The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Brienne, leading her guard of twenty-odd elite, brandished her longsword and plunged into the Dornish cavalry ranks, the blades flashing as they struck.

Amidst the clash of steel, the Dornish cavalry's fluid, evasive formation descended into chaos. The vanguard continued their maneuvers undisturbed, while those behind collided, a tangled mess of men and horses.

Behind Brienne, the spearmen surged forward with a roar. They quickly engaged the intercepted Dornish riders, overwhelming them with numbers. Multiple spears pierced each man and mount. Horses, struck by the spears, reared and screamed, unseating their riders, who were then set upon by a barrage of spears, turning them into pincushions.

Brienne cleaved through the center of Laura Blackmont's cavalry formation, bisecting the long column of hundreds of riders. The spearmen swarmed the rear segment like venomous wasps, a dense thicket of spears stabbing relentlessly, felling Dornish riders one after another. The roughly two hundred riders who had already passed were pursued and harried by Ser Zerry the Bull and twenty guardsmen, along with hundreds of spearmen, their rearguard quickly overtaken, riders falling victim to spear and sword. Their screams were drowned out by the thunderous roar of a thousand Clegane spearmen.

Laura Blackmont and Ser Penrose Blackmont, riding at the fore, were caught in a flanking maneuver when a sudden commotion erupted from the nearby woods. Countless warhorses burst from the trees, their riders silent, longswords raised, a forest of gleaming steel rising before them.

"Retreat!" Lady Laura cried out in alarm. "It's an ambush! Retreat!"

She hauled back on the reins, her horse rearing up, nearly throwing her from the saddle.

Thwack!

A javelin, longer and heavier than the typical Dornish throwing spear, hurtled through the air with a piercing shriek, striking Laura's horse squarely.

The rearing horse shielded its mistress from the fatal blow!

The javelin was thrown by a hulking brute, a mountain of a man: Roarke, captain of the guard.

Lady Jeyne had issued orders to show restraint towards those bearing the vulture child sigil. She had further commanded that Lady Laura and Ser Penrose were not to be harmed, but Roarke, in his savage frenzy, had fixed his sights on the leading figure, Lady Laura, intent on killing her with a single throw.

Bloodlust was a common flaw among Clegane officers, one that was difficult to correct!

Once Clegane soldiers tasted blood, their eyes would turn red, and they would transform into beasts. Roarke and his old comrade, Fang, however, were different. Their eyes turned red even before the first kill.

Lady Laura's horse, impaled by the javelin, collapsed with a horrifying shriek, throwing her to the ground. She was unable to leap clear as the animal fell, and her leg was pinned beneath its weight.

Though a Dornish sand steed weighed only a few hundred pounds, a considerable difference from the thousand-pound weight of a warhorse, the impact still fractured Lady Laura's leg. (I checked the data; non-sand steed warhorses weigh around a thousand pounds, and the impact of a charge is equivalent to a car moving at half speed.)

Lady Laura's scream was deafening!

Ser Penrose and the Blackmont knights were aghast. Penrose leapt from his horse to aid his mother, while several knights formed a defensive line. Suddenly, the line of warhorses thundered down upon them. Roarke's spiked mace crashed down, crushing one knight's helmet into his skull.

Swords flashed, striking at Roarke, but his horse had already passed, moving too fast. Hundreds of riders surged forward like a storm, five hundred swords following in Roarke's wake. The Blackmont knights' defensive line shattered instantly. Fang leapt from his galloping horse onto the back of a Blackmont knight, plunging his longsword through his back, the blade emerging from his chest... Dornishmen rarely wore full plate armor...

Roarke plunged into the routed Dornish cavalry, his spiked mace a whirlwind of destruction. Towering on his horse, a giant of a man, with hundreds of riders pressing forward behind him, he held every advantage. Wherever his warhorse charged, Dornish riders fell.

Roarke had his spiked mace; the Dornish had their skulls!

Ser Dagos Manwoody, the most renowned for valor in Dorne, fearlessly charged towards Roarke.

It was this very black giant who had knocked Ser Dagos Manwoody to the ground with a single punch in the Brown Ben Plumm's street in King's Landing's Flea Bottom.

Enemies meeting again, their fury was unmatched!

Ser Dagos Manwoody brandished his longsword. The sand steed may have lacked the power of a heavy warhorse, but it was agile. Roarke, caught in the throes of battle, saw one of the fleeing enemies turn back to fight and roared with delight. He kicked his spurs into his horse's flanks, drawing blood. The warhorse surged forward, straight for Ser Dagos Manwoody.

The horses collided head-on, the speed blurring their forms. In a blink, Roarke's spiked mace swept down, aiming for the knight's head.

Manwoody ducked low, raising his shield to parry. The shield shattered with a resounding crash. He staggered, nearly falling from his horse, as the two horses passed each other.

