Warg Maiden

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Chapter 31: The Aftermath of a Massacre

Imogen's POV

Wun Wun picked up Skadi and put her on the ship before climbing. There were some startled cries while Wun Wun merely sighed as he sat down. The crows truly never saw a giant.

Anyway, I secured the spear before climbing up the rope ladder. Once on top, I stood next to Wun Wun, comprehending what had transpired not long ago. I stared back to the shore, seeing the wights standing there. The Night King was gone, yet his army remained.

One thing about wights is that they cannot swim.

All the human knowledge they had of swimming is gone. Then again, a wight is nothing but a walking dead body. The soul is gone. All that's left is a slowly decaying vessel for the Night King.

"I failed," I whispered under my breath.

"You did not," Wun Wun grumbled. "They chose."

I sighed, knowing some Clans had chosen to stay and had faced the consequences. Yet, some Clans were waiting in line to board the ships.

"Imogen!" a girl cried out.

I turned around to see Willa and Johnna running toward me. The two girls were safe. I glanced around to see if Karsi was there with them. However, their mother did not appear. The two girls stopped to stare at me.

"Have you seen our mum?" Willa asked.

"She didn't board the ship," Johnna added, wrapping her arms around her sister.

I paused, staring at them. I don't recall seeing Karsi during our escape in all the chaos. She vanished within the blizzard, grabbing the elderly and wounded and pulling them towards the docks. True to her word as Chieftess. The girls stared at my reaction and began to cry. I turned my attention to Wun Wun.

"Did you see Karsi?" I asked.

Wun Wun paused, going through his memory, and then shook his head. I frowned before heading to my cabin. There on the bed was Frigg. I didn't let the Snowy Owl out since she had arrived late in the night to pass on a message. Let alone, I did not want her exposed to the climate when rain was near. However, desperate times call for desperate measures.

Frigg sensed my distress as she adjusted herself. I lowered my arm so she could climb up and brought her over to my face. Staring into her eyes, I warged inside her. I imprinted the recent memory of Karsi, including what she looked like and memories of her expressions. Afterward, I came out, and the girls followed me.

"Find Karsi, see if she is on the other ships, and report to me," I ordered.

Frigg nodded. Raising my arm, the owl took off to the sky, searching for the Chieftess of the Ice-River Clan of the Antler River. She has to be alive. These girls have no one left. Their father died long ago before Willa was born. And as Karsi said, her father, her uncle, and two brothers are dead because of the Crows. Their grandmother passed away from natural causes. Karsi had no other siblings, and the father's side of the family was nowhere to be found.

Let alone the promise I made to Karsi. At the moment, I promised Karsi that I would watch over her daughters. But there is one problem. I was Jon's ward…. his prisoner. And these two girls will not survive if they stay at Castle Black. The Crows will do horrible things to them when Jon and his trusted men lose track.

"Is she looking for Mum?" Willa asked.

I knelt to her level, "She will try to find her."

Willa nodded as she hugged me. The sudden force knocked us over, and I fell to my side. My body cried in protest, but I verbally held it in so as not to scare the poor girl. Ignoring the pain, I adjusted so we were sitting up. Johnna joined it in the hug as the two girls cried. I wasn't sure what to do. Glancing at Wun Wun for some help, he sat there watching. I sighed, maneuvering my arms to wrap around the girls and holding them close while murmuring an old lullaby. Skadi moved behind it, providing support to lean against her. I sighed, relaxing some.

Tormund made his way over and sat down next to us. No words need to be said as he rubbed Johnna's back. No one dared say anything. We sat there watching the crew sail back to Eastwatch-by-the-Sea. Orders were being passed around, yet no one spoke. The Free Folk who got on our ship were mourning.

Today was a massacre.

.o0o.

Later that night, Tormund helped me carry the girls to my cabin. We tucked them in bed and secured the furs and blankets over them. Sleep had taken them, and they deserved a good rest despite the question of their mother's fate. We left the cabin as Skadi lay by the door to ensure they were safe.

