The North has always been a kingdom apart from the rest of Westeros. It’s the size of the southern six kingdoms combined; it’s remote, relatively unpopulated, has a different religion, and has little respect for southerners. Still, the North has been part of the Seven Kingdoms since Aegon the Conqueror forged them three hundred years ago. But it doesn’t always have to be that way. Robb Stark failed, but there could well be a King in the North again—and the separation could be quite dramatic.

How The Others Will Free The North From Bondage

Soon enough, the Starks will retake Winterfell and save Rickon Stark, or not. But if they do, they’ll quickly consolidate their rule over the North again. And just in time too: The dead are coming. The war against the White Walkers will be waged in the North, not anywhere else. Sooner or later, the Wall has to fall, and then the invasion of Westeros by the dead will begin. Thankfully, the North is huge. All of the battle can be fought in the North.

Once, long ago, the children of the forest cast two mighty spells, intended to keep human invaders out of Westeros. The first broke the Arm of Dorne, creating the Stepstones and shattering the land route from Essos to Westeros. It was too late to stop the invasion, and the First Men settled the South. And they kept on spreading north. The children then cast their other great spell in an attempt to shatter the Neck and separate the North from the South. For reasons unknown, it didn’t entirely work, turning the region into a nearly impassable swamp instead of open ocean.

But who’s to say it can’t work again? Magic has returned to the world, and its power will grow stronger as the White Walkers invade and when the dragons return to Westeros at last. A few of the children of the forest are still alive. They created the White Walkers and are responsible for helping to defeat them.

Ultimately, the only way to do that could be to separate the North from the South permanently—to cast the spell again and sever the Seven Kingdoms into six and one. The South is far more populous; if the White Walkers attack there, their armies of the dead will be near unstoppable. In the North, they can be contained and eventually defeated by dragonglass and the dragons.

Severing the North is a bold step, but it may be the only option. And, once the dead are defeated, if the dead are defeated, it would ensure the freedom of the North forever. Long live the King in the North, Rickon Stark!