Chapter 44: Grey rats

The fresh morning air in Avalon was quite enjoyable all things considered. The castle had only sprung up a few minutes ago so everyone including Harry was still exploring the castle. If people were looking at him as the second coming of Brandon the Builder before, now they were looking at him as if he was a god in human flesh. That was sort of what happened at the fishing village near Eastwatch but the circumstances that led to the opening of that particular can of worms were quite different. At Eastwatch, he alleviated the smallfolk's hunger when they could not sustain their livelihoods because of the storm and flooding. That was not the case at Avalon.

Building up a gigantic castle from a pile of rocks overnight was certainly an extraordinary feat especially considering the importance of castles in the local culture. To the smallfolk, a castle was a symbol of power and protection. It stands as a vanguard against an invading army and a place that upholds the security and law of the land. It was akin to his world's combined form of modern-day courts and army barracks. It was also interesting to note that castles often housed a godswood which was a sacred place for those who were religious. Even if the lords don't generally allow the smallfolk year-round access to their godswood the place retains much religious and cultural significance.

But all of that took a backseat for Harry as he walked around his newly constructed home taking stock of what was lacking and where it needed some improvements.

The castle lacked doors, furniture, windows or even some decorative elements like sculptures, gardens, pools, bathhouses and fountains. There would be ample work needed to be done in the castle before it can become liveable. The work needed for the castle, harbour and roads should attract more smallfolk to settle near the castle.

Harry quietly slipped away from the notice of his twin and Jory Cassel to access the secret cellar beneath the Rune tower. The Rune tower was supposed to house the ward schemes and runes that controlled the magical protections surrounding the castle. Inside the cellar, Harry found a pillar that moved aside as he tapped his wand against its stone surface. As the pillar moved a few inches there was a small cavity on the floor the size of a small ball. Harry placed a runestone inside the cavity and let a few drops of his blood from his thumb fall on the runestone. The runes carved along the surface of the runestone lit up and Harry could feel the wards spring up encompassing every nook and cranny of the castle.

The wards were for the time being directly connected to his source of magic using his blood as the medium. He'd have preferred to tie the ward to his power ring but the presence of ley lines demanded a cruder approach at least until he could revive the slumbering arteries of magic in the land. Tying the wards of Avalon to his blood should also allow him to properly ingrain himself with the ancient magic slumbering in the ley lines.

Sitting cross-legged on the floor Harry sank into a meditative state. Regulating his breathing he slowly brought his heartbeats under control and focused his mind on the energy flowing within him. Gradually he could see the thread of magic that was connecting him to the wards through his mind's eye. Harry focused on the freshly forming thread and poured his magical power into it so that the connection was strengthened. He felt as if he was in a vortex for a moment as the wards settled in and established a connection to his blood.

When Harry came out of his meditative state, he was fully aware of the status of the wards. If he concentrated enough, he could even see the fine lines that connected him to the wards around the castle. Climbing back to his feet Harry tapped his wand against the pillar which moved back into its previous position consequently concealing the wardstone.

"Episkey."

Harry pressed the tip of the elder wand against the small incision on his thumb which sealed itself shut under the healing spell. The awakening of the ley lines would come after he had properly adjusted to controlling the wards. The standard waiting time for syncing properly with a wardstone was six days. So, he thought it'd be better to give it a week before he attempted to reignite the ley lines.

As he was about to climb out of the secret cellar, Harry felt a tremor go through the wards. It was as if something needled through the back of his head into his brain. Focusing on the intruder, he directed the wards to reel in the intruder. He also got the feeling that the intruder was a spirit entity.

"Interesting." Harry muttered, as the ward that was used to warn him of intrusion from spirits getting triggered was something that he never expected. Mostly because he had not encountered any ghosts so far in this world.

'It seems I'm in for a meeting with a ghost.' Harry thought.

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Harry was disappointed and intrigued at the same time. The intruder turned out not to be a ghost as he had imagined but a Maester capable of astral projection. He had come across ancient Sanskrit scrolls describing an ability to project their soul out of their body to distant places. He had not found the ability particularly attractive because of one glaring weakness. If a soul leaves the body that body becomes vulnerable to many threats both magical and physical.

Yet he found the ability intriguing and a magical marvel. The difficulties involved in learning this form of Metempsychosis are significant. So, Harry was quite intrigued by how an Archmaester of the Citadel managed to master the art.

"Who're you old man?" Harry asked as he erected some privacy wards around the area. "Why is an Archmaester of the Citadel spying on me using astral projection?"

"How do you know I'm an Archmaester?" Marwyn asked, a little bit surprised.

Harry snorted. "Your robes and the number of links in your chain make you a maester. Going by your age and this ability to project your soul, I guessed you were not merely a maester but an archmaester."

"Huh?" Marwyn blinked in surprise and looked down at himself.

Sure enough, he was dressed in grey robes and carrying the chain that could identify him as a maester.

"Very interesting. Not only is my mind being projected from the citadel, but a model of my body is also being projected." Marwyn muttered to himself.

