Dothraki Sea….
Rhade looked out into the vast Khalasar and smiled. Never in his wildest dreams did he believe he'd be riding in a Khalasar such as this. It was a sight to behold. Twenty nine thousand Dothraki now called Khal Drogo's Khalasar theirs. In fact, one thousand new riders just joined yesterday. They were from a Khalasar whose Khal had just died. Instead of joining the old Khal's son in a new Khalasar, they had rode night and day to Khal Drogo's Khalasar to join him.
I guess the promise of great victory does that to people. Rhade thought to himself.
Rhade rode to the head of the long column and joined his Khal and his second in command Jon the Rhoynar. Rhade rode behind them as they talked of what moves they should make next. As they rode, Rhade took stock of his commanders and smiled. They were a force to be reckoned with and everyone knew it. Many in the Khalassar initially had doubts about their leadership due to their age but, one couldn't argue with their results. In the span of three years they had changed the Dothraki forever.
Rhade thought back to their first battle after the Rhoynar had joined. He remembered it well. It was their first battle after Qohor and it was the battle that cemented Drogo and Jon's leadership forever. They faced off against Khal Barbossa's Khalasar which numbered over fifteen thousand. Against Khal Drogo's seven thousand, that was an insurmountable number. In Dothraki battles, only numbers mattered. Those who had the numbers always won. The more you have, the more likely you are to win. Khal Drogo knew this and everyone in the Khalassar knew it as well. It was a slaughter waiting to happen and they wanted no part of it.
Unfortunately for Khal Drogo, Khal Barbossa had different ideas. Khal Barbossa was a relatively new Khal. He had been a Khal for over three years and he was still trying to make a name for himself. He had amassed a Khalassar of over fifteen thousand and it was growing more by the day. He routinely picked on Khalassars that were smaller than his to achieve relatively easy victories. It was a smart move for a Khal. Pick smaller and weaker opponents so your Khalassar could mount easy victories. In the Dothraki sea, having a strong name amounted to having a strong Khalassar. No one wanted to ride for a Khal that would only lead them to death.
Khal Barbossa, had heard of how Khal Bhatu (now Khal Drogo's) Khalassar had set up a siege of Qohor. He had heard that he had been beset with problems and that his campaign was taking longer than anticipated. He knew of Khal Bhatu. He considered him arrogant and foolish. He didn't deserve to be a Khal and Khal Barbossa knew it. He quickly called up his Khalassar and set them to move. It would take a month to reach the region around Qohor but, it would be worth it. He would face a smaller Khalassar rich with spoils. Bhatu's Khalassar would be rich with spoils and his riders would be either battered or worn. Either way, it spelled an easy conquest for Barbossa and the rewards would far outweigh any risk involved with battle. With that in mind Khal Barbossa rode for Qohor.
Three years ago…..
Khal Drogo sat in his Khalassars command tent looking over his maps. The maps weren't as detailed as he would like but, they were all he had to go on. Already, the word had spread of their imminent battle with Khal Barbossa's Khalassar. Everywhere he turned he saw fear. Everyone knew that a battle with a larger Khalassar meant. It meant death.
If it was an equal number or smaller Khalassar then they would probably win. But, against an army that was twice theirs, well words need not be said.
"How far are they?" Drogo said.
"They are seven days away, my Khal." Rhade responded.
Khal Drogo slumped his shoulders.
"How far are we from Qohor if we decided to turn back?" Drogo asked.
"If we ride with only riders, we are eight days away. If we ride with the old and the young, we are 20 days away. " Rhade responded again.
Khal Drogo pounds his fist on the makeshift table nearly breaking it.
"I will not leave our old and our young just we could flee. This is our Khalassar, this is our family, no one gets left behind." Khal Drogo said.
Many of the riders agreed with him. Many of them had families in this Khalassar and they would be loathed to hand them over to slavery just to save their own hides.
Khal Drogo looked at his lieutenants and sighed. Many of them were talking about fighting Barbossa in the open field, arakh to arakh but, he knew that wasn't a choice. His Khalassar didn't stand a chance if he fought Barbossa on an open field. He then looked at the corner of his eye and saw Jon Sand or Jon the Rhoynar, as many had come to call him, looking at the map. He had a contemplative look about him. A look that Drogo knew well. It was the same look he'd had when he was contemplating a trap.
"Jon, what do you think?" Drogo said.
Jon was broken from his thoughts by Drogo's question.
Jon looks at Drogo and asks a question of his own.
"What is this pass right here?" Jon says as he points to the map.
Drogo looks to where John is pointing and answers.
"That is Aithon's Pass. It is one of the many canyons that lead to the great Dothraki Sea." Drogo answered.
"How many canyons are near here and how high are the two mountains that make up either side of the canyon?" Jon asked again.
"They are two thousand feet high on either side but there is a plateau five hundred feet high on either side. As for how far the nearest canyons passes are. There is one ten leagues north and another eighteen leagues south. What do you have in mind?" Khal Drogo said.
