed up in a few reports I read. I believe they are alright. Several noble houses were attacked by Orlesian spies during the war, but I think your family was spared from that, being so small a House. Your older brother I hear was injured during a battle against House Warblade, which had betrayed the Kingdoms. But he has since recovered from his wounds."
Caleb smiled a relieved smile. "Thank goodness they are alright. One more thing to fight for."
"Do your forces by any chance have ravens with them? I should send a message home, tell them I'm alive and well. It has been far too long since the last opportunity to send messages, and I'm sure they are worried." He asked then.
"On the ship that brought us, so we can contact the mainland if necessary. You don't have your own?" Jon asked.
"They were lost to us when our castle here was taken over. The oxmen used cannons to breach the walls in minutes, so we did not have much time to evacuate." Caleb explained.
"I see. For the moment we need those ravens ourselves. But the opportunity to send messages to your family may come later. If it does I'll let you know." Jon said.
"Thank you Your Grace. And thank you for being here. Lady Mormont wasn't exaggerating when she told you how much this means to us." Caleb said, then moved up the line to walk alongside Lyanna.
"I'm sure she did not." Jon said to himself with a sigh. Absently he also noted how close to each other Lyanna and Caleb were walking to each other, the familiar tones in the snippets of conversation he managed to catch. And the knight using Lady Mormont's first name had not escaped his notice either…
Curious behavior on their part, but not his concern. Not right now at least.
Jon continued to ponder what to say to her, what he would need to do. It was obvious that he would need not only get her out, but all the people that were with her as well. She would never agree to abandon them and Jon was not about to ask her to, so they would have to come with. But this he had known before even setting off on this mission. Jon only hoped there weren't too many, otherwise evacuating them would get complicated.
Even if that was handled there would be the issue of convincing her to leave behind those of her people who remained in Qunari hands. She would want to rescue everyone she possibly could and right now she had been left with the impression that she would have an opportunity to do so.
Finally they arrived close to a particularly dense thicket of trees. There was movement amongst the branches of a tree, an archer coming into view, training his bow on them. Jon's squad tensed, but Lyanna and her people did not seem worried.
"Song!" Shouted the archer.
"Bird!" Lyanna shouted back before Jon had a chance of asking her what was going on.
The archer nodded and lowered his weapon. "Correct. Approach, friends! Welcome back My Lady."
Lyanna motioned for the others to follow and led Jon's still quite puzzled group onwards. After a minute or two of further walking the whole lot of them emerged straight into the middle of the camp, surrounded by low concealed tents and small groups moving about.
"No fortifications of any kind?" Jon asked.
Lyanna shook her head. "The Oxmen have explosives and cannons. Not even stone walls can stand up to those. Found that out firsthand. There's absolutely no kind of fortification we could put up that they couldn't blast right through in moments. Having a lot of structures would just make us easier to find. Concealment is our real defense here. Plus this isn't a permanent camp. We change places every few days to make it harder for anyone to track us down."
"How in the hells did you manage it by the way? You were pretty close to finding us on your own. We haven't made that easy and unlike the Oxmen you wouldn't even have known where to begin looking. " She asked.
"You can blame me for that. There are ways for a mage to find people in hiding, if one knows how." Kieran said.
"…Could they do what you did? Use magic to find us?" She asked after a concerned pause.
"The Qunari have mages, it's true. But they're afraid of them, treat them like animals. They don't want to make use of their mages unless they are backed into a corner and don't have other options. And you'd need training and knowledge of the right rituals to find you. The Qunari mages don't have either." Kieran pondered.
"I suppose if they could do that they would have already done so. We have been quite a thorn in their side. Done everything in our power to make it that way. But it's good to know they are unlikely to try it." She mused.
"I apologize for not being able to be a very good host. I'd offer food to you as greetings but things are pretty scarce around here. What we have is strictly rationed. Water is about the only thing we have in abundance if you have a thirst." She addressed Jon's group.
"We might be able to help with that. We brought some supplies with us. Thought you might have need of the. There's food, medicine, even a couple of wine bottles." Jon said.
