Chapter 14: Revelations part 4

His words, even though they weren't the first time Jon had heard him, struck him like one of Lord Nox's punches. He could've sworn that his father was trying to say something to him, personally, without actually saying it. But for the life of him, he couldn't figure out just what that was.

"But that is only part of the reason why I took that woman into our household," his father continued. "Recently, the Wildlings have begun raiding the North more and more. But more than that, some are not necessarily raiding but rather are almost fleeing. Then there is the new King-Beyond-the-Wall that has managed to do what few others have done before by gaining the allegiance of almost every Wildling tribe north of the Wall. The Night's Watch can tell us much, but in the end, it is only one side of what is going on. She can probably provide us with more of what is happening from the perspective of the Wildlings."

For the briefest of moments, Jon could've sworn that it was Lord Nox lecturing the two of them and not their father. The lesson was so like one often given by Lord Nox that Jon was tempted to do a scan of his father with the Force just to make sure his Master wasn't pulling a trick of the mind on them both.

"Leave no stone unturned," Jon said, repeating the words Nox had often said to both himself and Robb. "And do not trust what everyone knows. But rather seek the truth for yourself."

"Very good, Jon," his father nodded. "Now, both of you get along helping the others. I want to return to Lord Manderly and your sisters before nigh—"

A powerful disturbance in the Force rung in Jon's ears, drowning out whatever his father had said. If he hadn't already experienced the disturbance in the Force with Shireen Baratheon, he was sure that he would've been brought to his knees. But thankfully he was able to push the disturbance back from the pounding sensation in his head to little more than a dull ache. Robb however wasn't as fortunate as he found his brother nearly bent in half and dry heaving while Lord Nox and even their father were both staring off in the direction the disturbance came from. "Lord Nox…father?"

"We all felt it, Jon," Lord Nox stated plainly.

"What…What was th – father?" Jon called out as his father began walking off into the woods.

Jon and Robb, who'd only just recovered, both moved to stop him, only to be stopped themselves as Lord Nox held out his arm, blocking their path. "What is happening is the will of the Force and needs to happen." Lord Nox explained, lowering his arm, "We'll follow Lord Stark, but do nothing to stop him."

Knowing better than to question an order given by Lord Nox, Jon and Robb both eagerly nodded their heads and together the three of them left the Wilding encampment, following their father who was walking hurriedly into the woods. They only walked for maybe quarter of a mile at best when Jon heard running water in the distance. Along with the breaking of branches and the cries of two distinct animals. His father broke into a run, leaving the three of them rushing to catch up as a small stream came into view.

The source of the noise stole Jon's breath from his lungs. For standing on the edges of the stream not a stone's throw from where they were was the largest stag Jon had ever seen in his entire life! Even more surprising than the stag was what it was fighting against. A wolf. A wolf that could rival the size of horse! Both animals were covered in blood, cuts, and bite marks as the two circled and lunged at one another time and time again. 'Not a wolf,' he realized, still in a daze. 'A direwolf! The symbol of House Stark.'

While Jon could do little more than stare in awe at the near-mythical creature and sigil of his father's house, the stag let out a bellow and lowered its antlers in order to skewer the direwolf through the beast's side as it darted back and forth. Yet before the antlers could so much as ruffle the wolf's fur, the beast's head did a sudden upturn as it twisted in place while its body remained still. Its neck breaking in several places with the sounds of a tree falling in the forest. Jon didn't need to look to know who had killed the stag. He'd seen the same technique several times over the past few years and knew of only one who had the control and the power to perform such a feat.

With its adversary suddenly dead, the direwolf immediately lowered itself towards to the ground, its head moving slowly as it looked for what saved it the trouble of killing the beast. When its eyes landed on the four of them, it immediately started to growl, but otherwise stayed still. Deciding to put some more of his training to the test, Jon reached out through the Force, trying feel out the massive direwolf. 'It…No…She's…afraid. But not of us. But rather, she's…she's guarding something. But…what?'

