Chapter 36: Part XXXVINotes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Disclaimer: I own nothing, just borrowing for a while.
----------
"All I'm saying is that if that if I was Brandon the Builder I'd have constructed the Wall only half as high and with the effort saved dug a deep wide moat at the Neck as a second line of defence. Three-hundred and fifty feet is more than enough for an effective fortification and what's more you get a shipping canal for free!"
King Joffrey Baratheon annoys his Good-Brother Robb Stark – 303 AC
----------
The Nightfort – The Wall – 299 AC
The oldest and largest castle of the Wall, and likely the one with the darkest history, the sheer size and cost of upkeep of the Nightfort had led to its being abandoned over two centuries ago after which it had fallen steadily into ruin.
After surveying the situation at Castle Black and taking note that not only Stark Bannermen but also a force of men from the Riverlands were heading north to help reinforce the centre stretch of the wall from Icemark to Sable Hall, Robb Stark had decided to establish himself at the Nightfort and begin to repair the castle using the many hundreds of men at his disposal.
With Mance Rayder and his army of Wildlings thought to be camped near the Frostfangs near the extreme western end of the wall Robb wanted to make sure he could move his men to support the Shadow Tower there if necessary. This meant he didn't want the bulk of his reserves positioned as far east as Castle Black and the sheer size of the Nightfort leant itself to holding as many men as might ever be needed if further reinforcements were to arrive later from the south.
With the Night's Watch lacking the men to do it themselves Robb had placed small garrisons of at least a dozen of Stark bannermen at each castle on the Wall he was now responsible for, and had regular patrols running between them. They could at least now be less fearful of the Wildlings climbing the wall in dangerous numbers unobserved and with the Night's Watch providing advice to the newcomers Robb felt a degree of confidence in his position.
Although undeniably formidable as an obstacle when critically undermanned the Wall was nonetheless far from impregnable, that was why it the Night's Watch had made it clear they needed the reinforcements desperately. Robb knew that back in the early days of Aegon III's reign, shortly after the Dance of Dragons, a small army of wildlings led by the infamous chieftain 'Sylas the Grim' had managed to scale the wall and overwhelm an understrength garrison of the Night's Watch at Queensgate, just to the west of Castle Black. With Sylas and his warbands running rampant Robb's ancestor, Cregan Stark, had to raise his banners and hunt down the raiders who were scourging the lands south of the wall unopposed.
Sylas the Grim had led a band of three thousand and caused havoc with it. King-Beyond-the-Wall Mance Rayder could boast at least thirty times that number of Wildlings in his host which should give anyone pause for thought.
With his father serving as Lord Regent for the whole of the Seven Kingdoms down in King's Landing it fell to Robb as the eldest son to act as Warden of the North in his stead and he was damned if he was going to fail in that duty. So far he had only raised a small proportion of the bannermen he could call upon if necessary but he had notified each House in the North to be ready to raise every armed man they could at short-notice if required. It might be true that soldiers from the south were coming to their aid, that was a pleasant surprise in itself, but he told his Banners not to make the mistake of expecting that men from the Westerlands, the Reach or anywhere else would be able to fight in the cold near as well a Northerner born-and-bred. Or a wretched wildling for that matter.
With companies of men from both House Umber and House Bolton reinforcing the Night's Watch at Castle Black Robb had felt it safe to have most of the horse and foot of House Stark, his best trained and equipped men, with him at the Nightfort, but it wasn't just Stark banners flying there that day. The Lord of Karhold, Rickard Karstark, had led his men to the Wall himself, taking personal responsibility for garrisoning one of the other previously abandoned castles before bringing the rest of his men to the Nightfort to help with repairs.
As one of the more powerful Houses in the North the Karstarks were able to raise at least three hundred horsemen and two thousand footsoldiers in time of war but Robb had only requested a quarter that number of them so as not to stretch their resources. Winter was coming and they needed their men at home to plough the fields and reap the large few crops before it was too cold.
The Karstarks were a cadet branch of the Starks, one founded a thousand years before by a younger brother of the then King in the North. As such they always felt themselves somewhat superior to the other principal Houses of the North sworn to the Starks. The Boltons, Manderlys and perhaps a few others might have more money, or could raise a larger levy of men, but they weren't actual kinfolk to the Starks of Winterfell now where they?
As he made an inspection of the rebuilding and repair efforts Robb found himself accompanied by Lord Karstark, the older man with his long white beard making Robb feel even younger and inexperienced than he really was somehow. Rickard Karstark had fought alongside Eddard Stark during Robert's Rebellion against the Mad King, leading men into the fray at the Battle of the Trident, and with Robb's father a thousand leagues away the man seemed to have taken it upon himself to act as Robbs counsel and advisor.
