Chapter 3: Chapter 3 Robb
After a month of marching from Winterfell, they arrived at Moat Cailin where two more groups joined them. One brought the forces and supplies promised by Roose Bolton, and the other consisted of the remaining forces sent by the Manderlys, led by Lord Wyman Manderly's heir, whom Roose referred to as Lord Too Fat To Ride a Horse and who couldn't join them for this reason. Instead, he sent his eldest son, Wilys Manderly, who was even fatter than his brother Wendel and bald like him. They both sported walrus mustaches.
These men did not stand out for their physical appearance, but their loyalty had been thoroughly tested in the original history, and they were one of the main supports in this war, mainly due to White Harbor, the city ruled by their father, which gave them access to Braavos, their only hope of obtaining funding and supplies for the end of the war they were involved in.
With Lord Wilys came Lady Catelyn Stark, Ser Rodrik, and Brynden Tully, self-proclaimed Blackfish, Catelyn Tully's uncle and part of the last salvageable generation of the Tullys, as the current generation was a disaster on legs. Robb was interested in Wilys and his news, but for now, the former master-at-arms of Winterfell was more useful. Robb greeted Lady Catelyn with a formal embrace and led her to his tent to inform her of everything and answer her questions. She hugged him, shedding tears as they entered the tent and the canvas closed behind them.
Robb patted her back, feeling very uncomfortable. Since he died and was reborn, he no longer felt like a child at all, and these displays of affection made him feel stressed...
"That doesn't make sense," Robb thought. He was glad to see his mother, and his feelings for her had not changed, if anything, they had grown stronger because the guilt of being the cause of her death weighed on him every night. He wanted to see his mother, but this display of affection caused him to recoil, and now that he thought about it, this feeling was not characteristic of the Robb he once was; it was something he brought from his other life where he could be considered cynical and lonely. Other people's affection was only hypocrisy to him, as he had been alone his whole life and never did anything to change that, as he didn't trust people even when they smiled at him.
Still, he had thought that when their souls merged, his life took a 160-degree turn, leaving the remaining 20 degrees as the feelings of the old Robb. Now he realized that it wasn't entirely true, or not completely, the solitary man had feelings too. Feelings of mistrust, a love for solitude, and an increasing stress when his personal space was violated as it was at this moment.
Robb sighed in his mind as his mother sobbed, causing a feeling similar to slight annoyance, but his feelings of love for her prevented him from expressing it. He also couldn't help but think that this woman kept messing things up every time she acted. And it seemed to run in the family, as he remembered that Edmure Tully was the reason or one of the reasons why King's Landing did not fall into Stannis's hands by disobeying an order from Robb. Of course, he had also been negligent in not informing him properly of his plans.
"Robb, is something wrong?" his mother asked.
Robb supposed that she noticed his coldness, but there was nothing he could do about it. While he didn't want to be a cynical person, he also didn't want to be a hypocrite, something he detested even more than being cynical. So, he decided to behave as he was now, without worrying about the peculiarities others might notice. He sat in his Lord's chair and shrugged.
"They say I have matured and become a Winter Wolf. There's ice and cruelty all around me," Robb said, rolling his eyes. "Mother, the truth is that now I possess some knowledge that has changed my view of the world and those around me. That's all," Robb explained sincerely, stroking Grey Wind's head, who, like his faithful shadow, crouched by his side. Robb had already begun to have wolf dreams with him, but he hadn't made much progress in consciously trying to sense other animals. Lady Catelyn looked at him with confusion.
"Mother, first of all, I will bring you up to date on your most recent mistakes and those of father. Please, have a seat," Robb ordered, and his mother looked even more puzzled, but without seeming to be aware, she sat down.
Lady Catelyn Stark was not a middle-aged woman as in the series. She appeared to be thirty years old, with a decent figure, spectacular by the standards of this world, refined features, a mane of red hair, and matching blue eyes, with an adequate height. It was no wonder she still drove Baelish crazy.
