Chapter 42: The Great Ships Return

Standing on the beach, Eddard gazed at the ragtag Northern fleet in the sea.

"Maron Manderly, can our large ships remain in the nearby waters?"

This way, should the battle turn unfavorable, the Northern Army could retreat back to the ships. Although Eddard believed that the Rockborn of the Rock King Kaserun the Greybeard, and the Ironborn Pirates of the Iron Bitch and Helen Pyke, could not stand against the Northern Army of over eight thousand men in a direct confrontation, it was always right to have a fallback plan.

Maron Manderly frowned, "Anchoring in the nearby waters? My Lord Eddard, I am afraid that is not possible. We have already witnessed the peril of the nearby reefs; if the large ships anchor here, it might be fine during the day, but a storm at night would cause many of the large ships to strike the reefs and sink."

Eddard said gloomily, "Then we have no choice but to let the fleet return to the coast of Last Hearth. Maron Manderly, take the large ships and sail back! Go and bring the remaining supply and grain ships to Skagos."

Currently, two-thirds of the grain and supplies remained on the coast of Last Hearth across from Seal Bay, under the command of Herman Tallhart of Torrhen's Square, with Wylis Manderly and Wendel Manderly of White Harbor also there. Herman Tallhart had over two thousand soldiers under his command, a mixed force from Winterfell, White Harbor, and Torrhen's Square.

Once Herman Tallhart and the Manderly brothers arrived with the remaining two thousand men and the supplies, the Northern Army's numbers would exceed ten thousand; even if Kaserun the Greybeard, the Rock King, conscripted the Nine Great Clans on Skagos, he would be unable to block the Northern Army's attack.

Maron Manderly said, "My Lord Eddard, after I leave with the large ships, what if pirate longships blockade the nearby waters?"

Eddard said, "I will not easily surrender the hard-won command of the sea. I will have the ships of the Sistermen and the Pentos Mercenaries patrol the vicinity."

Maron Manderly departed, and Eddard had Jon Snow fetch Kaserun the Greybeard.

Kaserun the Greybeard watched the large ships sail toward the coast of Last Hearth across from Seal Bay, and he worriedly said, "My Lord Eddard, you have moved all the large ships away; if the Ironborn Pirates come in a massive slaughter, my Sistermen longships may not be able to repel them. Once the Ironborn longships blockade the beach, wouldn't the Northern Army be trapped on the island?"

Eddard said calmly, "For now, the pirate longships do not seem to pose much of a threat. Do not worry; the Sistermen fleet will not fight alone, the Pentos Mercenaries' ships will be with you."

Only then did Kaserun the Greybeard reveal a smile, and Eddard said, "Greybeard, I hear you have spent years sailing the Narrow Sea, and for a long time, you mixed with pirates in the Stepstones."

"Who said that?" Kaserun the Greybeard immediately denied, "Greybeard is a decent man; I have never engaged in the business of a robber."

Eddard smiled, "I know you are a smuggler and a robber; the Three Sisters have always been a den for smugglers and robbers. Actually, I have deep feelings for the Three Sisters. Back during the War of the Usurper, Aerys II Targaryen put a bounty on my head throughout the Seven Kingdoms; I escaped the Eyrie, found a ship at the Three Sisters, and fled back to the North."

Greybeard laughed, "I heard this story in Sisterton. Many in Sisterton rumored that you had a romance with a prostitute there, the mother of that bastard of yours. In those years, many prostitutes claimed to be the lover of Duke Eddard just to attract patrons!"

Eddard was a bit worried that Jon Snow nearby might hear these topics, so he said, "Let us not mention the matter of prostitutes. I ask you, having roamed the Narrow Sea for so many years, have you heard the names of the Iron Bitch and Helen Pyke before?"

Kaserun the Greybeard stroked his beard, "I have never heard the name of the Iron Bitch. As for Helen Pyke... I heard her name in the Stepstones; she seemed to be from King's Port in the Iron Islands. The Ironborn pirates in the Stepstones are numerous, and Helen Pyke was somewhat famous among them. Some years ago, I heard she was defeated by the Lysene pirate Salladhor Saan, and since then, Helen Pyke disappeared from the Stepstones."

