Tribe after tribe of Free Folk gathered behind the wooden fence at the gate of the Wall, disarming and lining up to enter the tunnel. To be honest, the entire scene—with its overwhelming sense of déjà vu—looked eerily like people queuing for the gas chambers in a concentration camp. It gave the haunting impression that once you entered, you might never come back out. Coupled with a series of harsh conditions like surrendering weapons and food, and despite Mance Rayder's assurances, some among the thirty thousand Free Folk still hesitated. They insisted on seeing representatives from those who had already passed through the Wall before they would continue to enter.
The step-by-step procedures and the presence of Giants significantly slowed down the efficiency of the Free Folk's passage. It took two to three hours for even a moderately sized tribe to complete the process, which meant only a few batches—several thousand people at most—could pass each day. Additionally, because the woolly mammoths raised by the Giants couldn't fit through Castle Black's tunnel, the Night's Watch had to escort a group of Free Folk and all the Giants with their mammoths toward Seal Bay, relying on Eastwatch-by-the-Sea to alleviate pressure from Castle Black.
Allowing the Free Folk through the Wall and helping them complete their transition into "New Gift People" was a tedious task. But even monotonous work could be unexpectedly eventful when applied to a diverse group of wildlings. After several days, most of the Free Folk had already been successfully resettled in designated areas assigned by the Night's Watch leadership, with fewer than ten thousand still remaining beyond the Wall.
The smooth days, however, had come to an end.
...
The over one thousand soldiers deployed to Castle Black remained neatly uniformed, stationed at various towers. On that day, as in the days before, they prepared to face what was expected to be a high-alert but uneventful shift. The first group of Free Folk had already entered Castle Black and were undergoing registration when a horn blast suddenly echoed from atop the Wall.
The Night's Watch hadn't sent anyone Beyond the Wall in the past few months. Unless it was Benjen Stark and his missing party from a year ago returning, a single blast made no sense. There should have been more.
All members of the Night's Watch at Castle Black instantly became alert. Those resting rose to their feet. Those dozing against walls opened their eyes. Combat personnel grabbed their weapons without hesitation.
A second horn blast followed, just as expected.
"What's going on?" Aegor had been in the meeting hall discussing the New Gift People's assimilation with several Night's Watch officers when the horn disrupted his thoughts.
Over twenty thousand New Gift People had already been led to their assigned settlements and were strictly forbidden from leaving without permission. Scouts patrolled the entire area surrounding Castle Black. And Mance Rayder, the King-Beyond-the-Wall himself, was being held as a hostage. Even if the Free Folk had planned some kind of uprising, this didn't seem like the moment.
Jeor Mormont stood from his chair and decisively ordered, "Gather and secure the Free Folk who have already entered Castle Black. Seal the tunnel gate. We'll go up the Wall and see what's happening."
The Night's Watch officers immediately left the table to carry out their orders. In the central courtyard of Castle Black, several hundred Free Folk and three Giants stood around in confusion, not knowing what was going on. They looked nervously at the black-clad soldiers suddenly raising their weapons, faces tense.
From their behavior, the Free Folk clearly hadn't anticipated anything. Before Aegor could fully breathe a sigh of relief, the third horn blast echoed.
---
It wasn't the first time the Night's Watch had sounded three blasts, but it was the first time Aegor had heard it with his own ears. A sound he had only known in legend now pierced the air for real—and his body reacted instantly, goosebumps rising.
White Walkers?
But hadn't Mance Rayder said the White Walkers had been avoiding the Wall, maintaining their distance?
Then it struck him. Just because they were "unwilling" to approach didn't mean they "couldn't." Now that their quarry, pursued for months, was about to vanish behind the Wall, Westeros's ancient enemy finally acted.
They had picked the perfect time—after most of the Free Folk had already crossed and only a small number remained outside, when everyone's vigilance and fighting spirit had waned. That level of timing could only be expected from intelligent magical beings. They clearly knew how to choose their moment.
Realizing the danger, Aegor turned to Jeor Mormont. "Commander, if chaos breaks out in the wooden fence outside the tunnel and the White Walkers use the opportunity to break through, Castle Black will be at risk!"
