11 Chapter 11: 10 Second Fight

"Does the Tully bannerman have a death wish?"

"For a Tully bannerman to disgrace the bastard of Winterfell right at the doorstep of his home...the man has some balls."

"So arrogant. Surrounded by five men and still putting up on a show. That Snow boy will put his sword through his chest."

"I can't believe Lady Catelyn let's her men be so brazen. Bullying her husband's child in broad daylight, the nerve of that bitch."

"No matter if he's a bastard. Jon Snow is still a Stark. A random Tully bannerman can't speak to him like that."

The mob that surrounded Jon Snow and his group of men had quickly turned to badmouthing not only the Tully knight but also Lady Catelyn. Jon's plan to ruffle up the common folk had worked. Within just a few minutes a surge of anger towards Lady Catelyn and the Tully's was created, orchestrated by no one other than Jon.

"You can't kill me. I am one of your mother's bannermen. Murdering a bannermen of yours is dishonorable." The knight panicked. He could also hear the noise of the crowd. Even if he did live past today, the repercussions would be severe.

"No. It's as you said it yourself." Jon lunged forward with his twin short swords. "I am not the son of Catelyn Tully."

The knight quickly brought his sword and blocked both of Jon's swords. The finely sharped blades cut and scrapped against each other, producing an irritating sound.

"Tell me. What is your name? I'll need to send your bones back to your family." Jon's playful tone irritated the knight.

To hear such shameful words from a bastard younger than his own son. It annoyed him to no end. Although he couldn't genuinely hurt Jon Snow in any meaningful way, he would definitely teach the brat a lesson.

The knight pushed Jon's twin short swords out of the way with his two handed bastard sword. Using the time that Jon took to regain his posture, the knight let go of his sword and raised his metal covered fist up to the boy's vulnerable face.

"You shouldn't have abandoned your weapon. I might be a greenhorn but I'm still faster than a man in his fifties." Just as Jon's words registered in the knight's head, he saw Jon's arm pull back at a speed he'd never seen before.

The short sword's razor sharp blade loomed over his arm and the scream left his mouth before the sword even came in contact with him. Jon's weapon found it's mark directly in the middle of his arm, and it lopped off the large piece of meat as seamlessly as gutting an animal.

The entire forearm fell to the ground, skin, muscle, bone and all, as blood sprayed over Jon Snow's armor, sprinkling it in a shower of red.

The man fell to his knee's with tears rolling down his eyes. The grand two handed bastard sword lay next him, foolishly abandoned by the once proud knight. Jon smirked at the disfigured arm with pride on his face. It was not too long ago that he was worried how he would compete in the tourneys of the Reach, and now he stood here, defeating a knight in a one on one fight.

Of course, the only reason he won was because the Tully bannerman thought he could knock him out in one hit. But it was still an accomplishment, one that the common folk would no doubt talk about as if it was the duel of the century.

The fight only lasted about 10 seconds. It was perhaps the cleanest victory anyone Jon's age had ever had. Against a trusted Tully knight no less. Jon didn't know if this man was just a commoner or a knight from a minor noble house, but he figured he'd deal with the consequences later.

Considering the man was already well into his age, he likely wasn't the first born son or heir to a minor house, otherwise he wouldn't be serving as a loyal knight of the Tully's. He was probably just some distant relative to a minor house with no actual claim to any titles or land.

Since the man didn't have any powerful backing, with his only allies in Winterfell being the other Tully bannerman, Jon could do whatever he wanted. The knight thought that Jon had no authority over him, but the truth was that Jon's word was even more valued by his men than Lord Stark himself.

The young guards of Winterfell may have sworn loyalty to Lord Stark, but it was Jon who they had grown up with as fellow Stark bannermen. They all treated each other as brothers, a type of relationship that could never be had with a lord like Eddard Stark. This was one of the only benefits of being a bastard, the common folk saw Jon as one of them.

Everyone knew that Jon would never hold a higher position than being the master at arms. This made them more accepting of him in comparison to a high and noble rich heir like Robb or a second son like Bran. As the supposed future replacement for Ser Rodrik, all of the guards treated Jon as the man who would lead them one day.

This false symbol of authority had only gotten stronger as Ser Rodrik grew in age. He had slowly let Jon take control of the drill training and the patrolling of Winter Town. Now even the common folk had an exaggerated image that Jon held some type of title or position in Winterfell. In Winter Town, more people knew the name Jon Snow than Robb Stark.

This growing web of influence starting from being just a simple guard had grown into a large net that completely trapped Winterfell and Winter Town in it's clutches. Neither Eddard Stark nor Lady Catelyn had even noticed it. But Jon's threat to Robb's claim to Winterfell was far larger than they could ever have imagined.