Chapter 11; Assaults and new commands
Characters of the Chapter
Daenerys Targaryen, The Mother of Dragons, the Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, the Unburnt, the Breaker of Chains, Queen of the of the Andals, the Rhoynar and the First Men of the South, Queen of the South Kingdom of the Twin kingdoms and Protector of the Realm
Herbert Bluewood Inquisition Captain
Iledia, Agent of the Inquisition, advisor in matters of the arcane in the court of Queen Daenerys
Isabela Captain of the Siren'sCall II, admiral of the Felicisima armada (self-appointed)
Jon Snow, also known as Aegon Targaryen and Jon Stark, King of the North Kingdom of the Twin Kingdoms
Kieran, Agent of the Inquisition, mage advisor to the court of King Jon
Lyanna Mormont, Lady of Bear Island
Ser Caleb Threestones, Knight of Westeros,Second to Lyanna Mormont
Tyrion Lannister, Hand of the Queen to Queen Daenerys
Night had already fallen by the time Jon's ships returned. Scouts had spotted their sails just as the sun was setting and had ridden to inform her at once. As soon as she had heard they were back she had made her way to greet them. With great effort she had managed to convince the mage healers to attend to Drogon's wounds, so he had been able to fly her here in short order.
Drogon was more than enough to protect her person, but as an additional precaution a small force of Dothraki had been sent to meet her on the shore, riding in a short while later, bringing with them extra horses and wagons for Jon and the people he was bringing. The Dothraki would also be useful in escorting the people Jon was bringing until they made it to the safety of Winterfell. There could well be enemy patrols or raiding groups out there. Scouts were not always able to find such. Best to play it safe.
The ships had been waiting for her in the night with no lights on so enemy vessels would not spot them as easily. When only two of the three ships sent to Bear Island had been there initially, her worry had been great. Even more so when the passengers had disembarked and she had realized Jon was not on either ship. She had questioned the captains of both ships and they had told her of the ambush by Qunari vessels. On hearing their story she had angrily chastised both captains for abandoning the King. Fortunately those captains could confirm he had managed to make it out of that trap and was on his way. Even so she insisted they stay put until she was sure Jon was safe and sound as well.
Now that she had calmed down she had to admit there had been merit in them leaving when they did. Had they not chosen to escape the trap all three ships might have been caught in it. None might have come back then. These captains and their crews had saved lives, that was undeniable. But in so doing they had endangered one of the lives that mattered to her more than anything. It would take a while before she would forgive them for that. And if something had happened to Jon she was going to take it out on the hide of these captains.
Jon's his ship appeared a short while later, sailing through the darkness. A boat landed on the shore and in the torchlight she saw Jon step onto the sand along with Davos Seaworth and his mage advisor. He looked to be alright. She smiled and went to him, taking his hands in hers.
"Jon, thank goodness. They told me what happened. I'm glad you got out alright." She said.
"Yeah. It got rough. Could have gone a lot worse if not for Bran sending us help and Kieran being damn useful." Jon said, bowing his head.
"And there is more to this. There was a… message of sorts relayed to Kieran by Bran. Dany… Yara's fleet fell into a Qunari ambush and got largely wiped out." He explained, making her give a quiet gasp.
"Wait, attacked!? Yara, is she alright!? Where is she!?" Isabela demanded as Jon was about to continue, having overheard the conversation.
"I can help answer that." Kieran said, walking over and joining the conversation. "She lives, and you need to go look for her. She can be found amongst the ice rafts on the waters north of here."
"Uh… how… i-is that something else you were told?" She stammered.
"It is. I was asked to tell you." Kieran said simply.
"And you're sure of this? You're sure she still lives?" She asked.
"Reasonably sure. I don't think Lord Brandon would have told me this if it weren't the case. But I also believe that you intervention is imperative to help keep it that way. And that time is of the essence." He said.
"Right…" She said, biting her lip. "Your Grace, seeing as your King is here safe and sound I assume I'm free to go?"
"Certainly." Daenerys said.
