Trials and Tribulations of the Oathkeeper

Chapter 135: The Winds of Winter

Along the upper level of Winterfell's courtyard, Jon observed the castles inhabitants rolling in carts of hay and carrying buckets of water in and out; on the opposite side of the corner, two or three blacksmiths were busy working at the forge. Alongside him were Mance, Tormund, Maester Luwin and the newly acquired Maester Wolkan—who had been spared following the Siege of the Dreadfort against Ramsay Snow. With the donation of dragonglass from Castle Black, Jon was determined to have weapons forged from the material as they could kill a White Walker.

"How much do we have?" he asked.

"4,000 bushels," answered Luwin. "For the current occupants of the castle, it's enough food for a year, perhaps more."

"Maybe once the dead are defeated if our storages start running low then we can petition the crown for more aid."

"Keep in mind that when the real war begins, your granaries will deplete rather quickly," Mance pointed out. "If the dead don't kill us, then hunger will. I've already sent out some of my best hunters to gather more."

"When resources become scarce, you learn to search the most obscure places. Something you southerners still need to learn as we have when we lived beyond the Wall," Tormund stated proudly.

"I'm sure we'll keep that in mind," Jon replied. "In the meantime, Maester Luwin, what were the longest winters in the past hundred years?"

Luwin unwrapped a piece of document from his sleeves. "Ah, according to my records," he said, "there were two, each lasting approximately six years. The first took place after Aegon II took the Iron Throne from his half-sister Rhaenyra Targaryen. The second was towards the end of Maekar I's reign and lasted through the beginning of Aegon V's. Now that winter is here, the archmaesters say with the end of a ten-year summer it could mean a ten-year winter if not more."

"Yeah, then that means we will need more help. By the time the North's armies come back to defend Winterfell we won't have enough food to feed everyone."

"Then what shall we do if the worst comes to pass?" Maester Wolkan implored.

"We'll need to start building up our grain stories with regular shipments from every keep in the North. If we don't use it by winter's end we'll give it back to them, but if the entire North has to flee to Winterfell there won't be enough time to bring wagonloads of grain with them."

The former King-Beyond-the-Wall also moved in front of Jon. "There's still the issue of the White Walkers, Jon Snow. Your trueborn brother says the Night King's army is on the move as we speak. In the meantime, while we prepare for the inevitable, we need to shore up our defenses. The Wall is the only thing standing between us and the Army of the Dead. If even one portion of the Wall falls, then you know what comes next."

Jon nods. "I agree. Even with the increase in manpower, the Night's Watch cannot hold the Wall by itself. If they breach the Wall, the first two castles in their paths are Last Hearth and Karhold. If we're going to survive this winter together..."

Tormund turns and looks at him. "You want us crows to man the castles for you with the rest of the crows?" he grunts.

"The last time we saw the Night King was at Hardhome," Mance mentioned. "Eastwatch-by-the-Sea is the closest castle from there. That's where those undead bastards will go next. Every Free Folk who can still hold a blade will rendezvous there."

"Huh. Then it looks like we're the Night's Watch now." The irony wasn't lost on the wildling chieftain at all; considering the ancient feud between the two factions, both the Free Folk and Night's Watch had agreed to put their differences aside to defeat the Night King. All of it done was under Jon and continued under his successor Dolorous Edd.