Tormund gave a grunt before departing who knows where. After today, he hardly spoke. Barely anyone spoke except the sailors passing orders to maintain the ship. The fire was lit as those who survived the massacre huddled around the braziers to get warm.

I leaned against the wall of the cabin and stared at the sky. It was cloudy, with barely a few patches to reveal the stars and moon. Impossible to tell if it was waxing or waning. Yet there was some lightness in this darkest hour.

"Are you hurt?" Jon asked.

I snapped out of my trance and stared at him. Damn it, he snuck up on me again. I shook my head. I might be sore and bruised, but I wasn't seriously injured.

"And you?" I replied. "You were puking up blood."

Jon sighed as he leaned against the wall, "I can't say I had worse."

I snorted, shaking my head, "Getting beat up, but a White Walker is no easy task."

Jon nodded in agreement.

We were silent.

There is a lot that needs to be discussed.

Primarily what happened with the White Walker. It was one of the older generations. He was stronger, and his weapons could destroy anything from first contact. So, how on earth did Jon Snow manage to shatter a White Walker without dragonglass?

"You said Dark Sister killed a White Walker," Jon started, breaking the silence.

I nodded, "So did Longclaw."

Jon nodded as well.

"Dark Sister is a Valyrian sword," he explained. "I don't know much about the sword other than it was created for Visenya Targaryen during Aegon's Conquest."

I nodded.

Jon removed his belt holding Longclaw's scabbard and stared at the pommel of a white wolf with red eyes. "Longclaw once belonged to House Mormont. Lord Commander Mormont said it had been in his family for five hundred years, long before the Doom."

"The Doom of Valyria," I murmured.

Jon stared at me, slightly surprised that I was aware of the Doom of Valyria. I know of it, for Bloodraven taught me about its history, and the Raven showed me a glimpse of its city.

"No one knows how Valyrian steel is made," Jon sighed, not bothering to ask how I knew history. "Many believe the ore is from the volcano. Others say it was forged by dragon fire or magic."

I nodded, "During the First Long Night, a Hero had dragon steel that killed the Others."

Jon nodded, staring at the people on the ship. "We lost the dragonglass. But now we know Valyrian steel can kill them."

"Do you know how to make Valyrian steel?" I asked.

"No, the practice has been lost since the Doom," he answered.

"And how many Valyrian blades are there?" I asked.

Jon paused, "Not many. Barely ten in Westeros. Many were lost or stolen in the last three hundred years."

I took a deep breath, "So it's my spear and your sword against the Others."

Jon nodded.

"We're fucked," I concluded.

Jon nodded again.

I tried to lighten the mood, "At least the Seven Kingdoms doesn't have to worry about the cannibal clans anymore."

Jon was quiet for a moment and coughed up a laugh. Not loud, that would gather attention, but enough for me to hear.

"Yeah, you can say something like that," he agreed.

"I hate Thenns," I muttered.

Jon merely nodded.

We stand there in silence, watching the sky.

No one was in the mood to talk.

As we mourn for the dead.

.o0o.

It would be a few days when Frigg returned. She landed on the rail next to me. She appeared tired; then again, she was constantly searching for Karsi. I stared into her eyes and warged into her memory. They came as flashes on the many boats she had explored. Showing women who held Karsi's resemblance. Until showing a battered woman lying on a cot. She was covered in scratches and bite marks from her face down to her chest. She was unrecognizable until she opened her eyes, gasping in pain. Those sharp blue eyes. An elderly woman came over, treating the batter spearwife.

I disconnected and sighed in relief that Karsi was not a wight. However, her life hangs in the balance. Those wounds appeared deep. It would be a matter of time to tell if she survives or succumbs to her injuries. I took a deep breath, not sure how to tell the girls.

Tormund walked over, standing next to me, "What did you see?"

I took a deep breath, staring out to the coast, "Karsi is alive but severely injured."

Tormund nodded, "Will she make it?"

