A young maester, John, grapples with his past, his present duties at a decaying castle, and the looming mysteries of the seasons and political upheaval, all while seeking to prove his worth and return to Oldtown.
Mind Map
คลิกเพื่อขยาย
คลิกเพื่อสำรวจ Mind Map แบบอินเตอร์แอคทีฟฉบับเต็ม
prologue
the wings unfolded wide before the gray sky
sky
sending a plume of snow into the frigid air
air dragons
dragons
john watched the beast intently noting
the movement of its legs counting its steps
steps
it turned right
lowered its head
closed its black eyes
from its pink gullet came forth a scream
piercing drowning out the sound of the
crashing ocean below daenerys
daenerys
the maester touched his ring of black
iron remembering archmaester walgrave's lessons
lessons
the old man could scarce remember his
own name yet the mysteries of ravencraft
still flopped around in his adult head
the language of the white ravens was not
something oft revealed to acolytes or
novices but on some days walgrave
mistook john for men named cressen
wallys or hoather and then he would
whisper away his beloved bird's secrets
with a smile and a conspiratorial wink
the conclave has met john thought
the young maester brought the bird in
from the window and let it stand on a
table within the turret
one year five turns and 12 days autumn
had lasted most maesters in the realm
believed the gathering of archmaesters
to be no more than a review of
measurements and figures to settle the
changing of the seasons
but maester john knew better
if the meeting were only about astronomy
the greybeards would leave it to
archmaester valen and his bronze
bedeckled followers
archmaester theobald has given orders to
his flock
jon had always been suspicious of the
citadel's white ravens even as a pink
neck novice
the pageantry of heralding a new season
with such remarkable mammoth birds was
uncharacteristic of an order that
professed humble service and why use
such clever creatures so sparingly he'd
been halfway to his iron link when he
discovered the sack of soot in walgree's rookery
rookery
it did not surprise jon that dragons had
caught the archmaester's attention they
had been the talk of old town just
before he'd left for the stony bluffs of
the crag at first he'd believed the
stories to be no more than ramblings of
drunken sailors like the tales of mermaids
mermaids
it was aleros as well informed as he was
well favored who assured him these tales
were true
the sphynx was right he's always right
the dragon queen is coming he had said
excitement shining through his customary
wicked grin
jon longed desperately to see that
glowing face again
if i can produce the proof they spoke of
he thought
the conclave will call me home
the grey rats who were banished from the
great nest added little to the library's
horde of knowledge left behind few
brilliant works
lived on in no acolytes memories a
castle maester's sad fate was to receive
his lord's pointless letters deliver his
witless whelps and be quickly forgotten
john did not belong at the crag let
alone cast amir he had to make the
archmaester see that
he had to finish his work
they will not leave me scurrying around
a ruined castle when i've solved the
mystery of the seasons when i can show
how and why they change as they do they
will not leave me here to freeze
warm weather waited for him in old town
warm weather and warm arms
the young maester was about to prompt
the raven to continue when voices began
to echo up the turret stare
john rose and tossed corn onto the table
for the bird before returning to the window
window
through the distant fog john could just
make out the docks of cragsport where
bravo was moored that thrice damned ship
the sole vessel of house westerling and
spicer had returned from the jade sea
two days prior and treasures seemed to
pour endlessly from its holds there were
silks of every color casks of wine and
rum and exotic liquors john had never
heard of
barrels upon barrels of rare and costly
spices chests brimming with ivory and
lacquered woods precious stones like so
many great glass eggs
the maester touched his ring of yellow
gold remembering archmaester rime's lessons
lessons
john had taken a partial inventory of
the goods and reckoned their value
it was no less than a fortune
by his figures the houses would have
more than enough coin to restore
castmere and drain most of its mines
silver and gold would flow from the
earth for generations
bravo's bounty was a blessing from the
gods to the impoverished lords
westerling and spicer and a curse to
maester john
john's new lord sir rolf spicer had been
gifted the flooded wreck of castmere for
his service to house lannister
though no one spoke of just what that
service had been
the up-jumped knight had insisted the
restoration of the castle begin within a
moon's turn with jon set to supervise
the builders
a maester must go where he has sent
john grumbled to himself he would spend
the winter overseeing the construction
of water wheels and horse capstans for