"Good. I'm off." Isabela said and left immediately for the boats of her ship. The Ironborn Captain quietly took that as his crew to leave as well.
"Don't you want to get paid for your work at least?" Daenerys shouted after the pirate.
"I'll come back for it! Right now I have places to be and not enough time to get there!" The pirate shouted back.
Daenerys raised an eyebrow. "A Sellsail so eager to go after my Master of Ships she doesn't even have time to have her money first. I think now I have seen everything." she muttered before turning her attention back to Jon.
"Yara's fleet is gone, but what about the other two fleets? Do you know?" She asked of him.
"We have sent word to them, informing them of what happened and telling them to return to the Iron Islands. Seemed like the best thing to do at the time. Fortunately we had ravens on our ship."
"Jon, how on earth ravens to find…?" She began to ask. "Bran. That's how you expect they'll find the fleets?" She then realized.
"Yeah…" Jon confirmed.
Daenerys shook her head. "First he saves your lives with a kraken of all things. Then he is inexplicably able to know what is happening with our fleets. And now he can apparently take control of ravens to deliver message that otherwise could not possibly reach them. I'm not about to complain of the help but gods his abilities are unsettling."
"Seeing as he was the only reason the King even knew to come get us that is a sentiment I can echo Your Grace." A new voice spoke up. Daenerys saw Lyanna Mormont step off the boat helping a man she did not recognize ashore.
"Lady Mormont. I'm glad to see you. It has been years since the last time, has it not?" Daenerys greeted her.
"Not much reason for us to meet except during wartime. Not the happiest state of affairs admittedly, especially now that I have had to retreat from my home. But it is what it is. We must work from the present and make the best of our circumstances." Lyanna said.
"To that end my second in command and I are ready do what we can to help you and the King win this war." She added, nodding toward the man she had been assisting.
"Is your second alright? He looks a bit unwell." Daenerys queried, looking at the man standing close by holding his side.
"An injury sustained during our retreat, Your Grace. Nothing life threatening thankfully, thanks to the efforts of our Maester and Master Kieran." Caleb replied.
"Though if he is to be ready for more fighting in a timely fashion he could use special assistance." Lyanna opinioned. "I understand the Kingdoms have acquired mages that could deal with such an injury quickly?"
"We have. They are with our armies currently, but I can divert one to Winterfell for you." Daenerys said.
"We have brought horses and wagons for you. Make use of them as you need them." She said next, pointing behind her. "Once your people are ready we should leave this place. I do not think there are enemies nearby at the moment, but I don't think either of us wants to take risks until your people are at Winterfell."
"I certainly do not. I will get my people ready to go as soon as possible. Shouldn't take long. And once our people are settled in Wintertown my second and I will return to do our part in the fighting, as agreed. I'd best get on it."
"Your Grace. Your Grace." She said in conclusion, giving both Jon and Daenerys a nod in turn, then went with Caleb to organize matters.
For a moment the King and Queen watched Lady Mormont walking away in silence.
"It's always nice to get people out of danger. But that the Qunari were able to ambush you at all is worrying. Not to mention that they were able to take out Yara's fleet as efficiently as they did. That's a sizeable chunk of our navy just gone. Possibly Yara as well, if your cousin got his facts wrong. Not exactly an auspicious beginning to our war with the Qunari. Especially not since I have had a few setbacks of my own." She then spoke up.
"What happened? Jon asked.
"I tried attacking one of the Qunari forts as we discussed before. Managed to damage the place, but the Qunari cannons proved… problematic. Drogon got hit, and once again I can only be thankful Sansa and Davos had the bright idea to recruit mage healers to our cause. If not for them Drogon would have been grounded for weeks or months. Maybe worse than that. What's more the dragon saddle got damaged in the fight and had to be sent back to King's Landing for repairs. I can still fly him the old fashioned way, but there are several maneuvers that would be dangerous to attempt without the saddle. Unfortunately the same ones needed when facing these cannons. So until I get that saddle back we shouldn't use Drogon to attack this enemy. Not unless we are left with no other choice." She explained.
