Chapter 32; Debates and decisions
Characters of the chapter
Arya Stark Junior Grey Warden
Dajeah Junior Grey Warden
Lyanna Mormont, Lady of Bear Island
Nathaniel Howe Commander of the Grey in Westeros
Orvo Junior Grey Warden
Samwell Tarly Maester of the Citadel assigned to Castle Black
Ser Caleb Threestones, Knight of Westeros,Second to Lyanna Mormont
Thorpe Junior Grey Warden
"So now we've reached a point where you would ask me to travel halfway across the world on some kind of treasure hunt?" Lyanna asked back in Winterfell.
"I know how you feel, especially after what I've already asked." Jon replied. "If I had someone else in mind I would certainly not bother you with this. But I need people from my kingdom taking part in this mission and you were the person closest to having the skillset needed for the job. I need you."
"Right. I suppose I should get myself ready to travel then." She said. "Is something the matter?"
"It's nothing. I guess… I was just expecting more resistance." Jon said.
Lyanna gave a dry scoff. "We've had this discussion back at Bear Island. Not much has changed. I'll admit, this order of yours is a bit of a border case, since these aren't Qunari you're asking me to fight and the threat isn't even in Westeros. And if the Oxmen were an active threat at the moment I'd certainly want to fight them instead of this. Because that would be getting me closer to my own goal. But I get the big picture. It's the same old song. If this threat isn't removed I could retake Bear Island only to have the Tevi's roll in a short time later. If we even get that far. So I need to do it."
She paused. "If you prefer I could of course still throw a tantrum over this." She then said with a smirk.
The King gave a short laugh. "No, no. This is much more preferable."
"Thank you for saying yes." He said then.
"Of course." Lyanna said. "Though… I'm wondering something. If you wanted me for this mission would it not have been more prudent to send me with Iledia when she departed? Or is it that you only thought of this now?"
"We were considering this with Dany and Iledia before the mage's departure. And she has said she will accept your help if I choose to send you. But at the time I was still considering my options. Not to worry though. Iledia only left a short while ago. You can still make it to King's Landing in a reasonable time if you leave soon." Jon explained.
"Then I should go make my preparations. I only hope that I get to come back from this trip. After all, I won't be able to reclaim my lands if I'm dead, and I'd hate to perish so far from the North. But it's not as if I've never taken a risk like this before. Good day, Your Grace." She said, and left the room.
Her path led her outside the walls of Winterfell and into Wintertown. This was where her people had been staying at after their retreat from Bear Island. A decent enough place, though for her and her people it still lacked that special feeling for home. The King and Lady Sansa had done their best to ensure her people were comfortable, for which she was grateful. While their needs had been seen to adequately, many of her people had taken up jobs with the more permanents residents of Winterfell and its surroundings, preferring to do what they could to earn their keep rather than be a burden to their fellow northerners. But even so she could sense most of them were purposefully avoiding getting too comfortable or setting down roots. With the Qunari still lurking close to the western coast and now new reports of these darkspawn creatures, they knew that the situation was still volatile and uncertain. To that add the threat of a potential Tevi invasion in the future. So her people knew to keep themselves ready to drop everything and go elsewhere at a moment's notice.
What was more, once she left here she would have no control over how things would transpire here. Going to deal with this threat meant attention was diverted from the other dangers. Diverted from her people. Who could say just what she might end up returning to? Perhaps she should take steps to ensure her fellow islanders were left in good hands while she was away. Otherwise this concern would just gnaw at her in the back of her mind, degrading her ability to see this task through. It became clear to her what she needed to do. Even so…
She sighed. This was not going to be a pleasant conversation…
She arrived at the cottage that had been reserved for her, finding Caleb inside. He smiled when he spotted her.
"You're back. So, what did the King want with you?" He asked.
"The same thing he always wants from me: To toss me new missions to complete. This time he's telling me to go to King's Landing, from where I'm going to go elsewhere as part of a special mission. I'm to leave as soon as I'm able." She said.