"Firstly, the dagger did not belong to Tyrion Lannister; it belonged to the king. Joffrey Waters, the queen Cersei's bastard son, ordered Bran's assassination. So, you were about to kill an innocent man and hastened the war, causing us great problems.
»Secondly, Petyr Baelish hates all the Starks because he believes that they took you away from him. Thus, he deceived both you and father and lied about the dagger to provoke this war and make us all die in it. He was also the one who betrayed father and handed him over to the queen," Robb explained and raised his hand when a shocked Lady Stark pretended to speak. "No, mother, I cannot tell you where I obtained this information. Although I lied to the lords, saying that father informed me about it before being arrested. And yes, my demeanor has changed because of all this that I now know, which is much, much more than what I've told you, and you must keep it an absolute secret if you don't want us all to perish in this war.
»Lastly, my lord grandfather, Lord Hoster Tully, is gravely ill, and I fear he won't live for more than a year. I think you should accompany me to bid him farewell properly," Robb offered, the calculating part of him not wanting this hurricane of disasters near Winterfell to undermine his plans. He felt sorry for little Rickon, as it was likely that he would grow up like a delinquent, without a mother's love, as he was in his other life, but it was either that or having this walking disaster roaming around his base of operations.
Catelyn Tully burst into tears upon hearing about her father's death, and Robb thought he had been too abrupt and inconsiderate. Overwhelmed with guilt, he quickly got up and hugged her to console her.
Robb had nothing against Catelyn Tully. She was a narrow-minded person who rejected anything different from what she had been raised to believe, but she wasn't a bad person. It was her ignorance that led her to commit disasters. She was like her father, whose honor cost him his head…
"I don't even know what I think anymore, let alone what I feel," Robb thought with a sigh.
—Mother, you'll be fine," Robb consoled. The sincere weeping of a woman was one of the things that made him most uncomfortable, and that remained the same in both his lives.
…
Lady Catelyn cried a little more, but after half an hour, Robb's duties called him back, as they would be leaving in the morning, and he had very important things to do there.
First, Robb called Ser Rodrik to his tent and explained his plans to reinforce the guards at Winterfell and that they would be sending him orders using ravens. Therefore, he must always ask Maester Luwin if he had sent orders before making any moves. He must also be vigilant about Bran's safety, but under no circumstances invade his privacy unless he requested it.
Ser Rodrik looked at him strangely as he received his orders, but he didn't object and nodded to all of them, though in the last part, he seemed at a loss for words to reply. Robb didn't give him time and dismissed him to call his lords and ask each of them for some men, along with enough supplies for a year. These men totaled three hundred and stayed at the Neck, as a little surprise for when Balon Greyjoy considered cutting off their passage. His lords saw it as a precautionary measure in case they were defeated, ensuring a safe passage back to the North.
The Greatjon and Rickard Karstark didn't like the move, but upon protesting and seeing Lord Bolton give them a silent but somehow mocking look, they both fell silent.
Robb didn't overlook that the Leech Lord was the only one who understood his true intentions. Intentions that he would never have had if he didn't know of a possible future, but the Leech Lord had already anticipated this attack and determined that their hostage, Theon Greyjoy, was merely a paper shield against the Ironborn.
…
One more week of marching, and they arrived at the Twins, two stone towers on either side of a river and the residence of a senile and crazy old man who had been one of the causes of the former Robb's death.
Robb had already learned that his mother's brother, belonging to the Catastrophe family, had lost his battle against Tywin Lannister, who invaded their lands. His mother's brother charged ahead without having his army fully assembled, so Tywin gave him a beating and scattered his forces, capturing him in the process. Now, Riverrun was also under siege, and Edmure was a prisoner of Jaime Lannister, who commanded the besieging forces.
Tywin Lannister, having learned of their movements, had his main army waiting for their arrival to face them with twenty to thirty-five thousand men. Some of the more talkative lords said they could handle them, but even they wouldn't dare to guarantee that they could capture Tywin.
What they needed was a bargaining tool, not a victory in a futile battle. Therefore, they decided to go after the lion cub, as the Blackfish suggested.