Jon sighed, looking at the ground. "Sounds like both of us are lucky to be alive."
"For a change." She said dryly. "This is starting to remind me of how our war with Orlais started. We face our enemy in good spirits and sure of ourselves, only for them to kick the confidence out of us right from the beginning. That's twice now that's happened to us. We can't let there be a third time."
"Agreed. Hopefully we have learned our lesson by now." He said.
"We cannot leave this to luck. We must learn all there is to know of the foreigners from Thedas, so we will never be caught off guard like this again." She said.
Jon nodded grimly. "So, seeing as Drogon cannot be flown against the Oxmen for a time, we will have to have our troops deal with them after all?"
"Yes. Our main force is still bigger than any garrison on these Qunari forts. And so long as the enemy are divided they are vulnerable. So we will continue with our original plan, except without Drogon. The contingents deployed to watch the Qunari will keep our foe in check while the bulk of our forces clear these forts one by one. Seeing as the Inquisition troops are fresh I have asked them to lead the assault against the fort I attacked. Since the fort is already damaged they should be enough to take it and having them do it will save our armies from taking more hits than they already have." She continued.
"And we get to see how good they are in a fight." He commented.
Daenerys nodded before continuing: "I have ordered the assault to take place the next morning, so we should hear news of this sometime tomorrow. As for our navy… I'll have to consider that further. If we are to drive the enemy from Bear Island we must find a way to cut sea access and secure our own crossing. But we also need to make sure this disaster won't happen a second time before we try again. For now they're better used defending the Iron Islands and the coastlands south of that. I just hope the warnings you sent reach their targets in time. Otherwise our navies will have taken a devastating loss."
"There is a lot in motion right now. We need to take this one day at a time and solve problems as they come our way." Jon said.
"Yes. Just like always." She said before turning her eyes to where Lyanna was organizing her people. "I think it would be best for you to travel part of the way with her group. I'll cover you from above until you are far enough inland that there is no risk of an attack. Then I'll fly both of us back to our army."
"You're willing to do that? Even without the saddle?" He asked.
"I'll be sure to fly us gently enough that there won't be any risk. And seeing as there is still much for us to do we should return to our troops as soon as possible." She said.
Jon nodded, then smiled and turned his eyes toward the sky. "At least it's a nice night for a flight."
Daenerys looked up as well. She had been too preoccupied to notice before, but Jon was right. The autumn had brought heavy cloud cover and frequent rains. But today the clouds had parted to let the stars shine through, the moon a white sickle in the sky. From up there the sights would be absolutely spectacular. If only they were living at peacetime, so they would have the time to enjoy it properly.
She smiled as well. "So it is…"
Maybe she would take a slightly longer route to her army than she had originally intended. It would be nice to have some time just for the two of them, even if only a brief moment…
Tyrion was on his way to the rooms provided to Iledia. She had not been here for long, but he already knew her to be an early riser, so he expected to find her already up and at work.
The mage had refused to drink while she was working. Slowly it had begun to dawn on him that this was the case for almost all her waking hours. Her work seemed to be what gave definition to her life and recharged her like nothing else could. Such productivity and dedication was an admirable quality, if a bit worrying considering her chosen occupation. Fortunately she was on their side, at least for the time being.
If there were other sides to her she was yet to show them. Indeed she seemed to guard herself very carefully, telling him what he needed to know and no more. She was polite and friendly enough, but so far had kept strictly to topics related to her work. It might be because they didn't yet know each other, and as their familiarity grew she would let her guard down more. Even so he did wonder if there was more to it.
He knocked on the door and proceeded inside when he heard the call to enter. He found her looking intently at a large map, pieces of paper attached to the map by needles at various locations. In addition several of the needles were connected together with strings of rope.
"Good morning Lord Hand." She greeted him without turning her eyes from the map.
"Good morning. What is all this?" He asked.