Hearing a sword leave its sheath, Jon looked it time to see his father stab Ice into the soft ground near the stream. "The three of you stay here," he ordered in a tone that brokered no argument as he slowly stepped through the stream, cautiously approaching the wolf with his hand outstretched towards the horse-sized direwolf.

"What's he doing?" Robb gasped, moving to follow their father, only to stop as Jon and Lord Nox both held out their arms to stop him.

"He's following the will of the Force," Lord Nox stated plainly, a light smile playing at the corner of his lips. "Now, shut up, stay still, and watch."

Staying silent, the three watched as Lord Stark crossed the small stream and made his way down the bank on the opposite side. His eyes never leaving the direwolf's as he drew steadily closer while the wolf held its ground. "Easy, girl," his father said gently, his soft voice carrying over the running water as Jon waited with bated breath for whatever was about to happen to, well, happen. "I mean you no harm, girl. Nor do I seek your prey. I mean only to help."

If Jon had any doubt as to the supposed intelligence of a direwolf, they were firmly put to rest as the wolf, in response to his father's words, stopped growling and it's face relaxed. It kept its eyes firmly on his father, but it looked more…relaxed than it had before he spoke. When less than an arm's length separated the two of them, his father went to one knee before the massive wolf with his hand less than a finger width from its snout. The wolf eyed the hand warily and gave it a tentative sniff. And then… And then Jon needed to check if he was dreaming as the wolf leaned its snout into his father's hand.

"By the gods old and new," Robb breathed as they watched their father do the impossible as he gently caressed the head of the wolf.

"Easy, girl," he could hear his father mumble lowly as his other hand came up to join the first on the wolf's head. "Let's take away that pain of yours."

Feeling a rush of the Force, Jon blinked as the wolf jumped back from his father, suddenly on guard again. But as the wolf made to snarl, it stopped. Then turned its head towards the several blood spots that covered its fur and gave each a tentative lick as if trying to figure out just why its wounds no longer hurt or bled. Rising from his knee, Lord Stark kept close eye contact with the wolf as he slowly took a few steps back from the carcass of the stag. "It's all yours, girl," he said loudly and clearly. "Stay safe."

Turning his back on the wolf, Lord Stark started trudging back through the stream making his way towards them. Just as he crossed the stream, a low howl from the wolf brought him back around. The direwolf, now having all of their attention once more, went over to the hindquarters of the stag and, with one powerful twist of its head, ripped off one of the beast's legs and threw it across the stream towards Lord Stark. It then grabbed what was left of the stag and dragged it into the woods away from the stream and disappearing.

"Fucking hells," Robb breathed as their father bent down and picked up the full leg of the stag. "Have you ever seen anything like that before?"

"Seen?" Jon mumbled, still not fully believing just what he'd seen. "I've never even heard of anything like that."

"I have," Lord Nox commented, his sightless eyes focused across the bank where the wolf had disappeared to. "Just hadn't expected to see it here, and with one untrained with animal bonding through the Force. You Starks… Every time I think I have you lot figured out, you just keep finding more and more ways of surprising me."

Drumming his fingers against the small table that had been set out in the large tent that'd been assembled for Lord Stark's use. Nox sat with Ned, Wyman, Robb, Jon, and the heirs or spares that'd gone with them to Valyria and were now accompanying them back to Winterfell where they would meet up with their families once more. The main topic of discussion of course was revolving around the Wildling attack, their subsequent finding of the Wildlings' camp, and the saving of only prisoner left alive. Osha, the former Wildling woman who was now in service to House Stark. On their trek back to the main column, she had told Ned and everyone else everything she knew about Mance Rayder and why there had been such a dramatic increase in Wildling activity south of the Wall as of late.

