Game of Thrones: Viserys the Three-Headed Dragon.

Chapter 90: Stannis
Flames raged over the Blackwater River.

The green wildfires and the flames from the burning ships that cluttered the estuary created a strange blue-green glow.

The mouth of the Blackwater River became the gateway to hell.

At the wide estuary where the river flows into Blackwater Bay, a huge iron chain stretched tightly, and many burning ships were piled in front of the iron chain, like a barrier. The rushing black water was pulling other ships over. All the ships were burning, and even the intact ones were not spared. At the other end of the iron chain was a pirate ship with a painted hull that they dared not approach in horror.

A long wall of red-hot steel, blazing timbers and swirling blue-green flames stands across the Black Water River with iron chains.

King Stannis's horse stumbled over a corpse, its hooves slipped, churning up mud, and he nearly fell off his horse, but his guards held on to the horses, and they finally managed to regain their balance.

King Stannis, surrounded by panicked soldiers, fled to the slow-flowing river outside the iron chain on the south bank. The ground was wet and slippery, half mud and half blood.

The naval attack failed, but King Stannis still had an army.

However, the golden rose flag appeared on the left, the golden lion flag attacked on the north bank, and there were also the burning tree of Marbrand, the golden tree of Rowan, the striding hunters of Tully, the grapes of Redwynn, and the oak leaves of Countess Oakheart, and Renly. When Renly appeared on the battlefield wearing bright green armor and led the cavalry to attack the center in a wedge formation, the flags of the Stormlands in Stannis' army were scattered on the battlefield, and countless Stormlands soldiers abandoned their weapons and fled. The army collapsed in an instant.

The enemy's pursuers were shouting "Long live Renly".

King Stannis looked ashen.

Fortunately, the loyal guards took the king to the slow-flowing muddy land at the south bank estuary outside the iron chain. The pirate Salador Saan's painted Lys warship had already arrived at the river and was waiting. If one was not careful, the shallows would run aground, and even small warships could not get too close.

The king, almost exhausted, was unhorsed and carried carelessly along the muddy beach into the shallow water to the ships. King Stannis was carried aboard first, followed by the guards.

As soon as a ship was full, it sailed away.

In the darkness of night, countless Stannis's soldiers were fleeing here frantically.

There were constant wailing, screams, and the cries of the pursuing soldiers behind.

More and more soldiers gathered in the narrow sandy area, with no one to maintain order. Some shouted for help, dropped their armor and swam directly towards the ship, while others stepped into the deep water and drowned, struggling but unable to save them.
There were only more than twenty Lys warships, and the Valyrian with 300 oars could not approach the shallows, so they could only symbolically set up crossbows in the deep water to defend against the invisible pursuers. She had already dropped all the rescue ships that accompanied her. Even so, they could not rescue so many fleeing soldiers.

The shouts and cries of the pursuing troops gradually drew closer, and the defeated soldiers began to trample on each other and fight for a place on board.

King Stannis could only stare at the scene, unable to do anything.

Suddenly someone exclaimed, "There's a boat coming downstream! Is it the enemy?"

The king closed his eyes in despair.

Soon, someone shouted, "It's friendly troops! Quick, let them go to meet the soldiers on the beach."

King Stannis looked down and saw five galleys and a longship of fifty, all flying Stannis's king's standard.

More ships joined in. Although they still could not get close to the shoal, these five hundred-oared ships and the pirate Salador Saan's three hundred-oared ships, together with their crossbows, were enough to cover a short-term retreat. At the same time, more small boats could be sent to pick up the fleeing soldiers.

This team of about two thousand cavalrymen fled and finally abandoned all their horses, and more than half of them threw away their weapons and armor and were temporarily saved.

The pursuers had no ships, so they could only watch Stannis's defeated army sail away from the bay.

Many people look at the map and think that King's Landing and Dragonstone are very close, but Westeros is a very vast continent. It takes 3-4 days to sail from King's Landing to Dragonstone on Blackwater Bay.

King Stannis was transferred to one of the five galleys that night.

