WILOW-Ch.329: Returning the Favor
Lands Beyond the Wall
POV of Domeric Bolton
Domeric fed another cooked fish to Kilgharrah, who gave a contented lick to his hands, laid its head on his lap, and closed its eyes.
"Soon he'll become too big for this suitcase of yours," Ygritte said as she finished cooking two more fish for Kilgharrah.
Kilgharrah had reached the size of a large lion at this point, and his growth showed no signs of slowing down.
If Kilgharrah continued to grow at this rate, then it would become just as large, if not larger than Balerion the Dread, in 3-4 years. But Kilgharrah told him that this growth rate was normal for a wise dragon.
"That he will." He nodded, "But we'll have returned to Dreadfort by then. And now that I've shown the wyverns to the people, anyone who sees Kilgharrah would mistake him for a wyvern as long as he doesn't breathe fire in front of those people. And he's a wise dragon. He knows how to behave."
They heard some noise from behind them, and he sighed.
"It's acting up again," Ygritte said as she looked at the Dragonglass Coffin kept in the corner of the room.
The inside of this suitcase was the size of a stadium. Primarily so that Kilgharrah would be able to fly around without too much difficulty, but Kilgharrah will grow out of this place soon enough. Not that he wanted to keep him locked up for long.
But Kilgharrah insisted he had to see him frequently and wouldn't accept a "no" answer.
He said that to grow faster and develop the special abilities of wise dragons, he needed to absorb Domeric's magic frequently.
So Domeric, as a parent, had to feed him often, but using his magic instead of milk.
With a wave of his hand, he pushed the coffin inside a closet and closed the door.
Ygritte nodded gratefully and gave one of the cooked fish to Kilgharrah, who opened a lazy eye and took the fish from Ygritte's hands, careful not to harm her.
Ygritte went back to cooking the last fish when there was a knock on the door above them.
"It's open." He said.
A few seconds later, the door above them opened, and Varko peered in at them.
"My lord. Brandon Stark and Meera Reed are here."
"That was quicker than I expected." He said and patted Kilgharrah on the head, "Now, come on, boy. Get up. I need to go and do some important work now."
Kilgharrah let out a huff but got up from his lap, took the last fish from Ygritte's hands, and flew away.
He looked at Ygritte, then they both climbed the stairs and emerged from the magical suitcase.
"Where are they?" he asked Varko once as he closed the suitcase and gave it to Raksa for safekeeping.
"In the command tent," Varko said.
He nodded and left his tent with Ygritte.
A few minutes later, they arrived at the administration tent, and when Domeric entered, he saw Bran and Meera sitting and waiting for him.
"Brandon Stark. Meera Reed."
"Lord Bolton." The two greeted him in return.
"Coffee?" he asked as he poured some for himself and Ygritte from his bottomless flask, which had been filled with high-class coffee made by his chefs so that he would have access to it wherever he went.
He actually had a plan to open not only restaurants but also coffee shops in all the major cities and towns of Westeros, but this war had to end first.
Moreover, once he had established his Empire, it would be much easier for him to open any business he wanted, wherever he wanted.
"Coffee?" Meera asked, looking a little confused.
And yes, it would take time for the people of Westeros to learn what coffee was.
"A hot drink. Made from the leaves brought from Summer Islands along with some milk and sugar." He explained.
The truth was that this coffee was from the coffee plants grown in his magical glasshouses, but they didn't need to know that.
"It is very good. You must try some." He said and filled two glasses for Meera and Bran.
They took the glasses and started drinking from them. Meera didn't like it too much, but Bran did.
"So… I need to take you to Lord Bloodraven now. Or the Three-Eyed Raven, as you call him." He said with a sip, "Are you ready to go with me, Brandon Stark?"
Bran nodded, "If I can help my family and the North by becoming a Greenseer, then I should do so. Right?"
"Yes." He nodded, "Even if the White Walkers were not a factor, you should still learn how to use your powers from Lord Bloodraven. Becoming a Greenseer will grant you powers that many people desire but can never obtain. But you must never forget, with great power comes great responsibility."
He then turned to Meera, "I do not know why Lord Bloodraven asked for you or why you even agreed to this journey. But since you're here, I assume you want to finish the journey you've started."
Meera nodded, and he smiled.
"In that case. Close your eyes." He said.
"Why?" Meera asked while Bran, the more trusting of the two, had already closed his eyes.
"Because I don't want to reveal the path to Lord Bloodraven's home." He said.
Meera looked reluctant but followed his order and closed her eyes.
"Will this be enou…"
"Stupefy." He said, as he touched their knees, and both of them went limp in their chairs.
He turned to Ygritte, "Wait here." He said, "I'll deliver these two to the Bloodraven and come back as soon as possible."
With that, he picked the two with his enhanced strength and then apparated outside of the tunnel under the Heart Tree.
He sent out a magical pulse to alert the old coot to his presence. As soon as he did that, he heard some noises from behind him. He turned and found a few wights rising from the snow.
He put the two down on the ground and took out the Valyrian staff from within his bottomless pouch.
"Bombarda Maxima." He said, and a large ball of energy shot out of the staff and exploded as soon as it came in contact with the undead.
Once the snow cleared, there was a large crater in front of him where the wights were rising from.
He looked around, but nothing happened.
"My lord… Couldn't you have handled it less violently?" He heard a voice from behind him.
He turned and saw that one of the few Children of the Forest who had chosen to remain behind and take care of the Greenseer was now standing beside the two unconscious teenagers.
He thought of arguing against her, but then thought better of it. After all, he could have handled it less violently. But it would have taken him more time.
"Snowylocks. Bloodraven asked for them." He said, pointing at the two teenagers, "Tell him that I've returned his favor. They'll wake up in a few minutes."
"Will you not meet with him?" she asked in a soft voice.
He shook his head, "Nah! But give these to him." He said and gave Snowylocks a spare communication mirror for Bloodraven and a steel ball bearing the words 'Nightfort'. "He'll know what to do with them."
As soon as Snowylocks accepted his gifts, he turned around and apparated back to the command tent.
"Is it done?" Ygritte asked as soon as he appeared out of thin air.
He shook off the disorientation effect from the apparition and nodded.
"Yes." He said, "Did the women pack their belongings?"
Ygritte nodded. "People say that the women here are cursed. Are you sure you want to take them with you?" she asked.
"There are no curses on them." He said, "Some of them might have some deformities due to being born from incest, but otherwise they'll be just fine."
"If you say so." She said.
He nodded and left the tent.
Outside, Varko, Raksa, Varamyr, and Walton were waiting for him.
"Varamyr. You can return to Dreadfort." He said and then turned to Walton, "Tell the men to break camp. We're leaving for Nightfort."
"Nightfort. Not Castle Black?" Walton asked.
"Yes. I'm not sure if the black brothers will allow these women to cross the tunnel, and Nightfort is near anyway."
"Hasn't the tunnel of Nightfort been sealed?" Ygritte asked.
"It has. But there's another way." He said and smiled.
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Next Chapters' Name:
Ch.330: Secret Passage
Ch.331: Infiltrating the Eyrie
Ch.332: A Regretful Knight