"You did? Thanks!" Lyanna said, breaking into a smile yet again. "It will be nice to have some good food for a change. We only get that when we manage to steal it from the Qunari. Most days we have to make do with whatever we can forage. And medicine is something we can never have enough of the way things have been going around here. Bring whatever you're willing to give us to the Maester. He'll see to it that it is fairly distributed where needed. And thanks again."
"Excuse me." She said as the Maester in question emerged from one of the tents, and moved to him.
"Jeremy! Look! Look who has come! The King is here! We'll be alright. You can tell our people things will get better now." She said.
The Maesters eyes widened as he recognized Jon. "Your Grace? You're here? This is great news! Some fortune for us at last!"
"I'm glad we were able to come here. We will do all we can to keep your people safe from now on. Jon said in greeting. Then he focused his attention to the people at camp. "It's not that many of you here. Is this all of you?" He asked.
"Not quite. We have several other camps scattered around the island. This is just the biggest. Had to be that way. This way even if the Qunari wipe out this camp there are others, and the fight can continue. I'd guess there are about a hundred and fifty of us in total." She explained. Then her expression turned a bit sad. "Used to be more of us. Near two hundred. And less than a third of us are among those we originally started out with. Most of us were found somewhere later on or rescued from the Qunari camps. Used to be better when we could recruit more people that way, since we have lost a lot. Can't do that anymore though. Near as we can tell anyone else out there is dead, or now one of the Qunari."
"I'm not lying when I say you came at the best possible time. We were on our last leg here." She added.
"There are only adults here. Are the children somewhere else?" Kieran asked.
Lyanna and several others amongst her people looked at the ground. "There are almost no children among us. A handful of families that managed to evade the Oxmen had theirs, that's all. The Qunari managed to take the rest from us. We tried to find the ones they took, but it was no use. They aren't on Bear Island any longer. One more of their crimes against us." She said quietly.
"I'm sorry." Jon said.
Lyanna nodded and sighed. "It's been rough for all of us. But at least that's coming to an end now."
"So, you were going to tell me about the reinforcements from the mainland when we got here. How many can we expect? And how soon?" She asked.
Jon looked at the rest of her people. "We should discuss that in private."
Lyanna furrowed her eyebrows at that. "Is there some particular reason? Because I don't keep secrets from my people."
"It's better this way. You can tell them everything later if you wish." Jon said. "Much rather talk this over with you in a controllable setting, without the need to shout over a mob." He added in his mind.
Lyanna considered for a moment. "Okay then." She said then.
"Were a bit short handed for people available for guard duty. If your troops wouldn't mind helping out with that while you are here…?"
"I'm sure that will be no trouble." Jon said.
"It would be good to be of use, since we came all this way to find you." Kieran said.
"Good. Good." She said.
"We have been using a two part passwords to tell friend from foe. Today's words are *song* and *bird*. The way this works is that when the guards spot you they will shout the word *song* at you. Respond by shouting *bird* back at them. And do it quickly. If you take too long to say it or get it wrong, well… find cover, because the guards are going to think you are an enemy and shoot you." She told Jon's people.
"Do you understand what you need to do? It's very important that you know." She asked.
"They say *song* when they spot us. We say *bird* back to them. Got it." Kieran said. The others nodded as well.
"Excellent. Off you go then." Lyanna said.
"Caleb, could you go with them please? Show them where the guard posts are and be on hand in case there are problems?" She said to the knight next.
"Of course. See you later?" He said.
"You bet." She replied with a smile.
"Maester, the King said his people have supplies to share with us. Please see to its distribution." She told Jeremy.
"At once My Lady." The Maester said with a bow of his head.
Lyanna's people spread around on their business while Jon's left with Caleb, leaving their bags with the Maester.
"You command with confidence." Jon commented as the he and Lyanna were walking to a secluded place just outside the camp.
"I do what I can. Not like there is anyone else to do it. Caleb helps me of course, as do a bunch of others. But I'm the Lady of Bear Island. It's my responsibility." She said.