After asking, they learned that they were the ships that were scattered by the storm when the fleet entered Blackwater Bay from the Throat. They were blown into the Narrow Sea. When they returned to Sharp Point Harbor, they heard that the fleet had gathered and set out half a day ago. They thought they had missed the battle and planned to rest at Sharp Point Harbor and repair the ships that were severely damaged in the storm.

Unexpectedly, Lady Melisandre found them in the Pointed Castle and told them: "The king needs you."

Then they rushed to King's Landing, and happened to see the king's soldiers fleeing.

"Melisandre," the king said, his teeth moving slowly back and forth. "Where is she now?"

The people on the ship told him: "Lady Melisandre is in the Pointe Watchtower now."

The king said indifferently, "Shouldn't she be at Dragonstone Castle?"

The people on the boat said tremblingly, "There is a raging fire on the watchtower at the top of Cape Marseilles. The lady said that R'hllor asked her to be punished by God there because she failed to stay by your side and block the invasion of darkness for you. As a result, you are surrounded by people who do not believe in Allah and are lost in darkness and chaos. The gods will punish you and she will also be punished."

"Punishment?" The king's eyes widened in anger. His lips were tightly drawn and a swollen vein bulged on his forehead. But after the anger came the piercing pain, and finally the loss of soul and fatigue. "Leave, leave me alone."

The respondent immediately backed away quickly.

The king's guards were still standing by him.

The king continued to wave his hand: "Leave, everyone leave."

The guard then walked out of the room.

He took off the flame-shaped red-gold crown from his head and stared at it deeply.

In an instant, he seemed to have aged ten years.

The return trip was not smooth. When passing by the Mermaid Reef at dawn, a Reese warship that was not familiar with the dangerous areas here hit a reef and sank. The rescue ship could not see the reef clearly in the darkness before dawn and dared not approach. The people on the sunken ship had to abandon the ship and swim to the rescue ship. More than a dozen people were swept away by the undercurrent and disappeared.

On the evening of the second day when the ship was heading back from King's Landing to Dragonstone, the weather suddenly changed and a strong wind blew over Blackwater Bay. The Hundred Oars, which had been badly damaged in the storm, was blown apart by the wind. The wind rushed into the cabin and caused a fire. Smoke and dust billowed in the ship where the king was, and the fire gradually became uncontrollable.

As a last resort, the king and his crew had to abandon ship and take another ship.

As the king and the fleet could do nothing about the burning ship and watched it gradually sink into the water, a sense of uneasiness spread among Stannis's army on the return journey.

Previously, when the fleet set out for King's Landing, the ship ran aground and sank in the Bay of Tars, and also encountered an unusual storm in the Throat.

Mermaid Reef has never been a particularly dangerous area in Blackwater Bay, but there were still shipwrecks on the reef... and abnormally strong winds...

People began to think that it was the gods... the King of Light who was warning the king that there might be dangers ahead. The already low morale of the soldiers became even more depressed and nervous.

The captain of the guard sent by Melisandre on the longship asks for an audience with the king, requesting that he immediately summon the Lady Melisandre to interpret these visions for him.

The king chose to agree.

The fifty-oared longships then set out at full speed to the Point to fetch the Lady Melisandre to appear before the king. A day and a night later, the longships carrying the Red Lady joined the king's fleet, which had slowed down, in Blackwater Bay.

Melisandre took a small boat to board the king's ship, and the priestess and her king met again.

"Your Majesty, your destiny has arrived." These were the first words the priestess said to him.

Stannis asked, "What?" He found that the exposed skin on the priest's body showed faint traces of burns from the flames, but it was recovering at a speed visible to the naked eye, growing new tender skin again.

The priestess told him: "The holy fire tells me that your destiny has come and the war has begun again."

"The war?" Stannis said. "The war is over."

"No, your majesty, it is a real war." Melisandre stood before the king, wearing a shiny silk long gown, and continued in a unique oriental accent. "Compared with the upcoming war, what you have experienced is just a glimmer of light. The ancient gods unknown to mortals are gathering strength. The terrible, evil and powerful force is difficult to contend with. The cold wind has already blown, and soon the endless night will come. Only heroes can muster up courage and take responsibility to lead the world to drive away darkness and uphold the faith of the flaming red heart."

Stannis waits for her to continue.

