Jacob and his group stood a short distance from the cave entrance, their eyes fixed on the massive weirwood tree atop the hill where the cave was hidden.
Lydia shivered. "I don't like that tree. It feels... wrong."
Jacob nodded. "I can feel it too. There's something dark about it. Something hungry. It feels like a supernatural creature."
Stiles's eyes widened. "A supernatural creature?"
Jacob said, "Yes. It feels like a monster, not just a tree."
Allison studied the tree. "Could it attack us?"
Jacob shrugged. "I don't know. But you guys should stay alert. Let's go."
The snow crunched beneath the hooves of their horses as they approached the cave. But before they could take more than a few steps, figures emerged from the darkness of the cave's entrance.
Twenty small, humanoid figures emerged, their yellowish-green eyes glowing with ancient malice. They stood no more than four feet tall, with gray-green skin that looked more like bark or moss than flesh. Clad in rough-spun garments, they carried obsidian weapons—daggers, spears, and strange black spheres.
Stiles stared at them. "What are those creatures?"
Samwell's voice was filled with wonder. "Those are... those are the Children of the Forest. I've read about them. They were supposed to be extinct."
Malia's eyes glowed red. "Are they good or bad?"
Jacob used his X-ray vision and looked deep into the cave. He saw Bran—alive, sitting near a weirwood root with Meera and Hodor and his wolf Summer. They were looking at Bloodraven, who was still in pain from Lydia's attack. A few Children of the Forest were tending to him.
Knowing that Bran was still safe and now that he saw where he was, he could teleport to him anytime. Jacob turned back to the group.
"The Children of the Forest," Jacob said, his voice calm, "are the original inhabitants of Westeros. They lived here long before the First Men arrived. They were creatures of nature—you could call them treehuggers if you want."
He paused. "But humans drove them to extinction, so in desperation, they used dark magic to create the White Walkers as a weapon."
Stiles frowned. "So they're not bad?"
Jacob shook his head. "I didn't say they're not bad. They also practice ancient blood magic, and their entire network of trees grows more powerful by absorbing life force and human blood. They casually sacrifice people to get what they want."
Jon's eyes narrowed, and he put his hand on Longclaw's pommel. "So they are the ones who created the Night King?"
Jacob nodded. "Yes. They made him. And then they lost control of him. The White Walkers turned on them, and the Children of the Forest were nearly wiped out. The ones who survived retreated to the far north, hiding in caves like this one."
He looked at the Children of the Forest standing before them. "And they still practice blood magic. They still kill humans to fuel their dark rituals."
Malia growled. "Then they are bad people, right? Should we kill them?"
Jacob's voice was flat. "If they stand in our way, yes. We will kill every last one of them."
One of the Children of the Forest—a female with sharp features—stepped forward. Her name was Ash, and she carried a spear with a dragonglass head.
"Who are you people?" Ash demanded. "And what are you doing here?"
Jacob said in a cold voice with an evil smirk, "We are here for that old creepy voyeur. Bloodraven."
Ash's eyes narrowed. "What do you want from him?"
Jacob's smirk widened. "His life."
Without a shred of hesitation, Ash raised her spear and shouted a command in her ancient tongue. "Attack!"
The Children of the Forest raised their hands and threw the dark spheres—magical fire grenades crafted from dragonglass and magic. The spheres glowed blue and flew fast toward Jacob and his group.
Jacob simply waved his hand.
The spheres stopped in mid-air, reversed direction, and flew back toward the Children of the Forest.
The Children of the Forest panicked. They tried to run back into the cave, but it was too late. The spheres exploded on impact, killing a few instantly and engulfing several others in fire. They ran around screaming while on flames.
Tormund dismounted his horse and ran toward them screaming. "Do you know how many Free Folk died because of the White Walkers?" He cut a screaming one in half with his axe. "Do you know how much we suffered because of the White Walkers?" He cut another one.
Ash said in her language to the Children of the Forest that were not hurt by the magic bombs, "Let's go back inside!" She escaped inside the cave, and five other Children of the Forest who were not on fire followed her.
Tormund managed to catch up with one of the five fleeing ones and cut her head off. "Die, you little cunt!" he shouted.
Then he was about to run inside, but Jacob said, "Don't go inside alone, Tormund. It's dangerous for you in there."
Tormund stopped, turned around, and began finishing off the Children of the Forest still burning on the ground.
After killing them all, he returned to the group and looked at Brienne with a foolish, lovesick grin, clearly expecting her to be impressed.
Brienne sighed and ignored him.
Stiles stared. "I didn't know people in this world had bombs."
Jacob said, "They don't have gunpowder as far as I know. But they have something called wildfire. As for what these guys are using, it's magical bombs."
He dismounted Shadow and took a step forward. "Alright. Let's go in."
The others all dismounted and followed him.
---
Deep Inside the Cave — Hidden Chamber
Behind a hidden door that Meera and Bran had never reached or even known about, the tunnels twisted and turned, lit by glowing roots that pulsed with a sickly red light. They led to a chamber in the heart of the roots of the giant tree, just under the chamber where Bloodraven was fused with the roots. The walls were covered in carvings—ancient symbols of weirwood trees, of the Children of the Forest, of the First Men.