As Roarke reined in his horse to renew the attack, he saw Ser Dagos Manwoody surrounded by a flurry of longswords. The knight parried a few blows, but was quickly overwhelmed, taking multiple hits. He collapsed to the ground, where the swarming spearmen descended upon him, spears rising and falling in a frenzy.

Roarke, still unsatisfied, wheeled his horse around to pursue the fleeing Dornish cavalry. Ahead, the two hundred flanking riders had regrouped and were bearing down, driving the routed Dornish riders back towards the main force.

Caught between two converging forces, the two sides clashed in a chaotic melee. The Clegane cavalry, enjoying a significant numerical advantage, swarmed their foes, two or three swords against each Dornishman. A dark tide of spearmen surged forward, adding to the carnage. Brienne and Zerry, leading forty-odd riders, blocked the Dornishmen's eastern escape route. The two female warriors, taller and stronger than most men, led the charge, cutting down enemies like harvesting wheat, a trail of spearmen following behind to finish off the wounded and scavenge.

*

On the other side of the field, Oberyn Martell led his five hundred riders in a leisurely flanking maneuver. Suddenly, a force of heavy cavalry crashed out of the woods ahead. A sharp whistle pierced the air, and the six hundred heavy horsemen fanned out into an arc. Each rider held a throwing spear. Oberyn, unlike Lady Laura, who had shouted a retreat upon seeing the ambush and pulled back, was experienced enough to know that there was no escape.

With no escape, the only option was to attack!

With a roar, Oberyn transformed his flanking spear formation into a direct assault against the heavy cavalry pouring from the forest.

Unarmored sand steeds against Clegane heavy warhorses in full plate were like leather against steel, a suicidal proposition.

But it was, in fact, the best possible tactic.

Behind the heavy cavalry, Ser Chiswyck the Big Head led eight hundred spearmen, completing the encirclement.

Big Head differed from Brienne. Brienne had chosen to bisect the Blackmont cavalry in the center, then send hundreds of spearmen to flank and harass, coordinating with the ambush cavalry in the woods to complete the encirclement. Big Head had other ideas. He longed to charge, but his experience in many battles had taught him the importance of a tight encirclement to ensure the enemy's annihilation.

The Clegane heavy cavalry, unlike Roarke's light cavalry, which could quickly maneuver to intercept the enemy and stretch the battle lines, were less agile and swift. This required Big Head to remain patient with his spearmen, completing the rearward cut-off.

Big Head flawlessly executed the rearward encirclement. The spearmen formed a massive tail, and under his command, the tail swung in an arc, stretching the battle line and densely packing spears, cutting off Oberyn's escape route.

The entire spear formation split into two. One part, like ants, swarmed into the Dornish cavalry ranks with Brienne, while the other, under Big Head's command, maintained a solid formation, gradually advancing and extending the arc.

Any attempt to retreat would lead them into the dense spear formation, from which escape was impossible without the strength of a military genius.

*

The Clegane heavy cavalry burst from the woods, three generals each leading two hundred riders. Pollyver commanded the left flank, Sweetmouth the right, and Drennan the center.

Drennan, the most skilled warrior and the best swordsman among the generals, was the ideal choice to engage Oberyn in the center. The Clegane cavalry's deployed formation was twice the width of Oberyn's flanking column. Concave in the middle, protruding on both sides: a perfect arc.

Oberyn roared, and his cavalry formed three columns, charging forward.

The column formation was the best tactic to penetrate the enemy's arc!

The arc's weakness lay in its thinness, as it had to cover the enemy's flanks with a long battle line.

The advantage of the column was its absolute depth!

If one man fell in the front, another would take his place; if the second fell, a third would follow. Even if it meant fighting to the death, exhausting the enemy, the column would still have a large number of men behind them. As long as they moved fast and avoided being flanked, they could break through.

Oberyn's three columns consisted of himself in the center, flanked by his two bastard daughters. The tactic was the same left-center-right, but it was a unified column against Drennan's center of the Clegane heavy cavalry.

A perfect breakthrough tactic!

But this tactic had a fatal flaw: if they failed to break through the enemy's center and were blocked, the result would be catastrophic: complete annihilation!

*

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The two cavalry forces exchanged the first volley of throwing spears!

Dornish throwing spears were known for their shortness. The sand steeds had great stamina but poor load-bearing capacity, and the short spears weighed half as much as longer spears.

Dorne had no heavy cavalry. First, the sand steeds' load-bearing weakness was a disadvantage. Second, Dorne was like a furnace, and soldiers would be cooked alive inside full armor. If the horses were armored, the armor would turn into branding irons in the sun during field battles or marches. Over time, the horses became accustomed to not wearing armor, and the soldiers only wore armor to protect their vital areas.

