"You mean that elf White Walker asked you to bring me a message, wanting to meet me at the Fist of the First Men?" Lynd tossed a few logs into the bonfire to make the flames burn brighter, then confirmed.
"That's what he told me," Jon said, taking a sip of hot soup and nodding.
"Another White Walker who's kept his sanity," said Leaf, a Child of the Forest, curiously. "He must be the one Benjen mentioned."
"Benjen?" Jon immediately perked up at Leaf's words and asked excitedly, "You've seen my Uncle Benjen? He's still alive?"
"Alive, but not really alive," Leaf replied vaguely.
Osha, standing nearby, was much more direct. "He's become a White Walker, but he's kept his human mind, just like the elf White Walker you just mentioned."
"What?" Jon's face turned pale, disbelief written all over it. "Uncle Benjen became a White Walker!"
Lynd motioned for Jon to calm down, then instructed the others, "We'll rest here tonight. Tomorrow, after I send you back to The Wall, I'll head to the Fist of the First Men. I want to meet this elf White Walker myself—he should be able to answer a lot of my questions."
No one objected.
Though Craster's Keep had been abandoned for years and the roof had collapsed, the surrounding walls were still relatively sturdy, enough to block some of the wind and snow. With the warmth of the bonfire, the exhausted Reed siblings and Osha quickly fell asleep. The Children of the Forest, seemingly not needing sleep, sat together, quietly recovering their strength. Lynd sat off to the side, eyes closed, resting, while Jon remained awake, occasionally poking the fire and adding wood.
"Your Grace, besides becoming wights, is there any other way for someone to come back to life after death?" Jon finally couldn't hold back his confusion and worry, asking after putting out a spark that had caught his fur cloak.
Lynd opened his eyes and looked at him. "Do you know Lord Beric Dondarrion of Blackhaven?"
Jon nodded. "Yes. Before the decisive battle with the Free Folk alliance, Lord Beric and the red priest Thoros brought a group of men to The Wall. They didn't join the Night's Watch, though, but stayed with the Silent Order. Later, they went to Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, where a ship of warriors from Volantis had arrived to fight against the White Walkers. They joined their army."
"Beric died many times fighting in the Riverlands but was brought back to life each time by Thoros. They believe it's a miracle of the Lord of Light," Lynd explained in a low voice, then glanced at Jon. "You've experienced death and resurrection too, haven't you?"
Jon hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, Your Grace."
As he spoke, he unfastened his clothes and revealed the scars on his body, especially the fatal wound over his heart.
At that moment, Leaf came closer, curiously examining Jon's wounds. After a moment, she said with slight surprise, "You carry the blood of the Old Ones. Perhaps that's why you were brought back."
"The Old Ones?" Lynd wasn't hearing that term for the first time. Back when he met the Old Man of the River at Ny Sar, the old man had referred to himself that way. According to him, the Old Ones were beings with special powers, almost godlike—such as Garth Greenhand and Brandon the Builder.
"What are the Old Ones?" Jon asked in confusion.
"Beings with the potential to become gods," Leaf replied simply, then pointed at Lynd. "He is one of the Old Ones."
Although Jon had heard countless legends about Lynd—people calling him the God of Storms, the God of Calamity—he had always assumed they were just stories made up by ignorant folk who idolized him.
But now, hearing a Child of the Forest clearly state that Lynd was an Old One who could become a god, left Jon so stunned he couldn't speak.
"Do gods truly exist?" After a long silence, Jon asked Leaf, "I don't mean powerful beings like the Three-Eyed Crow, Garth Greenhand, or even His Grace. I mean real gods, like the Lord of Light, the Seven, and so on."
"I don't know," Leaf said, shaking her head. "Spark might know. She's one of my kin from the south and should know the secrets of the gods. As far as I know, she's also become one of the Old Ones." She then turned to look at Lynd. "He should know too."
Hearing this, Jon turned to Lynd and asked, "Your Grace, do gods truly exist?"
"Yes, gods truly exist," Lynd replied with a nod. "I won't speak for others, but your sister, Arya Stark, was chosen by the Many-Faced God even before she was born. She's his chosen one and will one day lead the House of Black and White in Braavos. When you return to The Wall, you can ask Willas at Icemark. He saw it with his own eyes."
Once again, Jon was stunned, sitting silently by the bonfire, asking no more questions.
Lynd turned to Leaf and said, "Spark entrusted me with taking care of you Children of the Forest. Once we cross the Wall, I'll send someone to take you to Summerhall to reunite with your kin. After that, you'll travel south to the continent of Sothoryos to help me establish a new settlement."
"The continent of Sothoryos?" Leaf was momentarily stunned and said, "We should stay here and help you fight the White Walkers. How can we just leave..."
"How many White Walkers can you actually resist if you stay? What good would you be against an army of millions of wights?" Lynd interrupted her sharply, unflinchingly pointing out that their abilities meant little in the war against the White Walkers. Then he said very seriously, "The Wall might hold off the White Walkers, but it can't stop the cold of the Long Winter. From what I understand, this Long Winter will last a very long time and could eventually turn into a Long Night. When that happens, the cold from the Land of Always Winter will sweep southward, turning both Westeros and Essos into frozen wastelands, unfit for life. The only option will be to migrate to the warmer continent of Sothoryos. Sothoryos is covered in primeval forests—perfect for you Children of the Forest to use your abilities. You'll be much more valuable there than staying here."
"What Long Night?" Jon, though still dazed, caught the conversation clearly and couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
Perhaps his voice was too loud, because Reed and Osha woke up simultaneously, instinctively reaching for their weapons. Seeing no enemies, they looked at Jon in confusion.