"Figures. There is always something more, isn't there? Right then. We can start packing and leave as soon as we're finished. You can tell me more of this mission along the way."
"That's… just it." She said, stopping him in his tracks just as he was about to get to work. "…I think this time it time it might be best if I went alone and you stayed here."
His smile faded away, replaced by a look of confusion. "What? What kind of talk is that? Of course I should be coming with you. Just like when we went to fight against the Qunari."
"This is different. Back then those horn heads were the only acute threat facing us. So there was no reason not to have both of us go help deal with it. This time were dealing with a bunch of different threats all at once, each of which could become an immediate danger at any given moment. So I need you to stay here in case something happens while I'm gone."
"Lyanna, no. My place is with you. We're a team." He said.
"And teams sometimes delegate tasks between its members. Today that is what is needed." She countered.
"Lyanna, please. Don't ask me to stay behind…" He pleaded.
"Enough. You're a knight sworn to my service. You are honor bound to do as I command. And this is my command now." She said firmly.
Caleb took a deep breath. "Y…yes My Lady." He said reluctantly, averting his eyes from her.
The rest of their effort of preparing for her journey passed in uneasy silence. She could tell he was still disappointed in her decision. A part of her was having second thoughts as well, wanting to tell him that she had changed her mind and would allow him to come with her. But that would not have been the prudent thing to do, especially after she had already made up her mind once. So she forced herself to remain silent.
As soon as she had everything she needed she left for King's Landing. A few days passed uneventfully after. But then Caleb went to the castle full of intent, his path leading him straight to the King's rooms, informing the door guards that he wished an audience with His Grace on a matter of great importance.
A week later…
"I'm being serious. I'm strongly advising you to leave this place. Jon would wish that as well." Arya said in the yard of Castle Black.
"Even if I wanted to go, it's not exactly something that's up to me. Night's Watch aren't really allowed to travel." Replied Sam.
"Just make this one of your visits to Winterfell and extend it longer than usual. You've been allowed to do that in the past so there is no reason to think it would be denied you this time." She insisted.
"I'd still be running away, abandoning everyone. I'm not that selfish. I'm almost no use in a fight, I know. But I've been there and have lived through it. And I still have a Maester's training so I can help the wounded and such. Maester Aemon was a blind old man when the Wildlings attacked the Wall. He still did his duty. I did too, even if it scared me half to death. I don't see how running away would be the right thing to do now. You don't even know if those creatures will be getting as far as here." He countered.
Arya sighed. "I get wanting to stay and do your duty, believe me. But at least you should send Gilly to Winterfell. Because if it comes to that I won't have the time to keep you safe. No one inside these walls will. If the darkspawn manage to get to you… they'll kill you without a second thought. To her they might end up doing far worse. I'd not put you through that. And I'd not have her lose the father of her children. I get that you might want to remain here so you can keep her safe. I think that would be a mistake, but if that's your choice I'll have to accept that. But she needs to leave this place, with or without you. You need to convince her to. For her, for your kids and for Jon. And for those same people I truly believe you should leave as well."
Sam paused, thoughtful, then nodded slowly. "I'll… convince her of that. And I'll think on what you said. About leaving myself. But I won't be leaving unless it becomes clear these creatures will be able to reach the Wall."
"Fair enough. I guess that's the best I can hope for. And for what it's worth I do hope we can stop them on our own, so there won't be need for you to leave. I wish for that more than anything right now." She said, then turned to leave.
"Wait… what did you mean when you said they could do worse than kill her?" He asked.
Arya grimaced. "Best you don't know the details. Some information even a Maester should not have. Let's just say that darkspawn are vicious creatures, foul in just about every way one can imagine, and leave it at that."
She headed back to her fellow Wardens, hoping that her warnings would be taking root. She had done all she could there. The rest was up to them.
She found the others gathered in the yard, collecting their things.
"Ah, there you are. Your own talks are done I suppose?" Nathaniel said on spotting her.
