It had been 3 days since Lyanna had awoken alone on that beach. She managed to wake up again just long enough to get some more food and water into her before she fell back asleep. When she came back into the world of the living, there was sunlight shining through the hole she had fallen through. Luckily it seemed this place was the perfect shelter for her.
Getting up and stretching to relieve her body of the aches and pains she had had since waking up. Walking over to the fountain, she filled her water skin and drank her fill again. She looked around again at her shelter, now that her life wasn't endangered and she was satisfied, she found that archway that led into a corridor.
Walking out into it, she turned around and, taking out the small knife, marked the wall next to her shelter so she could find her way back. Until she could find a way out of here and back to the others, she would need some place to sleep and it already had a steady supply of fresh water. For now, she had to find some way out.
Looking both left and right, she shrugged her shoulders and turned right. She walked until she came to a 4 ways junction and turned right again. When walking in a maze, the surest way out was always taking the long way. The first couple of rooms she came across were regular storerooms, which time had claimed, rotted wood barrels, spider webs, and several layers of dust.
The way ended abruptly in a blocked path where the corridor had collapse. Turning back, she continued back until the junction, marking out her previous sign for this hallway with an X to show it goes nowhere. She took the next right and kept going. This cycle repeated itself many times, most of the rooms she found were empty, or there was just nothing she could salvage.
When she finally got back to the doorway of her shelter she was depressed, the entire right side of the catacombs was useless and blocked off. If the left half was the same, she would be forced to either dig her way out or find a way to get out of the hole in her ceiling. Her only real find had been a leather bound book, mostly blank, tearing out the few pages she claimed the book as her own and started a journal.
Day 4- I awoke the next morning hungry and again started my search of these catacombs. I was met with better luck this time, finding a weapons room that were intact, sadly I don't have the training to use most of them proficiently enough. Maybe when I have extra spare time. I did find food, but no of it was edible after so long.
There are no words to describe my relief when I found a door with light shining through the bottom of it. Throwing open the door I found stairs leading up and clear sky ahead. You can't imagine my relief when I was led to a cove partially covered by a mountain. I assume it was a docking port at one time, especially since the outside would have to know where to look to get into it.
I found another path that led up and into the forest. I didn't bother trying to find the hole I fell through. Soon I would find something to cover it. But for now food is on my list. I wasn't as educated as Maester Luwin, but I shouldn't starve knowing how much food could be in this climate. I managed to find pineapple, and oranges in the immediate area, enough to last me until I could hunt again. I brought back as much as my arms could carry.
Day 5- After finding my way out of the catacombs yesterday and bringing back fruits so I could eat, I place a few in the fountain to keep the fruit cool. I also waded out into the shallows of my hidden cove, finally able to wash off the grime that had been attached to my body like a second skin. It felt good to feel clean, although I'm still a little hesitant to go out deeper. Something on land already tried to eat me, I'll hold off in case something in the water thinks the same way.
Day 7- Not going to lie about this, but the people of Old Valyria were creative with their passages ways. I found another door hidden in rock wall within the cove. It led up into the rock above the cove, maybe rich merchant or a hidden royal getaway. I don't know, and all I do know is that now I have another room, a backup in case I have to hide.
Day 12- I've managed to cover up the hole in my shelter using wide branches and leaves to cover it up. While not as bright as it was uncovered, I can still see where I'm going in here. I've started a routine of my day, I wake up and practice with my sword, every other day I will run along part of the beach. I don't hope to see a passing ship, who would pick up a person from where they send the dying anyway. I still have plenty of fruit and apparently I am the only one picking them, and fresh water is still a blessing. It must be the Northerner in me that is craving meat. It's either fish or lizard, but by all the Gods, I will have meat.
Day 21- 3 weeks. I've been on this island for 3 weeks, and mostly I stick to my routine like clockwork. I did manage to find some string and was able to fashion a hook from the lizards tooth by shaving it down. I sat out there on the beach for several hours, just sitting at first and then tying the line to a branch I rammed into the ground. I almost broke the line when I pulled too hard on it in an attempt to get the first one snagged. Fresh roasted meat, even if it was just fish, was amazing after so long.
Day 28- After almost a month, I went back to the weapons room and looked around. It held pikes, halberds, long sword, short sword, even shields and throwing spears and a large double sided battleaxe. And I don't know if I have told you this, but I have a LOT of time to myself, so I started to train. The pikes were left alone as I had no way to test it except stand in front of something and let it charge me. And the shields were fine but I had no way to practice blocking except in my head.
The halberd was my favorite to practice with, I actually broke the first one I held because the wood was too old and decayed. Most of the wood in these weapons were rotten. Maybe if I ever get back to civilization I can have one made for me. If I get back. I use to think when I get back, now it feels like I've been here forever. Maybe now I can get more of that lizard meat with the throwing spears. Only way to be sure.
