The Direwolf Awakens

It was the year 292 when the first trouble brewed for my house. My wargs learned the glass blowing process after a year of hard work and thanks to them, we were producing our own glasshouses. Of course, I thought with my big spy network, there could be no harm done to my family as the powers of a warg was not known to many. However, It was dinner time when a rider came to Winterfell with dire news.

…

The doors of the great hall opened with a bang as a man came in with rushed steps. All eyes turned to him as we gazed at the intruder.

"What is this insolence?!" I yelled, rising to my feet.

The intruder was out of breath but he knelt before the head table and said, "My lord, Lord Cerwyn sent me. I carry urgent news!"

I calmed myself and looked at the man. He, indeed, carried the standard armour of Lord Cerwyn's guards. "Speak, what is it?" I lowered my voice and asked the man.

"My lord, Lord Cerwyn's guards found a few ravens on the outskirts of his territory. All of them carried the sigil of House Flint of Flint's Finger. Lord Cerwyn sent me here with an urgent letter as soon as he read one of the letters he found." The rider took out a letter and handed it to one of the guards.

The guard brought the letter to me as I took it and opened it to read. As my eyes ran through the words, a frown took over my face and I asked, "You said Lord Cerwyn found dead ravens so where are the other letters?"

"Lord Cerwyn said all of the letters carried the same words, my lord." the guard spoke with chosen words and his breath was even, now.

"You must be tired, William will escort you to rest and have a good meal." I turned to one of the guards beside me and pointed my head to the rider.

The rider thanked me and left through the doors with one of my guards. I quickly turned to one of my personal guards and said, "Increase the guards in the castle. At least five guards will stand at children's doors. Prepare my horse and take several guards with you, we will visit the Wolfswood."

Then, I turned to another guard and asked, "Call me the head cook."

The guard nodded his head and left the great hall from the back door. As the guards left, Berena put her hand on my shoulder and asked, "What happened?"

The frown was constant on my face as I looked over at the children, "You had your fill, now, go to your beds."

"But father, we didn't hear what happened yet!" Arya whined as she spoke.

"To your beds! You will not leave your rooms until I come back." I raised my voice as they clamoured to stand and swiftly went to their rooms.

"You didn't need to yell at them like that," Berena said.

I didn't want to talk too much and gave her the letter. She took it and read slowly as I rubbed my head over the coming headache. A shade of whiteness took over Berena's face as she held my hand.

"What are you going to do?" she asked.

"I know the maester of Lord Flint. He is not competent in the medical field. A traditionalist practitioner would better serve in this situation." I said while the head cook entered through the back door.

"My lord, you asked for me?" the head cook asked.

"My son was gravely injured by an assassin and I received this news from a guard of Lord Cerywn. Explain to me, why is the head of my spy network not aware of this?" I said while gritting my teeth.

The head cook paled instantly and said, "My lord, due to the expansion towards the Essos, our numbers grew thin and I couldn't receive any news from our only spy in Flint's Finger for three moons. I sent a new replacement a week ago and he just passed from the Neck."

"This is your last chance… I don't care how you do it but I want to learn everything about this matter by the next day. Even if you have to kill a king, you will give me an explanation." I said with a face that would make the lions tremble.

"Yes, my lord," he said.

I waved my hand and he left hurryingly. Just at that time, my guards came in with news of my horse being ready. I rose from my seat and left the hall after giving a long hug to Berena. I didn't know why but a rigidness came over me after I read the letter and my heart was palpitating wildly.

I quickly mounted my horse and rode out of the city with my guards following closely behind me. It took nearly two hours of a silent ride on the road but we arrived at the settlement of singers.

Houses made from tunnels beneath the ground were their sleeping place but when they didn't sleep, they were out of tunnels, in the woods. It was one of them who noticed us first and called upon the others.

Leaf quickly arrived as she was the representative of her race, "Greetings, Chosen One. What brought you here at this hour?" she asked.

"You swore an oath to heed my call, as long as my request does not endanger your whole species," I said as a matter of fact.

"Yes, however, that doesn't answer my question," she said with a raised eyebrow.

"My son, my heir, lies gravely injured with a poison foreign to us. We may not have a cure but your roots are deep and your knowledge is vast. I need your help to save my son." I said with an even but anxious voice.

Honestly, they didn't need to heed my call as this matter was not related to the affairs of the great picture but they were my only and quickest chance to save my son.

"Your request is heard, Chosen One. Our healer, Mistletoe, will help your son." Leaf nodded her head to one of the singers and called for their healer. Mistletoe was a very old singer and one of her eyes was white with blindness. I left three guards in the settlement and went back to Winterfell with the rest of them.

The guards I have left were to escort Mistletoe to Flint's Finger as quickly as possible. A singer travelling alone on the roads was in danger and my personal guards were stating her purpose and representing my standing so they were there only as a show.

By the time I returned to Winterfell, it was night and only guards were awake. I went to my solar as the sleep was foreign to me this night. I poured myself a glass of red wine and proceeded to write some letters to Lord Flint.

…

The first thing I did the next day was going to the Godswood and try to see the past through the eyes of the Gods. However, there was a shadow whenever I looked at that particular moment in Flint's Finger. A shadow killing an old man, a shadow passing my men, a shadow attacking my boy.

It was two days later, the head cook came to my solar with news about the assassination attempt. Apparently, the old warg that worked in Flint's Finger was killed and his face was stolen by a faceless man. It was thanks to warg's face, the faceless man could get through the wolfsguards I have sent with Robb.

A poisoned dagger stabbed to his chest should have been the end for Robb. However, it was Grey Wind who saved Robb by jumping on the assassin but it wasn't enough to escape from the dagger as Robb was stabbed on his shoulder and the faceless man was killed as a result of his incompetence by the wolfsguards.

Learning the identity of the faceless man proved my theory as it was their magic that was blocking my sight. However, even that wasn't enough because I quickly went back to the godswood and used my sight to see the past. I couldn't see the identity of the faceless man but there was something I could do; following his past.

It took a day but I followed him until the White Harbour. There he met an agent of the House of White and Black who gave him orders, his new contract. Apparently, the temple didn't want to accept the contract but the price and the lives offered by the Myrish magisters, in exchange for the contract, was too big to refuse.

Aye, it was the bloody Myrish magisters. Stealing the recipe of the glass making was apparently too big of sin because they dared to hire a faceless man. However, they have done something wrong.

They could have gone after my merchants, they could have gone after my glass workers, they could have gone after me... but they shouldn't have gone after my son.

This wasn't something I was going to forget and forgive. Even the hired thugs coming from Braavos were not going to escape from my wrath. Their death was going to be slow and painful. They were going to watch as all they worked for crumble.

I showed mercy to my enemies and allies for years but it was enough. They mistook my mercy as weakness. They took me for a tamed dog but didn't realize I was a direwolf waiting in silent sleep.

This was the end of my mercy… end of my sleep.