Chapter 15

As Jon's horse carried him deeper into the North, the biting cold gnawed at his bones, leaving him weary. Darkness enveloped the land, casting long shadows in its wake. Despite the fatigue creeping over him, the mother dire wolf and horse showed no signs of slowing down, their stamina remain strong.

As they traversed through the forest, the horse's pace began to wane, prompting Jon to dismount and continue on foot. Climbing the rocky terrain proved to be a challenge, especially on an empty stomach. With each step, Jon scanned the surroundings, hoping to catch a glimpse of Xerneas. However, to his dismay, Xerneas remained out of sight.

Jon, feeling the exhaustion settle in his body, decided to halt beneath the shelter of a withered tree. The mother dire wolf, sensing his weariness, lay down beside him without protest. Determined to warm himself, Jon began gathering branches for a fire.

Just as he prepared to kindle the flames, a strange sensation washed over him, replacing the biting cold with a comforting warmth. To his amazement, the dry tree before him sprung back to life, bearing wild fruit on its branches. A smile spread across Jon's face as he glanced around, hoping to catch sight of Xerneas.

In the distance, Xerneas appeared, watching Jon with a knowing gaze. Jon, feeling a surge of relief, hurried to Xerneas's side, the mother dire wolf following closely behind. With a smile free from fatigue, Jon greeted Xerneas, announcing his return.

Xerneas acknowledged Jon's return and noted his hunger. Turning towards the tree now bearing ripe fruit, Xerneas raise his head towards it. Several wild fruits appeared before Jon, while some were left for the horse as a treat before it returned to its stable in Winterfell.

Jon eat the ripe fruit with gusto, relishing its sweetness as he stole glances at Xerneas, who seemed lost in thought, gazing into the distance. Suddenly, exhaustion washed over Jon, a wave he hadn't felt moments before. As he began to lose consciousness, he tried to call out to Xerneas, "Xer..." but by that time, he had fallen into a deep sleep. Xerneas then looked at him, seeing the dire wolf sniffing at Jon as if worried. Xerneas said, "Let him sleep.".

Slowly, Xerneas used his power to float Jon onto his back. He didn't think letting Jon ride on his back might hurt his pride as a legendary Pokémon. All he wanted to do was accomplish the things he needed to do. Jon, unaware, slept soundly on Xerneas as they moved faster, leaving the dire wolf to tend to her cubs who were waiting in the nearby woods.

Next morning, Jon woke up annoyed by the sunlight, stunned by his surroundings. He had forgotten he was near Xerneas, whom he called God. He couldn't believe he was riding on the back of something enormous, much larger than a grand hall that could accommodate thousands. Jon tried to determine if it was a dream as he looked around while on the back of the Leviathan, an enormous whale described as one of the oldest and largest creatures living in the entire world, implying they surpassed even dragons in size.

Jon, truly confused, asked Xerneas, "God, where are we?" Xerneas replied, "Nearing the Bay of Ice." But what Jon really wanted to know was what he was riding on. Seeing Jon's curiosity, Xerneas said, "It's a Leviathan," but didn't elaborate further.

While in Sunspear, Nymeria experienced the same dragon dream as the other Old Blood in Volantis. Among the people of Volantis gathered in the dragon dreams, she was the most confused by all of it. Even though her maternal origin is from the noble bloodline of Valyria, she lived her entire life as a bastard of Martell Prince Oberyn, knowing little about her heritage. On the same night she experienced the dragon dream, just like the other Old Bloods, she sweated in her bed too much, catching the attention of the other Sand Snake bastards. They all became concerned as they tried to wake up Nymeria. Obara attempted to slap her to wake her up, saying, "Nymeria, get up..." Seeing no result, they tried to reach Oberyn for help. Even though it was late at night, Oberyn hurried to his daughter's side, trying to determine the reason.

But suddenly, Nymeria got up in a daze, causing Oberyn to instinctively move back. She started muttering slowly, then it got louder enough for everyone to hear: "Xhaenos... vala... jelmor... drakon... sȳndror... Xerneas... egho... geros ilōn... se... avy... xārbaragon... Valar morghulis... Valar dohaeris... Aegon... Targaryen... the blood of old Valyria... awaken... the dragons... Xerneas... the tree-marked... the throne awaits... the swords gleam... the dragons fly... Valar morghulis... Valar dohaeris...". As she spoke, she gradually switched to Valyrian, a tongue she had never learned in her entire life. Everyone gathered in the room was stunned, unable to even move as they continued to hear Nymeria's words. Only Oberyn was able to understand one or two things, yet undoubtedly he heard "Targaryen," making his expression tighten and frown.

Slowly, Nymeria began to fall, and Oberyn grabbed her, helping her back into bed. This time, she slept soundly. Everyone looked at Oberyn, who remained silent while looking at his daughter. Ellaria approached him with concern as she felt Oberyn's distress. Still, Oberyn's thoughts remained clouded. As someone who managed to forge several links in a maester's chain and became well-versed in the use of poisons in the process, he wasn't new to the language of Valyria and its scattered secrets.

For some reason, he felt what Nymeria experienced was a dragon dream, nothing less, since he was well aware of Nymeria's maternal heritage. He slowly walked outside while others approached Nymeria. As he reached the open balcony, he looked towards the direction of the Narrow Sea.

At last time, Jon and Xerneas reached the frozen shore. Jon continued to gaze at the leviathan, which was growing more distant with each passing second, emitting pulse calls that sounded like squeaks. Slowly, he turned to follow Xerneas, who was patiently waiting for him. Xerneas, in no hurry, didn't mind allowing Jon the time to absorb his surroundings more vividly.

 But sudden presence of Jon on the Frozen Shore alerted both the Night King and Bloodraven beyond the Wall. However, Xerneas' presence remained unnoticed by all, as he willed it to be so.