"If you don't mind me asking, what's going on between him and you? There seems to be more to it than just the normal interaction than with a commander and a knight in her service." Jon asked.
Briefly Lyanna looked surprised that Jon had caught on so quickly.
"We… we're together." She admitted then.
"Together?" Jon repeated.
"Yeah. Not something I exactly intended to happen mind you. But you have to understand, being responsible for all these people, against overwhelming odds, struggling for survival every single day… I needed to have someone to share the burden with. Someone who I could talk to in confidence. Someone who would be there for me when it was all too much. Caleb was… safe… comfortable. I think we are good for each other." She said.
"I can understand needing someone like that. I have in my time." Jon said.
"Indeed. Necessary for times like this and beyond them." She said.
"Beyond them? Things have progressed that far?" The King said.
"Oh yes. I intend to marry him. After the wars are over obviously. We need to win a future for us to share first." She said.
"Well I don't have an objection to you doing so, obviously. There are Lords and Ladies who might say you are marrying beneath your station though. He is just a knight after all. Of a rather small house."
"Perhaps, but screw them. None of those Lords and Ladies were here when my island was attacked. He was. That's what matters, not his status or the power of his house. No, this decision is between me and him, no one else."
"But I don't think my personal life is the reason you wanted to talk to me in private. So what's going on?" She asked. The tone of her voice told Jon she already suspected something was not quite as it seemed.
And so Jon told her. Told her that there would be no reinforcements. That the real reason for him to be here wat to take her to the mainland, not to bring his armies here.
It went about as well as could be expected.
"No! No way in hells! And fuck you for even asking!" She shouted.
"Lyanna, please listen..." Jon tried to cut in.
"I trusted you!" She just kept on going without interruption. "I dared to let myself hope that maybe we weren't abandoned after all, that maybe you had finally come to our defense. I have kept this fight going in the faint and fading hope that you would. Do you have any notion how hard a fight that was for us?"
"I have some." Jon said, thinking back at the siege of Winterfell.
"You are insane if you think I'm abandoning my people to come fight your battles after what I have gone through with them. They need me and I am not about to leave them to die to save myself." She vented on.
"I never said I was going to make you do that. I am not that big of a fool to think you might agree to that. I intend to bring them out of here as well. You have my word." He said.
"And those of my people still in Qunari hands?" She demanded.
"You said it yourself. All of those are dead or one of the Oxmen. I wish it weren't so but there is nothing more we can do for them. We need to focus on the ones in your care now." He answered.
"Well that's true enough." She conceded, her anger fading a fraction. "That makes you only somewhat insane, since you only expect me to abandon my home and leave in the hands of my enemy."
"No. No way. You can send us help or not, but we are staying here. This is our land, and we will fight for it."
"You can stay and fight. But can you win?" Jon asked.
"On our own? Without assistance from you? Probably not." She admitted. "But that does not change what we must do. This place is all we have. Without it we have no stake at all on what happens in the mainland. You'd better have a damn good reason at the ready if you expect us to leave Bear Island behind."
"Aye. It's not an easy thing I'm asking you to do. I shouldn't be asking it of you. But in the end, is your home a place, or the people that make it up? Which of those is more important to defend? Which of those have you really been protecting all this time?" Jon said.
Lyanna seemed taken aback by that. "What? I…I…"
"If I could just sail my armies here and take this island back from the Qunari I would do it. But I can't. The Orlesian forces thrashed us before we beat them back. What's left to us will be needed to deal with the Qunari in the mainland. I see now you did a damn good job of delaying them, but that was never going to keep them away forever. Now neither I nor Queen Daenerys can spare the troops, or the ships." Jon said.
"But what I can do is protect your people. Let me help you and I will get them out of here. I will keep them safe, and together we will be able to continue the fight from a place of strength." Jon added.
Lyanna did not reply, crossing her arms and looking at the ground.
"That's the best I can do, and this may be the last chance I have of offering this. Winter is coming, and with it come storms. Our ships won't be able to make it here again until spring. By then it might already be too late." Jon continued.
