Somewhere along the coast of the western Crab Claw Peninsula.
"Lord Greene, the horses are ready."
"Thank you."
Greene Kleber sat on a grey stone, picking up his leather wineskin to drink, when he suddenly paused, looked up at the sky, and narrowed his eyes.
Greene gazed sharply at the high sky, then stood up, extending his left hand, and a well-trained attendant immediately handed him the lord's bow and arrow.
...
In the clear sky, a strong eagle soared, its wings spread as if embracing the entire firmament.
Suddenly, an arrow whistled through the sky, cutting across the firmament like lightning, directly at the eagle.
The eagle seemed to sense the danger and frantically flapped its wings, trying to avoid the arrow shot at it. However, the arrow was too fast; the eagle was hit, and its feathers scattered in the air.
...
...
"Bran..."
...
"Bran... Bran..."
...
"Wake up. Wake up, Bran."
Amidst gentle whispers, Bran Stark closed his third eye and then suddenly opened his other two eyes.
Seeing Bran wake up, his stableboy Hodor kept muttering, "Hodor, Hodor, Hodor, Hodor..."
Bran, still shaken, panted in Meera Reed's arms.
Meera wiped the sweat from Bran's forehead and said, "You were punching and kicking, and making terrifying shouts. Bran, what did you see?"
Meera Reed is Howland Reed's daughter, whose father is the commander of all Crannogmen in the Neck. She has long brown hair and a pair of green eyes.
Meera Reed is sixteen this year; she is a typical Crannogman, thin and short, and, following her father's guidance, she is skilled with fishing nets and three-pronged frog spears.
Meera Reed is an excellent hunter; she is one of the escorts Maester Luwin arranged for Bran this time.
...
Bran mumbled incoherently, "An arrow, I saw an arrow, an arrow shot at me."
Meera reached out and smoothed Bran's hair, saying, "So much sweat, do you want some water?"
Bran nodded, and Meera brought the leather pouch to his mouth; he eagerly gulped it down.
Water constantly overflowed from the corners of Bran's mouth. Every time he returned from using his third eye, he was weak, thirsty, and hungry.
"Hodor, Hodor, Hodor..."
After drinking water, Bran felt much better. He opened his mouth and asked, "How long have I been asleep?"
The thin young man with green eyes and green robes answered Bran's question: "Three whole days."
After a pause, he asked, "Where did you go?"
The young man's name is Jojen Reed, he is Meera Reed's younger brother.
Jojen Reed is thirteen this year, small in stature, but his tone of voice is always serious, making him appear more mature than his actual age.
In Winterfell, Bran's old wet nurse called Jojen Reed "Little Grandfather."
Jojen Reed possesses the green sight, the ability to have prophetic dreams; he is also one of the escorts Maester Luwin arranged for Bran.
...
Bran furrowed his small brow in thought, but his memory was blurry: "A bird, or an eagle..."
He even felt that one day when he returned, he would completely forget how to speak.
Jojen Reed said in a deep voice, "Lord Bran, Meera poured some water for you, and we also put honey on your lips, but these are far from enough. If it's too long, you will starve your own body."
Bran retorted, "I ate, I hunted rabbits and fish."
Jojen Reed's voice held a warning: "It wasn't you who ate. Please remember who you are, you are Bran Stark."
Bran remained silent. How could he not remember who he was? He knew perfectly well! He was the little boy Bran, the crippled Bran.
The stableboy Hodor muttered to himself nearby, "Hodor, Hodor, Hodor..."
A tall woman with messy brown hair spoke, "We were all very worried about you."
Her name is Osha, she is a spearwife loyal to the Stark, and she is one of the escorts Maester Luwin arranged for Bran.
Bran remained silent, lowering his gaze to his numb legs... He might as well be a beastly Bran. He could run, and he could fly; nothing was better than that!
Seeing this, Jojen Reed warned again, "Please remember who you are. Lord Bran, you must remember, otherwise, you will one day be swallowed."
Jojen Reed was his friend and his teacher, but at this moment Bran didn't want to listen to him, he turned his head away.