The deeply ingrained habits formed by the extreme heat immediately became a disadvantage in the central and northern regions!

In the exchange of throwing spears, the Dornish short spears bounced off the heavy armor, with few soldiers being hit and falling from their horses. At most, they sustained minor injuries. But the Clegane long spears pierced both men and horses.

The short spears were light, and their penetrating power was equally weak, making it difficult to pierce heavy armor.

Drennan's long spear pierced Oberyn's shield, shattering it beyond use. He threw away the shield, spurred his horse, and charged straight at Drennan, spear in hand.

However, the Clegane heavy cavalry carried two throwing spears each, and every one of them was a skilled thrower. Otherwise, they would not have been allowed into the heavy cavalry.

The second volley of long spears felled dozens more of Oberyn's cavalry column, throwing their ranks into chaos!

Oberyn dodged Drennan's second long spear, but Ser Coggard of Sandstone, riding behind him, took the full force of the spear through his chest, dying instantly.

Just as Drennan was about to engage Oberyn, the drums on the hilltop suddenly began to beat loudly, signaling an order to attack.

Lady Jeyne on the hilltop was dissatisfied with her army's performance and urged her soldiers to engage!

Engage meant charging in to hack and slash, abandoning any pretense of formation!

Jeyne had seen through Oberyn's column tactic, realizing it was a breakout attempt.

Drennan alone could not stop Oberyn and the two Sand Snakes!

Drennan had two hundred heavy cavalry behind him, while Oberyn had five hundred.

The drums beat loudly, as if carrying Lady Jeyne's furious command: "Fight! Fight! Fight!"

Ser Chiswyck the Big Head immediately roared and led twenty riders in a charge. The tightly packed spear formation behind him instantly disintegrated, like an anthill that had been kicked over, the soldiers running forward in a chaotic mass, shouting as they charged.

The sudden, earth-shattering charge was deafening!

The Clegane heavy cavalry's arc formation also instantly deformed. Pollyver on the left and Sweetmouth on the right immediately veered inward, slicing into Oberyn's column from the sides.

With a single charge, Oberyn's perfect column was cut into three segments. Like a long worm sliced into three pieces.

The final segment was quickly devoured—

Ser Chiswyck the Big Head caught up to the tail, charging alone into the rear ranks of the Dornish cavalry, killing several men in a display of irresistible might!

On both sides, Big Head's twenty guardsmen followed him, slashing with their longswords. The Dornish riders fell one after another...

Pollyver led his men in breaking through the third segment of the formation. Big Head charged from behind, and the spearmen swarmed forward in a chaotic mass. Dozens of Dornish riders immediately collapsed. Some riders, amidst the screams of their comrades, fled diagonally, only to encounter the enemy's long battle lines of spearmen. Everywhere they looked, there were swarms of spearmen, and the deafening shouts echoed through the sky.

The last segment of the tail was quickly annihilated.

The middle segment charged left and right in confusion, attempting to break through, but Sweetmouth led his men in a full-force interception. Behind them, Pollyver and Big Head joined forces, their warhorses thundering forward, their longswords raised high, a forest of blades in the distance. Flanking, sweeping, colliding, melee, massacre: the second segment of Dornish cavalry, whether knights or soldiers, were all killed, with no one escaping!

The foremost segment of Dornish cavalry was led by the Red Viper and his two Sand Snakes. Drennan fixed his sights on Oberyn, and with a wave of his longsword, the two sides charged. As the horses collided, Oberyn thrust his spear at Drennan's chest. Drennan leaned to the side, deflecting the spear with his shield, nimbly turning the spear aside. The two horses flashed past each other.

Oberyn, having passed Drennan, did not look back. He was responsible for cutting through the battle line and leading the breakout... He twirled his spear, stabbing at the second rider. The rider did not have time to parry; the speed of the charging horses was too great, reaching them in the blink of an eye. The rider leaned back, dodging the thrust, but by the time he straightened up, Oberyn's horse had already passed, and the third rider had been knocked from his horse...

As Drennan was about to turn around and pursue, a long whip suddenly tightened around his neck. Then, with a great force, Drennan was almost pulled from his horse. He hurriedly threw away his shield with his left hand and grabbed the whip. Both sides pulled with all their might, the whip stretched taut as a spear!

Deng Sen's right-hand longsword fiercely chopped at the long whip, but the whip did not break. Deng Sen was taken aback. Suddenly, a Dornish cavalryman charged at him, his longsword aimed at his head… Deng Sen raised his sword to block, but missed. A loud crash followed as the cavalryman flew backward, as if an invisible rope had snared his neck and yanked him away.