"I'll tell you in a minute just let me get my thoughts in order." Jon said.
After a minute of staring hard at the map, he asked a few more questions.
"How many riders could ride abreast if they had to go through this canyon? And how long would it take for take for our fastest rider to get from one side of the canyon to the other?" Jon asked.
"The canyon can support 5 or 6 Dothraki riding abreast going through it." Rhade said.
Jon turned his head in Rhade's direction and asked.
"Is it 5 or 6?" Jon said.
"What does it matter?" A Dothraki named Tyr said from the crowd.
Drogo had the same question but, he knew better than to ask. If the Rhoynar sounded so serious about the question than he knew its answer was important.
"It matters because, six men coming through that hole in a mountain means a lot less than five. Six men coming through could mean a great success while five or maybe four could mean a great failure." Jon said.
Everybody looked at Jon like he was insane. He must have been the only person in the history of the Khalassar that wanted to fight more enemies than he needed to.
Jon asked his question again.
"Is it five or six?" Jon asked.
"It's six and the canyon is a little less than half a league long. It would take a fast rider almost 5 minutes to make the run." Rhade said.
Jon gives a nod of gratitude to Rhade for his information.
Jon looked over to Drogo and smirked.
"Now Drogo, here's my plan."
Nine days later…..
Rhade looked out over the Great Dothraki Sea. He had been wrong about Barbossa's speed. It had taken him nine days instead of seven to reach the pass. It seemed that the Rhoynar's plan of using hit and run tactics on Barbossa had worked. It worked two fold. It made slowed Barbossa's Khalassar as well as herd him towards the pass. Barbossa was a cautious man but, he was still a proud Dothraki. He would want revenge for Khal Drogo's underhanded tactics and he would go to the ends of the earth to get it.
Rhade sighed as he kept looking at the field from under his leather tarp. It still rankled him that he couldn't stand out in the open. He thought it was cowardly to hide under leather tent tarps but, Jon and his Khal had given him orders. They said that surprise was the key to this plan not, brute strength. Strength had its uses in this battle but, it was not here. They needed someone who could keep a level head and keep their men in line 700 feet above the fray. When push came to shove on who would lead the canyon top, his was the only name his Khal trusted.
It took him and his men almost a day to climb both cliffs and climbing them was no easy feat. The canyons were inherently unstable. He couldn't remember the number of times that he grabbed a stable foothold only to have it crumble moments later. The first climbers would experience the most danger as they had no ropes tethered to the top to use as support. Rhade said a prayer to the horse god for the two Dothraki climbers who didn't make it to the plateau. They were brave men who didn't deserve to be claimed by a mountain.
Once they made it to the top. Jon had been specific about their tasks. They would dig a straight line seven feet from the edge of the cliff where the precipice was at its thinnest.
At first, Rhade protested the plan. He knew where Jon was going with it but, he thought it impossible. There was no way in hell they could dig through that much rock. It was impossible. Sure you could dig at the edges where the rock face was only a couple of feet thick but, where Jon wanted to dig, you'd have to dig five to six feet down before you saw air again. It was impossible with the time that they had. He raised his concerns to Jon personally when he had left but, Jon was not deterred.
So, he followed his orders. Never mind that, he and his men had to stay up here until the battle was over, never mind that Jon and Drogo wanted no fires at night giving away his position, and never mind that Jon wanted someone filling in their hard work every night with water leaving it to freeze overnight in the cold desert air, Rhade did as he was told. Because, despite it all, he believed in his leaders. The Rhoynar and the Khal had a plan and he'd be damned to hell if he was the reason it failed.
Fortunately for Rhade, his faith had been rewarded. He could scarcely believe it himself but, yesterday as the men were digging they heard a rumble. Rhade immedietly told his men to stop digging as silence filled the air. He put his foot at the section that felt the weakest and was amazed. Jon told him this would happen. Jon said that this is how stone mason's took stone from a mountain. They would build cracks in the stone and fill them with water. Overnight the stone would freeze and split the stone apart. Build enough cracks and the stone would be yours.
Rhade laughed when he felt the stone waver. His assistant handed him a plank. He put the plank into the small trench that he had made. Jon said to cut the stone into sections so that the entire thing didn't come down at once. Rhade was never so glad that he had the habit of following orders to the letter than he had now. He put up flags that signaled everyone below to stand clear. Once everyone was clear, he and a couple Dotraki put all of their weight on the sturdy planks that lined the crack. As soon as they put muscle on it, the crack gave way. A loud rumble could be heard as their Khalassar's secret weapon crashed against the ground, shattering into a thousand pieces.
The men wanted to shout but, Khal had given strict orders that they would give up their tongues if they did. The enemy was a day away and it wouldn't do if they found out their surprise early.
Suddenly, a slow rumble could be heard below them. It was a noise that Rhade had heard most of his life. Anyone who ever grew up in a Khalassar knew that noise. It was a Dothraki Horde going after his prey.