"My work." She said simply. "I'm having my agents run reconnaissance with support from Lord Brandon, getting a feel of the spy networks of the enemies of these Kingdoms. The maps are a great way to help visualize that. The pins are where enemy operatives have been identified. The strings marks associations. Blue for Orlesians, Red for Qunari and White for Venatori loyalist connections.
"Interesting. But if you know where enemy spies are why not simply snuff them out?" He asked.
"I could do so. And I will in cases where they represent an imminent danger. Like hunting down the mole that leaked you battle plans to the Qunari. But in the meantime it is useful to build a picture of the whole system. Much easier to hit our opposition where it hurts that way." She said.
"Each of these factions must have a base of operations for their networks here. Somewhere where reports are sent, forwarded to their respective home territories and where directives are issued to spy cells from. The most effective way to cripple enemy spying is to locate those hearts and rip them out."
"I see. How much progress have you made?" He asked.
"Some. But it's very early yet. There have been very few leads on the Orlesians for the moment. Abnormally few in fact. I think the defeat of their military may have caused a general retreat among their spy corps. I'll keep looking for a while longer to make sure of that. The Qunari seem to have been sending their reports somewhere in the Stepstones, though some of the more recent reports contradict this. It is possible that with the fall of Bear Island they have chosen to relocate the heart of their operations, but I do not know that for sure yet. As for the Tevinter… somewhere south of the Neck is as far as I've gotten so far."
"I'll find what I seek eventually. When I do, that will go to great lengths in stopping active spying." She assured.
"Though unfortunately that still leaves potential sleeper agents in our midst. But one thing at a time." She then added.
"Sleeper agents? I do not believe I know the term." Tyrion enquired.
"Something you have faced already with the Orlesians. Unlike your average spy, a sleeper agent does not actively send information to the faction they work for. Instead they watch and wait, living a normal existence. At the most they seek to place themselves in positions of importance. Until the day they are *activated*. Then they strike, to devastating effect. What's more since they don't actively spy for anyone they don't leave a trail of themselves. So they are damn near impossible to spot before they act." She explained.
"That sounds like quite a problem. Is there anything you can do against such?" He said.
"Little. Like I said, these are tricky to find. I might discover individuals that have no background beyond a certain point, or I might stumble across enemy messages referring to them. But that's just about it. I'm hoping there aren't that many of those left after what the Orlesians pulled. If there are… then rigorous security is likely our best defense against such things. You seem to have that well on hand." She said.
"Good to know we are doing something right in all of this at least." He commented.
"What of the other matter I asked you to look into?" He asked then.
"I've looked over the evidence you provided." She replied. "Like you I'm now convinced that materials were implanted in the hopes of making your investigation come to a specific conclusion. I'll start looking for the actual culprits. In the meantime keep on not making any announcements to either of the faiths."
Tyrion chuckled. "That goes without saying."
"If you don't mind, it's also better if we do not discuss this investigation until I have results." She continued. "Someone was able to find out the High Septon's plans and launch the assault against him. For the moment we have no idea who that might have been. I know I and my people were not in Westeros when this happened, so I know I can trust them. You would likely not have brought this to my attention if you had something to do with this. So I won't be looking at you unless I'm given reason to. But until I have more information I have to consider everyone else a suspect."
"Woah… Everyone is quite a list." He quipped.
"It is, but I'll be able to narrow it down quickly enough. Only so many people who could have known about this. Fewer that would have had the means to act on the information this efficiently. And even fewer that would have had a motive. Finding the ones actually responsible will take longer, but I am confident we will get there." She said.
"But again, I must stress you speak to no one of this matter for now. For instance that informant of yours… Aaron I believe he is called? You might mention this to him in passing, or on the theory he could assist me. Do not." She continued.
"So he is one of your suspects as well?" He asked, looking surprised.
"Everyone is, like I said. Even if he has nothing to do with this, word gets around. And if the wrong people hear of this, they will go to ground and cover their tracks for sure. We'll never find them then. The only way we will be able to nail these bastards is if they don't even know anyone is looking." She said.
