The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Three ships went north, while the raven returned south.

At Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, Maester Tanxiu was in the smithy recording the number of obsidian weapons and ore when a raven flew down and landed directly on his shoulder.

Coo, coo, coo!

The raven chirped affectionately, pecking its head incessantly, just like a pigeon. However, its eyes were blood-red, proving it was a fierce carnivorous bird. The ravens of the Wall had been specially trained by the maesters using scientific methods, and apart from the mountain eagles, other birds could hardly threaten them.

It was expressing its affection to Tanxiu, coo, coo, coo, signaling that it wanted corn kernels.

The ravens of Eastwatch-by-the-Sea were all very close to Maester Tanxiu.

If it were announcing its return in the sky, the raven would emit a loud caw.

Tanxiu didn't dare to neglect it. Commander Carter had released the raven not long after leaving Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, which meant he must have encountered an emergency.

The maester handed the ledger to a novice. The maester novices of the Wall were also Night's Watchmen dressed in black, but they didn't wear maester's robes. This was a young man who had been assigned here after a month of recruit training at Castle Black, a steward.

Tanxiu took the small iron tube from the raven's leg, unscrewed the lid, took out the parchment scroll inside, unfolded it, and quickly read it. He said to a ranger who had just put down a basket of obsidian daggers, "Nidam, quickly take this letter to Lord Eddard. Commander Carter has an emergency."

"Yes, Maester!"

Inside the castle, the sound of footsteps of busy people coming and going echoed, creaking and crackling, the sound of everyone walking on the thick snow. Hundreds of people were moving like ants, carrying the mountain of obsidian weapons and ore piled up on the shore into the military fortress of Eastwatch-by-the-Sea. The weapons were placed in the weapon reserves, while the ore was piled in the smithy, making it convenient for the masters to forge them into weapons.

Eddard Stark was directing on the shore of the harbor. The Titan's Daughter was loading fresh water and some animal furs.

The obsidian weapons and ore on the ship had already been unloaded. The Night's Watch was not rich in supplies. While the large ship brought obsidian to the Night's Watch, it also brought them some living supplies: flour, beer, and chainmail.

Lord Gawen Westerling had completed this secret transport mission. He and a hundred guards stood on the deck, watching the busy Night's Watchmen and Northmen on the shore, talking and feeling relaxed. However, the shock the Wall gave them was still indelible in their eyes.

The captain of the Titan's Daughter also breathed a heavy sigh of relief. He made a lot of money on this trip. In this extremely cold place, a large number of various animal furs were famous. Selling these furs in Braavos would earn him a great deal more.

Gawen Westerling saw a black-clad man running wildly towards the harbor dock in the snow. Beside this black-clad man was a long line of people constantly carrying obsidian.

Was the running black-clad man a messenger?

Gawen Westerling didn't know; he couldn't tell. In his eyes, the Night's Watchmen all looked the same in black, and he couldn't tell their positions and ranks. His mission was complete, and the Titan's Daughter was about to return. Gawen didn't care much about the defense of the Wall. He believed that no one could break through such a world wonder, and neither could the Others and wights.

Standing on the deck of the Titan's Daughter, in a small harbor under the Wall, Lord Gawen felt that he was dwarfed to the size of an ant by the Wall, while the Titan's Daughter, a large merchant ship, a behemoth, was dwarfed to the size of a rabbit by the Wall. Whether it was people or anything else, everything seemed very small under the Wall.

How could the Others break through this line of defense, a wall of ice so high that it reached the blue sky? Out of curiosity and shock, Gawen Westerling took the zigzagging stairs to the top of the wall to take a look. The top of the wall was very wide, enough for twelve horses to gallop side by side. Of course, the base was very large, the thick wall base was hundreds of meters thick, and the long tunnels in and out were dark. There were three defensive gates made of iron bars. It took a short time to ride a horse from inside the wall through the wall to the other side.

Such a thick-walled tunnel only needed to be filled with water and frozen, and the ice would be as hard as steel, and no one could pass through. Gawen believed that the Others and wights were also powerless.

But Lord Eddard told him that the Others and wights would climb up the ice wall.

Climb the wall?!

Gawen Westerling couldn't believe it. He felt dizzy just looking down from the wall, worried that he would be blown off by the wind, yet the Others and wights could climb up with short knives and short swords. This made Lord Gawen unable to believe it. But Lord Eddard said that the Free Folk often climbed over the wall and then climbed back.

