[Chapter Size: 1900 Words.]
Third Person POV.
The Gift.
...
...
The pack of wolves coming from the south easily announced Jon's return, as he approached the camp once again with blood-soaked hands.
He had just taken a bath in his tent without speaking to anyone yet, washing some of the sweat from his body while Daenerys bathed him, and then called for a meeting.
He said he had exterminated all 400 men and hadn't left a single one alive, affirming that he had also taken the soul of Barr, the one who had provoked all that confusion.
People swallowed hard upon hearing this, as everyone watched a white dragon also return and fly over the tent, its winds making it tremble. Winter ended up landing somewhere outside the camp.
Obviously, there was no doubt that he had really managed to kill 400 men, with so many wolves and a dragon.
He then continued and turned to Mance, asking him to begin placing scouts throughout the region, in search of anyone else who tried to rebel, to protect the villages and people of the North, or even to assist patrols like those the Umbers were already sending to the North.
"There is also a place where I want to establish a permanent base for the free folk, not far from here and from the areas Barr's men attacked." Jon began, still speaking with Mance, while opening a map showing Queen's Crown, a very old structure that had been abandoned a long time ago, despite having a village in the area.
"You want to keep our people here?" Mance asked. Jon had never exactly said where they would settle after all the chaos and war they would wage.
"It will be right here, at Queen's Crown. The entire Gift will belong to the free folk, it's the best land in the North. Here you can farm, start your own businesses, and support not only yourselves but the whole North. I also want to undo this mistake, because thanks to the good queen over 200 years ago, while she was able to support the whole North, this land was given to the Watch and that was a mistake. Now it has become desolate." Jon explained.
Jon wanted to make this kingdom even more independent from the South now and unlink it from the trade with the Riverlands, and also from the Reach, which currently held a monopoly on food for the North.
The North, more than anything, lacked people to expand it, and placing the free folk there would be a challenge, but also very beneficial.
He would just have to ensure that there were no more madmen trying to plunder the very lands they were going to live in and govern—after all, they were no longer on the other side of the Wall.
"I understand... I won't complain about that." Mance commented, knowing very well the value that land had.
"Either way, let's start moving there, while we wait for our enemies to approach." Jon said. He wanted, at the very least, to place the men and women along with a group to guard them in a protected location while they organized everything, before finally heading south in search of war.
In the following days, the free folk began moving directly to Queen's Crown, with Jon leaving the logistics to Mance, while he stayed at the Wall taking care of things.
Daenerys still accompanied him, staying and speaking with Maester Aemon.
It took a few days, but soon Jeor Mormont was already returning to his duties, with Jon leaving the Wall with him, while making one last request in the middle of the Night's Watch hall, with some members of the free folk keeping the place secure, walking through the castle.
Jon entered the hall alone, while the men immediately looked at him—at least those who had survived the attack made by him—with caution. After all, the monster who had destroyed everything alone and killed dozens of men was standing before them.
No one would dare face him, especially after hearing the rumor that a group from the free folk had rebelled and broken off from the main group, attacking villages in the North. This stirred some anger among the members of the Watch, but upon learning that 400 men were eliminated with only Jon pursuing them alongside those monsters he controlled, they felt even more fear — and even respect — for him.
"How can I help you, Daemon Targaryen?" the Lord Commander asked, seated at the high table beside Aemon, and even his uncle was nearby, while things at the Wall were beginning to return to how they used to be, despite the significantly reduced numbers.
"I'm taking two people with me. I'd like you to release them from their vows." Jon said openly, as Jeor Mormont raised an eyebrow.
"And who would those two be?" he asked, with some of his men murmuring among themselves around the hall.
"I need this boy." Jon pointed to the boy who looked to be about 14 years old, and then pointed to a chubby, also young man.
"I also need this one." he said, referring to Samwell Tarly, who had been a good helper to Maester Aemon.
Daenerys had met him during her visits, told Jon about the boy, and Jon had gone to meet him as well, listening to his story.
Jon had doubts about House Tarly, as they seemed, from what he had heard, quite loyalist to the Targaryens during Robert's Rebellion. However, they now served under House Tyrell, who were allied with the Lannisters, with Joffrey betrothed to Margaery Tyrell.
Daemon spoke with the boy and learned of his interest in becoming a maester. Jon had some plans to purify the order of the maesters after what he had discovered in the Citadel, and he preferred to have someone deeply loyal. Perhaps investing in that young man would be wise to place him in King's Landing.
Upon hearing Daemon point at them, both were surprised.
"Me? Why, my lord?" the boy closest to Jon asked. Jon didn't see anything special in him, actually, but he recognized his story when the boy had told it the first time they met, before Jon went to Winterfell, when he passed the Wall over a year and a half ago.
He would give the boy a chance to take revenge. He had plans to cause some chaos in what remained of the Riverlands.
"I'll give you the chance to take revenge for what happened to your parents." Jon said, surprising the boy.
"If you show your worth in this campaign, I'll give you that, if you still wish it. And you, Samwell Tarly, I'll give you the chance to become a maester, if you show your worth as well." Jon said openly.
While both were still surprised by this, Jon turned to Jeor Mormont, who sighed in the end, as there was little more he could do.
"Alright, I'll release them. And you may take them."
