Chapter 7 Negotiations with Mance Rayder, King Beyond the Wall

"The White Walkers," Mance Rayder, the King Beyond the Wall said. "They are killing the free folk. They attack village after village, swarming with their dead thralls. They kill every man, woman, and child, then they raise their dead bodies as thralls to attack the next village and on it goes.

"I tried to unite the tribes to fend off the White Walkers but I know that it is only a matter of time before they kill every free folk north of the Wall."

Torrhen sat in the same spot on the ground of the Crypts of Winterfell as the day before with Winter sleeping on his lap and the Pack sitting behind Mance Rayder, King Beyond the Wall. He drank sweet wine that the southern party had bought with them from his pouch.

"I told you to convince me to spare your life, Mance," Torrhen said, passing the wine to Mance. "Don't tell me what is happening beyond the wall. I have to go on a Hunt with Robert and Father. So make it quick."

"I am getting to that," Mance took a gulp of the wine before speaking. "What will happen when the White Walkers kill every soul north of the Wall? They will take the wall next and descend upon the Seven Kingdoms."

"The Night's Watch are there to fend them off," Torrhen said. 

Mance laughed. "The Night's Watch are mostly made up of criminals. Do you think they will stand and fight as the Others, an enemy that were told as nightmares from when they were kids, advance upon them? No. They will turn their tails and run."

"Lord Stark will see to them," Torrhen said. "And he will raise every man in the North to defend the Wall."

"But once the White Walkers kill every Free Folk," Mance said, "they will have an army numbering far greater than what Stark could field. Besides, the Free Folk won't sit quiet as they get massacred. They will try to take the Wall to get their families and themselves as far from the Others as possible."

"It is my understanding that," Torrhen said, "You are the one leading and uniting the Free Folk together, is it not? If I were to kill you today the Free Folk will disband into their own tribes. How will they take the Wall then?"

"Before I came south of the Wall. We were preparing ourselves to move to the Frost Fangs." Mance said as he smiled. 

"Why is that?" Torrhen said. 

"To search for the Horn of Joramun," Mance said. "It's buried deep in the mountains of the Frost Fangs beside Giants. The Free Folk will take down the Wall like Joramun did withh a single blow of its horn. Then none of us will be able to stop the Others then as they go South killing every living thing."

"The Free Folk, will they do it?" Torrhen said. "Will they blow the Horn and condemn every life South of the Wall to the same fates as their own."

"The Free Folk have no love for the Southern kneelers and the Crows," Mance said. "They won't stop, if the Horn meant that they and their kin could get to safety. They won't hesitate blowing the horn and they are willing to even storm the Wall by themselves without it"

Torrhen closed his eyes and thought about the danger the Wall falling would cause to the Realm. There was a reason that a wall as big as the Wall existed and it must have been to keep the Others out. If the only defense against the Others were to fall, then the North won't be able to defend itself not with a possible conflict between the Lannisters and the Starks.

Torrhen calculated in his mind every possibility that could happen if the North faced enemies on both sides in the North as well as the South. The results were depressing.

Torrhen needed a way to utilize the power behind the Free Folk for his own and House Stark's gain. He can't under any circumstances let a second front open while there was a conflict with the Lannisters. Lord Tywin Lannister was too smart a man to pass up on a chance that could sow chaos and even the demise of House Stark as a whole. Leaving the North to fend off against three enemies.

Torrhen opened his eyes and stood up, letting Winter's sleeping head slowly to the ground.

"I will let you go," Torrhen said. "And get the Free Folk to safety south of the Wall without the need to get more men killed scaling the Wall if…"

"If?" Mance said, standing up.

"If you give up your Kingship, kneel to me and acknowledge me as your King," Torrhen said.

"The Kings beyond the Wall are not the same as the Southern Kings, lad," Mance said, laughing. "They won't kneel to you just because I knelt to you. It doesn't work that way. The Free Folk follow the strongest. I had a hard time gathering them together and making them acknowledge me as their King. They definitely won't kneel to a Stark and a kid of fifteen."

"I will take care of them," Torrhen said. "You, however, were not born among the Free Folk. You were one of the Black Brothers. I will have a hard time convincing Lord Stark to let you off the chopping block, it's best if you were sworn to me. It will make it easier for me to defend you."

"Stark will listen to you?" Mance said. "Will he let the Free Folk cross the Wall?"

"Hell no," Torrhen said. "He will take your head off for desertion from the Night's Watch and he is sworn to King Robert Baratheon. And Robert will want your head as a trophy and he won't care much about the lives of the Wildlings. He has much to worry about across the sea in Essos, with the Dragons in exile there. Father can be a bit stiff when it comes to things like this but I will convince him in time. Do you have a family beyond the Wall."

"Yes," Mance said. "Dalla, my wife."