There was unrest North of the Wall, unrest far greater than anything the Lord Commander of the Night's Watch had reported, or perhaps even knew about. Entire clans going missing without any warning. Their settlements seemingly completely abandoned with nary a body to be found. Unnatural cold killing people by the dozens. Her reasoning for what was going on, as well as for how and why Mance Rayder had managed to become King-Beyond-the-Wall, had shook many to their core.

"—She's a Wildling, my lord!" Jon Umber was near shouting as he stood before Ned, his face one of deep anger. "We cannot trust anything she says! We should just kill her and be done with it!"

"We Mormonts have more reason than any to hate the Wildlings, Small Jon," Dacey chimed in, her voice set with a noticeable edge. "And normally I would agree with you on this. But this woman, Osha, she was a prisoner and the next meal for those cannibal fuckers. Plus, she swore an oath of fealty to Lord Stark under the Old Gods. The Wildlings are many things, but they take the gods very, very seriously. She will not break such an oath easily."

Umber was clearly not pleased with her response, as he no doubt expected Dacey to support his view given her home of Bear Island being a frequent target of Wildling raids. But before he could press the matter, Wyman changed the direction away from Osha and rather to the bit of information she was willing to provide to prove herself sincere. "Lord Stark has taken the woman into his Household, and I for one will abide by his decision. But I am far more concerned with the reasons she gave for the increase in Wildling raids we've seen as of late."

The shift in conversation brought about an abrupt shift within the tent as everyone present began to awkwardly shift themselves around. "The Others, wights and white walkers," Eddard Karstark shivered just saying the names. "They're legends from a time long since passed, nothing more."

"All legends have to come from somewhere," Robb said, drawing attention to himself. "We all know the Children are real, despite no one having seen them for centuries. We know the Old Gods are real. Lord Nox has brought his magic to the North and shown that there those who can use the same magic as he. With these things that we know, is it really that much of a stretch to believe that the Others might too exist?"

"And if the Others did not truly exist, they why did Bran the Builder construct the Wall in the first place?" Jon asked rather pointedly. "We of the North do not squander our resources like the soft Lords of the South." That got more than a few grunts of affirmation and chuckles. "And such a sentiment must have been even more relevant back in the Age of Heroes. If all Bran the Builder was trying to do was keep out the Wildlings, who didn't even exist at the time, then he wouldn't have made the Wall as large as he did. No, he constructed the Wall with the aid of the First Men, the Children of the Forest, and giants because they were trying to keep something out. Something terrible. Something they managed to drive to the Far North but not defeat. What other enemy could it possibly be other than the White Walkers and their Wights?"

Feeling Ned's attention on him, Nox got up from his seat and took his turn addressing those assembled. "When I first came to this land, I will admit I had not intended to stay," Nox admitted, drawing surprised looks from everyone save for Ned who knew where Nox was heading. "The children of House Stark were a drawing point I will admit as I had never encountered an entire family of Force sensitives like them before. But even that wouldn't have been enough to keep me here. No, what kept me in the North was because of something that happened on my first night within the walls of Winterfell."

Pausing to make sure he had everyone's undivided attention, he pressed on with his tale. "Before dawn, I felt a pull coming from the godswood. I made my way through the godswood to the weirwood, and when I stood before the ancient tree, I was granted a Force Vision unlike any I had ever experienced in my entire life. The vision was of the future, but not just one future. But of dozens, perhaps hundreds, of possible futures each one different than the last. Even years later, I still do not fully understand what I saw or even specific details. But there was one aspect of the future that occurred in every iteration of the future I saw. And that was that a darkness would come from the far north and spread across the land. First, the North would fall. Then the rest of Westeros would fall. And then the rest of the world would fall as other different dark entities from around the world added to its strength. I spent weeks searching for anything that might match the darkness that I saw. In the end, I came to only one possible conclusion for what we will be facing in the future."

"The Others," Robb stated.

"Aye," Nox nodded. "It was the only logical conclusion I could come up with."

"If…If you've known the Others were coming for us, then why the fuck haven't you said anything for years?" Umber growled, taking a menacing step towards him.

