Jaremy Rykker

Ser Jaremy Rykker was a knight of the Night's Watch, one of the few anointed knights to take the black during Lord Commander Jeor Mormont's tenure. He had fought on the wrong side at King's Landing, defending the city walls against Robert Baratheon's forces, and was given a stark choice by Tywin Lannister: take the black or see his head on a spike. He chose the Wall, and by the time of the story he had risen to command the rangers in the absence of the missing First Ranger, Benjen Stark.

Role at Castle Black

As a senior officer, Ser Jaremy sat at the Lord Commander's table and participated in the high councils of the Watch. He was present when Tyrion Lannister dined with Mormont, and he spoke openly about his past, acknowledging that he had been on the wrong side at King's Landing. He was also one of the officers who witnessed the swearing-in of new recruits, standing alongside Mormont, Maester Aemon, Bowen Marsh, and Othell Yarwyck. His authority extended to leading the rangers on patrols and searches beyond the Wall.

Discovery of the Wights

When Jon Snow's direwolf Ghost led a party to the bodies of Othor and Jafer Flowers, two of Benjen Stark's missing rangers, Ser Jaremy was the first to examine the corpses. He identified them by name and noted the wounds: Othor's neck had been nearly severed by an axe, and Jafer's right hand had been torn off by Ghost. He initially argued that the men had been killed by wildlings, perhaps Mance Rayder's raiders, and that they had died only a day earlier. He was unconvinced by Samwell Tarly's observations that the blood was dry and crusted, the flesh showed no signs of rot or scavenging, and the horses and dogs refused to approach the bodies. When Lord Commander Mormont ordered the corpses brought back to Castle Black for Maester Aemon to examine, Ser Jaremy helped oversee the difficult task, as the animals would not carry the dead men and the rangers had to fashion crude slings to haul them back on foot.

Death and Aftermath

Ser Jaremy Rykker was killed during the wight attack at Castle Black. The reanimated corpse of Jafer Flowers, though hacked nearly to pieces by a dozen swords, did not fall. Before it was finally destroyed, it pulled its own dagger from its sheath and buried it in Ser Jaremy's bowels, killing him despite having its head cut off. His death underscored the grim lesson that strength and courage availed little against foes who would not fall because they were already dead. Afterward, Lord Commander Mormont reflected that Ser Jaremy would doubtless have called the direwolf's warning a matter of happenstance, but Ser Jaremy was dead and Mormont was not.