Lynn pushed open the heavy oak doors of the banquet hall. A wave of heat, mixed with the smell of roasting meat grease, spilled ale, and sweat, hit him in the face, carried by the sounds of lutes and rowdy voices.
The hall was as bright as day. Hundreds of tallow candles burned on antler chandeliers, casting flickering light. The flames in the fireplaces roared, illuminating the alcohol-flushed faces of the lords, making them look even more ferocious.
King Robert was already dead drunk. He had his arm around a plump serving girl, slurring as he bragged about his prowess on the Trident in his youth. Queen Cersei watched coldly from the side, a trace of icy ridicule hanging on her lips. Beside her sat an uninterested Catelyn.
Lynn's gaze swept quickly through the crowd. Soon, he found the people he was looking for by a fireplace on one side of the hall.
Ned Stark and Benjen Stark. The two brothers were not participating in the revelry. Instead, they stood in the shadows, conversing in low voices.
Ned's face wore unconcealed exhaustion and worry. And Benjen, the First Ranger, exuded a chill from the Wall even in the warm hall.
Lynn walked straight through the noisy crowd toward them.
"My Lords," Lynn said softly.
Benjen turned around, his hawk-sharp eyes lingering on Lynn for a moment.
"I was just telling Ned about you," Benjen's voice was gentle. He turned to his brother. "Ned, this kid isn't a deserter."
Ned Stark remained silent. His grey eyes held complex emotions. He looked at Lynn, seeming to wait for an explanation.
"Everyone on the Wall says he fled out of fear of punishment," Benjen continued, his voice carrying the rasp characteristic of Northmen. "But I saw him fight for his life against wildlings with my own eyes. He lay in the snow with the bodies of three wildlings around him. A coward couldn't do that."
Ned nodded. "A few days ago, he risked his life against bandits, killing six of them alone. He is indeed a good man."
Benjen turned his gaze back to Ned.
"Ned. On my patrol this time, back in the Haunted Forest, I found something. Something... that shouldn't exist."
Even in this noisy banquet, Benjen's voice was deliberately kept very low.
"White Walkers."
These two words caused Ned's pupils to contract sharply. He looked abruptly at Lynn.
Lynn's prophecy, Benjen's testimony. In this moment, they overlapped perfectly. It was no longer Lynn's nonsense. It was a warning from beyond the Wall.
Ned's breathing hitched for a moment. He remembered that morning. Remembered holding the Valyrian greatsword Ice against this young man's neck. The cold edge had already broken the skin. If he had used just a fraction more force, a head would have rolled in the snow. He would have ended this crow who brought ominous prophecies with his own hands, just like executing any other deserter.
But he had hesitated in the end. Now it seemed that hesitation had saved this young man's life. And perhaps, saved the entire North.
Ned's suspicion was finally completely dispelled. An indescribable emotion welled up from the bottom of his heart. It wasn't simple trust. It was relief. Relief that he hadn't been blinded by anger and prejudice. Relief that he had chosen to believe in that one-in-ten-thousand possibility.
The tense lines of Ned's jaw slowly relaxed. He looked at Lynn; the scrutiny and suspicion in his grey eyes faded, leaving only a deep, complex expression bordering on recognition.
"The Night's Watch indeed needs a warrior like you," Ned finally spoke, his voice low and powerful. "But the North needs you more right now."
This sentence exploded in Lynn's mind like a thunderclap.
He was no longer the prisoner who needed to be sent back to the Wall. He was no longer the deserter who had to trade prophecies for survival. Ned Stark's words gave him a new identity. One recognized by the Warden of the North and kept as one of their own.
Benjen looked at his brother. "Ned, the Night's Watch has its own rules..."
Ned understood Benjen's meaning. He didn't shy away from it.
"I know this doesn't fit your rules. If anyone who commits a crime can join the Watch, and then abandon their vows to leave, it treats the Watch's vows as child's play. What rules would remain?"
"But Lynn has the prophecies of the Old Gods, and I need his help. Benjen, if what he says is true, the North is destined for turmoil. This concerns the safety of the entire North. If the North falls, who will provide supplies to the Night's Watch? Those southern lords?"
Benjen looked at Ned in surprise. It was the first time he had seen Ned like this. His impression of his brother had always been of rigid uprightness. Not having seen him for a few months, he had changed a lot. At least Benjen thought this was a good thing. House Stark needed sharper minds, not a bunch of stubborn mules.
Indeed, most of the Night's Watch's supplies came from House Stark. If the Starks were finished, the Night's Watch would naturally be finished too. They rose and fell together.
Benjen smiled and nodded, not refusing. "I'll explain this to the Lord Commander. You are my brother, and he understands the stakes involved. Lord Commander Mormont will agree."
Ned hesitated for a moment and added, "If he cannot leave the Watch, then let him go South as a man of the Night's Watch. That way, it won't count as abandoning his vows."
Benjen laughed. "I'll try to get Lynn released from the Watch first. If the Lord Commander reacts strongly, that method will be a fallback."
Ned relaxed. "Good, let's do it that way."
Ned looked at Lynn again, as if waiting for a response.
"I understand, my Lord." Lynn lowered his eyes, hiding the gleam that flashed through them.
Benjen patted Lynn on the shoulder, hard. "Do well, kid. Don't shame the Night's Watch."
With that, Benjen raised his cup and drained it. "I don't belong at this feast. I'll talk to you about Jon tomorrow. I'm going to the crypts for a while."
Benjen signaled to Ned, turned, and left the banquet.
By the fireplace, only Ned and Lynn remained. The flames crackled, casting their shadows on the stone wall behind them.
"The King wants me to go South, to King's Landing, to take Jon Arryn's place," Ned's voice held a trace of exhaustion. He wasn't asking for an opinion, just stating a fact.
"You will accept," Lynn said calmly.
Ned wasn't surprised. He looked at Lynn and suddenly asked, "You said before that this is the beginning of a tragedy. What else did you see?"
Lynn raised his head to meet Ned's gaze. He knew the real show was about to begin.