Not backing down, Nox let his aura flare slightly. The effect was immediately apparent everyone in the tent, save for Ned, Robb and Jon, all shivered and the Small Jon even seemed to shrink in on himself as he backed down. "I had a theory and a vision, not proof. Without proof, my conjectures were meaningless. Even if I had presented my thoughts to the other Northern Lords or even the King, do you think the reaction would've been any different than yours just a moment ago?" Nox let that sink in before pressing onwards. "Do not think for a moment that I have been just sitting on my ass doing nothing for years, Umber. I saw in my vision that the best chance we have of surviving what is coming is for there to be a strong North. And that has been my sole purpose for years: to strengthen the North to the point where it could, at the very least, stall what is coming in time to get help from the other Kingdoms."

"And Nox has not been acting alone in this," Ned spoke up, coming to his defense. "While Nox has not given voice to his visions in the past, he has spoken about them to me along with his theories. And he has had my full support these past seven years. And as Nox has always been honest with me and has given me no reason to doubt his word, I will continue to give him my full support. As will all of you."

The ultimatum, for that was exactly what it was, was met with silence.

"I do not doubt what you believe you saw in this…vision of yours, Sorcerer." Wyman started slowly as if he were carefully choosing each word before saying them. "You have done nothing but better the North since you arrived. I dare say you have done more for the North since the Starks unified it as a single kingdom. If for some reason this vision of yours does not come to pass, then the North will be in a far better place than it was in. And if, gods forbid, your dark vision does come to pass, then I will give thanks to the gods old and new that you have done all that you have and that you are on our side. And you and your children and your children's children will always have a place of honor in White Harbor for your actions."

"Well, I can't speak for my unc – I mean, my mother," Dacey added, catching herself as a spike of anger coursed through her. "But Bear Island will only follow the Starks. And if Lord Stark says to keep trusting you, then that is exactly what we'll do."

"Same with House Karstark," Eddard added.

All eyes turned to Small Jon, who was not looking pleased at being the last one to speak. "I still think this is all horse shit," Small Jon muttered. "But I suppose you've earned your place and the benefit of the doubt, sorcerer. My father respects you, and that isn't something that many can say, sorcerer. Just don't expect me to sit down and share a horn of ale with those Wildling cunts."

"Your words and actions are appreciated," Ned said as Umber took his seat once more. "At the end of the Fair, after my son Robb's name-day celebration, I will bring up this topic once more to your fathers and mothers. And our course will be set from there. For now, get some rest, but Lord Manderly, Lord Nox. I would like you two to stay behind. I would have more words with the both of you."

Having been dismissed, all the occupants of the tent save for Wyman and Nox quickly moved to leave. Though Robb and Jon both tried to stay, they were both quickly dismissed and fled the tent after but a single look from Ned. Now alone, Ned let out the heavy sigh that he'd obviously been holding in and sank down into a stool as the events of the day finally caught up with him.

"This was a good start," Nox began, retaking his own stool and pushing a cup of ale towards Ned and Wyman. "But this was the easy part."

"Aye," Ned nodded, taking the cup and draining it. "You were right, Nox. The Others…By the gods, I can't even wrap my mind around it."

"Neither can I, Lord Stark." Wyman added, holding his own cup but not drinking it. "And I doubt that anyone south of the Neck will even give the thought the time of day either. 'Grumpkins and snarks,' they'll say. 'A problem for the Far North,' they'll say. If they even admit that they exist in the first place."

"We'll need proof," Ned sighed.

"Proof that will not be easy to come by," Nox added. "For thousands of years, these creatures have bided their time, waiting until they have faded into obscurity and the minds of men have long since dismissed their threat. Unless we can unite the realm behind the idea that they are a problem, they will overrun the North. And once they have turned every man, woman, child and beast into one of their drones they will work their way through the South. And once they do, there will be no stopping them. And providing proof to the South isn't the only thing we have to worry about. The Wildlings have to be kept in mind as well."

