Chapter 4: Peril
"What?"
"What!"
Two voices rang out simultaneously, one filled with skepticism, the other with shock.
Young Royce glanced strangely at Aeg, who looked as if he had seen a ghost. "What did you see? Tell us in detail, don't miss any details."
"The camp is two miles away, over a small snowy slope, next to a stream," Will replied. "The campfire has gone out, leaving only a pile of embers smoking. The wildlings are lying around haphazardly nearby. I counted eight in total, about the same as we estimated, but I didn't see any children. Everyone is motionless. There's one in a tree. I tried to get as close as possible without being seen and observed for a long time. I didn't see any blood, but no living person would lie so still."
"No living person would let the campfire go out," Gared said. "The temperature has dropped sharply over the past two days. Maybe they weren't prepared and froze to death?"
"Maybe," Will shivered in agreement. "My lord, what do we do now?"
"If you're cold, put on more clothes," young Royce exhaled through his nose. "Nine days ago, when we set out, the Wall was dripping. Over the past week, there's been some frost and occasional snow, but it hasn't been cold enough to freeze a group of wildlings. Especially since they're wearing warm furs to keep out the cold, in a location that's well-protected from the wind and snow, and they had a fire going."
Listening to the discussion and dialogue among his Night's Watch teammates, Aeg felt the chill seeping into his bones inch by inch. How could this be happening? A thousand thoughts raced through his mind, and he silently cursed the Royce family for generations.
Even with the worst memory, the strong sense of déjà vu made him realize that he was facing the very beginning of the story of ice and fire. This damned Waymar Royce, on his first patrol, was leading his brothers straight into a confrontation with the White Walkers. The only difference from the original plot was that this time, he was there too!
"Since the wildlings are already dead" Gared frowned, speaking with some unease. "Let's turn back."
"Are the dead scaring you?" Waymar turned around, a disdainful smile playing on his lips, continuing the lines Aeg had heard before.
"The dead aren't scary," Aeg realized he couldn't remain silently inconspicuous any longer. He was facing a matter of life and death: if he allowed Waymar Royce to lead them to investigate the scene of the wildlings' slaughter, they would meet the White Walkers head-on, and he didn't believe for a second that the original trio, plus him, could handle the terrifying beings that had almost exterminated humanity thousands of years ago. "What I'm afraid of is what killed those wildlings."
"Something that can kill wildlings might not be able to kill the Night's Watch," the young knight said confidently, though he was somewhat surprised. In his impression, Aeg rarely spoke up in public. "And are you sure they're really dead? Where's the proof?"
"Will may not be a warrior, but he doesn't lie. If he saw it, I believe him," Gared said, looking sternly at the others. "Our orders were to investigate the wildlings' movements. We've done that. Now they won't be bothering us."
"Do you think the commander won't ask us about the cause of death?" Waymar interrupted the old soldier without hesitation. "Mount up, take me there."
Gared showed a look of dissatisfaction but ultimately said nothing, turning to his horse.
"I'm not going," Aeg couldn't just go with the flow this time. This was a matter of life and death. "Call me a coward or a scaredy-cat, I don't care. I'm just scared. For days, I've felt something terrifying and malicious watching us. The wildlings must have been killed by that thing. We're no match for it."
"I feel it too," Will, who usually had no opinion, quickly stammered his support for Aeg when someone took the lead.
"It's getting dark," Gared looked at Aeg with some confusion. He could occasionally challenge this parachuted captain with his veteran status, but where did this young man, who rarely conflicted with others, get the courage to openly disobey orders? "We can investigate tomorrow."
"Interesting, a Night's Watchman afraid of the dark?" Waymar's expression twisted slightly. He was used to Gared opposing him, but having all three soldiers unanimously oppose him for the first time thoroughly triggered his rebellious nature. "I've made up my mind. Now mount up immediately and head to the scene. I won't say it a third time."
"No," Aeg knew intuitively that no amount of eloquence could convince the stubborn young knight before him. He made a desperate final stand, looking to Gared for support from the old Night's Watch veteran. Unfortunately, the other man looked at him with confusion for a moment before shaking his head slightly, indicating that he shouldn't argue with the superior. "I have a strong premonition that if we go this time, there's a good chance I'll die."
"I don't believe in your premonitions," Waymar narrowed his eyes. "If you insist on not going, then run. But before you leave, hand over your weapons and don't take a horse. If you're confident you can run back, I won't stop you. Go ahead?"
Aeg stared at him, watching as he placed his hand on the hilt of his sword. Their eyes locked for a moment before Aeg finally yielded to reality.
Leaving would turn him into a deserter, and there would be no place for him in Westeros. Besides, they were a hundred miles from the Wall. Although ranger training included wilderness survival, theory and practice were two different things. Even if the beasts and White Walkers didn't bother him, hunger, cold, and getting lost would be enough to consume him. As for resisting even if Will and Gared stood by, with his lack of combat experience, he would never be a match for this noble youth, who had been trained in swordsmanship by family instructors since childhood.
He had no choice. It seemed he could only hope that the little preparations he had made for survival would come in handy.
"Mount up, you and Will take the lead," Aeg's submission relieved Waymar, who pretended to be disdainful. "Don't try anything funny. I'll be watching you the whole time from behind."
The four of them mounted their horses and set off, with Will leading Aeg at the front. Both were tense and cautious as they rode. A light snow had fallen the previous night, and now the thin, soft layer of snow concealed many stones, roots, and puddles beneath, making it easy for the horses to slip and fall. Aeg suppressed his fear, holding the reins with one hand while reaching into his bag with the other, feeling for and grasping the obsidian dagger he had obtained with great effort.
*****
Obsidian, also known as dragon glass, was called "frozen fire" in Old Valyrian. It was actually a natural glass formed by geological movements. In Aeg's original world, this substance was nothing special, but he guessed that perhaps in this world where magic existed, the crystal had a special interaction with some unknown energy, giving it unique abilities.
The White Walkers had been gone for thousands of years, and this substance, reputed to be able to kill them, was usually sold in the market as a common, low-grade gemstone. Due to its brittleness and dark color, it was not as popular as corundum gemstones, not being precious, it naturally didn't fetch a high price, so few people dealt in it.
This led to the situation where, although obsidian was neither expensive nor rare, obtaining it was not easy. Aeg spent a considerable amount of time before managing to buy it from a foreign merchant who traded with the Night's Watch, through a fellow recruit who had been assigned to Eastwatch-by-the-Sea after completing training. It cost him several months' worth of his allowance.
When he first got it, it was just a chunk of mineral the size of his forearm. Aeg spent several weeks of his free time during training to slowly carve and polish it into the rough shape of a dagger, wrapping the lower half in cloth to use as a talisman.
For this thing, he couldn't even afford to buy an extra dish at mealtimes for a long time, and he was teased by the other brothers for a while.
If this object could ultimately save his life today, then at least the hard times of eating plain food would be worth it.
Everyone must die. Aeg was not a coward who feared death to the point of madness, but he would never accept dying silently in this nameless corner of the far north, under a pseudonym given to him by a few farmers, at the hands of something whose existence the world did not believe in.