After Jon returned to the Great Pyramid, after making an announcement so big, so momentous, and so significant, he went directly to his personal chambers and plopped straight down on his bed. His eyes closed the moment his head touched the pillow.
"Make sure no one disturbs Lord Aeos," Melisandre instructed the two soldiers of the Supreme Shadows who stood outside Jon's chambers. "I will bring his food when it is time. Till then no one disturbs him."
The two guards nodded in understanding, acknowledging her order.
The Supreme Shadows, made up of one hundred elite soldiers and commanded by Grey Worm, held a position of great importance. They were the personal guards of Lord Aeos and his family, if and when he would have one in the future.
Though every member of the Supreme Shadows would agree that Lord Aeos did not really need their protection. He was strong and capable enough to defend himself from all sorts of danger. Even so, they still carried out their duties with complete devotion and unwavering discipline and dedication. They never lost their attention and were always careful and vigilant. Now, there were only five people whose orders they were bound to obey. The first was Lord Aeos himself. The second was their commander, Grey Worm. The remaining three were Lady Melisandre, Lady Sylvia, and Lady Rhaenys. And for orders coming from any other person held no importance for them.
Meanwhile, inside the chambers, Jon was already in deep sleep. He was tired. Completely exhausted.
No, the fatigue was not from the battle he had waged or from the sleepless night yesterday. A single sleepless night could never really tire him out.
He was exhausted because he had overused his warging powers, draining himself far beyond his limits.
What he had done yesterday had not been achieved in a single night or even in a few weeks. For months, almost since he had first taken over Astapor, Jon had been preparing for a day like this.
Usually, every night, or even during the day if he had the time, he would warg himself into dozens of animals.
The birds that functioned as an extremely efficient means of carrying messages for him, his men, and his spies were one of his greatest achievements. His ability to communicate extremely efficiently with his men, especially his spies, even from far off distance was going to be one of the greatest reasons for the success of his empire as he would expand his territory further and further.
Apart from that, he would also warg into larger animals, insects, and snakes. Taming them, making them follow his orders even after he exited their consciousness was no small feat. It took time, constant warging for a few days, to bring even one creature fully under control.
In the case of animals that moved in packs, controlling the alpha or leader and then giving a small mental nudge to the rest was usually sufficient. This was the reason the dominant force yesterday had been wolves and wild dogs. Pack animals. They formed the majority of the force that Jon had been able to build. Apart from them, he had also controlled snakes and manticores, the poisonous creatures. These were really dangerous and were weapons of perfect assassinations. Though he had not used them as a method of assassination.
Using the birds and these other animals, he had located and searched for the legendary Essosi scorpions. Controlling each one of them had been extremely difficult and time consuming. But Jon had made sure, through extra effort, that each one was turned completely loyal. And as of now, he commanded almost three dozen of the legendary Essosis Scorpions.
Even so, the vast numbers he had displayed yesterday would not have been possible had he been alone. Ever since he had discovered that his blood essence had granted his bloodline powers to Sylvia, Melisandre, and Rhaenys and it allowed them to warg as well, the three women had been helping him in the process. With the combined efforts of all four, Jon had managed to build such a vast and dangerous force. A force unlike any the world had ever seen.
As of now, a force containing more than twenty five thousand such creatures was spread across the area surrounding the three cities, hidden within the forests and the desert landscape.
They had been summoned from their respective habitats for the battle. After the battle yesterday, he had commanded them to return to their original positions. Thanks to his constant practice, broadcasting a single message, such as return, could be done with hundreds of them at once.
But once their retreat had been ordered, his work was far from over. That was when the second phase of his plan began.
The wolves and dogs had not been commanded to simply retreat. A vast majority of them had been ordered to carry a corpse of the slain enemy with them.
Once they had retreated and vanished into the distance, he had used smaller creatures, like snakes, insects, and earthworms. to erase all traces and footprints. Since it was a desert landscape, the task had been easy, and nature itself had aided him in that part of his plan.
According to his arrangements, less than half of the corpses had been left on the battlefield. Anyone surveying the area would estimate the casualties at no more than ten to twelve thousand. As for the rest of the bodies, they would either end up in the stomachs of those creatures or rot away long before they were discovered. And it was here that another part of Lord Aeos's plan would begin.
Jon continued to sleep throughout the day and the entire night. And while he slept, there was a group of people who were extremely active.
This one particular spy had rushed his return to Meereen in great haste. Since his own horse was exhausted and he did not have the luxury of waiting, he had abandoned it and taken one of the Dothraki steeds instead.
After returning to Meereen, he immediately sought out his channel for sending messages, a small time trader, another spy, or someone who looked after the ravens. Using the most secure method available, a detailed description of what he had witnessed on the battlefield was sent to his organisation.
And he was not alone in his endeavour. A large number of spies were already hurrying to complete their work. Messages had begun spreading toward different cities, and very soon, a wave of wild rumours and chaos was about to sweep across Essos.
#
#
#
[Add the book to your collection. Send it some power stones. Leave a rating and a review.]
[Access advanced chapter on P@treon. Replace @ with a. One additional advanced chapter each week on P@treon. ]
[email protected]/imaginarywriter