Lyanna continued to say nothing, considering. It went on of a long while, Jon deciding it was best to leave her time to think.
"You're right. It's the people that are more important. They're the ones I fought for. I should have seen that from the first." She said finally.
"If… if I agree to leave, I'll need you to promise me a few things first. One: you will keep my people out of the fighting, no matter what. I'm willing to fight for you. I suspect Caleb will too, and I won't deny him if he wants to. But the rest you will keep protected, with troops if need be. There are too few of us left to lose what remains because of your war. And I won't order them to fight for you. They've done enough. I won't ask them to give anything more, now that I have choice in the matter." She said then.
"Of course. Done. You'll have that." Jon said.
"Two: Once fighting enemies in the mainland is done, you will lend me use of your armies to take Bear Island back, if that hasn't already been accomplished by then. You will give me command of all the troops I require and if need be you will convince the Queen to give me her armies too." She continued.
"That… that part is a lot to ask. We won't know what state our armies will be in after the war. And I think you would need a lot. Even if what you ask is doable, it may take a long time before that is within my reach." Jon said.
"I'll wait for it. Just swear to me that the day will come. Swear to me you will give me what I need to take this place back when it's time. . Give me that and I will fight for you, to the death if need be. If not… we'll still leave. It would be foolish to stay, you've convinced me of that. But in that case I'll stay with my people and keep them safe, nothing more. I'll fight for them until my dying breath. If you want me to also fight for you, then these are my terms. Do we have a bargain?"
"You are sworn to serve whenever called upon. It's not very wise for a Lady to give terms to her King in exchange for honoring that oath." Jon reminded.
"I did answer the bloody call. I just had to do it locally because someone decided to dump several boatloads of horned giants onto my lands. Think what you will of me, refuse me if you must, but don't call me an oathbreaker." She said tersely.
"I'm not. But there are other kings who might. That's all I'm saying." He said.
"Bannermen swear to answer their King's call to arms. A King in turn swears to act in defense of his bannermen and their lands. I'm about to lose mine to an enemy. I'll continue to honor my oaths, if you will but honor yours. I'll fight for you in exchange for a chance to win back what rightly belongs to my House. I ask again: Do we have a bargain?" She said.
Jon considered. "Fortunately I was never intending to leave the Qunari a nest to strike at us from. Might as well give you the command when that time comes. But it will happen when I consider it to be wise, not before. We clear on that?" He said then.
"We're clear." Lyanna confirmed.
"Then we have a bargain. I swear it, by the Old Gods and the New." He said.
"Good. Thank you." She said quietly.
"If you'll excuse me, I'll need to tell the others about this. What a conversation that will make!" She said, then was about to leave. Then she stopped.
"Why?" She asked.
"Why what?" He asked in return, frowning.
"You had no way to know I or any of my people were still alive. And in even in the best case you knew I would have only a few hundred people with me. Not enough to change anything. Now you won't even be getting those fighting for you. What's more you chose to come yourself, when you could have sent anyone? Why take that chance? As glad as I am of you being here, I don't quite understand why I and my people are suddenly worth all this trouble?" She said.
"I do need able commanders for my army. I lost quite few of those. And I need people who have faced the Qunari, who have knowledge on how they operate. I came myself because I knew you wouldn't listen to anyone else." Jon explained.
"…But you should know it was through Bran I learned that you were still alive and free. He sent word through Kieran and told me it was important to come get you." He added.
"Oh? And why does Lord Brandon believe me important?" She asked.
"Honestly? I haven't the faintest idea. Bran does things for his own reasons and I've long since given up on trying to understand them." Jon said.
"I see. I'm flattered of course, to be considered important by anyone of note." She said.
"I'll go and chat with the others. Later on you can tell us your plan to get us out of here. I sincerely hope you have one." She continued. "Oh, and I sincerely hope you're being honest with us. If find out you've tricked me…" She said in a half-joking tone.
"You'll scoop my eyes from their sockets and feed them to dogs. Is that bout right?" He said dryly.
"Almost. I'll feed them to bears in a final display of poetic justice." She said with a smirk, then went on her way.