The cub was unprotected and overconfident, besieging Riverrun, and would be an easy target. To achieve this, they had to avoid the Kingsroad, cross at the Twins, and outmaneuver Tywin Lannister to catch his son from behind. An excellent tactic in Robb's opinion, which he immediately supported. Besides, he knew it would be effective.
Robb sighed with relief as he saw Tywin's tactics aligning with what he knew from his possible future. However, things had changed, and Robb knew he was no longer the same as before. His lords had a very different opinion of him compared to their memories of the former Robb.
Bran, who made it his pastime to eavesdrop on others' conversations, informed him via raven that even the peasant soldiers had heard about what happened at the welcome dinner with their lords: how he almost beheaded one of them for claiming his position as army commander and how he didn't hesitate to kick another from his rightful seat for trying to shirk his duties. Roose Bolton's reinforcements also didn't go unnoticed.
Because of all this, in addition to Winter Wolf, his army called him Serpent Wolf and Sly Wolf, and these were not compliments, though Winter Wolf was not a compliment either.
Robb knew that if Tywin found out about this, he would be in big trouble because Tywin would never consider him an innocent child he could easily defeat. If Tywin started suspecting that Robb was deceiving him with some distraction plan, the initial plan wouldn't work. Fortunately, in this world, there was no internet, and his army was already on the march, so rumors traveled with them, and unless Tywin had his own greenseer passing information via raven, the initial plan was safe.
Robb was sure that after this, gossip about him would flood the kingdom, but for the moment, he was safe.
He also knew he had to control his personality and not let himself be carried away because in this world, honor was the most important thing officially. Beyond that, it was a nest of vipers, and no one had any honor. If he lost his honor officially, it would be a disaster, and even his own lords might feel inclined to rebel. Therefore, the matter of his honor should not be taken lightly, as it was one of the factors that would determine his survival.
Robb clenched his teeth and felt the urge to have his entire army whipped for talking behind his back, but he couldn't do it and could only swallow his frustration.
"Damn peasants, their grandmothers are snakes," Robb thought to himself and shook his head because there was an obstacle ahead in this war.
As he had anticipated, the Freys were ready for war and showed no signs of letting them pass. Lady Catelyn, being the daughter of their liege lord, Hoster Tully, offered to go to old Walder Frey and ask him to allow them passage, but Robb denied her request.
"Mother, Walder Frey won't harm my envoy. He's a wretched coward, and we have an army at his doorstep. He just wants to exact a high price for our passage," said Robb, showing his frustration and anger. He observed his lords, who seemed a little surprised to see him angry.
—Gentlemen, at this moment, I feel old and bitter. Please don't take it to heart," Robb said, fixing his gaze on Rickard Karstark. "My lord, don't take offense, but you look how I feel right now," Robb added sincerely, and the Greatjon burst into laughter, splitting over his horse with laughter that must have been heard for miles.
Rickard Karstark grimaced and spat on the ground, while the other lords let out a chuckle or two.
"My lord, please go and let Walder Frey know that I'm bitter about his attitude, but I don't have time to deal with him. Tell him to speak up and tell me the price for opening up to me, so we can end this charade," Robb ordered.
"Robb, no!" his mother exclaimed, alarmed. Robb ignored her, and the old Karstark departed with impatience.
Robb looked at the rest of his lords.
"My lords, do you see that forest behind us?" he said, pointing backward with his right hand. "It's bothering me. Let's have our army cut it down. I want fifteen-meter-long logs and plenty of ropes.
"Lord Bolton, bring some craftsmen and join me in my tent.
"Mother, pardon my lack of manners, but as I've told you before, Walder Frey won't dare to harm my men with an army at his doorstep. You can follow me to see that your son hasn't lost his mind," Robb commanded, and everyone got to work.
…
An hour later, a group of craftsmen gazed at him in awe, along with his mother and his lords, as Robb explained how they would create a wooden bridge over the river in the late afternoon and use it to cross at night after the return of the old Karstark, who had quarreled with Walder Frey and was forcibly expelled from the Twins, but as Robb had guessed, no one died.
