June of Conquest Calendar 284.
Three months have passed in the blink of an eye.
Thick, dark clouds piled up in the oppressive sky, as if a torrential rain was about to fall.
In the distance, a storm was brewing, with lightning, thunder, torrential rain, and fierce winds.
Under this natural disaster, warships were arrayed on the sea, silently cutting through the waves and sailing into the distance.
Viserys stood on the second deck of the Black Death, facing the howling sea wind, his long, silver-gold hair flowing freely, revealing his fair forehead.
The boy wore clean and tidy leather armor, with metal plates embedded in the chest and abdomen to protect vital areas. A short sword was at his waist, and he carried a bow and a quiver on his back, looking heroic and dashing.
On the deck below him, many soldiers were busy with their tasks, lowering the sails, securing items that could not be dragged to the warehouse, and preparing for the approaching storm.
"A storm is approaching."
"Your Highness."
At that moment,
a somewhat hoarse and weathered voice came from behind Viserys. It was Ser Geoffrey, commander of the Dragonstone fleet.
The old man had changed out of his civilian clothes and put on his armor, as they were not far from their destination.
"Why did you choose this time to launch an attack?"
As a veteran who had spent most of his life at sea, Ser Geoffrey was no stranger to storms. Half a month ago, the sky near Dragonstone had already become terribly gloomy, indicating that a major storm was imminent.
Originally, Ser Geoffrey had decided to have all the ships of the Dragonstone fleet stay in port for the next few days, waiting for the storm surge to pass.
Based on the old sergeant's lifelong experience at sea, storms were not that terrible. As long as they did not go to sea during the storm and secured their ships with ropes, the losses from a storm would not be too great.
However, for some reason, Viserys wanted to propose a surprise attack on the Baratheon fleet, which was still under construction and not yet completed, at this time.
His reason was that the enemy would not expect them to launch a surprise attack when the storm was approaching.
At this point, they could destroy all the enemy's warships in one fell swoop, severely damaging their morale.
This 'ambush while crossing' tactic was more effective than harassing Storm's End from the start to prevent them from building their fleet.
It would also allow them to successfully evade the storm surge.
However, while Viserys spoke eloquently, his words were somewhat empty and lacked substance.
Furthermore, it was an extremely risky undertaking.
But to everyone's surprise, after careful consideration, the old sergeant actually agreed to Viserys's daring adventure.
Thus, the Dragonstone fleet weighed anchor and set sail, escaping the storm's vortex at top speed, passing through the approaching Blackwater Bay and its choke point, rounding the sharp point, and heading into the distance.
Initially, everything went well; the fleet left Dragonstone early, evacuating before the storm arrived.
However, in the following days, as the fleet sailed the seas, the old sergeant's heart grew increasingly cold, and he even felt a lingering fear.
The fact that the fleet had been sailing for several days without escaping the storm's reach demonstrates the sheer scale of the storm.
If he hadn't heeded Viserys's advice and stubbornly insisted on keeping the fleet anchored in port, hoping to weather the storm,
then this royal fleet would likely have suffered a devastating blow, nearly swallowed entirely by the sea. So he was very curious about how Viserys had come to such a judgment, and why he had ordered the fleet to leave Dragonstone for an expedition at such a crucial time when the Queen was about to give birth.
Did this boy also foresee that this storm would be unprecedentedly huge?
"Did Your Highness also guess something?"
the old sergeant asked curiously.
At that moment,
boom—
the sea surged, and the raging waves crashed heavily against the deck. The storm had finally caught up with the fleeing Dragonstone fleet after half a month.
Splash—
a torrential rain poured down, venting the pent-up anger of the past few days. The soldiers on the lower decks were frantically securing things on the deck.
Viserys, meanwhile, stood above, gripping the railing tightly. The howling sea wind almost drowned out their conversation.
The boy managed to hear Ser Geoffrey's words, then shook his head and loudly replied.
"No!"
"I was just guessing!"
However, the old sergeant wasn't satisfied with this answer. He gripped the railing tightly, looked up at the dark sky in the distance, where a torrential downpour was raging overhead, accompanied by fierce winds and torrential rain.
"Oh, is that so?"
He then turned away from the distance, giving the boy a meaningful look.
Since their first encounter three months ago, Ser Geoffrey had found the boy somewhat enigmatic, sometimes displaying remarkable intelligence, and at other times seeming rather foolish. The
reason he had agreed to Viserys's risky undertaking to embark on the expedition before the impending storm was because he had recently received a letter from the Citadel.
The Citadel had maesters specializing in astronomical observation, who had been sending letters to the cities, islands, and ports along the entire east coast of Westeros in recent days.
All of these letters indicated that, according to the maesters' observations, the Narrow Sea would soon experience the most powerful storm surge in its history.
The maesters, wearing bronze collars, predicted that the largest storm surge in Westeros' history would occur near Dragonstone.
The Citadel hadn't changed its stance despite the change of the Iron Throne; the maesters' motto was service to all humanity, and like brothers of the Night's Watch, they were considered servants of Westeros.
Theoretically, no maester had any political affiliation.
Therefore, they also sent a letter to Dragonstone, delivering a warning.
Initially, Ser Geoffrey didn't take it seriously.
But as the ominous celestial phenomena became increasingly clear, the old sergeant's heart pounded, though he ultimately hesitated. After
all, the Queen was about to give birth, and the fleet should be positioned to protect Dragonstone, preventing any further unforeseen events. However
, Viserys' words were the final straw, finally prompting the old sergeant to make the decision and lead the fleet away from Dragonstone.
If the entire fleet perished in the storm, the Queen's safety would be jeopardized.
.....
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