"You're the expert, so I'll do as you ask. I expect to talk of this again when you have found the those who did this." He said.
"Thank you." She said. "Ah yes, before I forget I have sent agents to Essos as we discussed earlier. Far too soon to promise anything, but if all goes as planned we should start receiving reports from there as well. A few have been sent to make contact with the Second Son's as well. Establishing lines of communication with them could prove very useful in the long run."
"Indeed, particularly when there has been only limited information coming from Essos until now. The Dothraki have managed to send some messages to House Stallion in the past and merchants have brought back rumors, but that is just about it." He said.
"I must say, it is good to finally have an expert like yourself here. Makes we me think we might have a chance of winning after all. And you certainly seem to know what you are doing." He added.
"I do, though there are even better spymasters out there. The Inquisition's first spymaster for instance. Now there is an intimidating opponent, even today. The current spymaster is a professional of course, and very capable. But nothing like that first one." She said.
"If the first one was better at his job and is still around, why was there a switch to a new one?" Tyrion asked.
"I'm sorry, but I have no business telling you that. Just like I have no business telling you who these people actually are. Those are matters of security we'd best not tamper with if we want to remain on good terms with the Inquisition." She said.
"Very well. I was merely curious." Tyrion said, nodding. It figured that even as an ally there were some secrets the Inquisition wanted to keep. And keeping the identity of spymasters secret did make a kind of sense. Let them keep their secret then.
She cleared her throat, moving on to the next topic. "Lord Tyrion, I know I have only been here a short while, but I believe I should return to the Queen's side fairly soon. I can manage my network of contacts from almost anywhere. But I have other talents as well, and it would be negligent not to make use of the full range of my capabilities. So do you believe matters are sufficiently settled here for me to return to her?"
"I can let you go fairly soon." He assured. "There is one more immediate task that could use your help first though, which was in fact what I came to see you about."
"Oh? So what task is this then?" She asked.
"As you have likely already figured, the Twin Kingdoms have had a shortage of allies willing and able to come to our aid. The Inquisition has obviously been a big help in this regard, but even so it occurs to me there are some allies we have yet to approach. You see, many years ago while travelling through the Vale I happened upon some of the local tribesmen. They are a people that do not owe allegiance to any Noble House in Westeros, but at the time I was able to make a deal with them, recruiting them to the war being fought then in exchange for rewards. So, seeing that we have need of additional support in this war, I thought to see if they could be recruited to our side this time around." He explained.
"I see. And my role in all this?" She asked.
"You see, I need to be the one to contact them, since I'm the one who made this deal with them the first time. And since they are most likely all illiterate I cannot send them a message. I'll have to go meet them in person. Unfortunately the tribesmen can be somewhat… unpredictable. Since they are not formally citizens of the realm they might not respect my position as Hand of the Queen. I cannot say how a meeting with them might go. Now, ideally they will remember me and be eager to join forces with me again. But in case something goes wrong I will be needing guards. From what I hear of Thedosian mages you would be a potent addition to that. Going to the Vale will bring you part of the way to the Queen, and you can travel to her after our work is finished." He said.
"So you would like me to come along as a bodyguard? I think I could manage that. Using my magic to your benefit is one of the things I was sent here to do after all. But can you leave King's Landing to its own devices?" She said.
"For a while, I'm certain. The faiths are being kept in check by the guards I have called upon and I have heard of no other imminent threat to the city. And the Crown Prince is as safe as I can conceivably make him. There is nothing further for me to contribute in that matter. Manfrey Martell can manage things in our absence." Tyrion said.
"Good to hear." She said. "How soon will we leave?"
"A few days, so I can make sure all is in order and there won't be unpleasant surprises waiting on my return." Said he.
"I'll be ready. And when we leave I want to hear the details of how you met these tribesmen. That sounds like something I should have full knowledge of before we go to treat with them." She said.
