Chapter Seventy-one: Qarth.
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~~~Lucius, Military Minister~~~
~~~Second-Third Moon, 277 AC~~~
~~~Qarth~~~
"BOOOM!"
The explosion was so loud that it sent a blast of air and sand everywhere, sending the soldiers stationed at the crash sites on the wall where the TNT exploded flying.
Still, as surprising as it seemed, the first TNT hit did not completely demolish the outer wall; it only destroyed the palisade at its top, causing several blocks and stones to fall.
However, we had brought enough TNT, so without waiting any longer, I ordered another round, watching from a distance as the cannons fired another round of TNT at the ramparts.
"BOOOM!"
Another round rang out, and this time, the power of TNT was on full display.
First, it was seen in the distance as sand and rocks began to break away from the once-pristine wall, causing a chain fall that ended in the entire front of the wall coming down.
Seeing that the TNT had worked, I gave new orders: [Memēbagon naejot se dracag rucege se perzys arlī (have them advance to the firing range and fire again)].
The sound of drums and flags catching the air soon made themselves felt again, and just as before, the loud sound of TNT was heard again, this time louder, knocking down the middle wall. At this rate, the city's inner wall would be destroyed, allowing the Horde legions to enter the city.
However, something unexpected happened: one of the Qarth scorpions stationed on the walls managed to hit one of the TNT cannons, causing the cannon to explode, eventually killing the group of unsullied who were operating the cannon.
This filled me with extreme anger. I knew that death was inevitable in war; however, I hoped that the death was of the enemies, and if there were allied deaths, then try to keep them to a minimum. Even so, seeing fellow Xandarians die ignited in me a spark of wanting to murder everyone who started such a conflict.
[Pryjagon se wuks, mīsagon se qarnons se jiōragon se lakons ruñady naejot memēbagon (Destroy the walls, protect the cannons, and have the legions ready to march)]
This time, the cannon operators did not play around. Once they were in firing range, they rained fire on the walls.
[se ēlī hāre jiōragon naejot memēbagon (let the first three legions advance)] Immediately, sixty thousand men in plate armor mounted on armored horses began to march, advancing slowly until they reached a high speed.
The tide of men advanced smoothly, with the propellers stopping the arrows, scorpions, and rocks hurled by the catapults at the walls. This invention saved countless lives while helping to destroy the weapons on the walls when the propellers fell, providing protection and attack to the advance guard.
The three legions, raising a wave of dust and yellow earth, approached Qarth with determination to bleed the enemies of Xandar while the TNT cannons halted their assault for fear of wounding the allies on the field.
Instead, the allied scorpions and propellers did not cease their assault, destroying the defenders' morale on the ramparts and giving way for the next move.
[Ivestragī se telavurs memēbagon (let the towers advance)] I commanded, watching as my orders were relayed until I reached the twenty towers that stood still so far.
The towers, pulled by two devastators each, began to advance to the outer wall of Qarth, while the unsullied within them were protected from arrows and scorpions thanks to the netherite plates.
As for the devastators, the rain of arrows or momentary scorpions that managed to hit them did not harm them, thanks to their thick and resistant skin. Instead, it only made them angry and caused them to pull the towers faster.
On the walls, the legions began combat with the soldiers of Qarth, who, with shields and arrows, began to fight against the legions, taking advantage of the tiny space to move and the bottleneck that had been created.
However, just then, several distant roars were heard. Taking my spyglass and focusing it on the sky, I could see several black dots flying overhead from the direction of Tavalar, which grew larger and larger.
The wyverns had arrived.
As I focused on the wyverns, I saw that the towers had reached the wall. Each tower carried five hundred unsullied and crashed into the outer wall as massive steel gates dropped. This allowed the unsullied to climb the outer wall and engage the few soldiers on it.
The Qarthian soldiers, armed with short swords and round shields, presented no problem for the unsullied, who, even after being freed and many of them starting families, never stopped being soldiers, training every day without fail.
This, along with the strength and speed potions present, their steel armor, and top-of-the-line weapons, presented the unsullied as enemies that the Qarthian soldiers could not stand up to.
Once the unsullied controlled the first wall, two hundred of them went to the place the Horde legions were using to enter the city. The unsullied, putting away their swords and placing their spears on their backs, took enchanted bows and began firing arrow after arrow at the soldiers, stopping the Horde's advance into the city.
At the same time, the remaining eight hundred unsullied took some plates that they had brought into the towers. These plates were made of netherite, so even with their large size, they did not weigh much, making them easy to maneuver.
The unsullied took the plates and lifted them. Once they measured the distance, they dropped them towards the middle wall of Qarth, which covered the ten meters between both walls and served as an improvised bridge for the unsullied, who began to use them to pass to the second wall of Qarth.
The wyverns had arrived, flying over the two Horde legions that had remained as reinforcement and protection for the siege weapons. At the same time, a wyvern flew away from the group and landed.
Taking a good look, I observed that it was Valery's wyvern, which climbed onto its mount and reached the tower where I was, ordering the wyvern to land on the roof of it.
"What orders do you have for the wyvern riders?" she asked me once she reached me.
As for what I wanted from them, it was easy, so I clarified everything to him without wasting any time. "Asphyxiation at the Qarthian forces stationed on the ground, use the enchanted bows, and kill every enemy you see while providing additional protection to the allied soldiers on the ground."
Valery nodded and climbed on her wyvern, taking flight until she reached the riders in the sky. She gave them my orders and flew them to the city to carry them out.
With the arrival of the wyvern, the advance of the allied forces that had been at a stalemate on the ramparts felt a respite. With the wanderings of arrows falling from the sky and the unsullied firing from the ramparts, the Qarthenses soldiers on the ground were losing more and more ground.
Until, in a multiple advance of the legions, they broke through the walls and entered the city. With that, the battle was won, and at the same time that evening, Qarth burned.
The fate Sabhana had wanted to avoid when she met with the leaders' envoys was brought about after all; with the Horde's advance into the city, the dead were piling up. The Temple of Memory was attacked, any guard who would not surrender was slain, and the marble gardens were burned.
The Horde advanced like locusts, killing every soldier, guard, or mercenary who did not surrender, filling the streets with bodies, the ditches with blood, and the atmosphere with screams and wails.
However, not a single innocent soul was taken; every civilian who was found was taken away from the fury of battle to avoid getting hurt, just as the lives of anyone who surrendered were spared.
The Dothraki, a year ago, a band of savages and barbarians, along with being the pillar of slavery, had grown into a righteous Horde, which, even without the presence of their king and khal, behaved and followed the orders of those who their khal commanded, it was a wonder to see.
Soon, Qarth fell, with only a handful of hundreds of soldiers guarding the palace of the city's leader, where the famous Hall of a Thousand Thrones was also located. However, that place would fall, too, and all of Qarth would be another example of why the sleeping dragon of Xandar was not to be tackled.