novelhk Chapter 134 Evacuation (3)
Chapter 134 Evacuation (3)
At this moment, Robb had received intelligence in advance, and he decisively issued an order to speed up the pace of migration. In order to save the limited space on the ship, they did not hesitate to abandon all non-essential items in the outer camp.
Robb had returned to Davos not long ago and learned of Stannis's death and saw his body with his own eyes. Robb had mixed feelings about his former rival. Despite Stannis's stereotypical image, both enemies and friends highly respected his character. However, the more pressing issue was to get the demoralized soldiers out safely. And what should this army do next? All this could only be decided later.
Stannis's soldiers are well-trained and disciplined, in stark contrast to the wildlings' disorganized nature. However, at this critical moment, the soldiers acted quickly, followed Bran's instructions, organized themselves into groups, and began to evacuate in an orderly manner.
As the wildlings left, the number of northern soldiers who stayed behind to monitor and warn gradually decreased. Robb knew that he needed enough soldiers to control the wildlings to ensure stability and avoid chaos. By noon, all the wildling women and children had evacuated, leaving only about 3,000 to 4,000 wildlings and more than 1,000 northern soldiers.
Bran acted promptly and ordered them to use small boats to build a temporary pier to connect it to the floating platform on the sea.
Robb asked in confusion, "Bran, what are you going to do?"
Bran replied, "The troops led by Jon are responsible for the rear, and the White Walkers will never give them time to retreat safely. By building these temporary trestle bridges, they can go directly to the sea, and then slowly transfer by boat. This will greatly improve efficiency and ensure their safety."
Robb thought this was a good idea, so he immediately ordered the army to cooperate. However, not long after, a burst of artillery fire came from afar. The sound became louder and louder, and even in Hardhome, people could hear it clearly. Robb's heart tightened, and he knew that something must have happened ahead.
Sure enough, a sentinel came back in a hurry to report that the White Walkers had climbed up the iceberg from the other side and bypassed the blocking troops on the front line. Fortunately, Jon and his team discovered the whereabouts of the White Walkers in time and quickly evacuated towards Hardhome.
As time went by, the wild men who had fled first gradually approached. There were so many of them, and they were so dense that they gave people a sense of oppression. Due to the rush of time, only thirty-one of the fifty floating bridges originally planned to be built were completed. The northern soldiers and some wild men's leaders began to shout anxiously, organizing the wild men to evacuate safely from the pier. But the situation became more and more chaotic, and many wild men were squeezed off the pier and fell into the freezing cold sea water.
When Jon arrived with the remaining wildlings, there were still more than two thousand people who had not yet successfully evacuated.
Jon waved his sword, and the Night's Watch soldiers lined up outside. Tormund came forward with an axe and tried to maintain order, but to little avail. Seeing that the White Walkers were about to catch up, he was anxious. He swung his axe at those who didn't obey, and chopped off dozens of heads, calming down those chaotic wildlings.
At this time, Bran stood on the boat and used the ability he learned from the Three-Eyed Raven to quiet everyone down.
"Listen to me!" Bran's voice reached everyone's ears clearly. "Everyone, stay calm and follow the soldiers' instructions. You must evacuate in an orderly manner. Otherwise, the White Walkers will catch up and everyone will die!"
The crowd gradually calmed down and began to cross the pier in an orderly manner. However, just as the last group of people were about to board the ship, the White Walkers finally caught up.