Viserys did not attack immediately. He first had King Ghidorah and Blackflame rest on an island at sea to recover their strength, while he prepared to scout the city through his Warg ability.
As he had expected, Qarth's merchant princes and warlocks clearly had not anticipated that Viserys would attack them directly. The city remained bustling and prosperous, its docks crowded with merchant ships and its streets teeming with people.
The city walls were indeed reinforced with magic, however. He lost contact with the bird he controlled as soon as it flew over them, preventing him from gathering more detailed information.
When night fell, Viserys made his move.
He rode King Ghidorah toward Qarth from the sea, with Blackflame close behind. Neither dragon roared as they approached the city in silence.
The guards patrolling the walls yawned as they gazed toward the Jade Sea. Qarth had prospered for thousands of years and had never fallen to an enemy, so they had all grown somewhat complacent.
No one noticed the two dark specks rapidly approaching from the western sky.
Only when they reached the skies above Qarth's outer city did the guards spot them. The men on the walls froze, then their faces filled with terror.
"Dragons! They're dragons!"
"Sound the alarm! Quickly!"
But before the alarm bells could ring, King Ghidorah had already crossed the walls and flown straight toward the city center. Viserys's targets were clear: the House of the Undying and the merchant princes' palaces.
At that moment, the members of the Thirteen were enjoying dinner in their lavish garden palaces, eagerly anticipating the devastating blow their covert operation would surely deal Viserys.
Then they would wait for Volantis and the other Free Cities to go to war with Viserys, allowing them to reap even greater profits.
The