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Chapter 13

=Sith=

Part 3

=Sith=

291 AC

Meereen

Tense air pressed upon the pyramid. Oznak zo Pahl quickly strode in, walking beside his father. Sellsword Captains and officers from the Meereen's fledgling army were already in the big audience hall, gathered around a large table covered with maps and parchment.

An envoy from Yunkai, notably not Agnak, was also present. He waved his hands, making wild gestures, while his voice carried on throughout the large hall.

"He's more dangerous than we feared! It's been mere months, and the Targaryen bastard has already turned tens of thousands of slaves into warriors! They'll come for you next if we don't stop them at Yunkai and crush Astapor now!"
Father and son glanced at each other before joining the crowd.

"What's the meaning of this, envoy?" The Commander of Meereen's City Guard demanded. They've heard only rumors so far and came as fast as possible to get answers.

"Viserys marches on my fair city! He'll be at the gates in a day or two at most!" the Envoy waved his hands in distress. "He brought out thousands of Unsullied and tens of thousands of armed and trained slaves! It's an army made to destroy our way of life!"
Uneasy murmurs broke around the table.

"We aren't ready to face the Unsullied in open combat. We lack the numbers for it," one of the Sellswords pointed out. "If we are to go aid Yunkai, we should sail and help its warriors hold the walls until you can gather sufficient numbers."

Every single mercenary nodded sagely at that. After all, Oznakhad learned as of late, he had no reason to nay-say them… even if it burned being told what he couldn't do.

"Magic hasn't won wars in ages," another Captain added. "However, a Sorcerer leading a large, dangerous army is a different beast. We can't assume Viserys Targaryen is an arrogant fool who has come out to die on our blades. He might have a way to breach Yunkai's walls and allow his army to storm the city. If we march, we might be too late to make a difference and might end in the open, where the Unsullied have the advantage."

The Sellswords exchanged looks before the commander of the largest company contracted to Meereen spoke next.
"Can we rely on your navy to transport us to Yunkai? The Sorcerer marching against us might turn into an unexpected boon," the tall, wiry man looked at the Envoy. "You said that the enemy lacked cavalry?"

"Our scouts only saw infantry and enemy scouts, no cavalry to speak of," the Yunkish man nodded rapidly.

"That's a weakness we can exploit! We should reinforce and hold Yunkai, pinning the enemy there. Then we deploy all our cavalry and the horsemen you can hire with your navy to cut them off from Astapor. We starve them and force them to retreat while harrying them on the way back! We will only strike when they're sufficiently exhausted, and we have an overwhelming advantage!"
Oznak nodded slowly at that. He was now painfully aware now that it would be months before the City Guard, much less the newly raised army would be ready for anything like real combat, much less against the likes of the Unsullied. They would have to rely on Sellswords to do the bulk of the fighting, though that wasn't really a bad thing. That way, when the dust settles, Meereen could end up with a largely intact, bloodied army ready to help him rejuvenate his people.

"The Captains speak sense," Oznak's father interjected. "We will send some of our best men to defend our great allies in Yunkai. However, our army is not ready to march or fight in open combat."

"We've sent Envoys to Tolos and Mantarys as well!" The Envoy proclaimed, proving he was not of the same quality as Agnak. Yunkai potentially receiving more reinforcements from those corners was not an incentive for Meereen to deploy more forces than they otherwise would before its army was ready.

The conversation then shifted to logistics – how to gather and transport the necessary men, arms, and supplies as fast and efficiently as possible. Such things should have been below Oznak's notice, left for menials and slaves to deal with. Now, he knew better and paid close attention to the discussion between the Sellswords and the Navy Captains.

Enough ships could sail tomorrow. Loading them with everything necessary might take longer unless everyone pitched in and ensured there were no disruptions. Moving forces from camps outside the city to the harbor and loading them on ships in an orderly manner turned out to be anything but a trivial affair.