"Very well. I'll leave the rest of the Watch with you. I'll be expecting you in the next two days at Queen's Crown. Don't come in black either, it won't be well received by the scouts." Jon said, leaving the place immediately afterward, while the men in the hall began to whisper about it.
Daenerys was waiting for Jon with Val on horseback, who accompanied him this time, along with some of the free folk as well.
They departed the next moment.
The land of the Crown was full of movement, as they began improving the area, with Jon drafting some plans. Despite the free folk not being very skilled at building, he gave some advice to improve things here and there, knowing he would need real builders if he wanted to restructure the castle. He also gave tips to start planting, even with winter so near, after using the Springers to enrich the soil.
"My lord, there are scouts from the mountain clans coming north. And also, some ships from the ironborn are approaching the western coast. Our scouts are checking the region." one of the leaders reported.
Jon had already placed dozens of men to patrol the area, especially with the whole region in chaos after the destruction caused by Barr.
And now, with over 200,000 free folk settling in Queen's Crown, the town itself had been completely abandoned, just like many other villages, all fleeing south.
It was a normal reaction, after everything that had happened.
Jon listened to the leader's report and nodded.
"Well... seems even the ironborn are concerned enough to send scouts. Maybe it's time we get started." Jon said, looking at the map, which showed the coast below the Wall, toward Bear Islands and the seat of House Mormont.
There was still no distant word from Stannis's army along the northern coast, so Jon could begin to put his plans and actions into motion.
"What do you plan to do?" Val asked beside him, seeing Jon deep in thought.
"We'll start by dealing with these pests who stepped into the North." Jon said with disgust.
He knew very well what Theon Greyjoy had done from the news he received in recent days.
His disdain for that fool only grew after he betrayed Robb. Even though they were enemies, seeing Theon's actions made Jon despise him more than ever.
Besides, he had taken Winterfell and killed Bran and Rickon... as far as Jon knew.
He didn't hate the Stark children — after all, they were just boys — and especially the youngest, who didn't understand what was happening in Winterfell when Jon was just a child. Jon personally had not liked that the children were killed in that way, and he would make Theon pay with a horrible death, one worthy of his worst enemies.
But now, his eyes turned first to the western coast.
"Prepare the men. We'll hunt down every ironborn who just landed to spy on us. I intend to take their own ships and head straight to the Bear Islands from there. We'll deal with all of them, eliminate every last one of that plague there too." Jon said with a serious look to all, who nodded at his firm words.
"Let's go, prepare two thousand men!" he gave the order as the group began to disperse.
He didn't care much about the mountain clans — he'd have that talk with them later. But the ironborn would meet their end at that very moment.
Jon returned to his tent, finding his four wives as he told them what he was going to do next.
"So you're going to act?" Lucis murmured.
"Yes. Val and Ygritte can come with me... For now, the direwolves will stay with you two for protection, and stay with Della as well." Jon said, pausing.
"I want Mance to take care of the camp too. Meanwhile, I'll lead the group just to seize the ships. Then, I'll head to Bear Island with Winter, to see how the island is and try to take their ships too before they try to escape."
"I want to have a good number of them, after all we'll be attacking Pyke too. I won't let this go lightly, and I'll remove the head of the damned Greyjoy sitting on that salt throne." he said, while spending some time with his women, and shortly after, he left in full armor, taking only Ghost and half a dozen madmen with him.
At the same time, the leaders had already assembled a group of two thousand free folk preparing to depart. It was a smaller group, as they wanted to move faster and would easily catch those squids sneaking around the land below the Wall.
-------------Nexts Chapters ----------------
Chapter 130 - The First Allied House.
Chapter 135 - Why Everyone Should Fear a Targaryen and Their Dragon.
Chapter 145 - Benfred Tallhart.
Chapter 153 - Heading to Deepwood Motte.
-----------------------------
◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
🦝 Raccoon here: 🦝
I deeply appreciate your support since the beginning of this exciting journey!
I hope each chapter has provided incredible moments. If you like my work and would like to support the continuation of this fanfic, consider becoming a patron with plans starting at $2!. As a token of gratitude, I offer access to more than 210 extra chapters with 7 active fanfics at the same time, along with other exclusive benefits on my profile, such as images and significant decisions for the stories.
Even if you are not a patron, I am making chapters available a few hours earlier here, so become a free member on the platform!
🌟 RaccoonLeague | Patreon🌟
Visit our Patreon for more: https://www.patreon.com/RaccoonLeague
Extra Content Already Available:
🏴☠️ One Piece - I Am a Different Luffy!: 30 extra chapters!
👑 Game of Thrones: The Legend of Jon Arctic!: 30 extra chapters!
🌀 Naruto - Minato Namikaze SI!: 30 extra chapters!
🗡️ The Witcher - As Uchiha Madara! 30 extra chapters!
⚡ Harry Potter - Shadow Monarch! 30 extra chapters!
👑 Game of Thrones: DragonBorn! 30 extra chapters!
Except for One Piece with daily chapters and DragonBorn once a week, all fanfics are updated 3 times a week, there's just a pause in updating in the week, only to create drafts for the week's chapters.
In addition to the extra chapters, daily chapters are posted and 25 chapters per week!
Your support is very important and makes all the difference in keeping these stories alive.
Thank you very much for being part of this journey! I hope you continue to enjoy the story and that it brings even more joy to your life!
Visit our Patreon for more!!
◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