An Inquisition Captain named Herbert peered through the trees at the Qunari fort. Even from here the damage done by the dragon was obvious. The Qunari had not had time to repair it. Most notably there was still a sizeable hole in the wall he had decided to lead his troops through.
He turned his head, looking at the Inquisition soldiers hiding around him. They had been creeping forward little by little since morning, hoping to go unnoticed by the enemy. The closer they could get without being noticed, the shorter the distance they would have to charge under fire from the enemy cannons.
There were perhaps a hundred soldiers with him. Another thousand men were waiting for his signal further back. Additional troops of the Westerosi were on standby to reinforce them, but they were to be called upon only in the event the Qunari defenders proved more that the Inquisition troops could handle. Today's assault was to be the Inquisitions job, their first military action in support of the Twin Kingdoms.
His unit was to function as a spearhead, to storm the breach before the enemy had time to react and create a foothold inside the enemy defenses through which the Inquisition regiment would enter and take the fort. It was a dangerous prospect for his company, just like being on the front lines of any battle. A breach like this would be aggressively defended, likely protected by traps and other means. It all but guaranteed heavy losses for his soldiers. But he trusted the people under his command to see this through even so. They were able fighters, picked for this task by their superiors because of their excellent performance record. This was a hazardous task, but also an honor to have them picked to carry out such an important part of the assault.
He could see guards, some patrolling while others were stationary. Also several cannons. No sign that the enemy had noticed them yet.
It was time to act. He nodded to the soldiers next to him. Swords were unsheathed, his company awaiting his word.
"Inquisition! To the breach! Attack!" He shouted, standing up waving towards the fort with his blade. He and his company ran forward, their shouts accompanying them as they charged. A horn was blown to signal the regiment behind to begin their assault. Qunari guards were shouting warnings and pointing at them. A few guns were discharged, raising plumes of earth around the Inquisition soldiers, but failing to slay any for the moment. It was far less than he would have expected. It looked as if they had truly managed to catch the enemy by surprise. A good start then.
The first of his soldiers arrived at the breach. He had just enough time to see a thin cord snap, followed by and explosion that tore those troopers apart. Their first casualties. Undaunted the rest of them surged forward, soon getting past the breach and the outer wall.
On the other side they found two more guns lying in wait to the right and left of them. Both cannons fired simultaneously as soon as enough of the company was in their firing arc. Normal cannonballs would have slain a few of them, but these cannons blasted them with a storm of small steel pellets, two dozen soldiers torn apart in an instant.
Then something very unexpected happened: The cannon crews shoved lit grenades down the barrels of their weapons, then turned tail and ran. One or two were caught and killed by the Inquisition soldiers, but the rest fled up the wall and down ropes to the far side. The cannon crews on the outer wall did the same. The grenades exploded inside the cannon barrels, rendering them useless. And then the fight just… ended. No further enemies challenged them, no further cannons fired on them. The Inquisition soldiers were left where they stood, looking around in confusion.
"The… the fuck? Where did they all go?" One of the soldiers asked.
"Good question. There's supposed to be hundreds here, not just this handful." Herbert commented.
"Hiding somewhere else maybe?" Another soldier suggested.
"Could be…" Herbert commented, though he was not convinced this was the explanation.
"Spread out by squads and search the place. Find the enemy if they are still here." He ordered.
"You. Go tell the regiment to stay outside the fort for the moment. Something's wrong here." He told another soldier, who nodded and left the way they had come.¨
Around this time he noticed that what he had thought were stationary guards were actually straw men dressed in Qunari gear. Curious.
"Captain! Take a look at this!" A soldier on the wall called out. With the help of another soldier something was dropped on the ground.
Herbert went to take a closer look, discovering a contraption in the shape of a Qunari cannon, but fashioned completely out of wood. It was made convincingly enough that it could easily be mistaken for the real thing from a distance.
"Huh. Fake troops, fake cannons. I'm starting to think the Oxmen have gone somewhere and left all this crap here to make us think otherwise. Left a few real guys and cannons behind just to make the ruse that much more convincing. But where are they now?" He mused.