"Aye," Wyman nodded. "If the King-Beyond-the-Wall manages to breach the Wall, then it could provide a means for the Others to cross through."

"That is one concern," Nox acquiesced. "But I was thinking more along the lines of them all being turned into wights, thralls for the Others. That is something that we cannot allow to have happen."

Wyman caught on quickly enough as his head went back and forth between Ned and Nox. "You – You mean to have the Wildlings cross the Wall? My Lord, this... You know that I will always stand behind House Stark. But—But you're asking for the North to test their loyalty to you and your House against their hatred for the Wildlings."

"This is not a decision that I am making lightly, Wyman." Ned countered. "And it is not something that will happen immediately. Not without proof. Even then, it will only occur when we are left with no other choice. But Nox is right, as he usually is. I would much rather have a hundred thousand battle-hardened Wildlings fighting on our side rather than on the side of the Others should they ever show themselves again. And you are right, Wyman. I am asking our Lords to test their loyalty to House Stark against their hatred for our longtime enemy. And I will need your help and support in this endeavor."

Wyman didn't even hesitate before he got up from his chair and went down to one knee. It was impressive just how spry the nearly morbidly obese man was. "House Stark saved my House long ago, Lord Stark. Your ancestors gave mine a home when we had nowhere to turn. You have my loyalty, my Lord. From now until the end of time."

It was dramatic, but Nox had grown used to dramatic oaths of fealty during his time as a Dark Council member. Of course, the difference between then and now was that Wyman meant his oath. In the Empire, such an oath would last only for as long as the one who swore the oath was weak. The moment they gained even the slightest advantage, they would forsake their oath and take power for themselves. It was a rather refreshing change of pace if he was to be honest. Though he wasn't naive enough to believe that all the Lords of the North would be as quick to accept Ned's reasoning as Wyman had been. After all, hate is a difficult obstacle to overcome.

"We may have to place this discussion on hold for a time, Ned, Wyman," Nox said as he felt two very familiar presences coming back towards them with a third in tow. "It appears Talisa has something she wishes to speak to us about and has convinced Robb and Jon to accompany her."

Waving his hand, Nox parted the curtains of the tent with the Force just as Robb was leaning forwards to announce their arrival. "Boys, Lady Talisa," Ned greeted the three, motioning for them to come inside, which they immediately did before Nox let the heavy canvas fall closed.

"Father," Jon and Robb chorused with Talisa adding. "Lord Stark."

Talisa had certainly made her mark on Ned and Wyman, as Nox knew that she would. The moment the battle had concluded, she had set to work seeing to any and all that were injured during the fight without even needing to be asked to do so. According to Wyman, her actions had ensured that at least a few could keep their limbs that'd been wounded and even saved the life of another two. Her quickness to act and her dedication, not to mention her bluntness, had earned her respect in the eyes of both Lord Stark and Lord Manderly.

"It is getting late," Ned noted while motioning for Lady Talisa, who was obviously the reason why the three of them were there, to take a seat. "I am curious as to what is so urgent that it could not wait until morning."

"I apologize for the hour, Lord Stark," Talisa began, taking the offered seat and offering Ned a thick book that he could tell just from the lingering aura around it as one of the ones that'd been recovered from Valyria. "But I have been translating some of the tomes and scrolls that Lord Nox recovered from Valyria and – and I believe I have found something that concerns the North specifically. I've marked that pages that I believe you will be most interested in."

Taking the offered book, Ned flipped through the pages until he reached whatever it was that Talisa had found. And it wasn't difficult to tell when he had. Ned's entire body froze up as confusion and fear warred within him. "This…" the Warden began as he took in whatever was on the page before him. "This is a detailed map of the North. An incredibly detailed map of the North."