The bridge that fascinated the craftsmen was not a modern one but a Roman war bridge that Julius Caesar had used to cross a great river with his legions and catch his enemies with their pants down, just as Robb planned to do now with Jaime Lannister. It consisted of logs of wood supported by a combination of buoyancy and wooden beam support.
Its construction time depended on the wood and available manpower, and Robb, who had twenty thousand men available, had nothing else to do but watch as the wood was dragged to the river and the bridge began to take shape at lightning speed, while his army, like a line of ants, cut down trees and dragged them to the construction site to be inspected by the craftsmen, cross-referenced with hasty blueprints, and put in place to add another step to the bridge.
The bridge, in the best-case scenario, would last a month, and most likely it wouldn't be there in a week, but he only needed it for one day, and the wood was free.
Robb supervised everything alongside Lord Leech and his mother, but in truth, he did nothing more than look at the blueprint created by his mother, Lady Catelyn Stark, while blinking and comparing it with his original model.
The original model, made by himself, was a series of lines that pretended to be straight but were a mess of hurried strokes without any scale, except for side notations, with loose ink and smudges everywhere.
The second blueprint, made by his mother, was a scaled design, with perfect lines and no smudges. The wonder of it was that his mother had taken the same amount of time as him to create it.
"Mother, from now on, you'll be my assistant. I have a book to write, and this one also has a lot of plans and drawings," said Robb.
Robb planned to seek the help of a maester, as he did in Winterfell with the book he sent to Braavos, but with a graphic designer by his side, such things were unnecessary and would also pose unnecessary risks. Unlike the first book he sent to Braavos, this one would be a great danger, and if its content leaked, he would have huge problems. His mother blinked at his request.
…
An hour after they began, the bridge was already twenty meters long, and its construction accelerated as the craftsmen familiarized themselves with its requirements. But the process was interrupted when a commission of alarmed Freys, led by Lord Walder Frey's heir, Ser Stevron Frey, approached along with another group of people who, by their looks, were also Freys.
In the books, it was said that they all had the face of a weasel. In his previous life, he didn't understand this and, as Robb, expected to see a family with a ferret's head, but he saw none of that. These guys had fine features, and their small eyes weren't attractive, none of them, but they weren't ugly either. They were far from the beauty of the she-bear.
"My lord, let's continue with our work. Just whip them and send them back," advised the old Karstark after Ser Stevron passed on some insincere apologies from the old Frey and showed willingness to negotiate.
Robb and his lords hadn't moved from their spot and continued to watch as the wooden bridge progressed without interruption.
Ser Stevron cast nervous glances at the bridge, and his group looked on with apprehension at the row of logs and the assembly process when the craftsmen ordered the cuts to fit the logs together.
"Ser Stevron, as you can see, we're busy, and we've already wasted too much time in negotiations. Earlier, I sent one of my lords to inform you of our price to cross your bridge, but they were scandalized and refused, so we're building our own bridge and no longer need yours. Now, please stop interrupting our work," said Robb.
"They were already building their bridge when they sent that one!"… Ser Stevron gave a warning look to the boy who spoke, and another Frey elbowed him to silence.
—My lord father, Lord Walder Frey, knows of your bravery and your plans to confront Lord Tywin Lannister, who has invaded the Riverlands. We also intended to fight. Unfortunately, our Lord of the Riverlands has been captured, and we are alone against an entire army, so we find ourselves in need of allies.
»For that very reason, my lord father, the honorable Walder Frey, offers you an alliance against the invaders to liberate the Riverlands from the Lannisters. And to seal this alliance, we see no better option than to formalize it with some marital alliances between my lord and his sisters, and the granddaughters and grandsons of my lord father," concluded Ser Stevron using a cordial tone, which, though hurried, was articulate and perfectly understandable.
"Your father is quite ambitious; I remind you that my lord father traded his hand for the entire Riverlands army in the King Robert's rebellion, but now Lord Frey demands the hands of all my brothers and mine in exchange for the army of a single lord from the same lands. I fail to see how this deal is fair," replied Robb.