"Less grumbling about thousands of southerners under arms marching through our lands than I feared there would be" Robb told the older man as they discussed the developing situation, "but over on the western coast there's few happy at seeing Ironborn ships sailing past, even if they're bringing men and supplies to the Wall" he continued. "You should see the letter that arrived from Maege Mormont on Bear Island when the longships started calling there to repair and re-provision. That woman does not mince her words" he said with a grimace.
Rickard Karstark nodded. "Least ladylike Lady I ever met" he stated flatly, "but she's loyal to her people, the North and House Stark and those blasted pirates have assailed her shores over the years just as much as wildling raiders in boats have" he reminded Robb. "You're just lucky that bringing the Ironborn to the Wall was your father's idea or she'd have taught you some words that would have your mother wash your mouth out with soap if you repeated them in her presence. Grown man or not" he said. "It's one thing to have men from the Vale at Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, the North might have warred with them for a thousand years but at least we respected them and they us, but when you get right down to it the Ironborn aren't much more than Dothraki Screamers who just happen to ride around in fucking boats" he declared venomously, spitting on the ground.
"Once Balon's finally gone and Theon is the one sat on the Seastone Chair he'll sort them out" Robb said confidently. "Theon is going to join the Ironborn soldiers at Westwatch-by-the-Bridge, make sure they mind their manners."
"I just hope your father's influence on the lad outweighs his own fathers" Karstark responded sounding unconvinced. "Talking of them that need keeping an eye on I'd watch the Bolton's too if I was you lad" he advised. "They may say they've given up flaying but get one drunk enough and you'll soon hear them boast of the days when they used to wear the skins of our ancestors as cloaks" he growled. "Never forget it was them that wiped out our kinfolk the Greystarks" he added gravely, reminding Robb of the fate of another cadet branch of the family.
Robb nodded noncommittally. It was true that the Bolton's were age-old rivals of his House but they had been eventually crushed every time they rose in revolt and the last time they did was centuries past. That was one problem with northerners, they held grudges for a excessively long time, Robb thought to himself wryly. Gods, it was six thousand years since the Andals came to Westeros and displaced the First Men from ruling much of the continent and to hear men in the North complain about it you would think it was barely six.
Fortunately the sudden appearance of a friendly face gave Robb an excuse for cutting the conversation short. "Lord Beric" he greeted the Stormlord who seemed to be making a castle inspection of his own. "Still collecting reports to send back south?" he asked. "Oh, have you two met?" he asked rhetorically. "Rickard Karstark, Lord of Karhold, may I introduce Beric Dondarrion, Lord of Blackhaven" he introduced them.
"Well met My Lord" Karstark greeted the younger man, holding out his hand to shake which Dondarrion took.
"A pleasure to meet you too, Lord Karstark, though I wish it was in warmer climes" Dondarrion replied, smiling gently. "This is no place for a soft southerner like myself" he added humorously.
Karstark nodded. "At least you're not deluding yourself" he replied flatly, taking the man's words at face value. "You're one of the men the Lord Regent dispatched up here to investigate stories of Wights and found yourself investigating stories of a Wildling army instead if I'm not mistaken?" he checked.
"You're correct, My Lord" Beric confirmed. "I was hoping to make it back down south before the end of summer but now the maester's say it's already over I'm just praying to do so before the end of Autumn."
"Just make sure to pray to the right people up here, I don't know if the Seven can hear you at the Wall but the Old Gods can" Robb advised, smiling to let Dondarrion know it was meant in jest not to criticise his own faith.
"Too warm down there, folks get soft" Karstark stated the general opinion of most northerners on the matter. "I was glad to get away from King's Landing as soon as possible after the boy-king's coronation" he said. "Between that and being there to vote in the Great Council I was there so long I was half-way to turning southern myself" he muttered. "Bloody Council cost me a potential goodson too" he complained more loudly. "I was going to arrange a betrothal between my daughter Alys and Lord Halys Hornwood's boy Daryn but Halys ended up getting drunk with some Lord or another from the Riverlands he made friends with and now his son is betrothed to a southern lass that wears flowers in her hair instead of my Alys" he told them angrily.
"There was plenty of matchmaking going on during the Great Council alright" Robb recalled. "Bound to happen when every Great Lord in the Seven Kingdoms is all in the same room at the same time and then all going to the same taverns afterwards" he said. "I was lucky my mother stayed in Winterfell or I'm sure I'd be set to marry myself."
Karstark was about to point out he now had a daughter going conveniently spare when he was distracted by a small figure who had approached and was now hovering nearby, as well as visibly shivering in the cold. "Is that your Squire, Lord Beric?" he found himself asking, he looked like a southerner, what with his fancy lilac surcoat showing where his cloak was partially open at the front. "Lads, turning blue."
