Chapter 60 Chapter 60 Tyrion

He crouched on the battlements, motionless as a gargoyle.Outside the Mud Gate, across the ruins of what used to be a fishing market and a wharf, the river was blazing with flames.Half Stannis' fleet is on fire, and most of Joffrey's ships are also burning.The kiss of wildfire turns pompous ships into funeral pyres and men into living torches.The air was filled with smoke, arrows and screams. Downriver the captains, noble born or not, watched as rafts, barges, and hulks bearing the deadly green fruit came down the Blackwater toward them.The long white oars of the Myr ship flailed wildly like centipede feet, trying to turn around, but to no avail.These centipedes have no escape.

A dozen fires ignited beneath the walls, but the bursting of pitch cans paled in comparison to the wildfires, like candles in a burning house.Their orange and scarlet brilliance seemed so small in front of the emerald fire ceremony.Low clouds colored the river, and shades of green covered the sky.It's eerily beautiful and horribly closed, just like Dragon Flame in the book.I wonder if Aegon the Conqueror felt the same way when he soared through the air in the battle of Rage. The hot wind lifted the crimson cloak and whipped it on the bare face, but he didn't want to avoid it.He was vaguely aware that the gold-cloaked guards in the keep were cheering, but he couldn't join in.Victory is only half the battle.not enough.

Another barge stuffed with King Aerys' overripe fruit was consumed by thirsty fire.An emerald fountain rose suddenly from the river, thirty or forty feet high, and he had to shield his eyes from the explosion's light.Flames danced on the water, crackling and hissing, drowning out all the screams.The river was filled with hundreds of people, either flooded, on fire, or both. Did you hear their screams, Stannis?Do you see them burning?This is not only due to my strategy, but also due to your stupidity.Tyrion knew that among the seething crowd on the south bank of the Blackwater, Stannis was watching.He did not have his brother Robert's desire for battle, but he had the air of Lord Tywin Lannister, who used to sit in the rear and command the reserves.He may be on horseback at this moment, in bright armor and a crown on his head.It was a crown of red gold, Varys had said, with the edges shaped into flames.

"My ship!" Joffrey yelled hoarsely from the ramparts, huddled with his guard behind the battlements, his battle helmet wearing the king's ring of gold. "My King's Landing is on fire! And the Queen Cersei and the Faithful. Look, the Seaflower is burning too, there!" He poked his finger with his new sword, green flames licking the golden hull of the Seaflower , climbed onto the oars.The captain turned around urgently to avoid the current, but he couldn't escape the wild fire. She was doomed, and Tyrion knew it.There is no other way.Stannis wouldn't take the bait without asking for a fight.Arrows can be aimed, spears can be moved, and even trebuchets can be adjusted, but wildfire has its own will, and once it is shot, it cannot be controlled by humans. "It can't be helped," he told his nephew. "In any case, our fleet will be ruined."

Even on the battlements—he was too short to see out, so he had to be lifted up—only smoke and fire and melee could be seen, and it was impossible to distinguish the exact situation, but he had already practiced it a thousand times in his mind. Hundred times.As soon as Stannis' flagship passed beneath the Red Keep, he sent a signal, urging Bronn to lash the cattle and drive them away.The chains were extremely heavy, so the huge winches turned slowly and creaked and roared at the same time.The entire Rebel fleet should have passed as gleaming metal pierced the water.The great chain would emerge link after link, dripping and dripping, some with glistening mud, until the whole thing was taut.Stannis sailed his fleet into the Blackwater, but there was no way out.

However, some ships managed to escape.The currents were elusive, and the wildfire wasn't spreading as evenly as he'd hoped.True, the main channel was in flames, but many Myrish ships fled to the south bank, hoping to get away unscathed, and at least eight ships had already landed below the city.Whether it landed smoothly or ran aground in a crash, the result was the same. They got people ashore.To make matters worse, the left flank of the enemy's first two lines had breached the defenses and reached upstream before the hulk caught fire.According to this calculation, there are about thirty or forty warships left in Stannis, enough to transport the entire army across the river once they regain their courage.

That might take a while—even the bravest will panic when they see thousands of swamps consumed by wildfire.Haring said the substance would burn so hot that flesh would melt like grease.Even so…… Tyrion has no illusions about his own people.If the momentum is not right, they will break down and flee, Jacelyn Bywater has warned, so the only way to win is to ensure that the battle has the upper hand from beginning to end. He saw a mass of dark figures among the charred wharf ruins.Time to strike again, he thought.The army was most vulnerable when it staggered ashore, giving no time for the enemy to assemble on the north bank.

He turned down the battlements. "Tell Lord Jacelyn that there is hostility by the river," he said to one of Bywater's orderlies, and then to the other, "give Ser Arnaid my respects and tell him to bring 'Three Whores of King's Landing' Turn westward thirty degrees." Although it is not enough to block the river, at least it can cast farther. "Mother promised me to direct 'Three Whores in King's Landing,'" Joffrey said.Tyrion was annoyed to see that the king had lifted his visor again.The child is undoubtedly suffocating in the thick steel armor...but the last thing he wants to see at this moment is a stray arrow piercing his nephew's eye.

He pulled down his helmet with a bang. "Don't lift it up, Your Majesty, your safety is precious to everyone." You don't want to ruin this pretty face, do you? "As you wish, 'The Three Whores of King's Landing' is at your command." It doesn't matter just yet, there's no point in throwing things at a burning ship.Earlier, Xiao Qiao had ordered the "Antler People" to be stripped naked and tied up in the square below, with antlers nailed to their heads one by one.At the court trial, he swore to return them to Stannis.A man weighs less than a boulder or a barrel of pitch, and must have been thrown farther, and the gold cloaks wagered on it, debating whether the traitors would fly straight over the Blackwater. "Quickly, Your Grace," he told Joffrey, "soon we'll need trebuchets to throw stones again. Wildfires will burn out, too."