Getting up from his seat, Nox stepped up beside Ned enough to glance at the page through the Force just as Wyman came up to his other side to do the same. The map encompassed two whole pages within the book and was without a doubt the most detail-oriented map of the Northern region of Westeros that he had ever seen. And that included the maps that were housed within Winterfell's library as well. The only unusual markings on the map were several areas that were marked with red coloring. The largest of which seemed to belong within a small mountain range less than a day's ride from Winterfell.

'It's a survey map,' Nox realized with a start. He'd seen quite a few during his time so it was easy to recognize it for what it was. The only question that remained was what exactly the Valyrians were surveying.

"Once I saw the map, I began translating as much of the passages relating to it as I could," Talisa continued as the three men continued to stare at the map. "The Valyrians used some form of magic I believe called 'blood scrying' to locate a specific type of metal ore."

"Metal ore?" Ned questioned, looking up from the map. "I recognize this mountain range. My ancestors have sent many crews to it to try and find anything of value, but they've always returned empty handed."

"Perhaps they just didn't know what they were looking for, my Lord?" Talisa countered. "But regardless, according to the notes in the book, the Valyrians believed that the regions noted on the map contained a type of metal ore that, once smelted and properly formed, could rival their Valyrian steel."

"A metal that could rival Valyrian steel?!" Wyman near shouted. "Is such a thing even possible?!"

While Nox kept his opinion to himself, his mind was racing. There were a few metals throughout the galaxy that could be considered on-par with Valyrian steel. But if one were to narrow those down to a true 'rival', then that considerably shortened the list. In fact, there was only one type of metal that he could think of off the top of his head that could be considered a rival to the steel the Valyrians had created. Beskar. 'If a vein of beskar truly exists on this planet…then it's value in the eyes of the Empire and the Republic would be such that both sides would organize to claim the world regardless of its current technological level. And that isn't to mention what the Mandalorian clans would do to get their hands on an untapped vein of beskar. That is if it even is beskar and not some other metal alloy. Which is possible. But even still, the chance to have pure beskar just sitting within reach… I'll need to work on a way to increase the potential of the blast furnaces. In its current condition, it wouldn't even be able to warm the beskar, let alone reach a temperature to properly form it.'

"What do you make of this, Nox?" Ned asked.

Scratching at his short-trimmed beard, Nox frowned as he mulled his response over in his head. "I am no expert on the Valyrians. But if there is one thing that I have learned about them it is that they were not necessarily a people to exaggerate about a potential advantage or threat. And that their magic was far more potent than I had originally theorized. They had a keen interest in the Starks and the North as a whole. The blood of the First Men and their potential magic was the primary reason for their interest, and we've confirmed that already. Perhaps this was a more…material reason why they were interested in the North. At the very least, I believe that it is worth checking out."

"I agree, my Lord," Wyman added. "If there is even the slightest chance that these writings could prove true, I believe that we should look into it."

Nodding, Ned closed the book and handed it back to Talisa. "Thank you for this, Lady Talisa," the Warden of the North said. "If it is not a bother, I would ask that you continue your work translating this book and help us in anyway you can. In return, I will grant you any boon that you ask of me. I owe you that much already for what you have done for my men today."

"I am merely paying off my debt owed to both Lord Nox and your family, Lord Stark," Talisa replied, taking the book back from Ned. "But as for a boon, if I may be so bold, the only thing I would ask of you would be to be given a chance to learn at this new college you and the sorcerer created and perhaps even teach."

"Done," Ned agreed almost immediately, drawing a light smile from the young woman who curtseyed before leaving the tent.