the draining of house rain's abandoned mines
mines
days trudging through mud and ice
knights shivering in a snow-covered tent
worst of all he would be a world away
from him
john turned sharply away from the window
in its view of the docks
the rippling waves had reminded him of
those ink black curls
maester amory entered the turret with
gawan westerling's children
they were a tedious bunch
amory may have been sharp enough when
he'd forged his chain 30 years ago but
this chilly rock had dulled the edge off
his mind the maester of the crag
troubled himself with no scholarly
pursuits he would leave behind no
writings no legacy
unless you count a bit of scheming
against the boy king
john feigned the respect due to him as
an elder though
perhaps the man would confirm his
findings when he had findings to confirm oh
oh
amory said abruptly i did not expect you
here just now
was that concern or irritation in his voice
voice
the two maesters had been sharing
amory's turret for the past half year as
john's rightful tower was at castmere
and had collapsed 40 years ago besides
john's notes and samples littered the
room no doubt irking the imposed upon
amory left to himself the westerling
maester would have surely kept his
turret as empty as his head the guards
on the battlements spied the white raven
we have come straight away to see for
ourselves of course said john with a
modest sweep of his arm he presented the
bird eating corn on emery's table
winter has arrived
one year five turns in 10 days autumn
has lasted declared maester amory to
jane elena and rollum who had followed
close at his heels to gawk at old town's
pale emissary
he said it with such satisfaction that
jon wondered if his fellow maester had
looked forward to this occasion if he'd
somehow spoiled the poor man's big
moment i hope this one talks said rollum
the last one must have been stupid it
didn't say anything
the last one must have been clever
silence beats talking to ralem any day
john suppressed a snigger lord
westerling's youngest son was a boy of
10 and the presumptive heir to the crag
ever since his elder brother had gone
missing during the red wedding the
native seashells was almost certainly
dead but none would say so within the
castle walls for feared lady sybil would
have them dangling out a tower window
ralem had little and less in common with
his lost brother from what john had
heard of the latter while reynold had
been rebellious and witty rollum was
serious and dutiful
too dutiful
he'd worshiped first reynold then robb
stark and now his sister jane jon had
once admired his own brother with eyes
as big and blind as their lord fathers
but by his seventh name day he'd gain
the wits enough to stop
the scars enough as well
the bird has not spoken apologized jon
not in the common tongue at least the
white raven corked before returning to
its corn
elena admired the bird
is it true that a long summer means an
even longer winter
i don't like the cold
the simple girl was the most tolerable
of the children as she was the least
seen her days were oft spent alone
watching the waves crash along the
bluffs from a castle window
that solitude would be short-lived she
had recently flowered so ravens had been
coming and going from the rookery this
past fortnight making a din of squawks
and marriage offers
a summer's length does influence the
bitterness of winter amory agreed
confidently wrong
the old maester only gaped at him when
jon tried to explain the movements of
the heavens
how he'd ever earned a bronze link was
itself a higher mystery but do not fear
child we have had a good harvest we
shall always have the bounty of the sea
and sir duncan has brought us ample
wealth with which to supply our wants he
smiled at the girl with affection this
winter shall be a kind one if chill air
is our most pressing concern
it's not
we should be using that wealth to hire
cell swords jane said grimly
lord gawan's eldest child made the most
exhausting company of the three the girl
had been a widow for well over half a
year but acted as if the young wolf had
died whilst breaking this morning's fast
more days than not she would rend her
gown no longer so much in mourning as to
provoke her mother
though the castle seamstress was the
only one truly riled the phrase must pay
for their treachery for what they did to
rob to reynold
she shot john an incredulous look
don't you agree at least you could have
lost kin at the red wedding yourself
it's a shame i didn't
before he took his vows maester john had
been john vance the fifth and final son
of lord norbert vance
the blind lord of atranta's children all
looked the same
tall comely boys with thick brown hair
they shared a vicious nature too all of
them but john
ellery and hugo by a kind of low cunning
had contrived to vent their cruelty on
the poor animals they caught on their
frequent hunts kurth was black tempered
and brutal with a vengeful heart but
left john unmolested when unprovoked
it was ronald who was the real monster
