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"Madness!"
Alliser Thorne shattered the silence. He stepped from the crowd, face twisted with mockery and hostility.
"Lynn, who do you think you are? Lord Commander? Burn our brothers' bodies? That's the most absurd, vile suggestion I've ever heard!"
His words sparked agreement from other brothers.
"He's right! Othor and Jafer are our brothers!"
"We don't treat our dead like savage wildlings!"
"He's gone mad! Killing wildlings broke his mind!"
Accusations and curses erupted. The men who'd just begun respecting Lynn now turned hostile over this "heresy."
Lynn ignored the noise. His gaze stayed locked on Lord Commander Mormont. Only the Old Bear's word matters here.
"Lynn, give me a reason." Mormont's voice was low, commanding. He didn't dismiss Lynn outrightâhe gave him a chance to explain.
A small relief.
"My Lord." Lynn's eyes swept the corpses. "Remember what I said before? White Walkers have awakened beyond the Wall. Their eyes burn like sapphires. They make the dead rise."
The courtyard quieted. Everyone froze.
Make the dead rise? That sounds even crazier than burning brothers.
"What nonsense are you spouting?" Thorne sneered. "You think this is a bedtime story for children?"
"I'm not lying." Lynn met Thorne's gaze, then turned to Mormont. "My Lord, I saw the same thing in the wildling camp. Their eyesâidentical to Othor's and Jafer's."
Mormont's pupils contracted. He recalled the scout's report after Lynn cleared the wildling tribe. Pale corpses. Ice-blue eyes. At the time, he'd dismissed it as a rare phenomenon.
But now it's happened again. Once is coincidence. Twice...?
"Ghost!"
Jon Snow's shout drew all eyes. His direwolf Ghost broke free, lunging toward the sleds. He didn't attackâjust stared at the corpses, growling low and continuous. White fur bristled like a porcupine's quills.
The reaction of prey facing a predator.
Arya's Nymeria did the sameâshielding Arya, baring teeth, snarling at the bodies.
Animals sense what humans can't. They feel the evil radiating from those corpses.
The courtyard's mood turned eerie. Everyone watched the agitated direwolves, unease creeping in.
"Lord Commander." Maester Aemon's aged voice rose. Though blind, he sensed the shift. "Perhaps we should be cautious. At least bind them first."
Mormont's brow furrowed. He looked at Lynn, then the direwolves, then the corpses.
Reason says Lynn's words are absurd. But instinctâa warrior's instinctâscreams warning.
Finally, the Old Bear decided.
"Bring them inside."
Lynn's heart sank.
"But." Mormont's tone shifted. "Don't keep them together. Take Othor to my chambers. I'll watch him myself. Jafer goes to Aemon. Maester, examine him closely. Look for anything unusual."
His gaze swept the yard, landing on Thorne. "Tonight, everyone keeps weapons close. Double the patrols."
A compromise. Not Lynn's "mad" plan, but maximum precaution.
Thorne's face showed disdain, but he couldn't disobey. "Yes, Lord Commander."
Two brothers dragged the sleds into the castle. As the corpses passed through the courtyard, an unnatural cold wind rose, snapping cloaks like whips.
Lynn watched them disappear behind the gate, his grip tightening on his sword. The Old Bear made the best choice he could as commander. But it's not enough.
Tonight, Castle Black won't sleep.
Lynn approached Jon and Arya.
"Stay with your wolves," he murmured. "Tonight, they might save your lives."
Jon looked confused but nodded. Arya clutched Nymeria's neck tightly.
Lynn said no more. He turned and strode toward his hundred Northmen's barracks.
If the Lord Commander won't believe me, I'll rely on myself. I'll prepare for everything.
~~~~ââ~~~~~~~~ââ~~~~
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