10 Chapter 10:a glorious return

Qarth was trying to put a last stand against Meereen. They underestimated their enemy too much, and now they were fucked. Since the beginning, the pureborn had asked for support from the three merchant princes' guilds: Thirteen, the Tourmaline Brotherhood, and the Ancient Guild of Spicers. They all, however, dragged on their heels to the very end.

All trade guilds did not want to invest their own gold in the war, they all wanted to drag on and if the enemy won have an opportunity to shrink their own responsibility. The pureborn could not do much about the guilds either, their influence was comparable, if not bigger them themselves in the city.

Officially, the Civic Guard, the organization charged with defending and maintaining order in the city of Qarth, is commanded by the Pureborn, the rulers of the city. They, however, find it hard to determine how much of the organization was actually in the 'paychecks' of the guilds. Qarth official navy was as strong not stronger than the guilds' combined fleets.

Now that Qarth lost its only two colonies the guilds decided not to gamble, the Thirteen and Ancient Guild of Spicers said they would give their full support in defending the city. In fact, both guilds were only buying time to smuggle out their gold, treasures, and fleet.

The Ancient Guild of Spicers used their contacts with Yi Ti to find refuge there, so the guild now had taken refuge in Yin, pleading fealty to the azure emperor Bu Gai, seated at Yin. Not the vows of merchant princes were taken much seriously in Yi Ti, but their ships and wealth were very welcome.

The Thirteen used their contacts and took refuge at the island of elephants, and plead fealty to the local shan. Although they were not much trusted, their gold and ships were surely welcome.

After the sweet and polite humiliation, they gave to Daenerys, the pureborn were fearful for their dear lives. No monarch from Asshai to Westeros would welcome them, thanks to their deposing of the King of Qarth centuries ago, no one gives refuse for poisonous snakes after all.

The Tourmaline Brotherhood, however, did not attempt to escape. The pureborn own a fleet of ornate war galleys of about two thousand, which rule the Jade Gates between the seas. While the Tourmaline called back most of their fleet, which was not much surprisingly include some war galleys. The Brotherhood were not pirates, but they have their connection to them, they trade with the Basilik pirates through New Ghis, and directly with the Shadow Men Pirates. Their merchant fleets when given an opportunity, would raid some weak fleets while traveling.

The Tourmaline Brotherhood had sent an alliance request. 'They think we will let them swallow Qarth whole. Keep dreaming.' Rhaego thought.

He remembered that they openly voiced to expel his mother from their city when their precious purple corpse man died, it was not only the north that could remember.

In the middle of the night, he flew all the way to Qarth. He turned back to a Dragonoid put on a cloth and walked through the night of Qwarth.

No one tried to rob him until now, which made him think how thieves in this city could be so lucky or wise. He was looking for the Sorrowful Men. It was much harder to find them in Qarth than it was to find the Faceless Men in Braavos.

After all, they were not a recognized organization in Qarth, they lurk in the underground of the city. Rhaego found at least four small bases of operation spread among the city. He invaded one. He was warmly welcomed by daggers, and heard some idiots saying: 'I am so sorry'.

He gave each of them a good beating. He wanted to have at least a few of the assassins submit to him, as his own assassins to follow his orders was very tempting to him. If the high ranks of their guild were smart enough to submit to him, he would even be able to offer them Tourmaline Brotherhood's business in the city, if they wanted.

After every assassin was properly spanked, Rhaego commanded:

"Take me to your leader." To Rhaego's surprise, a lot of assassins seem to enter a trance-like stage, which feels were able to resist.

What he did not know was an interesting fact about Qarth's history. Ancient Qarth was ruled by kings and queens, the ancestors of the Pureborn. The Qaathi people rose in the grasslands of central Essos—known today as the Dothraki sea.

However, with the Sarnori invasion, the red waste was not the only migrating route from the Qarth.

The Qarthi further east, which were the majority, with Vaes Dothrak to the north, the bone mountain to their east, the ghiscari empire to their southwest, and the Sarnori to their west, have no choice but to retreat to the red waste.

Later, they were further expelled by the Dothraki, which forced them to retreat to Qarth, which became the last of their cities.

The Qarthi in the west of the grassland, which were the first attacked by the Sarnori, took a different approach, the nobles sought refuge with their neighbors, while some of their people, which were abandoned to their own luck, retreated within the forest to their south, which would be later known as the Valyrian Peninsula, all the way to the fourteen flames.

This happened even before their civilization have a written record, so the story was completely washed away by the river of times.

So Rhaego captured their leader, seeing that he was merely one of the thousands, more of a politician than an assassin or strategist, he ordered him to kill himself.

He was let down when he found out that he left the trance state after his other. At least, he was able to test the limit of his ability. So he ordered one of his new assassins to kill him.

He passed the night taking over assassin settlement after assassin settlement, and getting rid of the useless leaders.

When he have the guild all to himself, to avoid unpleasant surprises, he made sure to make every single one of them drink poison, which to his happiness did not wear off the effect of his coercion, if the poison have a long-term effect and he did not order them directly to drink poison but instead commanded them to drink 'that'. It was a very effective measure if his control wore off or something. He hid the antidote, where only he could find, deep into the red waste.

How could he find so much poison, in such a small matter of time? Let's say this was what an assassin guild did not lack. He made some visits to the Tourmaline Brotherhood princes, killing them; but he prioritized taking down the pureborn, especially the more influential ones.

When the climate in the city became dense, and his enemies could feel something was wrong, Rhaego have his dear assassins in the desert. He had found his control does not seem to have an expiration date.

'Know things are going to become serious.' Rhaego thought.

He turned into a dragon in the Warlock's Way, and burned it to a crisp, to make sure the warlocks were truly gone, and they never would come back...

He went all the way to the Garden of Gehane, which was closer to the now-gone Warlock way.

Rhaego had no idea if Gehane was the name of the location or a person, he only knew he took the ghost grass there with his paws, which seems to be magical because it would be useful if he wanted to study the warlocks' magic.

He burned what he could not take. He visited the Hall of a Thousand Thrones and started to tear the pureblood with his claws.

Finally, he burned down the manses of the Tourmaline Brotherhood, but he did not bother with the abandoned manses from the Thirteen and the Ancient Guild, even if some nobles could be taken refuge there. He was able to use his powers on the Civic Guards of the city, and now Qarth was his to command.

He also took over the city navy, returned in a fleet to meet the Meereen fleet, and raised a white flag. So the news that young Rhaego alone conquered Qarth soon spread.