A coastal area on the western part of the Crackclaw Point. ♠♟ 🍩😂
"Lord Gryn, the horses are ready."
Thank you for your help.
Gryn Crabb sat on a gray stone, picked up a leather wine bag and was about to drink when he suddenly stopped, looked up at the sky, and then squinted.
Gryn stared sharply at the sky. He stood up and stretched out his Left Hand. A well-trained servant immediately handed him the lord's bow and arrows.
In the clear sky, a majestic eagle soars, its wings spread as if embracing the entire heavens.
Suddenly, an arrow whistled through the sky, streaking across the heavens like lightning, heading straight for the eagle.
The eagle seemed to sense the danger and hurriedly flapped its wings, trying to avoid the arrow aimed at it. However, the arrow was too fast, and the eagle was hit, its feathers scattering in the air.
" Bran..."
" Bran... Bran..."
"Wake up! Wake up, Bran!"
In a gentle whisper, Bran Stark closed his third eye, then suddenly opened his other two.
Upon seeing Bran awaken, his stable boy Hodor kept chanting, " Hodor, Hodor, Hodor, Hodor..."
Bran, still shaken, gasped for breath in Meera Reed's arms.
Meera wiped the sweat from Bran's brow and said, "You were punching and kicking, and you were screaming horribly. Bran, what did you see?"
Meera Reed is the daughter of Howland Reed, whose father was the commander of all the Neck Crannogmen. She has long brown hair and green eyes.
Meera Reed is sixteen years old. She is a typical Crannogmen, thin and short. Following her father's instructions, she is skilled in using fishing nets and trident frog spears.
Meera Reed is an excellent hunter, and she is one of the guards that Maester Luwin has assigned to Bran.
Bran stammered, "An arrow... I saw an arrow, an arrow shot at me."
Meera ran her hand through Bran's hair and said, "You're sweating a lot. Do you want some water?"
Bran nodded, Meera brought the leather bag to his mouth, which he swallowed eagerly.
Water kept spilling from Bran's mouth; each time he returned using his third eye, he was weak, thirsty, and hungry.
" Hodor, Hodor, Hodor..."
After drinking the water, Bran felt much better and asked, "How long did I sleep?"
The thin, green-eyed boy in green robes answered Bran's question, "Three whole days. 😲♞ ✋♖"
He paused for a moment, then asked, "Where did you go?"
The boy's name was Jojen Reed, and he was Meera Reed's younger brother.
Jojen Reed is thirteen years old this year. He is small in stature, but his serious tone of voice makes him look more mature than his actual age.
In Winterfell, Bran's Old Nan called Jojen Reed "Grandpa Little."
Jojen Reed possesses the Greensight, the ability to dream prophetic dreams, and he is also one of the guards assigned to Bran by Maester Luwin.
Bran frowned, trying to recall, but his memory was hazy. "A bird, or an eagle..."
He even felt that when he returned one day, he would have completely forgotten how to speak.
Jojen Reed said in a deep voice, "Lord Bran, Meera gave you some water, and we even put honey on your lips, but that's far from enough. If this goes on for too long, you'll starve your true form."
Bran retorted, "I've eaten them. I've hunted rabbits and fish."
Jojen Reed's voice carried a warning. "You're not the one eating. Remember who you are. You are Bran Stark."
Bran remained silent. How could he not remember his identity? He knew it all too well! He was the little boy Bran, the crippled Bran.
The stable boy, Hodor, muttered to himself, " Hodor, Hodor, Hodor..."
A tall woman with messy brown hair spoke up, "We were all very worried about you."
Her name is Osha, she is Spearwife loyal to House Stark, and she is one of Bran's bodyguards assigned by Maester Luwin.
Bran remained silent, glancing down at his numb legs... He'd rather be the beast Bran. He could run, he could fly—nothing could be better!
Seeing this, Jojen Reed warned again, "Remember your place, Lord Bran. You must remember, or one day you will be swallowed up."
Jojen Reed was his friend and teacher, but Bran didn't want to pay attention to him at the moment, so he turned his head to the side.