His lords remained silent, though most of them spat on the ground. Robb was already thinking of some way to get rid of that habit that turned his stomach.
"My lord, it is my duty to remind you that your father was the lord of the North, and you are his son, not even a lesser lord," retorted Ser Stevron. Robb laughed and nodded, causing his lords to clench their mouths to hold back the insults they wanted to shout.
"That is true, but it is also true that I am my father's heir, commanding an army of twenty thousand men. My need for your men is minimal, and if I form a marital alliance and die, my place will be taken by my heir or my father's next heir, so you will still have Winterfell's heir as your son-in-law," explained Robb, and Ser Stevron grinned ear to ear, having achieved what he wanted, as he had already implied the price he was willing to accept and his conditions.
"My father is a understanding man and values honor," declared Ser Stevron, and Rickard Karstark snorted, followed by a spit from the Greatjon.
Lord Frey's reputation for cowardice was known throughout the realm, though Robb would call it cunning. Of course, in this world, it wasn't worth sacrificing reputation for such a strategy, as it led to the same fate as Lord Frey, whom the whole realm detested and avoided, despite his wealth and numerous family. His detestable character had nothing to do with it, as Tywin Lannister was a beast, and everyone was delighted to make any alliance with him. Ser Stevron ignored the gestures of disgust and kept his gaze fixed on Robb.
"My lord father is no common lord in these lands or any others, and he can provide four thousand men to our cause, along with all the supplies to sustain them, in addition to securing this strategic position for access to your lands," explained Ser Stevron, puffing his chest when his lords couldn't hide their surprise, as none of them could have that many men in their service, and for the old lord to offer to guard the entrance to their lands meant he had a good garrison to defend his own lands, adding another thousand men to their army's numbers, perhaps more.
Robb didn't understand where a lesser lord got so many people, but he didn't protest it.
—Well, I suppose the only thing left would be to meet with your father, make the oaths, and cross to the other side to conclude this war," concluded Robb, and the Freys practically dragged him to their castle in their haste.
Creating the bridge rendered the Freys useless to Robb, and they could only offer him their army to formalize an alliance, so their conditions were greatly reduced.
The meeting with the old Frey proceeded normally, as Robb left his mother behind to avoid hearing the senile old man's charming jokes about women and took the Greatjon and Rickard Karstark, one of the loudest and the other the grumpiest, with him, which made the old Frey regret making a risqué joke at the moment, causing a burst of laughter from the Greatjon, which left the miserable old man seeing double.
On the other hand, when he tried to renegotiate the terms, Rickard Karstark reached for his sword, so everything went smoothly and efficiently, without the miserable old man trying to swindle him or use his advanced age as an excuse. As for his betrothed, he had free choice among the old man's granddaughters.
…
"Lord Bolton, I will entrust you with command of three thousand men to carry out the task of deceiving Lord Tywin, and I will give you the freedom to act in the way you see fit to accomplish such a task. If you believe you cannot carry out this task, please let me know. After all, many would consider that I am sending you on a suicide mission," said Robb. As he spoke, all his lords gathered in the command tent, while the troops crossed the Twins, focused their attention on Lord Bolton.
Lord Bolton was one of his closest bannermen so far, whom he called upon to organize war strategies that required important technical details, such as the construction of the bridge, the planning of the camps and their rules, among others. But they also knew that his seat at the welcome banquet alongside the lesser lords was not coincidental, and since the arrival of his remaining troops at Moat Cailin, it was confirmed that Lord Bolton had not responded appropriately to his initial call, avoiding sending troops and resources, which could be considered treason.
Nevertheless, Robb did nothing more than reprimand him with a minor seat at a banquet, so it was rumored that if Lord Bolton made another mistake, he would lose his head because the Winter Wolf was ruthless and cruel. There was no way he would allow a lord to get away with an attempt at treason when in their first encounter, he had tried to behead one of them just to make it clear that he was in charge.
"My lord, I will fulfill my duty," was Lord Bolton's response, spoken in a low voice.