Meera gently stroked Bran's small face and said softly, "Are you hungry? Do you want something to eat?"
Bran nodded. Meera was far more cheerful than her brother, always able to make him laugh, as if nothing could scare or anger her, except Jojen Reed.
In fact, Jojen Reed could scare everyone because he had green dreams—dreams that would surely come true.
After they fled to Wolfswood, Jojen Reed dreamed of Bran's death.
Bran thought angrily that he wasn't dead; this time, Jojen Reed's green dream didn't come true.
Bran's eyes suddenly trembled, and that terrifying arrow appeared in his mind. It seemed... in some sense, "he" had indeed died just now.
...
A small fire was lit, and Meera's large iron helmet became their pot. First, she cut large pieces of meat into small cubes and threw them in, then added water and wild onions Hodor had found.
The first bite... it tasted very good. Bran ate several bites consecutively and said, "Thank you, Miss Meera."
Meera Reed chuckled, "My pleasure, Lord Bran."
Jojen Reed put down his spoon and said, "We leave tomorrow, to continue our journey."
Meera Reed's smile stiffened, and she asked somewhat nervously, "Did you have another green dream?"
Jojen Reed habitually furrowed his brow, then shook his head slightly and said, "No."
Meera Reed questioned, "Then why the rush to leave? The Tumbling Tower is a good place. There are no villages nearby, the woods are full of game, and the streams and lakes have fish and frogs... Who would come here looking for us?"
The place they were currently in was an ancient watchtower in Wolfswood, with no villages nearby. It had been abandoned for many years, and the overturned stones on the outside were covered with moss and ivy, making the tower's shape almost unrecognizable.
The tower's true name was long lost, and Bran named it "Tumbling Tower" based on its appearance.
...
"Hodor, Hodor, Hodor..."
Jojen Reed's moss-colored eyes looked at his sister and said, "This is not our destination."
Meera Reed retorted, "But it's safe here."
"I understand, it seems safe here..."
After a pause, Jojen Reed continued, "But for how long? The Ironborn's goal is not just Winterfell; they could come after us here at any time. If we are found by them, you should know the consequences."
When Jojen Reed finished speaking, silence fell upon everyone.
Bran spoke, "It could also be Robb's army that finds us. My brother will be back from the south soon, and he will bring all his armies back to drive away the Ironborn."
Jojen Reed reminded him, "Lord Bran, Maester Luwin didn't mention Robb before we left, but he did say... the North is full of Ironborn now, and he told me to hurry to The Wall and seek your uncle's protection."
Meera's eyes showed worry: "It's a difficult journey... The Wall is far, and Bran has no legs, only Hodor. If we had horses, everything would be fine..."
Jojen Reed interrupted, "If we were eagles, we could fly!"
He added, "The fact is, we have no wings, just as we have no horses."
Osha, who had been silent, spoke, "There are also foresters, farmers, and hunters deep in Wolfswood; we can get horses from them."
Jojen Reed's brow furrowed deeper: "Right now, the first thing we need to avoid is being hunted. Look at us... a crippled boy, a spearwife, a simple-minded big man, and two Crannogmen far from home."
He scanned the group and continued, "How obvious is that? Those people will spread news about us far and wide, and we will immediately become prey, hunted by those who truly want to eliminate Bran Stark."
Everyone was silent. Jojen Reed walked to the fire, poked the embers with a stick, and added, "Bran needs a wiser teacher, and the Three-Eyed Raven is waiting for us in the North."
Osha said in a deep voice, "Little Reed, Maester Luwin told us to take Bran to his uncle."
Jojen Reed poked the embers again and said, "The Ironborn might pursue us to The Wall, but they won't pursue us beyond The Wall."
Osha was about to speak again, but was interrupted by Bran's voice: "That's a good idea, I want to see the Three-Eyed Raven."
...
The others went to prepare for departure, leaving only Bran and Jojen Reed.
Bran stared at the fire for a while and said, "Although I haven't been beyond The Wall, I know it's a very vast place. Can we find the Three-Eyed Raven?"
Jojen Reed said calmly, "Perhaps he will find us, Lord Bran."