"Good," Torrhen said. "I give you my Oath in my Father's honor that I will do everything in my power to save the Free Folk and your loved ones from the Others and the Lords, South of the Wall, if they agree to swear fealty to me, Torrhen Stark, as their King."

"This is the part where you kneel," Jax said.

Mance knelt and swore his fealty to Torrhen Stark.

"I won't ask you to Kneel before me again," Torrhen said. "I am a gracious King."

The Pack laughed and cut Mance's bounds. 

"How will you get the Free Folk across the Wall?" Mance asked. "Lord Stark won't agree to it unless he wants his vassal lords to rise in rebellion against him. The Umbers and KarStarks would be most livid."

"You let me worry about that," Torrhen said. "You have work to do."

"I do?" Mance said.

"Yes," Torrhen said. "I want you to gather every living soul north of the Wall under your Banner. Kill anyone who refuses to join you. What do you do, to not let the dead rise again as the Others?"

"We burn them," Mance said. "And the Free Folk won't be too happy to kill those who refuse to join me under any circumstances. They like to be free, they will only do as I say up to a limit. The moment they think of me as a tyrant or weak they will kill me. Especially if they learn that their King has knelt to a Stark."

"You can do as you wish with regards to convincing the rest of the Free Folk to join you," Torrhen said. "But know that every person left to the Others is one more we would have to fight in the future. And we will keep your kneeling a secret until I come to you Beyond the Wall."

"You are not coming with me?" Mance said. 

"No," Torrhen said. "There looks like a conflict will emerge between the Starks and the Lannisters. Father has accepted the offer to be Robert's Hand, I can't let him go to the cesspit that is KingsLanding. He will get himself killed with his honor there."

"And Winter is Coming," Torrhen said, grimly. His expression turned dark at the future that they were to face. 

Winter raised his head from his sleep at the ground and looked at Torrhen at his name being called. Torrhen petted the Black Direwolf to sleep and said, "I did not call you. Back to sleep."

"This is a long summer," Torrhen looked at Mance, "and there will be an equally long winter to go with it. There won't be enough food to last the North itself for the coming winter if a war breaks out in the south let alone 100,000 of the Free Folk.

"I will have to figure out ways to get food North and store them for the coming Wars," Torrhen said. "I don't think the Others or White Walkers will be satisfied staying on that side of the wall, not when they woke up from their centuries of slumber and started attacking Villages for no reason."

"Aye," Mance said. "It will be a long winter."

"I have a favor to ask of you, Mance," Torrhen said. "It is with great trust that I give you this task. Will you do it for me?"

"What is it?" Mance said. 

"My brother Jon," Torrhen said. "He wants to join the Night's Watch and I have no intention of letting him do so. Can you smuggle him out before he says his vows."

"Does he follow the Old Gods?" Mance said.

"Yes."

"I can get him when he comes North of the Wall," Mance said. "He will want to say his vows to the Old Gods at the weirwood grove in the Haunted Forest. I can have men posted near there. If you could send them a signal the moment they leave the Wall, they can take him from the Crows before he can do it. He will be having his Direwolf with him no doubt, will he be willing to come with them without harming them?"

"Ghost will kill your men before they can lay a hand on Jon," Torrhen said. "I will have one of my men, Will, join alongside Jon as a recruit to the Night's Watch."

Will stepped forward and knelt. He took his Ax, kissed the iron and presented it to Torrhen. 

Torrhen took the Axe and swiped the blade against his palm. 

Torrhen swiped the bright red blood, flowing from his palm, across Will's forehead and the head of the Axe.

"Will, I charge you with the protection of my brother Jon Snow," Torrhen said, as he held the Axe to Will with both his hands. "You will be there for him always as I would be there for him. You will guard him as you would guard me. If you accept to take this burden upon yourself and give a blood oath that you would take care of Jon as if he were your own blood then take this Ax and I will forever be in your debt."

Will stood up taking his Ax, gave a kiss to the iron of the Axe and gave a strong hug to Torrhen and left the crypts with tears in his eyes.

Alys shredded part of her dress to bandage Torrhen's hand. 

"Will will take Jon hostage and threaten him at sword point," Torrhen said, as Alys bound up his hand. "Will does not speak so, Your men will have to convince Jon that I sent the men to stop him from resisting furthermore. Choose your best men for the Job, Mance and keep them safe while I finish up business in the South and come North to you. It won't be good if my brother or Will were to get hurt in the process. I don't take harm against my Pack lightly."

Mance nodded.

"If that is all I have a hunt to attend to," Torrhen said, giving a nod to Mance. 

"Winter come lets go," Torrhen said to his Direwolf who rose with excitement at a hunt about to take place. Torrhen had trained the Direwolves to hunt in the wild as a Pack. "We will show Robert and the Southerners how a Pack hunts. You will show them what a Direwolf is capable of. Make me proud Winter and I will give you all the belly rubs and treats you ask for."

Winter responded with an excited bark.