in house vance
in his eerie fits the young man would
roam the corridors of the castle
announcing himself its prince in quest
of evil warlocks to vanquish when jon
was a good evil warlock he would receive
mere beatings the scars on his arms and
back could attest that he hadn't always
been good he'd fought back too hard or
not hard enough and this had forced the
prince to smite him with his magic sword
ronald's rusty dirk
john might have died had he not
discovered his hiding place
the old storage room had been bricked up
long ago but he had accessed it by
removing a stone from the adjacent library
library
john would spend hours there reading by
candlelight hiding from prince ron
when the flame guttered out he would sit
in the dark
sometimes he slept sometimes a new day
waited when he emerged at 2 and 10 he
had asked his unseeing father to send
him to the citadel
perhaps one day kurth's rage would
surmount his fear and he'd take revenge
on ronald
john hoped so
i'm a master of the citadel bound in
service to castamere john said mildly in
response to the girl's ill-considered treason
treason
winter is not the season to start a war
my lady your grace snapped the girl
she styled herself a queen dowager
though she'd never so much as seen winterfell
winterfell
the queen in the north a title as absurd
as princess of zulambr the golden-haired
dream girl ronald said he was
prophesized to save
your grace
maester john corrected himself he bowed
his head humbly but still glimpsed
amory's expression
the craig's maester had made the same
error this morning with the same result
here the brothers of the order were in
silent agreement it was easier to humor her
her
let lady sybil wage that war
jane turned away from jon with a huff
and began eyeing amory's medicine
shelves the old maester had an
impressive display no doubt thanks to
lord gowan's lady wife according to
amory sipple spicer's grandmother had
been a karthian priestess named jarrada
zaccina mizurika she was a healer more
or less a wise one to her fellow
carthene and had sworn a noble vow to
aid the sick she brought with her from
the east a vast collection of potions
and ointments
though most of them were for carnal arousal
arousal
the small folk of the westerlands did
not understand what she was and made of
her an exotic curiosity a fortune teller
they called maggie offended by westerosi
ignorance girata wove baleful futures to
terrify those who sought prophecy within
her healing tent when the crone died the
tent was taken down and the medicines
made their way to amery's turret
rollum said the boy to the bird hoping
for a response
rollum the white raven looked up and
tilted its head
but said nothing
they are trained with food explained
john he would play amory's part a moment
an indulgent teacher
let us see what he can say
he offered a cloaked forearm to the bird
here he commanded its pale wings spread
and flapped as the raven leapt jon the
maester took a handful of kernels from
the sack and asked corn
corn
the great bird beat its wings with fury
slapping jon hard in the face elena and
rollum were squealing with laughter even
jane was struggling to keep her face
rebelliously sullen the white raven
pecked wildly at john's closed hand
drawing blood as the maester yelped in
pain the beastly thing jumped back to
the table screaming
then it finally spoke john
john
it caught the raven's voice was queerly panicked
panicked
john it repeated john john john
it walked about the table blood's still
on its beak
it seems to have learned your name
observed amory with only a hint of amusement
amusement
children i will need to see to maester
john's wound
still giggling at john's humiliation the
westerlings filed down the turret stare
as maester amory lit one candle then another
another
not too many john requested salvaging
his composure i'm keeping the turret
frigid for my observations do you see
those chunks of ice near the window
emery looked at the blocks frowned
just ice what knowledge do you hope to
muster from these
they shrink john said every day bit by
bit i'm recording how quickly they
dwindle they've been drying up like puddles
puddles
yes evaporation said amory the old man
found the bandages
every washer woman who has hung linen in
winter knows about that
just so said john did you ever wonder
why the wall does not do the same
emery paused thinking then said
rain and snow add to it making up for
what is lost
ah but then it would flatten and grow
wider at the bottom
john pointed to one of the ice chunks
with his bleeding hand see that one i've
been drizzling water on it maester
amory's mouth opened as if to say something
something
then shut
the white raven screamed john
the old man sat to look at the cut on
jon's hand when did you get these other
wounds he asked frowning at the scars
along john's fingertips the night before
i said my vows half a year ago or near
enough to make no matter
most of the scars on john's body were
painful memories but not the ones on his