And blood.
There was blood everywhere, and it was fresh—steam still rose from it. It stained the walls. It pooled on the floor. It dripped from the ceiling.
Ten Children of the Forest were there with nineteen dead corpses—wildlings and stray rangers captured over the months.
Leaf—one of the ten Children of the Forest—held a struggling human. The man was a ranger from the Night's Watch. He was thin, ragged, terrified. His wrists were bound. His eyes were wide with fear as he had witnessed the death of the nineteen people who were prisoners with him.
Leaf raised an obsidian dagger. She whispered an incantation in her ancient language.
Then she slit his throat.
The man's blood sprayed across the weirwood roots. The roots absorbed it—along with all the blood in the chamber. The blood vanished into the wood, feeding the ancient tree. Then the roots started moving and stabbed into the dead bodies, absorbing them.
The bodies shriveled and turned into bone and skin that dried in moments, becoming like they had been dead for years.
---
Lydia stopped dead in the middle of the tunnel. Her eyes glowed white.
"Jay," she said, her voice distant and cold. "I can feel it. Death. I think they killed people for blood magic."
Jacob frowned and used his X-ray vision, searching the tree. "How many? And where?"
Lydia's voice trembled with rage. "I can feel twenty dead people." She looked down. "Underground."
Jacob looked down with his X-ray and saw them in a chamber. He saw ten Children of the Forest and saw roots absorbing dead corpses and turning them into dry husks.
Jacob's expression darkened. "We're too late. They killed them all. And they're using the blood and the corpses to feed the tree for some reason."
Allison frowned. "How do you know that?"
Jacob said, "I can feel it now that we're inside the cave." He thought, 'I can't feel a thing. I just used my X-ray vision and saw them. But I will never tell them that. I will never tell them about my X-ray vision.'
Lydia narrowed her eyes at him. "I feel like you're hiding something from us."
Jacob said, "I'm not hiding anything. Let's hurry and rescue Bran."
He walked ahead, and everyone followed him through the tunnels.
But just as they took a turn, the Children of the Forest started attacking them.
They emerged from the shadows of the tunnels, throwing obsidian spears and launching dark magic—waves of shadow that tried to swallow the group whole. They screamed their ancient war cries, their eyes burning with hatred.
Jacob raised his hand. A shimmering energy shield surrounded everyone.
"They're using dark magic," he ordered. "Stay inside the energy shield."
Allison raised her hand. Ice arrows shot from her palm, each one finding a Child of the Forest. They pierced through the small creatures, killing them and pinning them to the walls.
Malia raised her hands and pointed them like guns. Lightning bullets crackled from her fingers, striking the Children in the chest, in the head, in the heart, leaving bloody holes. They died before hitting the floor.
Sansa and Lydia's fire attacks burned them to ash.
Stiles sent Lightning Weasels chasing after the Children of the Forest, electrocuting them to death.
The Children fell. One by one, they died.
Jacob frowned and thought, 'If I remember correctly, there were only six Children of the Forest in the cave with Bran and the Three-Eyed Raven in the show. But now there are more—we just killed forty of them, and there are a few more of them with Bloodraven and ten underground.' He shook his head. 'Well, it doesn't matter. I guess this is a real world, and things could be different from the show.'
---
Soon, they reached the chamber where Bran was with the Three-Eyed Raven.
The chamber was filled with the roots of the weirwood tree, coiling through the walls.
Bloodraven—the Three-Eyed Raven—was tangled in the roots. He was a wrinkled old man that seemed more corpse than living being. His skin was pale, stretched tight over his bones, and a red birthmark on his cheek resembled a raven painted in blood.
Blood was dripping from his eyes, nose, and mouth.
He was looking at Jacob's group—and especially Lydia—with fear.
Leaf was already back with the ten Children of the Forest that were with her underground.
The ten Children of the Forest joined fifteen others to protect Bloodraven. They stood in front of him with spears.
Bran sat nearby, his hand grasping a root of the weirwood tree and his eyes white and empty. Meera was crouched beside him, her face full of fear. Hodor sat beside them, saying "Hodor" over and over, his massive body rocking back and forth.
Summer, Bran's direwolf, was growling at Jacob and his group until he caught the Starks' scent and saw his brothers Shaggydog and Ghost. He stopped growling.
Leaf cast a wary glance at Jacob's group, then hurried to Bran's side with a bowl of red liquid, attempting to make him drink it.
Jacob waved his hand. The bowl flew from Leaf's grasp and landed in his hand.
She gasped and took a few steps back toward Bloodraven.
Jacob sniffed the bowl.
"Herbs and blood," he said. "Human blood."
Sansa and Arya ran to Bran.
Sansa killed the Children of the Forest that tried to get in their way. She burned them without hesitation, her face cold with fury.
Jon followed them, his sword ready.
Sansa caught Bran and shook him, but he didn't wake up.