Robb said no more and proceeded to discuss with the Blackfish and his other lords how they would attack the siege of Riverrun and, most importantly, how they would manage to capture the Kingslayer and exchange him for their North lord, who was a prisoner of the queen.
The Blackfish once again stood out, planning another clever move against the Lannisters, which Robb knew would work. After listening to the rest of the lords, he made some minor adjustments and concluded the meeting.
…
Upon returning to his tent, there were three ravens and a "pest" waiting for him. The "pest" was Theon Greyjoy, whom he had to bear until an opportunity arose to get rid of him. Fortunately, Robb had found the perfect way to shake him off and his tales of the whores he had been with or the peasant girls and servants he had deceived to take their virginity. His lords would think less of him if they saw him with young people. With this, there was no way Theon could accompany him, but the bastard always made sure to be at the entrance of his tent, asking to join any war plan. Luckily, today he had good news for him.
"Theon, we will be going into battle in a few days, and you will be one of my battle guards," informed Robb, and Theon jumped with joy. "Robb, they say in the camp that you talk to the ravens," said Theon. Robb rolled his eyes. "Theon, tell the lords on my behalf that no matter how foolish and absurd the rumors they invent are, I will not reveal to them how to train ravens to deliver messages in person, as it is one of the few advantages we have in our war. If they have something important to send to their lands, they can give me their letter, and I will send it to Winterfell to be forwarded to their own lands," said Robb.
"And to whom exactly should I deliver this message?" asked Theon with a smile. "You can give it to the next person you hear spreading silly rumors. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must use my magical powers as a White Walker to enchant my raven specters and make them spread my will throughout the Seven Kingdoms," said Robb with a theatrical tone. Theon made a face. "Hey, don't be ruthless with me; fulfilling that order will take me all night," complained Theon.
"Hey, don't complain to a Night's Watch lord, or you'll end up just as spectrified as these poor ravens," said Robb, using the same tone of complaints, and he entered his tent to communicate with Bran and have him tell him about Tywin Lannister's movements to see if it matched the plan. For this, and since Bran was not familiar with the south, Robb had a whole table of maps on which he could position himself thanks to certain clues that Bran observed using ravens or common birds for his espionage on enemy troops. So far, there were no changes in the history he knew, but Robb didn't want any surprises.
…
"My lord, your mother requests to see you," informed one of his ten regular guards. By now, Robb had almost thirty battle guards, but that was only for battle and official events. His regular guard, composed of ten guards from Winterfell, remained attentive to him at all times, following him like a shadow and guarding his tent when he was inside. There were more, but they worked in shifts to ensure they stayed alert. The creation of this guard was Robb's idea. He refused to die from a casual stabbing.
Robb let his mother in, who was not at all happy that he ignored her advice, even though she was right every time he disregarded it. Robb simply told her that her son had grown up, and her advice was valued and appreciated by him. After that, he ignored her again and returned to his conversation with Bran until it was time to sleep.
…
With Tywin closely watched and his position marked on one of his maps at all times, Robb marched towards Riverrun without any sense of urgency, unlike Lady Catelyn and half of his lords who feared that Tywin Lannister would learn of their plans and ambush them from behind while they were preparing to catch his son.
…
The march to Riverrun was not swift. Nothing was swift in this medieval world. They had been marching for almost a month and a half, and there had not been a single battle yet. At the pace they were going, it would still take them days to reach Riverrun. So when they talked about speed, it meant a fast-paced march through the vast territories of Westeros, which would take weeks at a minimum or even months if they crossed multiple territories.
Robb would doze off with his eyes open when riding, unless he had the company of the Greatjon, Maege Mormont, or Rickard Karstark, who noticed his tricks and would spit and kick if he tried to fall asleep, even if they didn't speak or had nothing to do.
The elder even dared to tell him that, although he had a great brain and strategic command capabilities, he was too lazy. This was despite Robb training daily with the sword, bow, and spear. The problem was that he had committed the heresy of ordering a crossbow for his personal defense instead of a bow. In short, the elder believed himself to be his grandfather, which wasn't too far from the truth since, if they looked at his blood, he would indeed be something like a great-uncle.
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