"You seem surprised." Harry noted the tell-tale signs that this was a new experience for the archmaester. "Is this your first time engaging in astral projection?"

"Oh, yes. I had only read the accounts in the Citadel of sorcerers of old using the Valyrian glass candles." Marwyn said, looking at his projected body with great curiosity.

Marwyn let out a sigh of relief as he felt the bindings on his projected body coming undone. He experimentally moved his limbs which were now free to do as he pleased. It was quite surreal to move around as he see fit while knowing that his real body was in the Citadel thousands of leagues away.

"Forgive me, lad, for not introducing myself. My name is Marwyn. As you have rightly guessed, I'm an archmaester of the Citadel." Marwyn introduced himself, dipping his head as a show of respect. "You see, I was travelling the wide expanse of Essos learning of strange arts and charting maps of strange new lands when I began hearing rumours of a wee lad back home capable of magical feats lost to the world for centuries and perhaps millenniums. You are Harrion Stark, are you not?"

"I am. If you were so eager to meet me, why did you not join the delegation from the Citadel? Why did you resort to using astral projection?" Harry asked, tilting his head to the side with a frown on his brow.

"Astral projection? Is that what you call…wait!" Marwyn suddenly paused halfway to look seriously at Harry. "You're telling me there is a delegation of maesters coming to Winterfell?"

"Yes. Did you not know that?" Harry asked raising his eyebrow.

"I'll answer that shortly. Have they arrived at Winterfell?"

"Maybe. I don't know. I'm not currently in Winterfell." Harry shrugged.

"Good. Then I'm fortunate to have met you before those grey rats sank their claws into you lad. No matter what you do, do not trust the maesters of Citadel. They will suck you dry of anything valuable and use your knowledge to destroy you. They hate to see magic flourish in Westeros and they'll go to any lengths to see it destroyed root and stem." Marwyn warned.

Harry eyed the archmaester suspiciously. As far as he was aware, the Citadel was a centre for learning that even delves into a wide variety of subjects including the mystical aspects of nature. He knew that because Maester Luwin has a Valyrian steel link in his chain that denotes his study of Higher Mysteries. While the subject of Higher Mysteries in the Citadel was a far cry from proper magic it still delves into the realm of prophecies and mysticism. So, he was reluctant to trust the word of a stranger even though the man appears to possess some magical power.

"That seems a little farfetched. Do you have any evidence to back up your claims?"

"Evidence? Who do you think worked in the shadows to destroy the dragons?" Marwyn asked desperately.

"The Targaryens?" Harry scrunched up his nose at those incestuous family of fools.

"No, lad. I'm talking about the real dragons." Marwyn shouted, shaking his head. "Why am I even talking to a child? Where is your father, lad? I need to warn him before those grey rats poison you and kill off the last spark of magic in Westeros."

Harry stared at the wild eyes of the archmaester for a moment.

"My father is not with me. Even if he were here, he wouldn't be able to see you. Only people with substantial magical power can perceive your present state." said Harry.

Marwyn let out a frustrated groan and began muttering to himself.

"Tell me what you know archmaester Marwyn. I'll hear you out and verify these claims myself." said Harry, not at all bothered in the least even if these visiting maesters were holding hostile intentions.

If anything, Harry was hoping these maesters were hostile. It'd be nice to see if the wards of Winterfell recognise these maesters' hostility and take action.

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Luwin was most eager to see the archmaesters from the Citadel. The outriders Lord Stark have sent out claimed his fellow maesters were only a few hours away from Wintertown. He hoped the preparations he made in advance were enough for the archmaesters during their stay. Maester Rhodry had assisted him in preparing a concise bundle of information they had gathered so far from Harrion's telescopes. Try as they might, they could not come to terms with exactly how the telescopes function as they do other than magic. There was no logical explanation they could come up with so far and Harrion has always maintained his answer to any with his favourite one word answer - magic.

Luwin and Rhodry had focused on the shape of the glass pieces that are fitted inside the telescope but they could only make conjectures without conducting certain experiments on the device. And this was all the trouble they were facing when it comes to analysing the 'normal' telescope made by Harrion. There was one more telescope made by Harrion which made logic and reasoning completely void. The 'less normal' telescope allowed any viewer to gaze upon the sun and the stars without going blind. Luwin called it the sun telescope because Harrion made it specifically to observe the sun and stars in outer space.

One of the most fascinating discoveries of all has been the confirmation that planets and most other celestial bodies they have found so far within their 'star system' were all in round shape. Even the stars were found to be a sphere which was a major discovery. The Citadel had long ago deduced the shape of their planet was round but there were serious challenges to those claims within the Citadel as well as from the outside world. Some argued the world was flat while others thought it was an endless expanse as envisioned by the Seven. Some others gave no thought to such questions and lived a life of mediocrity instead of pursuing knowledge and truth.