I bowed my head, "I do not know."

Tormund sighed, resting a hand on my shoulder, "She's a fighter."

"That she is," I agreed.

"She did outlive all the men in her life," he added.

I couldn't help but smile, "That she did."

If Karsi manages to survive.

It was best not to tell the girls until we know if Karsi survives the journey to Eastwatch. The last thing I wanted to do was tell the girls that I'd found their mother, and when we reached our destination, Karsi had passed away. Tormund agreed. The best thing we can do is comfort the girls and pray to the Old Gods not to take Karsi just yet. Tormund wasn't a spiritual person. But when moments like these come, he offers what little spiritual guidance he has.

"And you?" Tormund asked.

I stared at him, "What about me?"

Tormund stared at me, "We saw the Night King. No one has seen him for centuries. And I saw how he looked at you."

I sighed, bowing my head.

"I don't know what to say," I confessed. "Seeing the creature that has been haunting me for years."

"Imogen," Tormund murmured. "Is there something you are not telling me?"

I took a deep breath, "You saw the markings on my back."

"Aye," he confirmed.

"I am bound to fight the Night King," I added.

Tormund frowns at this.

"The wolf on my back….is me," I explained. "And the boy I told you about. Bran…if he seeks the path of the Raven…. then he is the Raven."

"And that leaves the fire lizard, the dragon," Tormund added.

I nodded.

"So it is not animals who will fight the Night King but three people," he summed up. "Who is the dragon?"

"I do not know," I confessed. "And I hate not knowing."

"Have you told Jon?"

I scowled, "No."

Tormund nodded. Jon is aware of my markings, but he doesn't understand the symbolism. Even with this strange alliance, it doesn't stop the fact that he is a Crow. I already put enough trust in him, although he is the reason why my people are in this predicament. How Mance Rayder is dead. How Ygritte was dead.

My eyes watered at the thought of Ygritte. It had only been a couple of months, and the pain was still there. I had to suppress my emotions so the Crows wouldn't be satisfied. I had to restrain myself when Mance was being burned alive until his mercy kill. Yet I falter when Orell was murdered by the Red Woman. The Red Woman and Jon Snow killed Orell in both of his lives.

Now, some clans have gone extinct.

Tormund noticed this and awkwardly wrapped his arms around me, giving me a hug.

"Let it out lass," he murmured. "I promise I won't tell."

I sobbed, burying my face into his furs.

Tormund remained silent as he held me as I cried. He wasn't good at comforting women but knew how to lend a shoulder to cry on. The tears came and froze along my cheek. The sobs were muffled by the furs and drowned by the winds.

.o0o.

Jon's POV

Jon came onto the deck battered and sore. He has a feeling he has probably broken a rib or two. After fighting the White Walker, he has learned his lesson. At least he discovered Valyrian steel can kill a White Walker. With the dragonglass gone and Valyrian steel limited…. they needed to figure something out.

He looked around, seeing the crew at work.

Until he spotted Tormund there holding someone.

Squinting his eyes, Jon could see the paint in the woman's hair and realized it was Imogen.

It took a moment when he heard a soft cry that was being muffled.

Imogen was crying.

Jon was surprised. He always found Imogen not to be one for emotions. Yes, she had a temper, but not to shed a tear. He doubts he ever heard her actually cry. Maybe once through Frigg when cremating Ygritte, and watery eyes for Orell. But to actually cry was a first.

He thought about going there to comfort her, but he stopped himself. He doubts Imogen wants comfort from him after all that has happened, from Ygritte to now. She was his ward, his prisoner. And though they have been civil towards each other…he is still the man who ruined everything.

Jon sighed, recalling what Mance said about them needing to work together.

Jon knows he has to make this right. They must work together if they are going to fight in the Long Night.

But how? Jon thought to himself.


Short chapter.

Did you really think I was going to kill Karsi that easily? Think again. I have a few ideas with Karsi. You all just have to wait and see.

Thanks for reading, and please leave a review.

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