"Yeah. I'm done." She said.
"Good. Because we are leaving shortly." He said.
"Already?" She asked. They had just got here earlier today.
"No reason for us to stick around. We only waited around this long to pick up more food and get permission to proceed further from the Lord Commander. Plus reading the messages sent to us." He said.
Arya nodded. Indeed as soon as they had gotten there they had been informed of messages originally sent to their compound in King's Landing, relayed here since no Grey Wardens were there at the moment. Nathaniel and Blackwall had already read those messages and Arya had managed to sneak a peek as well while talking with Sam.
"I'm guessing it's off to the Orlesian fort next?" She asked.
"Precisely." Nathaniel confirmed, unfazed by the fact she already knew. He was certainly aware of her tendency to snoop around from the time when they were both still in Thedas.
"Orlesian fort? Is someone going to tell us what is going on?" Orvo asked.
"Of course. I was just getting to that in fact. Gather round." Nathaniel said.
"After my conversation with the Lord Commander and the local Inquisition leadership it has become clear there have been a number of raids against settlements north of the Wall. Survivors confirm these as darkspawn attacks. Most prominently there the fortress of the Lady's Radiance had been destroyed by a darkspawn force." He said then.
That made Arya instantly more concerned. She had seen those coastal fortresses on the way here. They were formidable. For the darkspawn to be able to take it required significant numbers and coordination from them. It was obvious now this was more than a few roving war bands, though the feeling of their presence had in truth already confirmed that to her. Not good. The darkspawn fortunately seemed to still remain in the north, but again it was impossible to know how long that might continue to be the case, especially if they were claiming victories like this?
"Are the Orlesians responding to the situation, ser?" Asked Thorpe.
"They are indeed. And they have contacted us as part of that response. Word is they are preparing two regiments for an assault to retake the fortress." Nathaniel said.
Additional Orlesian troops are being brought by ship and they have a small force of Wildlings assisting them as well. Orlesian command has requested we link up with these forces and join the attack. Since this fortress is likely be one of the largest concentrations of darkspawn, I've agreed to that request. Time is of the essence, so once we leave here we will be moving as fast as is reasonable, stopping only to deal with darkspawn war bands that directly cross our path. No chasing them around for now if they don't get in our way." Nathaniel told them.
"Any of the Night's Watch coming with us? Or Inquisition forces?" Arya asked.
"No. It was offered, but I turned them down. I don't think it would be wise to involve anyone south of the Wall unless it is absolutely necessary. Plus with the recent war there are likely lingering tensions. I don't want to be responsible for causing an incident." He said.
"Wait up… we are seriously going to be fighting alongside Orlesians?" Dajeah asked.
"That is correct. I would have thought that clear from the start. It's not as we were going to be able to clear out any significant infestation all on our own. And I did mention we might call on other militaries should the need arise. It has. Does this pose a problem for you, Warden Dajeah?" Nathaniel said.
"No shit I have a problem with it! I'm not going to fight for those bastards! I refuse to!" She shouted.
Nathaniel grew visibly annoyed at that. "That is not a choice that you get to make. You are a Grey Warden, sworn to fight the darkspawn, no matter where they appear or who they threaten. Your past allegiances and grudges do not enter into it. And with so many darkspawn about we cannot leave a single Warden behind."
"So that's that. You have your orders and you will carry them out. Just like all the rest of us." He said firmly.
Sadly such stern words only made Dajeah bristle even worse. "Oh, screw you shem! And screw your orders! I'm not doing this…" She said, then stormed off.
"Hey! Where do you think you're going! Get back here!" Nathaniel shouted. But Dajeah paid him no mind, soon disappearing around the corner. Nathaniel sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Speaking of lingering issues…" He muttered.
"Arya, Thorpe, Orvo… go handle her. And make this quick. There I plan on us covering a lot longer distance today, so we need to get ourselves moving." He said after an uneasy silence.