Lynd didn't answer directly but instead asked Jon, "Do you know the legend of Azor Ahai?"
Jon nodded.
Lynd smiled and said, "The time of the legend might very well be now. As for who is the reincarnation of Azor Ahai, no one knows. It could be Stannis Targaryen, or it could be someone else—like you."
"Me? Impossible, impossible!" Jon shook his head repeatedly. "I am definitely not the reincarnation of Azor Ahai."
Reed, Osha, and the others were drawn in by the conversation and gathered around the bonfire, asking Jon what they had been talking about. Jon, not holding back, quickly recounted the discussion.
Reed, Osha, and the others were amazed by Lynd's identity as an Ancient One and found it incredible that someone could speak so clearly about the existence of gods.
Lynd ignored their astonishment and turned to Leaf, asking, "Is the Three-Eyed Crow really dead?"
Leaf was silent for a moment, then shook her head slightly. "I don't know. Even though we lived alongside him for many years, we never truly knew what he was thinking or how much power he had. He never showed us his true self."
Lynd turned to Reed and his sister and asked, "Can you tell me everything that happened after you met the Three-Eyed Crow?"
Reed and his sister exchanged a glance, then nodded and began recounting their experience with the Three-Eyed Crow.
The journey had been arduous. They had fought through the blockade of wights and finally made it into the large tree hollow. Guided by Leaf, they met the Three-Eyed Crow, who tried to pass on his legacy to Jojen. However, the attempt failed, only awakening Jojen's Greenseer powers.
Because the legacy transfer failed, the Three-Eyed Crow's power weakened sharply, drawing the attention of White Walkers hiding nearby. Eventually, the endless army of White Walkers drained the strength of both the Three-Eyed Crow and the ancient weirwood, broke through their defenses, entered the tree hollow, and killed the Three-Eyed Crow.
With the help of the Children of the Forest, Reed and his sister had escaped deeper into the underground city hidden beneath the tree hollow.
Later, Benjen Stark also reached the underground city. He met Reed and his sister, helped them fend off the White Walkers and wights, and led them to escape through another exit.
"The White Walkers and wights I killed that day were sent specifically to hunt you down, not just a random encounter, right?" Lynd asked after hearing their story.
"Yes," Jojen nodded and couldn't help but touch his wound. Although he had used the divine medicine Lynd had given him, the wound had not completely healed, and he could still feel sharp pain radiating from it.
Lynd frowned and asked, "Why were the White Walkers chasing you?"
At Lynd's question, everyone looked confused—except Jon, who seemed to understand and explained for them, "Your Grace is asking what it is about you that made the White Walkers pursue you so relentlessly."
Reed and his sister looked puzzled when they heard this.
Leaf, on the other hand, looked thoughtful and said, "You mean the Three-Eyed Crow isn't actually dead, and the White Walkers think he's with us—so that's why they've been hunting us this whole time."
Lynd didn't respond, instead asking a different question. "Jojen, why did you go to see the Three-Eyed Crow? Why wasn't it Bran?"
Jojen blinked in surprise and asked, "How do you know we were originally escorting Bran to meet the Three-Eyed Crow?"
Lynd's expression turned serious. "Don't ask me how I know—just answer the question. Why didn't Bran go?"
"Before we crossed the Wall, we met with Lord Willas," Meera answered for her brother. "Bran felt it was more valuable to stay at the Wall than to go meet the Three-Eyed Crow, so he stayed behind. Later, Lord Willas gave Jojen a seed and asked him to deliver it to the Three-Eyed Crow, and that's when we left the Wall. Osha had originally planned to stay too, but she's Free Folk and knows the land beyond the Wall well, so she came with us. If it hadn't been for Osha, we wouldn't have survived the journey."
Hearing that, Osha grinned and scratched her messy hair.
Lynd paused for a moment, then asked, "Did you deliver the seed to the Three-Eyed Crow?"
"Yes." Jojen nodded. "After he got the seed, he fed it to a raven, then began preparing to pass on his legacy to me. But unfortunately, I..."
"And what about that raven?" Lynd cut him off before he could finish.
"The Three-Eyed Crow left it in my care," Jojen replied, pointing to the sky. "It's flying overhead right now, acting as our eyes and ears. If someone gets close, it'll let out a warning call."
"Can you call it down?" Lynd looked up into the night sky, his eyes finding the ravens circling above their camp.
Jojen hesitated, then nodded. "I can."
With that, his eyes turned pale as he warged into the birds. Several ravens descended, landing on the crumbling ruins around them.
Lynd studied the group and asked, "Which one is the one the Three-Eyed Crow entrusted to you?"
Jojen pointed to a raven with a fleshy lump on its forehead, shaped almost like a third eye.
Lynd raised his hand and, using telekinesis, drew the bird toward him and caught it midair.
The raven, sensing it couldn't escape Lynd's control, didn't resist and allowed itself to be held as Lynd examined it.
"You think the Three-Eyed Crow is inside this bird?" Leaf leaned in and asked.
"You should understand Skinchanger abilities better than I do," Lynd said in a low voice. "A Skinchanger, before dying, can transfer their soul into an animal companion. Once they find a suitable body, they can shift into it and be reborn. But a soul is fragile. When they inhabit an animal, they're influenced by the animal's instincts. When they move into a new human body, they're affected by whatever remnant of the original soul remains. That's why resurrection often leads to memory loss, weakened powers, and changes in personality. But the Three-Eyed Crow's soul is strong. He should be able to transfer perfectly, just like he did when he entered the body of Brynden Rivers—the Bloodraven."
As he spoke, he gently shook the raven in his hand.
"What do you say, Three-Eyed Crow—am I right?"