Chapter 313

The cremation was over.

Aegor had originally planned to wait until Maester Aemon’s ashes had cooled enough to be gathered before proceeding, but it would take at least another ten minutes for the embers to lose their heat. Continuing the silence felt unnecessary, while standing around awkwardly seemed even worse. A sudden idea struck him, and he decided to make an impromptu adjustment to the schedule, using this lull to his advantage.
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“Never before has the Night’s Watch faced a crisis like the one we face today!” Aegor’s booming voice cut through the cold air, silencing the murmurs in Castle Black’s courtyard. He paused briefly, then repeated, “Never before!”

The brothers of the Watch quickly realized this was Aegor’s inaugural speech. Heads tilted upward as the crowd turned their attention to the newly elected Lord Commander, curious to see what he had to say.

“The Night’s Watch was founded after the Long Night to ensure that when the enemy returned, there would be those ready to stand against them, to stop them from extinguishing humanity. Yet no one expected—no one could have imagined—that we would wait thousands of years. And now, in our near collapse, in the dying breaths of the black-clad brotherhood, we face this cursed second coming of the Others!”

This grim humor struck a chord with the men, echoing sentiments many had silently harbored. Aegor’s candid words immediately bridged a psychological gap between him and the soldiers.

“This time, we have no Children of the Forest with their magic, no Azor Ahai leading us to glory against monsters. But unlike those who first faced the Long Night, today you have the seven-hundred-foot Wall at your back.” Aegor turned and gestured toward the immense ice barrier behind him. “And you have me, a new Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch!”

He swept his gaze across the crowd, his tone turning sharp. “Beyond the Wall, the Haunted Forest, Frostfangs, and Frozen Shore have all fallen to the enemy. An endless horde of the dead, led by the White Walkers, waits to descend upon the Seven Kingdoms. And within the Wall, the kings and lords of the South fight over an iron chair, too distracted to lift a hand in our aid. Meanwhile, here at the Wall, we’ve lost our finest brothers—Benjen Stark, Jeor Mormont, and Maester Aemon. We even spent months bickering, delaying the election of a commander to lead us into this war.”

His voice grew steely. “Before us lie ancient fortresses in disrepair, sections of the Wall neglected for decades, and thousands of settlers in the Gift who are barely surviving. If Lord Commander Mormont were here, he would grimly state, ‘The situation is dire.’ But I won’t hide behind noble platitudes or sugarcoat the truth. I’ll tell you plainly: the darkest hour is upon us.”

Then, with a sudden crescendo, he shouted, “But we will not cower! We will fight to the bitter end! We will battle them in the valleys, on the icy shores of the Bay of Seals, and atop this Wall itself. We will defend the fortresses with our blood and steel. No matter the cost, we will stop them from crossing the Wall!”

He pointed to the men, his voice unwavering. “And if, gods forbid, this Wall falls, we will fight them in the Gift, in the North, and across the rivers, mountains, and swamps of Westeros. If we stay united, if we hold fast to our oaths, we will build a second Wall from our blood and bones—until either we fall to the last man, or we drive these damned creatures back to their frozen hell!”

......

Aegor had always hated speeches that dragged on like endless bureaucratic reports.

And with Aemon’s ashes still exposed to the falling snow, he wasn’t about to waste any more time.

He let the moment hang in the air, let the weight of his words settle.

Then, he delivered the final blow.

"We stand alone."

"Even in the best case scenario, we are a few thousand men, standing between the lands of the living and the dead."

"In all the history of mankind, there has never been a war like this—one where so few must defend so many."

"Is it fair?"

His gaze swept over them all.

"No. It is not."

"But we will fight regardless!"

"Why?"

His voice rang out like steel against stone.

"Because we are the Night’s Watch!"

"We are the sword in the darkness, the watchers on the Wall."

"We are the flame against the cold, the light that brings the dawn, the horn that wakes the sleepers, the shield that guards the realms of men!"

He had planned for this—the final moment, the last call to arms.

His most loyal men, those he had planted within the ranks, were the first to begin reciting the Night’s Watch oath.

Then, one by one, his supporters joined in.

Then the undecided—the men in the middle.

And then, one after another, the rest of the Watch.

By the time they reached the final line, every man at Castle Black was shouting, spitting the words into the freezing air with the force of a battle cry.

"We pledge our lives and honor to the Night’s Watch!"

"For this night—"

"And all the nights to come!"

......

Not a soul interrupted the speech, but Aegor sensed the atmosphere wasn’t quite as electrified as he had hoped. The lingering black spot in his vision from Melisandre’s earlier display still blurred his sight, preventing him from gauging the crowd’s expressions. A nagging doubt crept into his mind: were they truly listening, or were their eyes fixed on his sword, waiting for him to draw it again?

Despite the deafening chant, Aegor’s frustration with Melisandre’s unauthorized theatrics deepened. Her stunt had not only disrupted his plans but cast an unnecessary shadow over his authority.

But speeches alone wouldn’t win the war. The White Walkers weren’t attacking tonight. The battle ahead would be decided by the quality of their soldiers, their supplies, and the leadership of their commander—all responsibilities that fell squarely on Aegor’s shoulders.

----

With the speech over, Aegor ordered men to collect Maester Aemon’s ashes.