The trio nodded and went searching for their friend. As they were looking Arya noticed the main gate of the castle open, a number of people beginning to stream through. Wildlings by the look of their things. Most likely looking for a safer place to be. "Good." Arya thought. The more of them got away from the darkspawn the better. She just hoped none of these refugees carried the Blight sickness. She was certain Nathaniel had advised both the Lord Commander and the Inquisition officers to isolate any refugees until they were sure all of them were healthy. If that advice was followed it would go to great lengths in preventing any epidemics from breaking out. But not all Thedosians would be able to take blight sickness sufficiently seriously, to say nothing of her fellow Westerosi. And the Wildlings were unlikely to take kindly to confinement, even the kind done for their benefit.
But at the end of the day it was not her problem to deal with now that they had been warned.
They found Dajeah shortly after, leaning against the wall of one of the buildings, arms crossed and staring sullenly at the ground.
"You two wait here. I'll go speak with her." Thorpe said.
"You sure? Shouldn't we talk to her together?" Orvo asked.
"He's right. It's better if he handles this." Arya said. Thorpe gave her a mildly puzzled look, perhaps not expecting her knowing tone. Nevertheless he nodded in gratitude and went to speak with Dajeah. They spoke in low voices, but Arya was able to overhear them even so:
"Bloody ridiculous, expecting me to fight for the Orlesian pigs. And I'm just supposed to shut my mouth and do it without any complaints at all? Fuck all of that." Dajeah muttered.
"Look… I know this isn't something you want to do. And I respect your reasons for not wanting to. But this is our job, so I don't think we have much choice. And you really can't go mouthing off to Nathaniel like that. He's our Commander. We have to show respect to that." Thorpe replied.
"I'm done tiptoeing around shems in power. "*Respecting their authority* never got us anywhere in my alienage. They found excuses to hurt us anyway. Realizing that was what made me decide to fight back in the first place. I'll speak my mind to him all I like. The worst he can do to me in response is boot me out of the Wardens. At this point I might not even mind it all that much. I'd still be a Warden. No declaration from him can change that. And if I need to find darkspawn to kill I can do so just as well on my own." She said.
"Assisting other humans I could live with. I wouldn't feel terribly motivated, but at least I could stomach it. But Orlesians? I've lost count how many of us ended up cut to pieces by chevalier swords for no other reason than being in the wrong place at the wrong time. And now I should defend them because why? So one day they can return to their country and kill or violate even more of my fellow elves?" She continued.
"These aren't the same ones that have hurt your people. You know that." He said.
"Not all of them, maybe." She conceded. "But these are soldiers, so I'd bet that a good number of them have done so. And the rest of them sure as shit have never done anything to put an end to those things. If the Inquisitor had not gotten ambassador Briala into a position of power we would still be going absolutely nowhere on that front. Hatred or indifference. I can't decide which of those is the worst offense. But I think they have done more than enough bad for me to consider them collectively guilty. And now I'm meant to protect them? I agreed to become a Warden to get away from them and to do right by my people the only way that was left to me. Right now I'm not getting either of those. Just the opposite. How is this supposed to be justifiable?"
Thorpe sighed. "Don't do this for the Orlesians then. Do this for us, your fellow Wardens. Do this for Arya and her homeland, which is likely be next unless we manage to stop this. We did promise her we would help her, if you remember. You said you'd fight as hard as you can to keep them away from her people I believe. Are you going to let this get in the way of that?"
Dajeah frowned, hesitating in her stubborn refusal.
"No… I suppose that would not be a fair thing to do as her friend. It still doesn't feel entirely right to me though." She said.
As Arya was listening, she could certainly see where Dajeah was coming from. Her own situation was not all that different after all. Not too long ago Imperial forces had been marching across these lands, intent upon conquering all of it, on killing or capturing her family. There was no small amount of irony in being asked to fight by their side now. How would she feel about being asked to do this if the Imperials had actually succeeded in their objective of taking over Westeros? But like Dajeah and Thorpe she knew she wasn't truly doing this for the Orlesians, even if she would welcome their blades at her side in the battles to come.