=Sith=

291 AC
Yunkai

Row after row of armored Unsullied marched in the field before the city walls. Their columns were neatly spread out, forming walls of shields and spear tips before the rest of the Sorcerer's army and Yunkai. It was an impressive display, beautiful in a sense.
For Agnak zo Ghaqa, it brought nothing but dread. Hated banners fluttered above the deploying army. Since the Doom and the Century of Blood that followed, Essos has been free from the loathed Valyrian Dragonlords. The Sorcerer might not have fire-breathing monsters at his disposal, yet he had an army of liberated slaves, and in a sense, that was worse. Even at its worst and most arrogant, the Valyrians who broke the great Ghiscari Empire never wanted to change the very fabric of society like this dangerous upstart!

Viserys Targaryen made all of Agnak's fears manifest in the field below. There were tens of thousands of liberated slaves turned warriors who had come to destroy his city and murder everyone of quality in it. For days now, the City Guard and what few mercenaries were in Yunkai, backed by the small army they were busy raising, were all busy locking down all the slaves in the city to ensure there wouldn't be problems from that corner. A slave revolt could seal their fate before reinforcements from their allies could arrive.

Agnak and many other Wise Masters looked with hatred and no small amount of fear at how the invaders began setting up a large fortified camp while the Unsullied stood guard. The Sorcerer Prince was here to stay and besiege the city then. That by itself was going to be a great affront to the self-styled Queen of Cities. The enemy's very presence was a great blow to their prestige, one that couldn't be allowed to stand. These weren't Dothraki to be bought, but instead, a danger the likes Yunkai hadn't suffered since before the Doom, and that couldn't be allowed to stand!

Curiously enough, the Sorcerer didn't come to bluster or threaten until the sun almost set and the camp behind the Unsullied was all but complete. There was no mistaking the pair who rode surrounded by a small cluster of armored horsemen as anything but Valyrian. Even at a distance, their silver hair betrayed their origin. Agnak thought the fluttering Targaryen banners were clue enough as well.

A pained, grim chuckle brought the Envoy out of his thoughts, and he looked behind where a cross towered above the City Gate. A Principality ship Captain captured by Tolos' navy hung there, baking for days now. The man was in bad shape, covered in blisters and nearly dead from dehydration, but still clung to life.

"Wise Masters," a voice struck like a whip, carried like a dragon's roar all over Yunkai. There was no mistaking the derision it held for the title of the city's nobility. "For the sake of my people, who will die storming your hive of slaver scum, I will give you a one-time offer. Surrender Yunkai, board your ships, and flee, and you will die another time. Resist, and I will make an example of every single one of you for torturing and murdering my people!" An armored finger pointed at the crucified man behind the Wise Masters. "I will repay such atrocities a thousandfold."

One of Agnak's fellow nobles snorted nervously at that.

"Does he really expect we will abandon our city and run?"

"He's a mad sorcerer. Who knows what he expects?" An older man noted.

"Choose, Wise Masters. Prove yourselves truly wise, or die screaming," Viserys demanded.

"There's nothing more for us to see or hear here," Agnak decided, speaking aloud. "We should not entertain that mad dog."
The Wise Masters around him murmured agreements and curses aimed at the Valyrian Sorcerer before slowly making their way off the walls.

"An example it is, then," Viserys Targaryen concluded. "You have chosen death. Good."

A shiver ran down Agnak's spine at the dark glee dripping from those words. He was still on the ramparts above the main gates when Viserys dismounted along with half the riders. At the same time, the rest and all the horses trotted back towards the Unsullied lines. The slave soldiers advanced closer to the walls, while behind them, more and more liberated slaves began forming into solid blocks.

The Envoy stared without comprehending. He was no warrior, but even he knew that attempting to storm Yunkai's walls without siege equipment and a much larger army would be pure madness.

The Sorcerer apparently disagreed. Cries of alarm rang over the walls, and City Guard officers cried orders for everyone to prepare to fend off an assault. In the city behind, cavalry squadrons and groups of warriors serving the city or various Noble Houses hurried forward upon hearing of the danger.

Archers and slingers prepared their weapons, while a hundred or so Unsullied hurried to surround the Sorcerer and his personal guard with a shield wall before advancing on the gates. Agnak watched without comprehending how that small group of madmen walked toward the city.

"Aim!" The City Guard's Commander cried.

Hundreds of archers notched arrows and pulled the strings of their bows. In places, guards moved aside to give slingers space to do their work. The enemy walked into range.