Lord Gawen was speechless. If someone else had said it, Lord Gawen would have taken it as a joke, but Eddard Stark was an honest man, and he wouldn't lie.

The Wall's harsh cold weather, the almost non-stop cold wind, the thick snow, the Others and wights, the Night's Watch and the Wall alliance, all gave Lord Gawen an unreal illusion. His gaze followed the running Night's Watchman to the harbor dock. As expected, the Night's Watch brother ran to Eddard Stark's side. It was obvious that he was very tired, with puffs of white mist coming from his mouth and nose.

The Night's Watchman was saying something to Eddard Stark.

Although Lord Gawen couldn't hear it at all, he could guess that the Night's Watch brother had run over to deliver a message urgently, and it must be related to the Others outside the Wall again. Commander Carter led two warships to set off, had they encountered any danger?

Gawen thought of the Hound. He and the Hound were both Westermen. The Hound was the Mountain's younger brother, the Mountain's only blood relative. Although Gawen wasn't close to the Hound, he still didn't want anything to happen to the Hound.

On the deck, Gawen, the captain, the guards, the mercenaries, and the sailors all looked at the dock together, watching the running Night's Watchman and Eddard Stark talking.

"Lord, I guess something happened to Commander Carter," the captain said.

"It can't be that fast," Gawen said, comforting himself. Eddard Stark had asked Lord Gawen to stay, but Gawen had refused with an excuse.

"Lord, are there really Others outside the Wall?" the captain asked with suspicion in his tone.

Gawen had had a little hesitation in his heart before coming, after all, he hadn't really seen the Others: "Of course it's true," Gawen said affirmatively.

Eddard Stark strongly invited Lord Gawen to stay, at least for a few more days, but Gawen still chose to return. He was selfish. There were Others and wights outside the Wall, and it seemed that they couldn't cross the high ice wall no matter what, but it was safer to leave as soon as possible.

At the dock, Eddard Stark read the letter. The letter said that the scouts of the Shadow Tower and Castle Black had encountered Others. They were driven by the Others and ran for hundreds of miles, hiding in Hardhome in Storrold's Point. Ser Bob Norrell of Castle Black broke out of Hardhome and boarded a local Free Folk fishing boat to deliver a message to Eastwatch-by-the-Sea. On the way, he encountered Commander Carter, and all three ships went north to rescue people.

"Eddard, what happened?" As Hand of the Queen, Davos Seaworth wasn't imposing. On the contrary, his expression of staring at people made him look a little neurotic.

"On the peninsula of Storrold's Point, about three hundred miles from here, there is a large Free Folk gathering place called Hardhome. The scout teams of the Shadow Tower, the scout teams of Castle Black, a hundred local warriors, and hundreds of Free Folk civilians are besieged by Others. Commander Carter has already gone north to rescue them, and he requests that I send all the warships in the harbor north to meet them."

"Aren't the scouts of the Shadow Tower in the west?" Davos said with a frown. He was a very sensitive person, and he sensed something unreasonable.

"Yes, the Shadow Tower is in the far west, but the scout team encountered Others, was chased by Others, and passed through the Haunted Forest to Hardhome in the far east."

"And the scout team of Castle Black also happened to run into them?"

"They all encountered the pursuit of Others and joined together while escaping." Eddard handed the letter to Davos.

Davos noticed another piece of information from the letter: "Lord, Commander Carter was ambushed by Others in the fishing village."

"It wasn't an ambush, was it," Eddard said. He had led the legion and fought the Others several times, and he didn't feel that the Others had human intelligence and knew anything about the art of ambush.

"Lord, this shows that the Others are in the forest outside the Wall, only separated from us by a wall."

"Yes, we don't know how many Others are outside for the time being, but rescuing people must be carried out. Lord Davos, I want you to lead the Eastwatch-by-the-Sea fleet north to meet Commander Carter, hoping to bring all the brothers and Free Folk out."

"Okay, Lord, I'll go." Davos Seaworth had been a pirate and smuggler for decades, and he knew every sea area of ​​the Narrow Sea like the back of his hand. Even in the dark, he could pass through the most dangerous sea areas, but he had never been to the sea area north of the Bay of Seals.

That was the sea area of ​​the extreme cold, leading to unknown places, and also beyond the realm of Westeros.

"The warriors of the Eastwatch-by-the-Sea fleet are familiar with the sea area of ​​Storrold's Point, and Lord is best at commanding the navy…."