At the foot of the canyon…
"Are you ready for this?" Drogo asked.
"Are you?" Jon answered.
Drogo looked at the canyon opening as Tyr and his squad of seventy Dothraki came rumbling through.
"I guess we'll find out." Drogo said while holding his Arakh.
Suddenly, Barbossa's Dothraki start pouring in from the canyon. His Dothraki were met with Khal Drogo's own forcing them to fight a stalemate at the foot of the pass. Barbossa's Dothraki were had surged but, the Khalassar was steady. No one would pass their line.
The moment that the Dothraki came out of the pass Jon had stuck his dagger into a bag of sand. It wasn't like the fancy hourglass timers they had at Dorne but it would do. He and five others had been riding in and out the canyon for days trying to get the timing right. If his sums were correct this sack held enough sand for 5 minutes give or take. That's how long he estimated Barbossa's Khalasar would take to transverse the canyon. He asked the men if they could hold the pass for one bag full of sand and was rewarded with the affirmative.
Drogo looked to Jon and Jon had to shake his head.
"Not yet. " Jon said.
Drogo gave an impatient growl. He wanted to get into the fight but, Jon said it would be good for morale if he blew the horn that signaled a rival Khalassars death. Jon explained to him that he needed a political victory as well as a battlefield victory. What greater political victory is there than a Khal who blew the horn of death. In truth, Jon didn't want Drogo to risk his life in the front lines. Generals led from the back not the front. The Khalassar was still in danger of collapsing and if they won the battle but, lost Drogo, the Khalassar would be doomed.
Drogo heard the fighting and his blood was thirsting for battle. He looked to Jon again as the bag of sand ran out. Jon gave him an affirmative nod.
Drogo smiled as he put the horn to his lips and blew.
The horns sound was loud. It was loud enough to be heard at the foot of the canyon. Once it was heard at the foot of the canyon, a rider tugged on a rope attached to bells at the top of the canyon.
Top of the canyon…
Rhade heard the bells ring and smiled. He quickly blew his horn so that the other side of the canyon could hear him. Once they heard the horn, all of his men rose from the leather tent canvases that hid them from view. At once they all stood up and went for their wooden planks. It had taken them days to disassemble all their carts for this plan and now they would see if it was worth it. All at once wood met stone and cracks met air as hundreds of Dothraki applied their muscle to ensure their brothers survival. At first it was just a slight rumble but, soon it became more. All along the canyon, Dothraki looked up as first a couple small stones hit them from above. As the creeks from the mountain became louder Dothraki stopped their horses and looked up. For many it would be the last sight they would ever see as all at once, huge stone started crashing from the heavens.
A loud crash was heard as the entrance and the exits of the canyons were first to go. Huge stones hit one another as they slowly became an avalanche of earth, trapping Dothraki on both sides. After the entrances were sealed then the true horror began. With no escape in or out of the canyon, the Dothraki Horde became prey to huge rocks falling from the cliff face. Those lucky enough to die instantly from the falling rocks had it easy, they died painlessly. Those that survived had didn't have that option because as soon as the rocks had fallen, arrows soon followed. Rhade knew that the rocks would kill most of Barbossa's Khalassar but, it wouldn't kill them all. As soon as the last rocks had fallen he picked up his bow and his quiver of arrows. The Horse God demanded the blood of his enemies and Rhade was going to give them to him.
Foot of the canyon…..
Khal Barbossa was broken. How did it come to this? he thought to himself. He had the numbers. He had the experience. What more was he lacking. How did this young upstart Khal defeat him? He looked back to his dwindling numbers and fought with as much strength as he could. He knew his time was over. He knew the price of failure and now was the time to pay it. He looked over his left as hoof prints made their steady rumble towards him. He knew it was Khal Drogo charging him but, he didn't care. He quickly ducked his sword strike, and stabbed his horse's leg. The horse buckled and threw Drogo off her. Drogo took a second to clear his head but, he quickly stood back up.
Drogo looked at Barbossa and smiled. Nothing more need be said. The two warriors clashed as sword strike met sword strike. As talented as Barbossa was at swordsmanship, he knew this was over. He was tired from a long day of fighting and Drogo was still fresh. Every strike made his sword heavier and his arm weaker while Drogo looked like he was waiving a weightless stick instead of a sword. In the end, two minutes was all it had taken for Drogo to take Barbossa's head. In his last moments, Barbossa pondered the only question that still hung in his mind….
"How?"
Present...
Rhade was broken from his thoughts as his Khal called for him.
"Rhade, Jon has some new thoughts about ranking structure that we want your thoughts on." Drogo asked.
Rhade strolled up to the two men he respected the most and listened. He wan never a big fan of change but, the more Jon explained his new structures the more it made sense. In the end even he couldn't argue against such a logical approach. The role of advisor was new to Rhade but, if his Khal and his second wanted his opinion, he would give it. It just rankled him when the Rhoynar made so much sense that he couldn't argue. But, such was the way in the Khalassar, and he wouldn't have it any other way.