Dondarrion sighed and turned to look. "I told you to wear that undershirt I got you as well" he told the boy.
"It itches" the young squire complained, he looked to be perhaps twelve or so with fair hair poking out from under his cap.
"Well if you freeze solid don't come running to me" Dondarrion told him sternly.
"If I freeze solid how am I going to run anywhere?" the squire asked in such a way that you couldn't be absolutely sure if he was being sarcastic or not.
"You could always put the undershirt on top of your shirt instead" Robb suggested. "Doesn't matter if it's not as finely-made if you're mostly hiding it with that surcoat anyway" he told the lad. Robb had met the boy before when he first arrived in the North with Dondarrion and had been one of several men that warned him his expensive clothes might look good but they weren't as suitable for the weather as practical northern ones.
"He's from Dorne, wearing more than one layer of clothing confuses him" Dondarrion joked. "Come here Ned" he told the boy. "You should be properly introduced."
"Ned?" Karstark repeated as the squire joined them.
"Short for Edric not Eddard" Beric told him. "Lord Karstark, meet my squire Edric Dayne" he introduced them. "I'm betrothed to his aunt, the Lady Allyria Dayne."
"Well met, My Lord" the squire greeted him formally. "I'm Edric Dayne, Lord of Starfall" he announced to Karstark's surprise.
"Poor lad lost his father young, inherited the title too early before he even earned his knighthood so he's a mere squire with lordship of his own castle aren't you Edric?" he asked rhetorically. "He wants to be an anointed knight as well of course."
"I want to be a Great knight" Edric corrected him. "If I'm not worthy enough I can't become the next Sword of the Morning and carry my family sword Dawn at my side" he said with conviction. "I know I told you this when we met before My Lord" he addressed Robb directly, "but my family greatly appreciated your father returning Dawn to us after my uncle Arthur fell" he continued with sincerity. "A lesser man might have decided to keep it for himself. It's good that we have such a man of honour serving as Lord Regent until King Joffrey can rule in his own name."
Karstark felt himself impressed by the young squire. Unless his memory was letting him down again despite being from the far south in Dorne the Dayne's of Starfall were descended from the First Men. They weren't bloody Andal or Rhoynar interlopers so the lad at least had that going for him, Karstark thought to himself. "I remember my own father telling me once that no man can take your honour, that you gift it to yourself and that only you can give it away" he recalled.
"Words to live by" Robb concurred with the sentiment.
"Where were you Ned?" Dondarrion asked his squire. "I turned my back for a moment and you disappeared."
"I was looking around" Edric replied. "This would have probably been the castle the Last King of the Torrentine, my ancestor Vorian Dayne, was banished to by Princess Nymeria instead of executing him after she defeated him in battle" the squire explained his particular interest in the place. "Now I'm here I'm not really sure if that was her being merciful or not" he added honestly. Gods it was cold and bleak up here compared to back home, he thought to himself, and it wasn't even winter yet.
Dondarrion chuckled. "I'll bet the first time he was given duty atop the wall in howling winds during winter had him re-thinking his previous opinion of the headsman's axe" he suggested to the boy before turning back to Robb. "Is there any more news from Lord Commander Mormont?" he asked.
"Nothing in the last fortnight" Robb responded to the stormlord's query, shaking his head for emphasis. "He has to be careful not to squander what ravens he has with him at the Fist of the First Men" the acting Warden of the North noted. "It's not like it's easy for him to fetch more, so he'll only send one when he has the most important news to relay. I think we'll just have to assume that he's continuing to rebuild the old defences there and sending out patrols to scout for wildlings and hunt for game."
Rickard Karstark snorted. "The old stone wall there at the Fist must be nigh the only one the world that'll take more work to put back up that this bloody castle" he said, looking around.
"From what I've heard it's Greyguard Castle west of here that could fairly claim that title" Robb responded gloomily. "The steps up the top of the wall there are mostly gone in places so its nearly as hard to scale on our side there as it is for the wildlings on theirs" he told the others. "Some of the Night's Watch told me it's safer just to use the steps at Stonedoor and walk for miles along the top of the wall to get to the old watchtower there at Greyguard but you still have to make damn sure to watch your footing because it's a long way down if you slip."
Beric Dondarrion found himself turning to look up at the top of the wall, seven-hundred feet above. "I wouldn't want a fall like that" he responded, grimacing. "It would take long enough before you hit the ground that you'd have time to contemplate your predicament but still not be able to do anything about it" he said. "I'd prefer my death to be a quick and sudden surprise all things considered."
"They joke in the Watch that if you fall off you might as well start flapping your arms and try and learn to fly" Robb told them. "It won't work but it'll keep your mind off just how fucked you are" he said causing Beric to roar with laughter, the young squire joining in.