Meera gently stroked Bran's little face and said softly, "Are you hungry? Would you like something to eat?"
Bran nodded. Meera was much happier than her brother and could always make him laugh, as if nothing could frighten or anger her except Jojen Reed.
In fact, Jojen Reed can scare everyone because he has Greendreams —dreams that will surely come true.
After they fled to the Wolfswood, Jojen Reed dreamed of Bran's death.
Bran thought angrily that he was not dead, and that Jojen Reed's Greendreams had not come true this time.
Bran's eyes suddenly flickered; the image of that terrible arrow flashed through his mind, and it seemed... in a sense, "he" had indeed just died.
A small fire was lit, and Meera's large iron helmet became their pot. She first chopped large chunks of meat into small cubes and threw them in, then added water and wild onions that Hodor had found.
The first bite... it tasted great. Bran took several bites in a row and said, "Thank you, Miss Meera."
Meera Reed chuckled, "It's my pleasure to serve you, Lord Bran."
Jojen Lide put down his spoon and said, "We'll set off tomorrow and continue our journey."
Meera Reed's smile froze, and she asked somewhat nervously, "You had another Greendreams?"
Jojen Reid habitually furrowed his brow, shook his head slightly, and said, "No."
Meera Reed questioned, "Then why the rush to leave? The Tumbledown Tower is a good place. There are no villages nearby, the forests are full of game, and the streams and lakes are teeming with fish and frogs... Who would come looking for us here?"
They were now in an ancient Broken Tower in the Wolfswood, with no villages nearby. It had been abandoned for many years, and the overturned stones around it were covered with moss and ivy, making the tower's shape almost unrecognizable.
The tower's real name is lost to history; Bran named it " The Tumbledown Tower " based on its shape.
" Hodor, Hodor, Hodor..."
Jojen Lide looked at his sister with his moss-green eyes and said, "This is not our destination."
Meera Reed countered, "But it's safe here."
"I understand, it seems safe here..."
After a pause, Jojen Reed continued, "But how long can we hold out? The Ironborn's target isn't just Winterfell; they could track us here at any moment. If they find us, you should know the consequences."
Jojen Li De finished speaking, everyone fell silent for a moment.
Bran spoke up, "It might be Robb's army that's coming for us. My brother will be back from the south soon, with all his troops, and he'll drive out the Ironborn."
Jojen Reed reminded him, "Lord Bran, Maester Luwin didn't mention Robb before we left, but he did say... the North is now teeming with Ironborn, and he told me to get to the the Wall of the End as soon as possible to seek your uncle's protection."
Meera's eyes held worry. "The journey is difficult... The road to the the Wall of the End is long, and Bran has no legs, only Hodor. If we had horses, everything would be alright..."
Jojen Reed interrupted, "If we were eagles, we could fly!"
He added, "The truth is, we don't have wings, just as we don't have horses."
One of the silent Osha spoke up, "There are foresters, farmers, and hunters deep in the Wolfswood; we can get horses from them."
Jojen Reed's brow furrowed even deeper. "Right now, our primary concern is avoiding being hunted down. Look at us... a crippled boy, a Spearwife, a simple-minded giant, and two Crannogmen have left their homes."
He glanced at the crowd and continued, "How obvious is it? They'll spread the word about us like wildfire, and we'll immediately become prey, hunted down by those who truly want to get rid of Bran Stark."
Silence fell over the crowd. Jojen Reed walked to the fire, poked the embers with a stick, and said, " Bran needs a wiser teacher, and the Three-Eyed Crow is waiting for us in the north."
Osha said in a deep voice, "Young Reed, Maester Luwin has instructed us to send Bran to his uncle."
Jojen Reed nudged Ember again and said, " The Ironborn might catch up to the the Wall of the End, but they won't catch up to the Wall of the End."
Osha was about to speak when Bran interrupted her, "That's a good idea. I want to meet the Three-Eyed Crow."
The others went to prepare for departure, leaving only Bran and Jojen Reed behind.
Bran stared at the fire for a moment, then said, "Although I've never been beyond the the Wall of the End, I know it's a vast place. Can we find the Three-Eyed Crow?"