Joffrey hurried off happily, Ser Meryn at his side, and Ser Osmond was about to follow when Tyrion grabbed Ser Osmond by the wrist. "Whatever happens, keep him safe and keep him there, understand?" "Yes." Sir Osmond smiled kindly. Tyrion had warned Tran and Kettleblack what would happen to them if something happened to the king.Besides them there were twelve senior gold cloaks at the foot of the steps to escort Joffrey.I do my best to protect you dirty bastard, Cersei, he thought bitterly. Can you do the same to Alayaya? Shortly after Xiao Qiao left, an orderly came up the steps, panting. "My lord, hurry up!" He knelt down on one knee. "They landed hundreds of people in the tournament field! Headed for the King's Gate with the battering ram."

Cursing, Tyrion scrambled and wobbled down the stairs.Podrick Payne was waiting below with his horse.After getting on his horse, without saying a word, he galloped along the riverside road, and Pod and Ser Mandon Moore struggled to keep up.The doors of every house are closed, the houses are shrouded in green shadows, and there are no people on the roads. Tyrion has already ordered the streets to be cleared so that the defenders can quickly dispatch between the gates.Even so, by the time they arrived at the King's Gate, they could already hear the crashing of logs, and there was no doubt that the battering ram had been thrown into battle.Huge hinges creaked like the groan of a dying giant.The square in front of the gate was full of wounded soldiers, but the horses lined up several rows, many of them were not wounded, and the surviving mercenaries and gold robes were enough to form a strong team. "All the team!" he shouted, jumping off his horse.The city gate shook under another wave of impact. "Who is in charge here? Get the fuck out of here!" "No," said a shadow from the shadow of the city wall.Sandor Clegane, a big man in smoke-gray armor, tore off his helmet with both hands and threw it to the ground.The ferocious dog's helmet was scorched black and deformed, and its right ear had been cut off.The Hound was bleeding over one eye, across half of his face from an old burn scar. "Must go!" Tyrion looked directly at him. Clegane breathed heavily. "Fuck you." A mercenary stepped forward. "We struck, my lord. Three hits, and half the casualties. Wild fires everywhere, horses neighing like men, men braying like horses—" "You think I'm hiring you guys for a tourney? Want some nice iced milk and a bowl of berries? Uh huh? Get on my fucking horse! You too, the Hound." Clegane's face was glistening with blood, but his eyes were pale.He slowly drew out his long sword. He was afraid, Tyrion realized with shock, the Hound was afraid!He turned to explain the urgent situation: "Pick up your ears and listen, they have lifted the battering ram to the gate of the city, we must stop them—" "Open the door, let them in, and then surround and kill them." The hound plunged the long sword into the ground, leaned on the hilt, and swayed. "I have lost half of my men, and there are not many horses left. I can't bury the whole team in the fire." Ser Mandon Moore, dressed in white and white, walked up to Tyrion in his enamelled white armor. "You must carry out the orders of the Prime Minister." "Fuck you Prime Minister," said the Hound, half of his face was sticky with blood, and the other half was paler than milk. "Bring me something to drink!" A gold-robed officer handed over a cup.Clegane took a sip, spat it out, and threw the glass backhanded. "Water? Fuck you water! Bring the wine!" He is dying, Tyrion can only face reality, this injury, this fire... he is dying, I have to find someone else to lead the team.Who's on?Sir Mandon?He scanned the crowd and knew it wasn't going to work.Clegane's fear has shaken the morale of the army. If no one comes forward, everyone will be timid, but Sir Mandon... as James said, is a dangerous character, but he can't win people's hearts. There was another loud crash in the distance.Above the ramparts, the dark sky glowed with emerald and orange.How long can the gate last? That's crazy, he thought, but it's better to be crazy than to fail.Failure means death and disgrace. "Very well, I will lead the assault." If he thought that this would make the hound feel ashamed and brave, he would be wrong.Clegane just laughed. "You?" Tyrion saw the suspicion on their faces. "Yes, I. Ser Mandon, you bear the King's Standard. Pod, my helm." The boy ran to carry out the order.The Hound leaned on the notched and bloodstained sword and watched him with wide pale eyes.Ser Mandon helped Tyrion mount again. "All the team!" he yelled. His big red horse wore a neckplate and visor, and a crimson silk drapery over the hind half, under mail mail, and a high saddle gilded.Podrick Payne handed him his helm and shield, oaken with a red background and decorated with a golden lion encircling a golden hand.He rode his horse around and looked at the people and horses in the arena.Only a few people responded, not over twenty, and they sat on horses, with pale eyes no different from hounds.He looked contemptuously at the others, the knights and sellswords under Clegane's command. "You say I'm a half-human," he said, "then what are you 'perfect' people doing more than me?" This greatly humiliated them.A knight mounted without a helmet to join, and two sellswords followed in silence.There are more and more people.Meanwhile the King's Gate trembled again.After a while, Tyrion doubled his ranks.He traps them in words.I go to the battlefield, you have to keep up, otherwise you think you are not as good as a dwarf. "I will not cry Joffrey," he told them, "nor Casterly Rock. It is your cities that Stannis will sack, and your gates that will break down. Come with me." Get up and kill the bastard!!" Tyrion drew his battle-axe, turned his horse's head, and charged towards the assault hatch.He thought they followed, but he never dared to look back.