Chapter 77: The Threat of the King-Beyond-the-Wall

Maester Aemon was originally named Aemon Targaryen; he was the son of Maekar I and the older brother of Aegon V. The history he had personally experienced was perhaps even more than what the Archmaesters of the Citadel had read in their history books.

When Maester Aemon pointed out that the Others were a potential threat, the Lord Steward Bowen Marsh, the Master-at-Arms of Castle Black Alliser Thorne, the First Builder Othell Yarwyck, and others at the table immediately grew tense. After all, the Others in stories and legends were far removed from reality, but the Maester's citation of history and records made the potential threat of the Others real and credible.

The Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, the Old Bear, looked at the blind Maester Aemon, "Maester Aemon, do the ancient books mention how to deal with the Others?"

"Obsidian, also known as dragon glass, or frozen fire. When the First Men arrived in Westeros via the land bridge, the Children of the Forest used obsidian weapons to fight the First Men."

The Old Bear frowned and said, "But the Children of the Forest have been gone for thousands of years; they are likely extinct. Where are we to find obsidian?"

Eddard pulled an obsidian arrowhead from his pocket, which shimmered with luster, and handed it to the Old Bear, "This is an obsidian arrowhead given to me by the Rockborn. Obsidian can also be used to craft daggers. There are quite a few obsidian mines on Skagos, and I have already ordered the Rockborn to mine it. Winterfell will process obsidian weapons in the future."

The Old Bear, Benjen Stark, and Alliser Thorne passed the obsidian arrowhead around to examine it. When Alliser Thorne touched it with his finger, he was immediately cut by the arrowhead, and blood gushed out.

"Be careful, obsidian is extremely sharp," Eddard said, taking back the arrowhead, "though it is also easily shattered."

Maester Aemon said, "According to the records in some books, besides obsidian, dragon steel—that is, Valyrian steel swords—can also inflict powerful damage upon the Others."

Eddard possessed the ancestral Valyrian steel sword of House Stark, "Ice." The Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, the Old Bear, possessed the ancestral Valyrian steel sword of the Mormont Clan, "Longclaw." This sword was originally passed to the Old Bear's son, Jorah Mormont, but Jorah sold some poachers to slavers, violating the laws of the North. After the matter was exposed, Ser Jorah chose to leave "Longclaw" behind and flee, and the sword returned to the Old Bear's hands.

However, it was clearly unrealistic for the Night's Watch to stock up on Valyrian steel swords. There were only a few hundred Valyrian steel swords in existence, and many noble families had lost their ancestral blades, such as the Lannister family of Casterly Rock. Even as wealthy as the Lannisters were, they could not purchase a Valyrian sword with gold, let alone the impoverished Night's Watch.

Eddard put away the obsidian, "According to historical records, during the last Long Night, it was the Night's Watch that defeated the Others and saved humanity. Regardless of whether the Others will return, we should be prepared. Winterfell will prepare obsidian weapons."

"Even with obsidian weapons, you cannot stop the Others," the wildling woman Osha spoke up from the side, her hands bound, "the living cannot fight the dead."

The high-ranking officers of the Night's Watch turned to look at Osha. Alliser Thorne said disdainfully, "Does a meeting between the Night's Watch and the Duke of the North need to listen to the opinion of a wildling woman? You spearwife crossed the Wall, which is a capital offense; she should be executed immediately."

"Ser Thorne, Osha is my captive," Eddard told Alliser Thorne with an air that brooked no argument, "I will take her back to Winterfell to interrogate her slowly."

Alliser Thorne said contemptuously, "What could a spearwife possibly be asked?"

Eddard turned to Osha, "Tell me, how large an army has the King-Beyond-the-Wall, Mance Rayder, assembled?"

Osha thought for a moment, "I don't know, it must be tens of thousands. In any case, raider leaders like 'Giantbane' Tormund, Alfyn, 'The Weeper', the 'King-Beyond-the-Wall'—no, the 'King of Bones', and Harma Dogshead all take orders from Mance. It is said that Mance has gone to the Thenns now; he went to seek the support of the Magnar of the Thenns, and he is also contacting the giants."

"Giants?" The Lord Steward Bowen Marsh laughed exaggeratedly, "This wildling woman is lying. Everyone knows that giants, like the Children of the Forest, have long been extinct."

Osha said coldly, "Giants live Beyond the Wall. You kneelers of the Seven Kingdoms don't even know how vast the land Beyond the Wall is, so how would you know there are no giants there?"

Benjen Stark said, "Whether giants are real or not, I do not know, but these raider leaders the wildling woman mentioned have indeed all submitted to Mance Rayder. Once Mance Rayder assembles enough of a wildling army, he will certainly attack the Wall."

The Old Bear sighed wearily, "Compared to the Others, the threat of Mance Rayder is clearly more severe. Lord Eddard, once the wildlings attack the Wall, the Night's Watch will likely struggle to hold. The current Night's Watch is merely a group of sullen young men and exhausted old men barely holding on; we need the support of the North."

Osha said, "You crows don't understand. The wildlings want to breach the Wall because they need to hide south of the Wall to escape the threat of the Others. There are still few Others Beyond the Wall now, but when winter comes, there will only be more. When winter comes, you crows will all die!"

This angered the Night's Watch. Alliser Thorne, Bowen Marsh, and Othell Yarwyck all threatened and cursed at Osha, so Eddard had to have his guard, Dawson, take Osha away.

Once everyone had calmed down, Eddard tentatively said, "Do you think what Osha said could be true? The Others are ravaging Beyond the Wall, and that is why Mance is gathering the wildlings. Perhaps we should negotiate with Mance Rayder."

"Mance Rayder is an Oathbreaker," the Old Bear said with a resolute tone, "He was a wildling orphan from childhood; the Night's Watch raised him. He was once a member of the Night's Watch, yet he broke his vows. What is there to discuss with an Oathbreaker and a Chameleon?"

Bowen Marsh said, "The veterans of the Night's Watch all know Mance Rayder; he is very cunning. The Others are merely a means for him to win hearts among the wildlings. Even if the Others truly exist, they are killing wildlings Beyond the Wall; what loss is that to us?"

Othell Yarwyck echoed, "Indeed, the wildlings are enemies of the Night's Watch; the more of them that die, the better."

The Night's Watch and the wildlings were mortal enemies, and both sides harbored hatred for each other. Because Mance Rayder was a deserter from the Night's Watch, the officers of the Night's Watch would not even consider negotiating with the wildlings.

The Old Bear clenched his fist, "Lord Eddard, we do not need to negotiate with Mance Rayder. If you are worried about the threat Beyond the Wall to the kingdom, Winterfell can send troops together with the Night's Watch. I believe gathering a thousand elite soldiers would be enough to sweep Beyond the Wall and force Mance Rayder and his wildlings to flee into the deep mountains."

(End of chapter)