"Loose! Kill the Sorcerer!"

Hundreds of arrows and stones whistled through the air, creating a sharp, distinct noise the likes of which Agnak had never heard before.

The shielded formation didn't even falter. It kept advancing, and in a moment, it became painfully clear that the shields were raised just in case. All the projectiles flying at the Sorcerer and his cronies froze when they got close to them. Agnak inhaled sharply, feeling faint. Knowing that Viserys Targaryen was a powerful Sorcerer was one thing. Seeing it for yourself was something different altogether!

The Wise Master watched, appalled history unfold. All the arrows turned around to point at the walls before they and the stones flew back, altering the ramparts and forcing everyone to take cover. After the deadly rain stopped after a few moments, he dared glance over the edge of the fortification on top of the gates. Agnak saw the shield wall open to reveal an armored figure that ran towards them before closing and resuming its slow but steady advance.

"Shoot the Sorcerer!" the Guard Commander screamed. "Don't let him reach us!"

Arrows, stones, and javelins flew at the mad Sorcerer, only to miss or be swept away by invisible magic, letting him advance unmolested. Only now did it dawn on Agnak that he was right where Viserys Targaryen was aiming, with murder on his mind. The Wise Master decided that making himself scarce and perhaps taking his family to the docks and the first reliable ship he could find was the wise thing to do.

=Sith=

Part 4

=Sith=

291 AC

Yunkai

There was no appreciable fear yet. Instead, a fog of confusion and disbelief shrouded Yunkai while Viserys ran toward the gates. Upon the city's walls, soldiers fired more arrows and stones at him, becoming more and more accurate as he ran closer. The Force hummed in contentment as he seized more of its power, shaping it into a wall of invisible energy and bulldozing through a hail of projectiles.

The enemy got off a third shot before Viserys got close enough to vault towards the fortifications above Yunkai's gates. That salvo had as little effect as the first two attempts to stuff him full of arrows or smash his head with a stone. By now, it was beginning to dawn on the locals that they had no idea what they were dealing with. Fear crept into people's hearts like a poison, feeding the Dark Side.

The Sith sprang forward in a burst of Force-enhanced speed before leaping at the walls. Briefly, he felt like the air itself was pushing him forward. His Targaryen blood sang at the closest he got to actually flying. The Force rippled around Viserys as he rapidly approached the wall midway between the gate below and the rampart's top. He seized more power and focused it around his arms and legs just before touching the yellow stones. For a brief moment, Viserys clung to the fortification, seemingly defying gravity. The Force he was channeling absorbed all the kinetic energy of his landing, redirecting it into a rippling shock-wave that aided him in vaulting from the vertical wall right over the rampart above. He landed lightly on his feet, using the same technique to redirect all his momentum and kinetic energy from his landing to the surrounding area. The end result was predictable and very useful, even without enhancing it further with the Force.

Officers and regular soldiers had a moment of stunned disbelief before a wave of invisible power threw them off their feet, and in most cases, off the wall to land on the ground below. The height was just enough to make a fall survivable if they landed on their feet.

The defenders farther away from Viserys only ended up pushed away, often stumbling off their feet, but remained on the tower for the time being. That state of affairs changed when the Sith waved a hand and telekinetically shoved half of the remaining Yunkish off the tower to their death. He didn't bother drawing his sword yet but instead repeated the exercise, buying himself breathing room.

Two of the soldiers thrown off their feet, fortunate enough to be only shoved at the rampart with enough force to daze them briefly instead of flung to their deaths. Their luck ran out a moment later when Viserys drew his sword and pulled one of the soldiers into it, skewering him. He then shoved his newest victim in the path of a few arrows shot by enterprising warriors on the walls below. The last defender on the top of the tower managed to get up to his feet just in time to receive a telekinetic wave into the face so he could fly into the city.

Viserys spared a moment to look around and feel for anything unexpected through the Force. There were many confused and scared people all around, though in many cases, the fear was morphing into anger. For the time being, fight was winning in the conflict between a fight and flight reflex. That was commendable, really. Viserys idly wondered how long it would last. At the same time, he unlimbered a knotted rope with a hook at the end he borrowed from one of the Unsullied and anchored it to the wall before throwing the rope outside. Now, his soldiers had a way to reinforce him.