fingers his face grew warm just thinking
of that night
the sphynx cleaned and bound my wounds
aleras we called him the sphinx an
acolyte brighter than most sharpest man
i know sharpest of whit i mean
he couldn't conceal his grin the pain in
his hand was forgotten
emery took his time examining every
finger one by one then abruptly looked
up at john with a laugh
ha when you said your vows i see it now
i cut my thumb on one when i was young
fool that i was
but by the gods these cuts go deep what
were you thinking did you try to
pleasure the thing
john answered only with a sheepish smile
before an acolyte becomes a maester he
must spend a night sealed in a dark
empty room with a pillar of valyrian
dragonglass twisted in black
the archmaesters called it a final test
though they meant it as a lesson in humility
humility
no one was expected to succeed it had
been aleros who had given him the notion
the business with the candle the
solution was simple yet elegant
a circular river the handsome acolyte
had explained an idea his mother had
heard from a shadow binder of all people
the copper stars calamine and wire had
been easy enough to smuggle in the
sleeves of his robe
the lemons were more of a challenge
he and the sphinx had used tree sap to
affix three dozen of them to his body up
and down his legs and around his torso
john had read of the maester's fruitless
attempts to light the glass candles over
the centuries where would pyres
dragonblood wildfire
one maester had even tried to sound a
horn borrowed from claw isle
in time the conclave gave up the pursuit
in earnest and consigned the task to
acolytes the glass candles became tokens
symbols of the higher mysteries
who would guess that lemons were the
answer all along
after fixing the final yellow fruit
gingerly to john's chest alaris had
produced a small piece of cloth from a
pocket in his sleeve within were several
dried mushrooms
from the summer isles he said to keep
you alert
without question john had placed the
fungus in his mouth chewed
chewed swallowed
swallowed
the mushrooms had the taste of dirt
they tasted two of apples in autumn of
saffron of trout fresh from the river
but what jon remembered best was the
taste of the sphinx's kiss
aleras had been fast taking john by
surprise though the kiss was tender his
lips were gentle warmer than spring
softest feathers
as intoxicating as cider
become the candle he whispered looking
up at john
his eyes were onyx shining in the light
the heavy laden john had been fortunate
enough to have the wattle-necked
half-blind archmaester heradon lock him
in the cell for the evening
in the dark john felt at home
he liked the darkness he was safe in the darkness
darkness
as blind as his father in atranta john
unstuck the lemons wincing with each one
and began connecting them with the wire
by feel as he worked he peered into the
center of the pitch black room
into the dragonglass
become the candle
the words of the sphinx haunted him
as did his kiss
at some point he must have fallen asleep
he awoke the next morning to the yelp of
archmaester garazan and the light of an
unflickering flame minutes later
archmaesters serathis and marwin were
questioning the almost maester stone
faced they listened as john giddily
explained to the copper stars the
calamine the lemons
he did not say a word valeros
afterward marwin took the glass candle
to his chambers to determine just what
had occurred
jon had been sure his feet would impress
the conclave earn him a valyrian steel
link make him the toast of the citadel
instead shortly after his vows were
spoken and his fingers treated he found
himself aboard the fat-bellied miraham
bound for the crag
he'd been forbidden from even speaking
of dragonglass
he felt bitterness at first betrayed and
abandoned by the old men who'd been
fathers to him as lord norbert had not
but one night aboard the vessel
sleepless from the squalling of the
captain's daughter's babe and
contemplating the vast blackness of the
sunset sea he'd puzzled out the reason
for his dismissal
though now a master of the citadel he
was still the son of lord norbert and
lord norbert had fought for the young
wolf his father had been pardoned but
forgiven is not forgotten with jon in
the hands of a westerling or a spicer
house vance would not dare break the
king's peace
in truth however the blind lord was near
death and his heir the prince of atranta
would relish jon's execution
his bitterness turned to utter
frustration at the pointlessness of his
own banishment
john the white raven cried again nipping
at a drop of john's blood upon the table
amory shook his head
you should not have taught it your name
i didn't john protested it arrived just
before you beware the raven warned
that got amory's attention he looked up
from the bandaging
do you suppose it's a message from the citadel
citadel
what perils could it be speaking of
john thought of the dragon queen but said
said
could it be the iron man
they harry far south of here feast fires