Only after the courtyard was cleared did he formally announce the changes he would make as Lord Commander.

The first policy—significantly increasing wages for all members of the Night’s Watch.

The increases would vary by position and responsibility, ranging from double to five times the previous amount.

This wasn’t the most important reform, but Aegor announced it first because it was the easiest way to win over the men.

The so-called wages of the Night’s Watch were essentially pocket money.

The Watch provided food, shelter, and equipment, so in theory, they had no expenses.

But men were more than just bodies that needed sustenance—they had other needs.

And that was what the stipends were for.

The Night’s Watch had no steady source of income, so their wages were pitiful—barely a few copper coins a day.

A common soldier would have to save up for weeks just to afford anything meaningful.

They could trade with the Gift’s villages for eggs, meat, or cheese to improve their diet…

Or they could go to Mole’s Town, where the underground brothels catered to their baser instincts…

Or they could hoard their coins and, after months of saving, afford a new set of clothes, a fresh pair of boots, or a better weapon.

Aegor himself had scraped together his wages for three months to buy a single piece of obsidian—which later saved his life.

And just convincing his contact in Eastwatch to keep an eye out for ships carrying dragonglass?

That had cost him two weeks’ worth of wages in food and drink alone.

With pay being so low, even a fivefold increase wasn’t as extravagant as it sounded—and it barely strained the Night’s Watch economy.

But there was a deeper reason for this policy.

In theory, a man who took the black was bound by oath—even if the Watch paid them nothing, they were expected to do their duty.

But the Gift was no longer empty wilderness.

With the settlements growing stronger, a strange imbalance had begun to emerge—

The stronger, smarter Free Folk, those lucky enough to find work in Crown’s Rest, now had a steady income…

And suddenly, some of them had more spending power than the Night’s Watch themselves.

If this continued, the Free Folk settlers would soon live better than the sworn brothers defending them.

Aegor was a brother of the Watch first and foremost.

If he allowed this to happen, resentment would fester, discipline would erode, and the Watch itself would fracture.

The second policy—structural changes to the Watch’s command.

The internal conflicts within the Watch had never been worse—Aegor’s sudden rise had pushed tensions to the breaking point.

Crown’s Rest was now stronger than all three major keeps combined, yet with the White Walkers at their doorstep, the Night’s Watch was like a dying patient—too fragile for drastic surgery.

Aegor couldn’t afford mass purges or forceful takeovers.

He had already agreed not to remove the commanders of Shadow Tower and Eastwatch—so why stop there?

Instead of replacing anyone, he chose a different approach—one that would slowly dilute the power of the old guard.

Rather than taking away authority, he would create new authority.

Aegor officially elevated the sixteen newly reoccupied fortresses, giving them equal standing with Castle Black, Shadow Tower, and Eastwatch.

Each keep would now have its own commander, first ranger, steward, blacksmith, and quartermaster.

And then, he named the officers for these positions.

Of course, these men were his own people.

For now, they were officers without soldiers.

But Aegor planned to expand the Night’s Watch to 2,000 men—and every new recruit would be assigned to these keeps.

Over time, every new fortress would have 50 to 100 sworn brothers, along with hill clans and Gift settlers living alongside them.

With this, Aegor would slowly, steadily take full control of the Watch.

He didn’t fire the old commanders.

He didn’t reassign their men.

There was nothing for them to directly oppose.

Even if they saw through his plan to weaken their power, there was nothing they could do—

This was a textbook open conspiracy.

A move they could see coming but couldn’t stop.

The third policy—headquarters relocation.

Aegor officially announced that, effective immediately, Crown’s Rest would become the new headquarters of the Night’s Watch.

It would also serve as the administrative capital of the Gift.

And as Lord Commander, his residence and office would be located there.

This naturally led to another change—Castle Black would be downgraded.

It would no longer be the Night’s Watch headquarters, but instead, just another keep, equal in status to the others.

Which meant…

It now needed a new commander.

Aegor appointed Jon Snow as Castle Black’s new commander.

With this, any pretense of neutrality was gone—he was openly placing his allies in charge.

Of course, some immediately challenged him.

"The Lord Commander should be stationed at Castle Black! How can you lead us if you hide at Crown’s Rest? If you won’t even stay at the Wall, how can we trust you to defend it?"

Aegor had been expecting this.

"And by that logic," he countered, "if we’re truly defending the Wall, shouldn’t we be out beyond it, fighting the White Walkers face to face instead of hiding behind the ice?"

He let the words sink in before continuing.

"I was a Chief Logistics Officer before I was Lord Commander. I believe that only a strong Gift can support this war. I will be at Crown’s Rest to build that foundation.

"Jon Snow is both brave and intelligent. He may lack experience, but he has three veteran officers to advise him. I trust him with Castle Black."

Crown’s Rest wasn’t far from the Wall—only a day’s ride away.

Some men grumbled, but no one could openly resist.

And besides—the Lord Commander’s orders were final.

Without wasting more time, Aegor wrapped up his speech.

"For now, these are the only three major changes."

"The future of humanity rests on our shoulders. Whatever comes next—I am honored to fight alongside you all."

"Dismissed!"

The crowd dispersed, their expressions ranging from motivated to wary. Aegor turned to one of his aides and gave his next order.

“Bring me Cotter Pyke and Yohn Royce. Now.”