'She's fitting in nicely with the Northmen,' Nox thought as he took note of the approving sensations coming from Ned and Wyman as they watched the woman leave. As well as the less-than-pure thoughts that were coming from Robb. 'Hmm, there is potential there. From what I can tell, the Starks have almost exclusively married into Northern families for Force only knows how long. It's amazing they haven't become as inbred as the Targaryens after all these years. Ned marrying Catelyn was good in terms of introducing a bit of diversity into their line. Robb's thoughts are already becoming centered around her. And Talisa at least finds him cute, bordering on handsome despite being a few years older than him. Perhaps a little push…but nothing invasive. Arranging circumstances so that the two of them work near each other shouldn't be too hard if she stays in Winterfell. I'll just have to keep her academically stimulated enough so that she doesn't want to leave. And then, I'll merely step back and let nature take its course. The main trick will be in helping Talisa prove her worth to the Lords of the North so that they don't throw a bitchfit over another foreign Lady Stark.'

"Do you think there really is a metal out there? I'm mean, here in the North that could rival Valyrian steel?" Robb asked, the excitement in his voice plan for all to hear.

"Possibly," Nox shrugged. "But just finding the ore will be half the battle. The other half will be trying to figure out how to smelt and form it into something usable."

"What do you mean?" Jon asked, his head titled slightly to the side. "Shouldn't we just be able to use the blast furnace to melt the metal down and the-"

"Oooooooowhooo!" The howl cut off Jon and froze all conversation as the five occupants of the tent all looked as one towards the tent flap.

"That was a wolf's howl." Wyman commented, his face set in a heavy frown. "But wolves never come this close to such a large group."

"Oooooowwwhhhoooo!" Reaching out through the Force, Nox was nearly knocked back a step at what he found.

"That is no ordinary wolf," Ned stated, throwing open the tent flap and marching out into the night.

Following Ned out of the tent with Robb and Jon quickly behind him and Wyman lumbering to keep up, Nox followed the Warden of the North as he made his way through the camp towards its edge. The howling had not gone unnoticed by the rest of the camp, many of whom, still anxious after the fight with the Wildlings earlier that day, were holding whatever weapons or clubs they could get their hands on and looking around wildly trying to find the source of the howling. As they reached the edge of the camp line, they were met with Ser Jory and a handful of Stark men at arms.

"Lord Stark," Jory said, his eyes scanning out over the dark landscape.

"Jory," Ned replied, holding his hand out to stop everyone from following him. "Everyone put your weapons down. Now. No one make any sudden or unnecessary movements."

Many of the Northmen looked quizzically at one another, but their loyalty to their Warden won through their confusion and they slowly lowered or sheathed their weapons. Once satisfied, Ned marched out several paces from the camp before kneeling on the ground. Nox wasn't sure which part of what happened next shocked him more. The fact that he could sense Ned reaching out through the Force for something or someone, or the fact that whatever he'd been reaching out for responded in a gentle probe of its own.

"By the Old Gods!" Jory gasped while the men of the North involuntarily took a step back as the creature that was making the noise stepped out of the darkness and into the light of the camp. "Is…Is that—?"

"A direwolf." Nox answered the unfinished question before reaching up and slapping down the crossbow of the Stark man that had come up next to him. "Your Lord said to lower your weapons. Try that again, and I'll shove it so far up your ass that you'll be able to lose that bolt out of your mouth."

Out in the field, Ned remained perfectly still as the pony-sized direwolf cautiously approached the line of humans. "That's the same wolf from near the Wildling camp!" Robb said excitedly, moving to join his father only to be stopped as Nox held out a hand in his path.

"Now is not the time to interfere," Nox stated calmly, keeping Robb and Jon back as the direwolf came within a single pace of Ned before stopping.

No one in the camp said a word or even seemed to breathe as they all watched the Warden of the North hold out his hand towards the head of the direwolf. A head that was easily as large as a man's chest. The wolf inched its snot to within an inch of out of the outstretched palm and then…licked his hand.

"You Starks just keep managing to surprise me over and over again," Nox said quietly to himself as he felt the feather light touch of a bond forming between the patriarch of the Stark family and the near horse-sized wolf standing before him. And then, as if that wasn't odd enough, a light yipping noise came from behind the wolf as six small wolf pups pranced out from around their mother to greet whoever she'd led them to. "Well, that certainly isn't something that you see every day."

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