"Lord Eddard." Davos interrupted Eddard's words, "After I lead the fleet to set off, you need helpers to garrison Eastwatch-by-the-Sea." Davos looked up at the Titan's Daughter. On the high deck, Gawen Westerling and the warriors were also watching them.

Eddard was an honest man: "Lord Davos, I once asked Lord Gawen to stay for a few more days."

"The situation is different now, Lord. After the Eastwatch-by-the-Sea fleet is fully mobilized, the Eastwatch-by-the-Sea garrison is empty, leaving only less than twenty stewards. The brothers blowing the horns in the Haunted Forest are no longer heard, and most of them are probably doomed. If Eastwatch-by-the-Sea falls, the obsidian weapons and ore sent by the Mountain will all fall into the hands of the Others."

"Okay, I will persuade Lord Gawen Westerling to stay and help me."

"Perhaps, when forced to, another method must be used—not allowing the Titan's Daughter to leave the port, and Gawen Westerling won't be able to leave even if he wants to," Davos said.

"No, I will persuade Gawen Westerling to stay," Eddard said in a deep voice.

"…Okay…Lord Eddard…I think the Mountain's methods are really useful sometimes…"

"The Mountain's methods!"

"Yes, if it were the Mountain, what would he do? I think he would send a few swords to guard the cables and anchors. When the sailors come to untie the ropes and raise the large iron anchor, a few swords would make them go back to report to the captain. The captain would go to find Lord Gawen, and Lord Gawen would come to find you. You promise some things you can do or can't do. No matter what Lord Gawen says, you agree to it first, and Lord Gawen will stay."

"I don't want to start a conflict, and I won't force anyone to stay. Lord Gawen and the Mountain have done great things for us."

"There won't be a conflict, Lord Eddard. Lord Gawen will choose to stay and fight with you."

"I will not leave Gawen Westerling with deceptive words," Eddard Stark said decisively.

"Then what if Gawen Westerling refuses to stay?"

"Then let them go!"

Davos Seaworth shrugged his shoulders and said helplessly: "Give the order, Lord. I need you to order the Eastwatch-by-the-Sea fleet to be handed over to me."

On the deck, Gawen Westerling heard the transmission order. Hundreds of people put down their work and returned to the castle, and the atmosphere changed. Soon, the teams came out fully armed and ran onto the ship.

In the harbor, transmission orders were heard one after another. More than a dozen ships of various sizes were moving. All 150 soldiers of the Eastwatch-by-the-Sea garrison were mobilized. Davos's guard group also boarded the ship. Davos jumped on the flagship, issued orders, and the orders were shouted down one by one. The horns also blew, and the warships filed out of the harbor. The wind direction had just turned into a headwind, so in the neat horn sound, the sails were raised one by one.

The wind helped the ship's momentum, the sails were full, the warships were arranged in columns, and they went north.

"Lord, is the Night's Watch fleet going to fight the Others?" the captain muttered on the Titan's Daughter.

Gawen Westerling answered irrelevantly: "Captain, is our stuff loaded? Let's get going."

"Okay!"

Eddard Stark gave orders at the harbor dock. Two Night's Watch stewards turned over and rode on warhorses, and went south along the coast, not knowing what they were going to do. The obsidian weapons and ore on the dock were left in place, and the Northmen guards and Night's Watch stewards returned to the castle, as if a war was coming.

The captain loudly urged the workers to move the last things onto the ship in Braavosi. The sailors had already received the first mate's order, went down to the cabin, made their positions, the paddles stretched out of the ship's body with a click, and inserted into the water, just waiting for the cables to be untied, the iron anchor to be raised, and they would row away.

Eddard Stark took two family knights and boarded the wooden ladder to the deck of the Titan's Daughter.

Gawen felt a little uneasy in his heart. He had personally seen the Eastwatch-by-the-Sea fleet fully mobilized, most of the warriors boarded the ship and left, and less than twenty black-clad men were left, who should all be stewards, not warriors.

Eddard Stark's Northmen guard group was only dozens of people, not as many as his guards.

Eddard Stark boarded the ship, Gawen Westerling greeted him, and Eddard Stark said: "Lord Gawen, Commander Carter and Lord Davos have gone north to Hardhome to rescue people. The Eastwatch-by-the-Sea garrison is empty, and there are less than a hundred Northmen guards and Night's Watch stewards. I hope Lord can stay for a few days to help us defend Eastwatch-by-the-Sea."