Chapter 162: Bran the Builder
Nearby the Wall
POV of Domeric Bolton
A month and a half later.
"It's… larger than I thought," Robb said, his Northern-bred horse trailing a few steps behind his own.
"I had a similar reaction when I saw it for the first time," Domeric replied.
It was not a lie. Even someone like him, who had seen all manner of architecture in his past, was stunned by the sheer size of the Wall.
"How the was fuck, Bran the Builder able to build something so freaking huge?" Theon said. "Like, where do you even start?"
He still had no idea why Lord Stark had allowed the squid boy to accompany Robb and Jon. Even if Lord Stark wants to treat the boy like family and make him feel like he's at home, there are still lines he shouldn't cross.
"The wall was not built by hands." He said. It was a conjecture that he had come a long time ago, before he even had the chance to see the wall. After all, even with all their technology back on Earth, the muggles would never be able to build something this large with only ice without it crumbling under its own weight.
Well, perhaps they might with support pillars and the like, but would they be able to do so for 300 miles?
Not possible. The cost alone would bankrupt many small countries.
"What do you mean?" Dacey Mormont asked as she spurred her horse forward and pushed a scowling Theon to the side.
"Bran the Builder took the help of the Children of the Forest in the construction of the Wall." He said, earning a few wide-eyed looks from his companions, "The Wall was not only built with the help of magic, but it is also being supported by magic to this very day."
"Psss. Hocus pocus. You can't truly believe in things like magic, right?" Theon asked.
He ignored the boy and continued to move forward, "After seeing the castles built by Bran the Builder, after seeing the way he had built their foundations, set their stones… I'm sure that Bran the Builder also knew a little bit about magic himself. But only enough to help him with the construction of castles. Though he did admittedly use that knowledge very wisely and immortalized his name in the annals of history."
"You think the Starks can do magic?" Harrion Karstark asked, looking more than a bit skeptical at his words.
"Not the Starks in particular. The First Men had a little bit of magic in them. The legends about wargs and greenseers did come from somewhere. However, the magic below the wall has dried up for some reason. The wildlings, or the Free Folk as they like to call themselves, have far more magic in their blood than the people in the North do. It is also why they've so many wargs in their midst while we have none." He said. "Even the Targaryens had their own brand of magic. But most of it faded away after a while for unknown reasons."
"You seem well informed about all this magic thing," Dacey said, and he smiled.
"Of course I do. The Children of the Forest could live for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. We might call them 'Children', but they're wiser and older than any of us. You can ask them about the history of our ancestors, and they'll probably know more about it than even us." He said, "Though even with all their knowledge, all the wargs I've in my employment, I've still not been able to warg into an animal or bird. Nor have I been able to see any green dreams. I doubt I'll get any success even if I keep trying at this point. I just don't have the talent for that."
"Do you have the magic that Bran the Builder had?" Jon asked.
"No." He shook his head. "As much as I would like to know how Bran built his castles and the Wall, I'm afraid the roads, the houses, and the ships in my lands have been built with the hard work of tens of thousands of people and proper administration from a select few instead of magic."
He then turned to face Robb and Jon and the direwolves that were walking alongside their horses. By this point, the direwolves have grown up to the size of a dog, and they would continue to grow until they were the size of small horses.
"What about you, Robb? Jon?" He said as he changed his position on the horse and sat on it in the opposite direction in the saddle. This was a trick that he would never have been able to perform without his enhanced body. "Briar told me that you two have a little talent for warging. But you never contacted me about it. Have you not had any wolf dreams or the like?" he asked.
Both Jon and Robb looked uncomfortable at being the point of conversation. They lowered their heads and looked at their direwolves but refused to comment.
Maybe they didn't want to be known as wargs?
He turned around and faced the front of his horse once again. "Oh well. No harm if you don't. But don't hesitate to ask for help if you do."
"Oi, Bolton. You never told us why we're going beyond the wall in the first place." Smalljon Umber said. He was surprised that the man had remained silent so far. Umbers were not known for their patience. "Father wanted me to bring a giant tribe back home. Do you think we'll find any giants in the North this time?"
"I'm afraid not." He replied, "The giants in my lands are the last of their kind. Or so I've been told. It's possible that there are a few giants scattered throughout in the lands North of the Wall that live in seclusion, but I wouldn't count on it."
"Then why're we going beyond the Wall?" Smalljon asked, looking a little less excited after his revelation.
He turned his head and pinned the man with a gaze. "Tell me, Smalljon. Why did Bran the Builder build the Wall?"
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Next Chapters' Name:
Ch.163: The Reason for the Expedition
Ch.164: Qhorin Halfhand