More arrows flew at the tower the locals lost control of. Viserys batted them away with the Force, not wasting time to return them to the senders. Instead, he waved at the Unsullied below, who were jogging towards the gate while maintaining a "tortoise" like formation with their shields. As soon as they got close enough, the front of the formation opened up, and a pair of soldiers threw hooks tied to more knotted ropes at the tower Viserys held. The Sith used the Force to pull up the ropes and secure them in place, ensuring more of his people could climb simultaneously. With that done, it was time to do something about the archers and other defenders holding the area.

Said defenders had decided it was high time they did something more constructive about the Sorcerer who just invaded their city, and groups of them rushed the tower. A covered stairway led to the guardhouse above the city gate, and a ladder with a hatch above for people to climb up and down within the tower itself. The hatch was closed, so that wasn't something Viserys had to immediately worry about. The other path for infantry to get up to him was just large enough for two people to barely squeeze past each other, turning the passage into a chokepoint.

Even if he wasn't a Sith, Viserys would have been reasonably able to hold that position for long enough that his Unsullied could climb up and reinforce him, even with them suffering a lot of casualties in the process.
A Valyrian Steel sword guided by an arm enhanced with the Force was an overkill for the soldiers trying to retake the tower. Now that Viserys had a few moments to stop and think. At the same time, training and experience guided his blade, he found himself underwhelmed and disappointed.

So far, the plan to take Yunkai has been going as well as expected. The enemy had no real idea what they were dealing with, and it showed. That didn't stop Viserys from craving a worthy opponent to cross blades with and vanquish. His warrior's heart craved a proper challenge, while his mind was more than content to take an easy win and run with it. He cut down a fifth Yunkish, trying to shove his way through the cramped passage, choking the place with corpses and putting a stop to the local's attempt to retake the area. For some reason, whoever was below him in the tower was either craven or smart enough not to try and climb through the other ladder. If they were smarter, they would be making the room below a death trap for anyone trying to force their way down. It wouldn't work against him. However, the local soldiers didn't know that.

The first Unsullied finally got over the wall and landed heavily beside Viserys. The Sith glanced critically at his soldier, noting that at least five arrows were stuck into his lamellar armor. He had to remind himself that arrows tended to be far less deadly than modern weapons. Even if you had enough of them to be a dead man walking, unless you got hit in the head without a helmet, the heart, or a major artery, you could actually keep fighting for some time driven by adrenaline or an equivalent substance for aliens.

The Unsullied gingerly moved out of the way and unlimbered a climbing rope before collapsing. Viserys secured the hook in place and threw the rope over the wall. Lighting danced over his fingers as he walked towards the side of the tower overlooking the walls. Meanwhile, two more Unsullied climbed up, mostly intact. They wasted no time going for the stairways, ensuring no one would bother Viserys from that direction.

=Sith=

Running away was no longer something to do just in case, Agnak zo Ghaqa decided as soon as a city guard fell off the walls screaming and almost landed on top of him. The Wise Master was not particularly close to the walls at that…. And the warrior who nearly fell on him wasn't the only one to suffer the same fate.

"Clear us a way!" Agnak screamed at his household guards. There wasn't even a palanquin with slaves to carry him home! He had to ride to the walls and back, for the slaves couldn't necessarily trusted with Viserys at the gates… or on top of the gates now.
Lighting crackled, and people howled in agony. Agnak swung his head back towards the walls and saw purple forks of lighting lick the ramparts, spreading like wildfire from the tower the Targaryen took apparently by himself.

"Hurry, you fools!" Agnak screamed at his guards as fear clawed at his heart. This was the kind of sorcery no one had seen since before the Doom! Such things were supposed to be legends now, not grim reality wielded by never sufficiently damned Valyrians!
The Captain of Agnak's guard took one look at the walls and roared orders. Spearmen lowered their weapons and marched forward, ready to skewer anyone who got in their way. The same was true for the few other Wise Masters in the area.

None of them thought about how their actions might affect the groups of the city guard and the fledgling Yunkish army hurrying to plug the breach into their city's defenses.