"Less than three thousand managed to escape?"
Viserys immediately realized what that meant.
Drogo had executed a near-perfect annihilation.
An army of thirty thousand had been wiped out by seventy to eighty percent.
Without an overwhelming advantage in either numbers or weapons, such a result would have been impossible.
"Your Majesty, it seems Drogo's forces are definitely not limited to twenty thousand," Connington said grimly.
When the allied army had first been organized, Viserys had set a minimum requirement of twenty thousand troops per force precisely to prevent any single army from being crushed in one battle.
If Drogo's army was far larger than expected, then every separate column was now at risk of being defeated one by one.
They could not afford to advance separately anymore.
They had to regroup immediately.
"Send word to all forces. Tell them to converge on our position," Viserys said. "I'll go take a look myself."
He left Connington in command of the main army and departed with Ser Willem and five hundred dragonriders toward the site where the Three Daughters' army had been destroyed.
Two days later, they arrived.
Drogo had clearly heard about the "Forest of Heads."
But the Dothraki Sea had no trees.
So he had cut down all the grass on a low hill and covered it entirely with severed heads.
Twenty thousand of them.
From a distance, the hill looked like it was crawling with parasites feeding on blood.
"This is Drogo sending me a message," Viserys said coldly as he looked at the scene.
"Your Majesty... what should we do?" Arthur asked, his tone uneasy.
They were only halfway through the campaign, and already things had taken a turn.
Drogo's true strength was unknown, and that uncertainty alone was dangerous.
"We were only able to launch this expedition because of our great victory over the Dothraki," Viserys replied.
"If we retreat now, we won't be able to organize anything like this again for decades... maybe even a century."
"And the threat of the Dothraki will continue for generations."
There was another reason he did not say aloud.
If such a massive coalition failed to even reach the Mother of Mountains, then every Free City would forever stand lower when facing the Dothraki.
Retreat would devastate morale.
"We're going to Nasar."
After the battle of Gohor and the Golden Plains, the Dothraki should not have had many fighters left.
Even assuming they had not committed their entire force, they must have lost at least eighty percent.
At Goose Mountains, over forty thousand had been killed, and several thousand captured. Drogo had escaped with only around ten thousand.
At the Golden Plains, another forty thousand screamers had suffered heavy losses, with thousands dead and more than twenty thousand surrendering.
By all calculations, the Dothraki should not have had more than thirty thousand fighters remaining.
Yet Drogo had just annihilated a thirty-thousand-strong army.
And according to survivors, his forces included boys barely in their teens and old men in their fifties or sixties—all fighting with terrifying ferocity.
Something was very wrong.
Viserys needed answers.
And the only place he could get them was from the River Elder at Nasar.
...
The destruction of the Three Daughters' army sent shockwaves through the allied forces.
Ogo was the first to receive the news, as his forces were closest to Viserys.
The moment he heard it, unease took hold of him.
He didn't even feel like looking in the mirror anymore.
"Do we know where Drogo is now? Have we confirmed his numbers?" he asked anxiously.
As a "traitor," he felt like he would be Drogo's next target.
"Khal, there's no need to worry," said Gerren, noticing his unease. "His Majesty has already ordered all forces to regroup."
"We have the protection of the dragonriders. Our equipment and combat strength far exceed the Three Daughters.
If Drogo comes, he will only be throwing his life away."
The three thousand dragonriders were positioned ahead. Viserys' twenty thousand main force was behind.
And Ogo's khalasar was still stationed east of the Rhoyne.
There was no risk of betrayal.
Thinking of the dragonriders' strength, Ogo relaxed slightly.
....
The army of Norvos received the message and agreed to move toward Viserys.
But Qohor was a different matter.
They were closer to their own city than to Viserys' forces.
When they learned that Drogo's army was far larger than expected, hesitation crept in.
For centuries, Qohor had never fallen.
In the vast Dothraki Sea, nothing inspired more confidence than solid stone walls.
So they slowed their advance.
In fact, they were quietly retreating.
They chose to wait and observe.
If the situation worsened, they would withdraw from the alliance entirely.
Their city lay deep within the Dothraki Sea, and they had long developed effective methods of defending against the Dothraki.
Retreating would cost them nothing.
But losing twenty thousand men could cost them their city.
As for Volantis, which had once nearly unified the Free Cities, they also rejected Viserys' order.
"Why should we move toward them?" Malaqo scoffed. "Why can't they move toward us? Gohor has only risen for a few years."
To them, Viserys was nothing more than a newly risen power.
"Send word to Viserys," Malaqo said with a dismissive wave. "Tell him everything here is under control. We don't need to regroup."
In this grand campaign, some fought for profit.
Some fought for duty.
But this old man was simply enjoying the spectacle of it all.
After issuing his orders, he turned to the historian traveling with the army.
"Write this down. Malaqo leads thirty thousand troops, advancing rapidly toward Vaes Dothrak, refusing all assistance."
....
When Connington reviewed the responses from the various forces, his head began to ache.
Logistics and coordination were his strengths. But that meant nothing if the armies refused to obey.
The alliance lacked unified command.
Each force acted on its own.
"Send word to the Pentoshi," he ordered. "Tell them to consolidate their supply depots. They're too scattered."
"Yes, my lord."
The Pentoshi troops were... unimpressive.
So they had only sent seven thousand auxiliaries, following behind Viserys' army and handling supply transport across three routes.
At this point, the only forces Connington could reliably command were their own army, Ogo's forces, and the Pentoshi.
Norvos had agreed this time.
But there was no guarantee they would listen again.
___________
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