"Take a team, arm yourselves with dragonglass weapons, and hold the gate at all costs!" Jeor Mormont understood at once. He pointed to the First Ranger and gave the order, then turned and strode toward the cage lift. "Get the Free Folk inside Castle Black out of the castle immediately. Tell them they are not allowed to move without orders!"
Shouting as he went, Jeor Mormont entered the lift, rang the bell, and ascended the Wall with Aegor and several others.
...
"What's the situation below?" Jeor Mormont asked as soon as he reached the top of the Wall and approached the edge.
"The remaining Free Folk suddenly rushed out from the woods and are fleeing toward our wooden fence," a sentry reported. "To the north... something's chasing them through the trees."
"Send someone down. Bring up two hundred men. Prepare wildfire barrels and fire arrows!"
Aegor looked over the Wall. On the white snow of the isolation zone below, thousands of black dots were rushing toward the wooden fence built by the Night's Watch at the entrance. Some carried children. Some carried belongings. Some herded sheep or rode dog sleds. The fastest had already reached the outside of the wooden gate.
And from the forest behind them came the enemy of all the living. Wights spilled out of the Haunted Forest like melting animal fat, flowing over roots and rocks, surging toward the Wall in a dark tide.
Even from two hundred meters up, it was hard to distinguish wights from living men. Thankfully, it was daytime. Though there was no sun, Aegor could still make out movement. The Free Folk lagging behind held weapons and torches, looking back as they ran. The wights chasing them weren't all human-shaped. Bears, wolves, and shadowcats were mixed among them. The undead giants hadn't appeared yet—probably too slow—but all the creatures pursued the living with unrelenting ferocity, pouncing and tearing down their targets as soon as they closed the gap.
The Free Folk knew how to fight wights. Though some fell in battle, others managed to burn their attackers. But hundreds, then thousands more kept emerging from the trees, their sheer numbers overwhelming any resistance. Fear broke the Free Folk's morale. The Night's Watch soldiers stationed within the wooden fence couldn't see far ahead and hadn't received any orders. They kept the gate tightly shut, trapping the fleeing Free Folk outside.
Several thousand Free Folk were being chased by several thousand wights. The numbers weren't vastly skewed. But with most of their kin already safely behind the Wall, the survivors just wanted to cross and escape. Their hope outweighed their courage. No one wanted to fight to the death now.
"Open the fence gate. Let them in," Jeor Mormont ordered grimly through the bitter wind atop the Wall. "Lower the portcullis into the Wall tunnel. We cannot risk Castle Black falling. The ones below must hold the passage. We'll support from above. Once it's secure, they can resume entering."
Lowering the portcullis meant sealing off escape for thousands—including dozens of Night's Watch men stationed within the fence. Aegor opened his mouth, but refrained. Now was not the time for sentiment.
The order was quickly relayed. The wooden gate opened, and the Free Folk pressed at the entrance surged inside, as if pardoned. The fence had originally been built to prevent ambushes during disarmament. It hadn't been designed for large-scale movement. Too many panicked people crammed inside at once. Some were pushed off the plank bridge that spanned the surrounding ditch.
As the gate opened, the Free Folk warriors who had been covering the retreat also turned and ran for the tunnel. The unchecked wights surged forward, surrounding the fence at the entrance.
Seeing that the last Free Folk were about to be overtaken, Jeor Mormont gritted his teeth, raised his hand, and gave the signal to attack.
The Night's Watch atop the Wall loosed fire arrows. Several barrels of oil reinforced with wildfire were ignited and hurled down using cranes, sailing through the air and exploding near the gate, erupting into towering fireballs. The impact and roaring flames halted the wights' advance. Some unfortunate Free Folk near the rear were caught in the blast, but the fiery cover allowed the gate to be shut.
The tide of wights poured fully from the forest now, surging from the northwest, northeast, and directly north. They easily crossed the shallow ditches lined with stakes and began to climb the wooden fence, which stood only two or three meters high.
Inside the fence, the Free Folk panicked and charged toward the tunnel through the Wall, only to find the portcullis had been lowered. Though they had reached the Wall, safety remained just out of reach, blocked by steel.
(To be continued.)
***
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