"Some say Helen Pyke returned to her homeland in the Iron Islands, some say Salladhor Saan sold Helen Pyke to a brothel in Lys, naming her 'Pirate Queen' to attract patrons, and others say Helen Pyke went to King's Landing and was hanged by the Master of Ships, Stannis. The last theory is that Helen Pyke came to Skagos to serve the Rock King Kaserun the Greybeard."

"Pyke is the bastard surname of the Iron Islands, and the name Helen is very common; I cannot figure out exactly how many Helen Pykes there are."

Truly a mystery within a mystery. Eddard patted Kaserun the Greybeard on the shoulder, "In any case, the intelligence you provided is still very valuable. Greybeard, if you encounter any trouble in the waters or ports of the North in the future, feel free to use my name."

Kaserun the Greybeard said excitedly, "Having these words from Duke Eddard is worth much more than the little mercenary pay I earn in White Harbor. If Duke Eddard ever has need of Kaserun the Greybeard in the Three Sisters, feel free to speak up. Duke Eddard surely has not forgotten that we of the Three Sisters once paid tribute to Winterfell!"

The Three Sisters are the fief of House Arryn of the Vale, though the Sistermen do not love House Arryn. Historically, Sistermen pirates once captured the Wolf's Den, the predecessor to White Harbor, and raided up along the White Knife; the King in the North of Winterfell, in a fit of rage, not only expelled the pirates but also conquered the Three Sisters, forcing the Sistermen to submit.

Today's Three Sisters are merely barren islands, paling in comparison to White Harbor, but no one can deny the strategic value of the Three Sisters; whoever controls the Three Sisters controls the Bite, and whoever controls the Bite holds the throat of the North.

Eddard arrived at the camp on the hillside and saw a heart tree; it was a weirwood with a human face carved into it using crimson sap. The heart tree faced the sea, and the surrounding land appeared sand-red; could the terrifying tradition of blood sacrifice to the heart tree still be playing out on Skagos?

The Rockborn of Skagos, like most of the people of the North, worship the Old Gods; this is land under the watch of the Old Gods. The tent of the Lord of Winterfell, embroidered with the Ice-River Wolf Emblem, was pitched not far before the heart tree.

Eddard and his vassals walked into the tent, where the Winterfell household guards led by the Captain of the Guard Jory Cassel had already set up tables and maps.

The guard Dawson stood holding the Valyrian Steel Sword "Ice" at Eddard's left hand, the Bulaofosi Water Dancer Syrio Forel stood to Eddard's left, and vassals including Roose Bolton of the Dreadfort, Rickard Karstark of Karhold, Galbart Glover of Deepwood Motte, and Maege Mormont of Bear Island surrounded the table.

Theon wore his habitual smile, "My Lord Eddard, the Rockborn have fled in defeat, and those Ironborn Pirates who attempted to incite conflict between the Iron Islands and the North have also vanished. Speed is the essence of war; we should advance immediately."

Eddard said, "I have already ordered Fellan and Galbart Glover to take scouts and reconnoiter the surroundings with the camp as the center; once Herman Tallhart's supply and grain fleet arrives, we will push inland."

Greatjon Umber said, "My Lord Eddard, those savages are no match for us at all; we should take them by surprise before the Rock King can react."

Eddard sighed, "If there were a map of Skagos, I would rather use light cavalry to take the Rock King's lair directly, but this is a completely unfamiliar land. We do not know what castles, fortresses, or rivers this island has; we do not even know where the Rock King lives."

The Heir of the Dreadfort, Domeric Bolton, said, "My Lord Eddard, leave the matter of drawing the map to me!"

Roose Bolton said, "My Lord Eddard, we have captured many Rockborn prisoners; we should interrogate them strictly. As long as we find out the Rock King's hiding place, half of this war is won. Once the Rock King is dead, the alliance he forged will collapse, the Rockborn will kill each other, and the Ironborn Pirates will also..."

"Woo—" The horn of the North sounded, and the camp was filled with shouts of battle.

(End of chapter)