The telescopes also gave another mode of proof that their planet was round. If he directed the telescope from the Astronomy tower towards the north where the Wall stands tall, he wouldn't be able to see the 700-foot-tall structure. Instead, all he could see was the dark expanse of space beyond the scope of mortal eyes. It was conclusive proof that their planet was a sphere like all the other planets in their star system.

The best part was all these findings were done by Harrion before the young lad showed them to him.

Never in his life had he stood witness to so many discoveries in such a short time. In a day, Harrion found all the ten planets and assigned them certain 'orbits' or tracks through which the planets revolve around the sun.

Luwin was quite possibly stumped by this discovery as the Citadel had assumed everything including the moon, sun and stars all revolved around the earth. So, he had at first been sceptical but Harrion provided proof of his claim within a few minutes by showing a moon of the largest planet in their star system revolving around the planet. It was proof that not all things in space revolved around their planet.

Harrion called it a Heliocentric star system and not a Terracentric star system as envisioned by the maesters of the Citadel. It was this discovery that led him to write to the Archmaesters of the Citadel asking for their presence to verify the findings. Not to mention, Harrion's incredible feat of constituting a new language through which Harrion has been naming his discoveries. This new language Harrion introduced into the world called Latin was also a great feat. Latin was the second language to have taken birth in Westeros and a child who'd only be celebrating his eighth namesdasy three days from now was the founder of the language.

It was quite surreal for Luwin. When he was assigned as the maester of Winterfell he never expected he'd stand witness to the birth and growth of the most intelligent man the world has ever seen.

"Maester Luwin, look! Tyrell banners are approaching." Maester Rhodry said excitedly watching the approaching banners through the window of the Astronomy tower.

"Tis a shame Harrion is away from Winterfell. I suspect the Archamaesters are quite eager to interact with Harrion." said Luwin.

"I don't think they'll be disappointed." said Maester Rhodry, looking to the sky.

As Luwin followed Maester Rhodry's line of sight he saw a boat among the clouds. It still took his breath away to watch a wooden boat fly as if it belonged in the sky instead of lakes or rivers. He doubted it'll ever cease to amaze him.

"Lady Stark would also be happy to have Robb and Harrion for their namesday, unlike last year. I'll go inform her and Lord Stark."

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Garlan was the least bit happy to have been sent off from Highgarden to the frozen wastelands of the North. When his father had first informed him of his fostering, he had vehemently opposed the idea but his father didn't budge. He had gone to his grandmother in the hopes of reversing his father's decision but it turns out she was the one who suggested the whole idea in the first place.

With even his grandmother turning against him he had no further hope except to bow his head and obey his father's wishes. Willas had jokingly suggested that he could arrange a ship to secretly spirit him to Essos. Margery and Loras had even offered to help with distracting the guards. It was an incredibly nice gesture from his siblings but he knew he had no other choice but to obey his father's orders. It was his fervent hope that he'd finish his fostering as fast as possible by earning knighthood. If he was knighted he'd no longer need to stay at Winterfell. So, starting from day one he planned to train until he could no longer move.

All these vows and dreams however came crashing down as he entered proper North. He feared for his life in this cold ungodly place. Even after travelling all the way through the Neck to Winterfell he still could not stop shivering at this ungodly cold hanging in the air. Everything around him was unamusing and he was already starting to hate this place.

The worst part of all of this was he was not allowed to ride ahead and find shelter in the walls of Winterfell. Instead, he was required to trot on his horse while these insufferable carriages carrying the maesters of the Citadel moved along the Kingsroad at a snail's pace. The disrepair and frankly appalling state of the Kingsroad was another matter which he just wanted to forget at this point. The amount of trouble they went through to traverse the treacherous parts of the Kingsroad at the Neck was quite testing for Garlan. Many times in this journey he had seriously thought of breaking ranks and just riding off. Only the thought of bringing shame to his house kept him sane throughout this journey.

So, relief flooded his veins when he saw the giant dome-like structures becoming visible in the distance. There was also a small town up ahead through which the Kingsroad passes.

Garland pulled his horse back slightly so that he was level with his kin's carriage.

"Maester Gormon. We are approaching Winterfell."

Garlan only heard a grunt from the carriage which made him shrug. He had done his duty so he urged his horse forward. A strange buzzing sound reached his ears which also seem to have spooked his horse. He saw the people of the town pointing excitedly at the sky which made him look up as well.

He gaped openly as he saw a wooden boat float towards Winterfell seemingly gliding through the clouds.

"Boat! That was a boat!" Garlan pointed at the boat while looking to the Tyrell men at arms hoping they'd disagree.

From the look in their eyes, he saw they were also seeing what he was seeing.

"Why are we stopping? Have we reached the castle yet?" Maester Gormon asked, poking his bald head out of his carriage.

"No, but..." Garlan stuttered but he was not afforded the luxury to finish his thought.

"Then move along. I've got important matters to attend to, lad."

Garlan blinked several times before looking back at the imposing structure of Winterfell. He got the feeling he should have paid more attention to what his grandmother was saying before she had seen him off from Highgarden.

'What exactly am I walking into?'