Day 36- I had to chop down a tree with the battleaxe today. I've run out of throwing spears, or at least all of the wood of them is destroyed. I managed to salvage all of the spear heads. It took me only an hour to chop the tree down, trying to shape into spear handles has taken me 3 days. I'll have to practice throwing the new ones and continuing to shape them until they are balanced. I guess if I never get out of this place at least I'll know I won't starve to death.
Day 38- I found tracks this morning along the beach. Someone, or rather several someone's, came ashore and dragged a boat. Several foot prints got out and several got back in and left again. It doesn't make sense with dropping someone off. Maybe they came for fresh water, but whatever they came for they left again. One possibility, that scared me above all else, was slavers. They would need water to keep all of their "merchandise" alive. If they find me here, I will make sure they are made to bleed for it.
Day 47- I am the luckiest Stark this side of the world. Granted I'm probably the only Stark on this side of the world, but I maintain my statement. I was cleaning out the weapons room and I found a chest buried deep in a corner underneath a lot of practice swords and shields. I actually laughed when I found it locked, finally something worth locking away. It was a simple matter to break the wood around the lock and open it. Wrapped carefully in cloth was a bow, but this was not just any bow, it was black and beautiful.
When I grabbed it, I was further shocked, a Dragonbone double-curved bow. If more so than I dreamed, I found a quiver with arrows underneath the bow. I've never used a waist quiver but I'm sure I'll like it better than no quiver at all. Truth be told, I was extremely out of practice with the bow. I spent hours in the cove where I set up targets, mostly shooting the entire quiver before going over and recollecting the arrows. Once again, I have plenty of time to spare.
Day 61- I hate it when I'm right. I saw another party come ashore, a couple men with weapons and several others in chains carrying barrels for drinking water. Slavers, oh how I hated them with their whips and cruel disposition. If I had had my bow and quiver, there may be 3 fewer slavers in the world. It hurt to have to wait there until they came back only 20 minutes with their fresh water and board their small vessel to sail away again.
I couldn't help those poor bastards this time, but maybe the slavers could be my way off this place. I'll be gone for awhile while I train, in the sword and the bow. Gods, how I miss Shadow and Lady and Nymeria, I miss Asher's joke and Beskha's tough attitude. But if anyone should find this next to my corpse, could you take this to Daenerys Stormborn of the House Targaryen. So that she may know she was the last thing I mentioned in this story of my days here.
Day 152(I think)- It's been 3 months since I last wrote in this and 5 months since I woke up on the shore. This place has a savage beauty to it. And I've given up on thinking of Winterfell because it just leads me back to that white haired beauty I met in Vaes Dothrak. What I wouldn't give for just a single day of her company. I will be leaving this shelter soon, I plan to camp near the slaver's choice of fresh water. But for now, I need to let my body rest and relax, all the results of my training will be revealed when I see those slavers again.
Day 200- If there schedule holds, the slavers will be here in the next 60 or so days. I still go to my cove to relax and bathe but not as often as I could. I need to be here when they get here. I went back to my first shelter and marked the wall. "Lyanna Stark of Winterfell survived 7+ months, you can too" so that whoever comes next can know they don't have to give up.
Day 243-They are early, I was just about to retire for the night when I heard a ship bell out in the dark ocean. My guess is that they will be here tomorrow before continuing to set sail. Either tomorrow I will be headed away from this beautiful but lonely place or I will be dead and I will join the bodies of Old Valyria. There will be no middle option tomorrow, I will live free or I will die free, but I will be free.
Again, if someone should find this, take it to Daenerys Stormborn. I didn't know her long, but if I make it out of this I plan to spend as much time as the Gods grant me getting to know her for the rest of my life.
Signed
Lyanna Stark
Lyanna smiled down at the book that had been her only companion these last 8 or so months. She closed it up and put it away carefully so as to not damage it. Stamping out the last of her fire, she let the moon shine down light for her. Once it was cool enough, she picked up soot and marked her face from temple to temple to cover her eyes and the upper part of her cheeks. Pulling 3 lines down each side of her face, her mask was complete.
Only a few hours from sun-up and her future. Lyanna pictured a conversation with the girl who had been in her head since she got here. It helped pass the time and alleviate her fears. She was pulled out of her dreaming when she heard men shouting to row faster. Securing her sword to her back and quiver to her side, she notched an arrow and waited for someone to walk through the woods to her.
A/N: Well guys and girls, what are your thoughts on this. I really didn't know if I was going to do that journal entry type style of writing. But another author recommended that sometime to change it up once in awhile. Please review so I can hear from you.