Once the laughter ended Robb looked around at the wall himself, it loomed large over the Nightfort and projected such an impression of age and permanence. As he contemplated it a thought suddenly struck him. "You know I just realised young Ned that your home at Starfall is actually older than the Wall there, older than Winterfell even" he realised. "There's not too many families that can boast a history like that" he observed appreciatively.
Edric smiled. "My own father liked to say that Westeros was settled by the Hightowers, the Daynes and all the people that turned up later" he replied, grinning impishly. "All that modern architecture that Brandon the Builder put up everywhere ruined the place."
"You cheeky little blighter" Robb responded, feigning to take a swipe at the boy with his hand before laughing again.
Beric rolled his eyes. "Can you believe that not so long ago Edric here was painfully shy and the most unceasingly polite lad you've ever met" he said sadly. "I've been doing my best to get him out of shell for years, his aunt implored me to do it, and all I can say about that now is that it looks like I've succeeded horribly" he added, throwing up his hands to the sky, feigning despair.
Rickard Karstark was not a man prone to merriment but he chuckled nonetheless. "Happens to near all of them soon as they get close to their thirteenth nameday" he remarked. "My youngest boy Torrhen was the apple of his mother's eye till the day he started to grow fuzz on his chin and then he became a pain in his father's arse instead" he told the others. "Judging by how often my father tanned my hide at the same age I was probably much the same myself, I won't lie about it" he added honestly before it suddenly occurred to him that perhaps he might just have encountered an even better marriage prospect for his daughter than Daryn Hornwood had been.
The squire might be from south of the Neck but the blood of the First Men ran through his veins and his family was as venerable as could be, Karstark considered. In fact, thinking upon it further the Daynes could probably benefit from having some more blood of the First Men reintroduced to their line. Living way down there in Dorne likely meant scores, perhaps hundreds of girls of foreign descent marrying into his family over the years which likely explained why the boy's skin-tone was a shade darker than an average northerner's, if not the olive skin of a Salty Dornishman of Rhoynar blood like the Martells had.
With three sons to carry on his name, all of which he could marry to lasses from other Northern Houses, it wasn't like he had to wed his only daughter into one too in order to maintain strong ties with his neighbours.
Alys was pretty enough, if not a great beauty perhaps, and if the boy there happened to like red hair on a girl that in itself might be enough to catch his eye. It wasn't like there was a slew of other highborn maidens to be found at the Wall anyway so there was an opportunity going here, Karstark decided, a plan beginning to form in his head. It shouldn't be too difficult to find out if young Edric was already betrothed, and if not the fact that the boy's aunt was promised to Lord Beric provided a route by which communications could be made with his family if things looked promising.
When a raven arrived at Karhold from her father telling Alys Karstark to sew a undershirt of fine cloth sized for a growing boy of twelve years with haste, and thence to come join him as soon as possible before winter came, bringing said undershirt and her two best dresses, she was confused. Given that her father wasn't a man to be disobeyed however she began sewing immediately.
Notes:
Note from the Author:
The Nightfort is the largest castle on the Wall, considerably bigger than Castle Black, but was abandoned because it took too much effort and too many resources to maintain. It gradually fell into ruin but not nearly as far as some others such as Greyguard which is a complete wreck by this point. Acting as Warden of the North in his father's absence Robb Stark is doing his best to rebuild the defences of the Wall and garrison the castles as best he can within limitations of manpower (and the state of the castles).
Rickard Karstark, Lord of Karhold is a Stark bannerman and also a distant relation (the Karstarks being a cadet branch of the main family). They inherited the Stark's distrust of House Bolton which warred with the Starks for the position of preeminence in the North for centuries. Lord Rickard has three sons and one daughter, the latter of which was going to be betrothed to Daryn Hornwood. A ripple effect change occurred by the Great Council of 298AC that decided who would sit on the Iron Throne, Joffrey or Stannis, was that Lord Hornwood ended up with his son betrothed to someone else and Alys Karstark finds herself in need of a different future husband.
Lord Beric Dondarrion continues his assigned mission to investigate the situation at the Wall, with a Wildling Army rather than possible Wights being the problem now. Himself betrothed to Lady Allyria Dayne Beric took on her nephew Edric Dayne as page and later squire. Edric is the Lord of Starfall in Dorne, the Daynes once ruling their part of Westeros as the Kings of the Torrentine until Princess Nymeria arrived on the scene. Like most people in the North, and unlike most in the South, House Dayne traces its origins to the First Men although much of Starfall Castle isn't really as old as most of Winterfell (Starfall had the misfortune of being blitzed by a dragon during the First Dornish War, the Targaryen's didn't mess about). If Rickard Karstark is lucky young Edric might like girls who are kissed with fire!