would have warned us if they ventured
into westerland waters or bainfort if
they came from the north bravo
bravo
what dangerous saffron muse the old maester
maester
i admit when i visited the ship there
were some unsavory sorts about brutish
sailors refugees from astapor three pale
carthene but they are all being kept in cragsport
cragsport
the mines
the mines
ah i see what you have done amory
chuckled a clever ruse castmere shall be
a hardship these first few years i know
but your fate could be much harder they
say the wall is in need of maesters you
could look into this matter of the ice
firsthand would that make you any
happier i promise you the bird is not
mimicking me
amory finished with the bandage a
competent rap
lord rolf wished to know whether you had
reviewed his plans for these frightening
minds of yours a note of accusation had
entered his voice
i did but he will not be happy i am
certain the northwest shaft will not drain
drain
john said rising to check his sample of
quicksilver in the corner of the turret
the liquid metal rested a tad lower in
the glass tube today
further proof that the mirror's thinkers
had the right of it
this again the maester of the crag
wrangled his brow
the air will hold the water down
nonsense nothing cannot hold down
something he will have you at that mine
day and night until it's dry you know
john sighed had amory supported his
claim that air had weight lord rolf
might have listened instead he made jon
look a fool
he knew he must speak with his lord
before this vain enterprise went any
further the young maester descended the
turret stair to seek out the lord of castmere
castmere
ralph spicer would be in either lord
gowan solar or seashell hall walking
through the castle corridors jon passed
a dozen arched windows each with an
arresting view of the sunset sea
the dusky waves were framed by dark
cliffs rising north into grey mist in
better times the arches held six marble
clamshells each now every third arch
held but one the window's ornate
keystones had all been replaced by
simple stones or bricks and many of
those looked ready to fall out the
maester touched his ring of copper
remembering archmaester paristan's
lessons the crag was ancient the seat of
house westerling dating back to the age
of heroes its lands were full of gold
and tin so the house had been wealthy
for thousands of years westerlings often
married the kings of the rock young
jane's namesake had been taken to wife
by maegor the cruel there were disputes
amongst historians as to when the mines
had been exhausted however with some
claiming that house westerling's decline
began hundreds of years ago regardless
the ruin of the crag was what remained
of the house's past glory along with
empty caves and barren tunnels
according to the songs the children of
the forest had lived in those lonely
caves before the westerlings drove them
out and uprooted their werewoods john
had never seen one of the white trees
not a living one at least
the andals had burned the ones in
atranta thousands of years ago but the
study of wherewood had always fascinated
jon for the old trees told old tales
at the citadel a slice of a great
weirwood trunk could be found in the
western garden brought south from beyond
the wall the piece measured 50 feet across
across
10 times wider than any tree john had
seen standing the archmaesters said it
had been more than
000 years old when it was cut down
perhaps it was the oldest thing that
ever lived the oldest thing that ever died
died
at some point every novice would try to
count the tree's rings each one
representing an ancient long forgotten
summer the wider the distance between
rings the longer the summer it was the
best record of the seasons in westeros
older than the writings of maesters more
ancient than the scribblings of septons
the weirwood's most important testimony
was the pattern of its rings
there was none
it was as if the gods cast the seasons
at random a riddle john thought thinking
of those deep dark eyes
i will find its answer
named for the mother of pearl tiles
lining both the walls and the vaulted
ceiling seashell hall had once been a
wonder as the years passed pieces fell
but were not replaced the seashells that
remained had become a starry indoor sky
still beautiful
but full of twinkling melancholy at the
head of the hall hung a faded tapestry
spotted with mold depicting jaehaerys
and vermi-thor's sojourn at the crag
for two centuries since no king had felt
the need to visit the castle until its
storming by the young wolf
six great tables in the shape of clams
filled the room
at the center most sat the lord and lady
westerling opposite lord spicer and the
captain of bravo sir duncan spicer
maester john lord rolf clapped his hands
together as jon entered his tone mocking
how fair your measurements i do hope
you're not so distracted that you have
forgotten about my minds
not a moon's turn past he was digging up
dirt and caves now he plays with ice and quicksilver