She glared at Meera and said, "What did you do to my brother?"
Meera stammered, "Brother?"
Arya put her dagger at Meera's throat. "Speak, if you don't want to lose your head."
Jacob said, "Easy, Arya. The girl isn't an enemy. And Bran is fine." He looked at Lydia. "Wake him up. Just call out his name with your banshee voice."
Lydia walked toward Bran and called out his name using her banshee voice.
Bran blinked. His eyes slowly returned to normal. He looked around, confused, then saw his family.
"Sansa?" he whispered. "Arya? Jon?" A happy smile appeared on his face. "You're alive."
Sansa hugged him. "Yes. Rickon is here too."
Bran looked around. "Where?"
Arya pointed behind Jacob. "Over there."
Jacob said to Rickon, "Go see your brother."
Rickon hesitated, looking at the Children of the Forest.
Jacob said, "Don't worry. We won't let them touch you."
Rickon then walked toward them with Osha and Shaggydog.
One of the Children of the Forest, filled with rage at the death of her companions, tried to attack Rickon. Jacob used his telekinesis and turned her into a bloody mist.
Leaf and the other Children saw what happened to their companion. Fear flickered across their faces—but it was quickly swallowed by hatred and rage. They all attacked.
Jacob used his telekinesis again and turned them all to a bloody mist. He saw the bloody mist get consumed by the tree but didn't try to stop it. He smirked and thought, 'I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of monster this tree is.'
Meera saw Leaf and the Children of the Forest turn into a bloody mist and screamed in fear and pain, as she still thought of them as friends.
Lydia put a calming hand on Meera's shoulder. "Girl, calm down. Those creatures are evil and dangerous that's why we killed them."
Meera stopped screaming, and her tears stopped—not because she trusted Lydia, but because she was scared Lydia would kill her.
Bran pointed at Jacob. "Who is he? And why did he kill Leaf and the others?"
Sansa said, "He is my husband. And he just saved your life."
Bran frowned. "Saved my life?"
Sansa nodded. "Yes. The Children of the Forest aren't your friends. They were trying to help Bloodraven take over your body."
Bran said, "Who is Bloodraven?"
Arya turned and pointed her dagger directly at the old man entwined in the roots of the tree. "Him. He is trying to take over your body."
Bran's brow furrowed. "What? No. The Three-Eyed Raven is my teacher. He's been helping me—"
Lydia shook him. "He's been lying to you. He's not a teacher. He's a parasite."
Jacob stepped forward. "His real name is Brynden Rivers. He was a Targaryen bastard—a spymaster, a kinslayer, a man who murdered his own family to gain power. When his body started to rot, he came here and merged with the tree. And then he waited."
He looked to Bran. "He was waiting for a powerful skinchanger—someone like you, with the potential to become a greenseer. Someone whose body he could steal so he could leave this cave and rule Westeros."
Bran's face went pale. "That's... that's not true. He told me—"
"He told you what you wanted to hear," Jacob cut him off. "He's been manipulating you since you were in Winterfell."
Jacob turned to face Bloodraven.
"Am I right, Brynden Rivers?" Jacob asked.
Bloodraven tried to sound as kind as possible. "Everything you said is a lie. I do not want to take over Bran's body, and I don't want to rule Westeros. I am the living memory of the world. My mission is to ensure the survival of humanity by preserving its history."
Jacob laughed. "Yeah, sure. You're just a selfless old man who happens to live in a tree and spy on everyone in Westeros."
Bloodraven's tone turned cold. "I'm not spying. I'm recording history. I am the Three-Eyed Raven. The keeper of history."
Jacob shook his head. "No. You're a creepy old man who spies on people while they dress, sleep, and die. And you expect us to believe you don't have ulterior motives?"
Bloodraven's eye narrowed. "You don't understand what's at stake. The Night King is coming. Without my guidance, Bran cannot stop him."
Jacob raised his hand. "I don't have time to listen to your nonsense."
A massive fire serpent materialized from his palm.
"So goodbye," Jacob said, "you old creepy voyeur."
The fire serpent lunged. It engulfed Bloodraven in a torrent of white-hot flame.
Bloodraven screamed—a high, thin sound that echoed through the cave. His body withered, crumbled, and turned to ash. The roots around him blackened and snapped.
The weirwood tree shuddered and groaned. Its leaves fell like rain.
Stiles looked around. "What's going on? Why do I feel like this tree is moving?"
Jacob's eyes glowed red, and he said with a smirk, "It's awakening. And it is not a tree. It's a monster. A powerful ancient monster."
Just then, they heard a loud roar that vibrated inside their chests, and the ground started shaking around them.
Jacob turned to them. "This is going to be fun. But let's get out of here first."
He wrapped everyone in his telekinesis and teleported them outside beside their horses. They all raised their heads and watched as the giant weirwood tree kept roaring, and all its branches started moving and fusing together.
The tree was transforming.
To be continued... 😊
if you like this story and want to support me please go to:
patreon*com/Ayoub_AMZ926
35 Chapters ahead of webnovel