The morning frost clung to the training yard like a thin layer of silver. Jon Snow trained alone—far away from the muttered rumors, the jealous glances, and the whispers calling him the bastard threat to Winterfell.
He swung his sword downward in a clean arc—
And then he felt it.
A presence.
Cold as winter.
Silent as death.
Jon froze.
A shadow stepped out from behind a broken pillar. Slowly, the face formed—familiar, sharp, and dangerous. The metal arm glimmered faintly:
The Winter Soldier face.
The same one from Jon's dreams.
Jon's breath caught.
"You… you're the shadow from my dreams."
The figure tilted his head.
"Good. You remember me."
Jon exhaled shakily, half in relief, half in awe.
"How could I forget…"
He gave a nervous laugh.
"You've been training me every night."
The shadow—Leo—smirked faintly.
"You must go to the Night's Watch."
The words struck Jon like a hammer.
He had planned to go anyway—too many false rumors, too much resentment, too much pain. But hearing this from him changed everything.
Jon frowned.
"Why? Why push me there?"
Leo stepped closer. His voice dropped low, heavy with destiny.
"Great danger is coming. North of the Wall. You must gather allies there. Learn. Prepare. The world will need you."
Jon stared, heart pounding.
Leo reached into his cloak and set a bundle at Jon's feet.
Jon opened it slowly.
Inside were:
• medical supplies
• a pouch of golden dragons
• five dragonglass knives—shaped, polished, deadly sharp
• a small sealed vial glowing faintly
Jon was stunned.
"This… this is priceless."
Leo shrugged.
"You'll need them."
Jon swallowed, then asked the question that had haunted him for months.
"What is your name? You've trained me, protected me… but I don't even know what to call you."
Leo paused.
Then finally—
"Leo. Leo Pendragon."
Jon blinked.
Pendragon.
It sounded noble. Ancient. Royal.
"Pendragon… like King Arthur's line?"
Leo smiled faintly.
"Something like that."
Jon hesitated.
"Are you… related to the Targaryens?"
Leo's eyes gleamed with amusement.
"I may… or may not. Hard to say."
And before Jon could ask more—
he vanished.
Like the wind had swallowed him whole.
Jon Tells Ned Stark
Later that night, Jon approached Ned in the godswood, voice low and shaky.
"Father… I met him. The one who gave me the sword."
Ned turned sharply.
"You saw him?"
"Yes. His name is Leo Pendragon."
Ned's face went pale.
Pendragon.
A name older than the Targaryens. A name tied to dragon legends across the Known World.
He whispered sharply:
"Jon… did he say if he was tied to the Targaryen bloodline?"
Jon shook his head.
"He said he may or may not be. He wouldn't answer clearly."
Ned staggered back a step.
Suddenly everything made sense—
why the stranger protected Jon
why he gave him a sword of impossible metal
why he appeared like a ghost only to Jon.
Ned whispered:
"He told you to join the Night's Watch?"
Jon nodded.
Ned closed his eyes in shame.
He knew why Jon wanted to leave.
Because Catelyn feared him.
Because the rumors hurt him.
Because Winterfell did not feel like home.
Ned felt a stab of guilt deep in his chest.
"I am sorry, Jon."
Leo Saves Ned Stark (Early Intervention)
Two nights before the king arrived, Ned was ambushed on a dark street by cloaked assassins—Littlefinger's men testing the waters before Robert's arrival.
Ned drew his sword but was outnumbered—
Until the shadows moved.
A metal arm crushed one attacker's throat.
Another was thrown thirty feet.
The rest ran in terror.
Ned froze.
The stranger stepped into torchlight.
Leo Pendragon.
Before Ned could speak, Leo muttered:
"You are needed alive. For now."
Then he vanished again.
Ned Stark realized the truth:
This "shadow" was no mere soldier.
He was a force. A guardian. A threat to every plot in King's Landing.
The Army of Shadows Begins
Across the world in Essos, Leo's other mission had already begun.
Using gold from the system, secrets of the modern world, and his growing reputation, he started quietly recruiting:
• Qohor elite blades
• freed Dothraki warriors loyal to Daenerys
• Myr sellswords
• masked killers from Braavos
• potion-enhanced fighters using his medical supplies
Not an army for a king.
Not an army for conquest.
An army for the Long Night.
His army.
**Meanwhile… Daenerys trains harder.
Jon Snow grows stronger.
Ned Stark awaits the king.
And the storm of the TV timeline is about to begin.**