Bran asked again, "What do you mean by 'teacher'? Aren't you my teacher? You helped me open my third eye."
Nine-year-old Bran tried to "make up" with him by asking questions. Jojen Reed said exasperatedly, "Your third eye is open too wide; I'm afraid you'll turn into some animal and spend the rest of your life that way."
Bran quickly shook his head: "No, no, I'll definitely control the time next time, I promise you."
Jojen Reed looked at Bran suspiciously and said, "Boy Bran made a promise?"
Bran complained, "I'm only nine years old; I'll be better when I grow up. Even Florian the Fool and Prince Aemon the Dragonknight weren't great at nine."
The Florian Bran referred to was a legendary knight from Riverlands, passed down from the Age of Heroes, and Prince Aemon referred to Aemon Targaryen, who was considered the noblest knight to date.
...
Jojen Reed nodded: "Yes, that makes sense, but..."
His gaze narrowed slightly, then he continued, "The premise for your smooth growth is that day lengthens and suppresses night, but the opposite is true. Lord Bran, you are a child of summer, please remember the Stark's motto."
"Winter Is Coming."
After speaking, Bran couldn't help but shiver all over.
...
...
The North.
Dagon "Splinterjaw" led his army to besiege Torrhen's Square (Chapter 209) to cooperate with Theon Greyjoy's plan to raid Winterfell.
Receiving a plea for help from Torrhen's Square, Ser Rodrik Cassel, a Stark bannerman, rallied 800 soldiers from Winterfell and nearby estates to reinforce them.
With the cooperation of Torrhen's Square's defenders, Ser Rodrik Cassel easily defeated Dagon "Splinterjaw"'s army, forcing the Ironborn to retreat to Rocky Coast.
Theon Greyjoy's plan to raid Winterfell, though initially smooth, later suffered a tragic failure due to the sudden return of the "resurrected" Eddard Stark.
However, there were two other Iron Islands armies invading the North, commanded separately by Victarion Greyjoy (King Balon's brother) and Asha Greyjoy.
...
Cailin Bay is the strategic choke point connecting the North to the South. Robb Stark left 400 Northmen archers to guard it.
Victarion Greyjoy led over 100 warships and secretly landed from the coast north of Cailin Bay, catching the Cailin Bay defenders off guard, and the Ironborn easily captured Cailin Bay.
...
Asha Greyjoy, with her carefully selected subordinates, led over 30 warships north to Sea Dragon Point (a peninsula in the northwest of the North).
When the tide came in, the Ironborn landed north of Deepwood Motte and directly breached the Glover family's Deepwood Motte.
...
News of Cailin Bay and Deepwood Motte being occupied by the Ironborn reached Winterfell.
After a brief rest, Ser Rodrik Cassel, a Stark bannerman, under Duke Eddard's command, led 1000 Northmen soldiers north, preparing to retake Deepwood Motte.
Duke Eddard, meanwhile, was raising a new army in Winterfell, intending to personally reclaim Cailin Bay.
At the same time, ravens carrying Duke Eddard's handwritten letters flew out of Winterfell, their destinations being Riverrun in Riverlands, Pyke in Iron Islands, and Blood Gate in Eyrie.
...
...
Blood Gate.
Petyr Baelish, with his hands behind his back, looked at the grim-faced Blood Gate Knight Brynden Tully and said, "Ser Brynden, I'm sorry, this is the Duke of Eyrie's command."
Ser Brynden said coldly, "Littlefinger, where is Cat?"
Facing Ser Brynden's sharp gaze, Petyr said somewhat helplessly, "Uncle Brynden, Cat is fine, she and Lysa are sisters..."
He hesitated, then said, "It's just..."
With that, he let out a sigh that Ser Brynden could barely hear.
Ser Brynden stared at Petyr, who seemed hesitant to speak, and said, "Petyr, I taught you when you were little that not everyone appreciates your word games."
His large hand touched the hilt of the longsword at his waist, then he continued, "I want to hear the truth from you. Please don't test my patience."
Petyr smiled bitterly, "My Uncle Brynden, I have no need to deceive you..."
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