The cavalryman's pony's head burst like a water bag, and the horse's body was almost thrown into the air. A Clegane heavy cavalryman rushed in to save Deng Sen, his tall, heavily armored warhorse violently slamming into the pony from the side… The pony died instantly, and the heavy cavalryman flew forward, yelling as he crashed to the ground… The warhorse that made the impact was dizzy and swaying, as if drunk…

There was no time to think; everything happened too fast… Black shadows roared around Deng Sen as heavy cavalrymen charged forward, swords waving, ramming and tearing through the Dornish cavalry ranks, slaughtering and collapsing them… Deng Sen roared, forcefully pulling the long whip with his left hand, dragging Nymeria off her horse. He squeezed his legs, his warhorse leaping over, and his longsword slashed down towards Nymeria's head.

Nymeria had no choice but to release the long whip, rolling on the ground, getting up. Deng Sen's heavily armored horse charged, its front hoof kicking out, hitting Nymeria's face squarely. The crisp sound of shattering facial bones was sickening and stomach-churning… Nymeria fainted and fell to the ground like a leaf in the wind. Deng Sen's warhorse stepped down, stomping on Nymeria's chest, the sound of breaking ribs echoing…

Several Dornish knights, covered in blood, charged towards Deng Sen, seeking revenge for Nymeria!

Deng Sen had no choice but to fight, unable to pursue Oberyn. After he had cut down several knights, panting, a sharp wind whistled behind him. A long spear fiercely stabbed at him, striking Deng Sen's plate armor with a clang. Deng Sen's body twisted to the side, and he immediately turned around, the tip of the spear embedded in his body was forcibly wrenched out. His left arm grabbed the spear shaft, and his right-hand longsword, using the force of the turn, slashed down from above…

Judging the location with perfect accuracy based on experience, the longsword slashed down towards the enemy's head. The opponent reacted swiftly, dodging to the side. The longsword whistled as it cut into the armor on his shoulder, the blade embedding itself in the shoulder bone.

The opponent groaned, and Deng Sen finally saw that it was another woman: Obara Sand!

Obara dropped the spear, drawing her longsword to fight Deng Sen, seeking revenge for her sister. Suddenly, a long spear stabbed up from below, piercing Obara's abdomen. Obara roared, and her longsword slashed down, splitting a spearman's helmet in half, the longsword cutting into his skull.

Deng Sen pulled out his longsword and swung it horizontally. With a flash of cold light, Obara's head flew off, her face wide-eyed, filled with anger and unwillingness…

She had originally followed the Red Viper in the breakout, but returned to save Nymeria, finally reuniting the sisters.

Swish!

The hot blood spurting from Obara's neck sprayed all over Deng Sen's face!

Her head rolled to the ground, but Obara's body remained standing on the warhorse!

Deng Sen took off his helmet, threw it away, and looked around. The ground was covered with the corpses of enemies, and a masterless pony ran into the distant woods.

On the battlefield, there were still some scattered small battles! In the blink of an eye, the entire battle would be over.

"Where's Oberyn?!" Deng Sen shouted.

A messenger immediately rushed over: "The Red Viper has escaped, General. Qyburn, Polliver, Raff, Brienne, and Rolger, a total of five generals, have gone to pursue him."

"He broke through the encirclement?"

"Yes, General!"

Deng Sen felt guilty; he was originally responsible for stopping Oberyn: "How many of our soldiers did he kill?"

"More than twenty, General!"

More than twenty Clegane heavy cavalrymen, each one an absolute elite.

Deng Sen felt a pang in his heart!

If it hadn't been for Nymeria's long whip entangling him, at least ten fewer brothers would have died. Damn Sand Snakes!

This time, Lord Mountain would definitely give him a very ugly look.

Deng Sen felt a burst of discomfort!

"General, we have captured more than ten soldiers from House Blackmont, Lady Laera and Ser Penrose have also been captured alive, and all the other Dornishmen have been killed, only Oberyn escaped!"

"Which direction did the Red Viper go?" Deng Sen asked sternly.

The cavalrymen all pointed to the east.

There was no road to the east, only rolling hills and forests.

Deng Sen didn't say a word, kicking his warhorse fiercely. The warhorse galloped out, heading straight for the eastern forest. While running, Deng Sen forcefully tore off his chest plate armor and threw it down, then used his longsword to cut the warhorse's binding ropes, letting the warhorse's heavy armor fall to the ground.

Removing the weight would allow the warhorse to run faster and have more endurance.

He couldn't let Oberyn escape! Otherwise, this would be a defeat for Deng Sen!

Suddenly, drums and gongs sounded together on the hillside: Enemy attack! Enemy attack! Enemy attack!

In the midst of his haste, Deng Sen looked back to the south, and saw banners waving in the distance on the Golden Road, a group of people and horses rushing towards them…

*

Thanks to [Soul Burning] for the reward support, thank you, handshake!