Chapter 8: Theon

Wyman Manderly had been struggling to move his massive frame, attempting to rise and leave, but the moment he heard Eddard call him, he immediately sat back down.

"Lord Eddard, what are your orders?"

By this time, the nobles had all departed, and only Eddard and Lord Wyman remained in the hall.

"Lord Wyman, you are the Lord of White Harbor. White Harbor deals with ships and sailors from all over the world every day. Among my vassals, you are clearly the one who knows the most about ships."

Ever since Brandon the Shipwright, House Stark had never taken an interest in seafaring, but now that Eddard suddenly asked,

Lord Wyman was somewhat surprised, "Lord Eddard, do you wish to build a ship?"

"No, I wish to build a fleet."

Lord Wyman stroked his fat chin, "Build a fleet? Lord Eddard, that will cost a great deal of money."

Eddard folded his hands, "Which shipyards have the best quality?"

Lord Wyman thought for a moment, "Braavos; their shipyards can build a ship in a day. Of course, the Arbor and the shipyards in King's Landing are also good. And don't forget the Iron Islands; the longships of the Ironborn are not inferior to any warship. No matter which shipyard it is, the price of ships is expensive."

Eddard said: "That is why I intend to build them myself, to build ships and create a fleet, to establish the North's navy. We have plenty of timber in the Wolfswood; we only lack ship designers."

Most of the people of the North are descendants of the First Men. The First Men did not engage in seafaring; when the First Men came to the continent of Westeros, they relied on the Arm of Dorne to walk across. On land, the First Men were a brave and warlike people, but they were completely useless at sea. The North possesses a long coastline, and Eddard needs to build a powerful navy to guard his homeland and protect his people.

If the North had a fleet at White Harbor, once Robert Baratheon and Jon Arryn in the south encountered trouble, Eddard could dispatch two armies: one marching south along the Kingsroad, and the naval fleet carrying warriors from White Harbor out through the Bite, passing through the Narrow Sea to strike directly at King's Landing. Once in a state of war, Winterfell would possess much more initiative.

This plan excited Lord Wyman immensely.

"Lord Eddard, the sigil of our House Manderly is a merman holding a trident; who knows the ocean better than a merman? Leave the matter of shipbuilding to me. Ships from across the Narrow Sea enter and leave White Harbor every day; I can help you find excellent shipwrights."

After Lord Wyman left, Robb hurried in.

"Father, Theon is angry, you must go and see him! He is in the godswood."

Today was a cruel day for Theon. At the meeting just now, Theon had witnessed with his own eyes the nobles from all over the North discussing how to deal with the Ironborn; these nobles even believed they should kill Theon as a warning to Balon Greyjoy.

In the godswood, Theon and Domeric Bolton stood together. The heir to the Dreadfort seemed to have become friends with the heir to the Iron Islands in just a few short days, and Domeric was comforting Theon.

After Domeric knelt to Eddard and left, only Eddard and Theon remained in the godswood.

Eddard looked at the pale weirwood; the scarlet eyes on the weirwood seemed to be weeping blood, watching Eddard and Theon.

"You came to the godswood to seek the comfort of the Old Gods."

Theon gave a cold hum, "Lord Eddard, this strange tree is not my god, never has been! Just as those Northern nobles said at your meeting, I am a damned Ironborn, I am not a Northman. But there is no sound of the sea here, no smell of sea salt; the Drowned God has no power here, so where can I go? The Seven are strangers to me; Septa Mordane and Septon Chayle in the sept only know how to chatter on."

Only then did Eddard notice the bloodstains on the weirwood; Theon's fingers were covered in blood.

"You punched the weirwood? You are injured, go find Master Luwin!"

Eddard examined Theon's fingers, and Theon pulled his hand back.

"Lord Eddard, I am sorry for swinging my fist at the Old Gods. Will those Northman nobles execute me for this?"

Eddard sighed, "Theon, I am sorry about the meeting. Before the meeting started, I specifically had you go find Jory. I sent you to join the guard to maintain order in the Winter Town precisely because I was worried you would hear those unpleasant words. I did not expect you to have returned."

Theon said contemptuously: "I am glad I returned; I have seen how hypocritical and bloodthirsty those noble lords are."

Eddard said: "Theon, you cannot blame these lords. Their people have suffered greatly from the slaughter of the Ironborn, and they have wrongly transferred their anger toward the Ironborn onto you. Words are like the wind; lords wear public masks when they are in meetings, especially during gatherings of lords like this."

"These noble lords scheme against each other; some are even blood enemies, some despise each other, some use each other. But when they sit there, they must express some opinion. They clamored for me to kill you; many were merely following suit, like parrots, and it cannot be taken as real."

Eddard patted Theon on the shoulder, "Of course, I am not making excuses for them. They openly discussed murdering my ward at my lordly meeting, wanting my ward to be responsible for crimes he should not be involved in. I do not accept it! I gave those fellows a stern reprimand."

Theon was suspicious, "But today, a cavalryman from Barrowton mocked me, saying that as long as my father dares to annoy the North or the Iron Throne, you will use the Valyrian Steel Greatsword of House Stark, 'Ice', to cut off my head. A ward is used to ensure the loyalty of a house; once my father's loyalty is questioned, I will die."

Eddard said frankly: "When I took you as a ward, there was indeed a consideration of ensuring your father Balon would not rebel again; that is a fact. I also worried at one time that if your father disregarded your life and raised his banner in rebellion again, would I have the courage to harm you, an innocent child. When you came to Winterfell, you were indeed a hostage, but now, you are absolutely not."

"You were ten when you came to my home. Every day you ate with my lady, my children, and my bastard, sharing the hearth and the hall. You received training from Ser Roderick Cassel, studied with my children under Luwin, and you know everyone in Winterfell, whether it is Hodor, the Master of Kennels Farlan, Old Nan, the cook Gage, the smith Mikken, or the stableman Hullen."

"Theon, you grew up in Winterfell; that is a fact. You are a Sea Monster, but also a wolf pup. I do not know what you think, but in my heart, I have always treated you like my eldest son. You are Robb's older brother; you taught him many things, and in the future, you can help me protect Bran and Rickon."

Theon was deeply moved, "Lord Eddard, I did not think... I am sorry, I thought..."

Eddard said: "Back then, I once served as a ward alongside Robert at Jon Arryn's side. At the time, there were people in the Vale who said I was a hostage. When the Mad King Aerys demanded that Jon Arryn hand over Robert and me, what did Jon Arryn do? He chose to raise his banner in rebellion, gambling his own fate and that of his house for two wards with no blood relation."

Theon murmured: "Yes, that war even buried the dynasty of the dragons."

Eddard leaned in toward Theon, "To tell you the truth, I have discussed shipbuilding and building the North's fleet with Lord Wyman. Theon, you are an Ironborn; to train the navy and command the fleet, who is more suitable than you? You occupy an irreplaceable role in my plan."

Theon revealed a smile, "Lord Eddard, in the future when I inherit the Iron Islands, the fleet of House Greyjoy and the Ironborn will be at your command."

He then immediately fell into confusion, "I will inherit it, right? After all, I am the only living son of my father."

Eddard said: "What rumors have you heard?"

Theon said: "In the Winter Town, a fisherman from Sea Dragon Point said he heard my father intends to let my sister Asha Greyjoy inherit the Iron Islands, though the captains of the islands seem more willing to support my uncle 'Crow's Eye' Euron and Victarion Greyjoy."

Eddard smiled, "Theon, inheriting the Iron Islands is your right. If your house and the Ironborn do not respect your rights, I will help you win the Seastone Chair."

"With the power of the entire North!"

(End of chapter)