Jojen Reed said calmly, "Perhaps he found us, Lord Bran."
Bran asked again, "What do you mean by 'teacher'? Aren't you my teacher? You're the one who helped me open my third eye."
Nine-year-old Bran tried to "make up" with him by asking questions, Jojen Reed replied irritably, "Your third eye is too wide open; I'm afraid you'll turn into some kind of animal to spend the rest of your life."
Bran quickly shook his head. "No, no, I'll definitely control the time better next time, I promise you."
Jojen Reed looked at Bran suspiciously and asked, "Did the boy Bran make a promise?"
Bran complained, "I'm only nine years old. I'll be better when I grow up. Even the fool Florian, the Aemon the Dragonknight, weren't that strong at nine."
Bran's Florian refers to the legendary knight from the Riverlands, a lineage dating back to the Age of Heroes, while Prince Aemon refers to Aemon Targaryen, considered the noblest knight to date.
Jojen Reed nodded. "That's right, you make a good point, but..."
His gaze sharpened slightly, then he continued, "Your successful growth depends on longer days suppressing the night, but the reality is quite the opposite. Lord Bran, you are a child of Summer; remember the House Stark's maxim."
Winter is Coming.
After saying that, Bran couldn't help but tremble.
The North.
To facilitate Theon Greyjoy's plan to raid Winterfell, Dagmer the Cleftjaw led his army to besiege Torrhen's Square (Chapter 209).
Upon receiving a plea for help from Torrhen's Square, Ser Rodrik Harlaw Caesar, House Stark vassal, summoned 800 soldiers from Winterfell and nearby manors to their aid.
With the support of the garrison at Torrhen's Square, Ser Rodrik Harlaw Caesar easily routed the army of " Cleftjaw " Dagmer, forcing the Ironborn to retreat to Stony Shore.
Theon Greyjoy's plan to raid Winterfell initially went smoothly, but it ultimately failed due to the sudden return of Eddard Stark, who had seemingly "come back from the dead."
However, there were two other armies from the Iron Islands that invaded the North, commanded by Victarion Greyjoy ( King Balon's brother) and Asha Greyjoy respectively.
Moat Cailin is a vital passage between the North and the South, where Robb Stark stationed 400 archers from the North.
Victarion Greyjoy led over 100 warships to a surprise landing on the northern coast of Moat Cailin, catching the Moat Cailin defenders completely off guard. The Ironborn easily captured Moat Cailin.
Asha Greyjoy, with her carefully selected crew, led more than 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 House Glover's Deepwood Motte.
News of the Ironborn's occupation of Moat Cailin and Deepwood Motte Keep reached Winterfell.
After a brief rest, House Stark Rodrik Harlaw Caesar, a Stark retainer, led 1,000 the North soldiers north under the command of Lord Eddard to retake Deepwood Motte.
Lord Eddard, Winterfell, intending to personally retake Moat Cailin.
Meanwhile, ravens carrying Lord Eddard's handwritten letter flew out of Winterfell, their destinations being Riverrun in the Riverlands, Pyke in the Iron Islands, and Bloody Gate in the Vale.
Bloody Gate.
Petyr Baelish, hands behind his back, looked at the somber-faced Knight of the Bloody Gate Brynden Tully and said, "Sir Brynden, I'm sorry, but this is an order from the Duke of the Eyrie."
Sir Brynden said coldly, " Littlefinger, where's Cat?"
Faced with Sir Brynden's sharp gaze, Petyr said somewhat helplessly, "Uncle Brynden, Cat is fine. She and Lysa are sisters..."
He hesitated for a moment, then said, "But..."
As he spoke, he let out a sigh that Sir Brynden could barely hear.
Sir Brynden stared at Petyr, who seemed hesitant to speak, for a moment, then said, " Petyr, I taught you when you were young that not everyone appreciates your wordplay."
His large hand touched the hilt of the longsword at his waist, and then he said, "I want to hear the truth from you. Please don't test my patience."
Petyr gave a bitter smile and said, "My Uncle Brynden, I have no reason to lie to you..."