"Night is falling across your seven kingdoms, but the sun will soon rise again. Even an ember in the ashes can be rekindled into a fire," she said. "Let me show you." The red woman opened her arms and slowly raised her hands. All the candles in the room lit up instantly. She guided Stannis to one of the flames. "Do you see it, my lord?"

Stannis stared into the fire. It was a feeble flame, and he stared at it. But there was nothing in it. He suddenly felt like a fool.

Melisandre guided him: "Your Majesty, if you recite the name of R'hllor in your heart, you will be able to see deeper and deeper."

He did as he was told, and in the floating light of the flames, the white airflow and the flames suddenly took shape, and a wisp of white dust slowly rose up, but seemed to fall. It was snowflakes.

He saw it.

The core of the white flame in this fire formed a ring in his eyes, forming a circle of torches, and through this ring of torches he found himself overlooking a high hill in the forest. The black core of the candle became a black figure, and there were some figures moving in the snow, and he felt a strong chill running through his body, so that he trembled all over. Then the scene disappeared, and the candle flame became a flame again.

The king asked, "What is that?"

"They are the servants of Night and Terror, and your kingdom hangs by a thread. The battle has begun, and the sands of the hourglass are running faster, and time is running out for Men. We must act boldly, or all hope is lost. Westeros must unite under the name of the only rightful King, the Prince of prophecy, the Chosen of R'hllor. I saw you in the Holy Fire, commanding your host against the terrible darkness. There is no lie in the Holy Fire. You are the Chosen of God, the Child of the Flame, the Warrior of the Light."

"R'hllor's choice is a strange one." The king looked pained, his heart full of doubt. "Why me, and not my brothers? Renly and his peaches. In my dreams, juice dripped from the corners of his mouth and blood poured from his throat. If he had been loyal to his brother, we would have defeated Lord Tywin long ago, a victory that even Robert would have been proud of. Robert." He gritted his teeth. "He appeared in my dreams too. Laughing, drinking competitions, boasting. Those are the things he does best. Yes, and fighting. I have never been better than him in anything. The Lord of Light should have made Robert his champion. Why me?"

"Because of your integrity," said Melisandre.

"Integrity?" Stannis felt that the word was far from his nature.

Melisandre said, "Your destiny lies in the north, my lord. But to go north you must go south."

"What do you mean?" the king was puzzled.

"The sacred fire tells me that your throne can only be secure in the south. The place where you were born, the place that belongs to you."

"Storm's End?" the king wondered. "I'd be surrounded by Tyrells and Lannisters there, and Renly's ghost—" He trailed off. "Dragonstone is where I belong. Joffrey has no fleet unless a Lannister or Redwyne fleet comes."

"Dragonstone is dark and deep. I saw in the holy fire that it is now filled with blood and fire."

Stannis asked, "Lannister or the Arbor? I left three hundred men with Axell. He may be a mediocre man, and he may make mistakes, but he will not lose the city so soon."

Melisandre was silent.

The fat and cowardly boy Lord Bar Emmon, who was traveling with her and did not dare to refuse the priestess' request to accompany him, was soon called in to explain the situation: "Dragonstone is probably in danger. Your Majesty, the maester of Pointed Castle received a raven from Dragonstone, but the frightened raven was unable to fly back as there was nothing in the sky."

"Where is Driftfort?" Stannis gritted his teeth.

"Valerion wrote that he received the same raven."

"Why not send a ship to Dragonstone to investigate?"

"In fact, we sent a fishing boat out there, but it took a whole day to get back after a long detour. The people who came back said that there were ships flying a black flag with a red dragon on it, and no ships were allowed to enter the waters near Dragonstone."

Stannis looked shocked. "Targaryen?"

This is why fighting in Westeros requires enough ordinary forces to coordinate even with extraordinary power. Westeros is too big. The distance between Dragonstone, Tidehead, and Point is very close on the map. The fastest longship takes several hours to sail from one end to the other. Viserys does not have enough ships to do what Stannis did to blockade Storm's End and the Throat. He does not want to extend the battle line, and there are some misjudgments. Stannis's defeated army will have a lot of room for maneuver.

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(End of this chapter)