"Look, okay. Since I've made a promise I'll tag along for the ride and do what I need to do to keep my friends alive. Just try help me make sure I'm not fighting directly with the Orlesians. I can't promise I'll be able to control myself if I'm face to face with them. And don't expect me to feel any sympathy for any of them that get killed. To me they are meat to throw against the darkspawn, nothing more." Dajeah finally said.
"Fair enough." Thorpe said. "Thanks for this." He added compassionately.
"Yeah. The things I do for my friends." She said. "Come on, we should go back. Can't have my tantrums derail this operation any more than they already have."
The four of them returned to their fellow Wardens. Nathaniel looked about ready to give Dajeah a lecture of being such a disruption, but apparently decided not to risk upsetting her again. So instead they gathered their things, put skis back on their feet and headed into the tunnel leading to the far side of the Wall.
Orvo gave a whistle as they were proceeding through the tunnel. "This unbelievable wall… it looks just as formidable from the inside as it does from the outside. Just look at how thick it is at its base. And three gates in this tunnel too. And you're saying this thing really runs from coast to coast?"
"Yep, miles and miles of it." Arya said. "Don't go asking how any of this was done. I haven't a clue of that. The Wall is older than any records that exist, so all we have is a bunch of myths."
"So what do the myths say then?" Orvo asked.
"They say it was the project of Bran the Builder; that he had it made after the first War for the Dawn. They speak of giants, magic and Children of the Forest aiding in the construction. But I couldn't say which of those stories are even remotely true. As far as most of us are concerned the Wall has always existed and always will." She said.
"I actually heard a little differently." Thorpe joined in. "Talked to a few Night's Watchmen while we were waiting. They spoke of how it has actually gotten a lot harder to maintain the Wall on the account of there being no more long winters and the temperatures being generally warmer around here. They say it gets a little more difficult with every passing year. It might take centuries, but there might eventually be a day when the Wall is no longer standing.
"That would be a shame. This place is one of the wonders of the world without a doubt." Orvo said. "Still, it won't be falling tomorrow."
"Must be making you feel better to have this kind of defenses protecting your northern border now." He said to Arya.
"Yeah. You're right about that. If it comes to it this will be our best bet to keeping the darkspawn from moving further south. Seeing as the White Walkers needed an undead dragon to break through the wall, we would be able to give the spawn a hell of a fight here." She said.
"You know, seeing as you've fought both, how do the darkspawn compare to the White Walkers? Were the Walkers harder or easier to face? I've wondered that for a while." Thorpe asked.
Arya pondered for a moment. "Hmm. Well the Walkers and the wights they commanded certainly hit harder and were more difficult to kill in return. Darkspawn die to the same things that kill us. With the Walkers you needed specialized weaponry. And theirs was a threat that escalated exponentially every time they won a battle."
"For all that though the darkspawn have more staying power. After their first defeat the Walkers stayed gone for thousands of years before making a second attempt. And since I got lucky and managed to get the big bad at the heart of it all they're all gone forever now. No doing that with the darkspawn. Even killing an Archdemon just sends them fleeing. And as anyone like us that has to deal with them all the time can tell, they keep pushing even between blights." She continued.
"And the lands they have affected can take a long time to recover. If they can at all." Orvo said.
"Precisely." She said, nodding.
"So it's the difference of one overwhelming blow and a steady pressure?" Thorpe concluded.
"More or less. That's my take on it anyway." She said.
They passed through the outer gate, greeted by a fresh blast of cold air as they emerged into the open on the far side of the wall. As their skis brought them further and further into the wilderness Arya absentmindedly that by the Maester's way of counting today marked the beginning of a new year. Ninth year since the peoples of Thedas had entered into their lives. Most people in Westeros were not in the habit of counting time in this manner, but her time in Thedas had taught her to appreciate the significance of a new year. That almost mystical sense of something beginning…