"Alright, let's complete our search. If no one is home then I'll go ask the Colonel for new instructions." He told his troops.
With no enemy find outside, they circled around to the opposite side of the fort and entered the underground portion through the gate there. You had to give it to the Qunari, they had put thought in the design of this place. The central corridor was not a straight line, instead zigzagging in sharp turns. Had there been any defenders, that design would have definitely helped them hold this place. At regular intervals there where doors leading to smaller corridors, which in turn had doors leading to rooms. All the rooms were empty aside from smashed furniture, the enemy leaving nothing of value behind. Holders for torches were also plentiful along the walls, but all of these were empty as well. It was fortunate the Inquisition had anticipated having to fight underground, having brought torches of their own that now lit their way.
At the far end the main corridor split in three directions, leading to larger rooms. Those had had also been emptied, leaving no clues as to their purpose. There at the end of the main corridor they also found a staircase heading up to the roof and further down. Herbert decided to go down, descending the stairs with a torch in his hands and a few of his troops with him. The stairs led to a reinforced door, and on the ground he spotted a heavy padlock.
"Guess the Horn Heads didn't bother to lock up after themselves when they left." He thought. It was curious the Qunari had paid so much attention to fortifying this particular door and none of the others. Something of value had to have been kept in here.
Opening the door he saw a large room loaded with barrels. At that moment something else happened as well. A cord attached to the door fell off, lighting up with a sparkling flame that rapidly advanced along the length of the cord. His eyes followed the cord, seeing it connected to the mouth of one of the barrels.
For a moment he did not understand what he saw. Then his eyes widened in shock.
"OUT! EVERYONE OUT! NOW!" He shouted as loud as he could. But it was already too late. The flame disappeared inside the barrel. The barrel full of gaatlock exploded, setting off all the other barrels in the room. Those not killed in the explosion were buried alive when the earthen tunnels collapsed on them. Only those who happened to be on the outside survived.
"They destroyed their own fort?" Daenerys asked in puzzlement. She and Jon were now in the command tent where an Inquisition officer had arrived to bring them a report of the assault.
"Yes Your Grace. We surmise their intention was to use it as a trap to destroy our attacking forces." The officer said.
"How many were lost?" Jon asked.
"A single company was almost totally destroyed. We can be thankful the company's Captain was alert and cautious, otherwise the cost might have been much higher." The officer said.
"I would have preferred if your Captain was alert enough not to set off this trap in the first place." Daenerys said dryly. "And the Qunari troops watching over the fort?" She asked next.
"We have found no sign of them. The dreadnoughts you reported having been in the area are gone as well. The survivors from the explosion report the enemy had put considerable effort in creating the impression that the fort was occupied. Given the time to make such preparation we can assume the actual garrison has been gone for some time. How long ago this might have been we have no way to estimate." The officer said.
"Very well. You may return to your troops." Daenerys said.
The officer saluted and left. Daenerys and Jon moved to a war map nearby, and she removed one of the red markers representing the Qunari forts.
"Almost a hundred people lost, in exchange for next to nothing. The Qunari have lost one of their forts, but it sounds like it was nothing but mud and twigs by the time our people got there. And now that they've blown it up we can't even make use of it ourselves. And in addition we now have several hundred Qunari soldiers missing. Enough to conduct raids at least." She said.
"Perhaps more than that. Qunari are tough." Jon said.
"I don't think those troops are just gone though. Harming our troops like this I get as something they want to accomplish, but if the Qunari want to win this war they need to take and hold territory. They have to have some plan to do so. Pulling back almost without a fight doesn't serve that. Unless there is more going on." He added.
Daenerys considered, then nodded. "You're right. There must be a plan we don't yet understand. We must find out what it is."
"We'll increase our patrols, to find either these troops or the ships that might be transporting them. Since this fort is no more our army will move on to the next one. I'll leave some scouts here to alert us if the Qunari return. For now that is all we can do." She decided.
"Agreed." Jon said after a moment of consideration.