Narrow Sea — Waters near the Stepstones.
Logar rode the Cannibal, trapped in the sky above a sea completely ringed by enemy ships.
Crossbow bolts screamed upward from every direction, so thick they almost blotted out the sun.
To keep the Cannibal from being wounded, Logar could only urge the great dragon higher, weaving desperately through the deadly rain.
Whenever the enemy paused to reload, he dove like lightning and ordered the Cannibal to unleash dragonflame, incinerating entire ships in seconds.
But Logar knew this tactic was too slow — and far too dangerous.
The enemy had more than ninety warships, a black tide stretching across the sea as far as the eye could see.
Even the king of wild dragons couldn't withstand such concentrated fire forever.
One man and one dragon, dancing above an entire fleet, was already pushing the limit.
From the harbor direction, Femon, Kendel, and the rest led their small squadron rushing forward at full speed. When they saw the massive black form of the Cannibal being driven back by wave after wave of arrows, every man gripped his weapon tighter, hearts pounding with fury and fear.
"Damn it! The Three Daughters are going all out this time — their fleet is massive!"
"Lord Logar's in real danger!"
They wanted to charge in and help, but the difference in numbers was utterly hopeless.
Even if their dozen ships rammed straight into the enemy, it would be like throwing eggs at a rock. They'd never get close.
High above, Logar saw the same grim truth. The enemy force was overwhelming. They couldn't win by brute force.
If they kept fighting like this, the Cannibal's flames would eventually run dry, and the situation would only grow worse.
He glanced back at his own small fleet and gritted his teeth, ready to order a withdrawal to Blackgold Island to regroup —
Then, from the distant horizon, a clear, piercing dragon roar split the air.
"Lord Logar!!"
A joyful voice carried on the wind.
Logar whipped his head around, eyes widening.
A brown-grey dragon was racing toward them — about forty meters long, sleek and powerful with the untamed spirit only a wild dragon possessed.
The rider on its back was a freckled girl he knew all too well.
"Nettles?" Logar breathed, shock and delight mixing in his voice. "How did you get here? And you actually tamed Sheepstealer?!"
Nettles guided Sheepstealer smoothly alongside the Cannibal.
The girl's face was streaked with dust and windburn, but her eyes shone with tears of excitement. "Lord Logar! I made it in time!
Prince Aegon flew back to Dragonstone on Stormcloud and said the merchant fleet was ambushed by the Triarchy in the Narrow Sea. Prince Viserys is missing!
I was just knighted as a dragonrider by Queen Rhaenyra and came straight here with Prince Jacaerys to support you!"
Logar's heart jolted. He looked past her.
In the distance, several massive dragon shadows appeared one after another. Deafening roars rolled across the sea like thunder, whipping the waves into towering surges.
Vermax, covered in dark-green scales, flew at the front.
Sea Smoke followed close behind, silver-grey and swift.
Then came the enormous Bronze Fury Vermithor.
Beside him flew Silverwing, shining like moonlight given form.
Together with Nettles' Sheepstealer and Logar's Cannibal — six dragons had arrived to reinforce them.
"Lord Sea Burner, are you alright?! Good thing we got here in time!"
Prince Jacaerys rode Vermax in gleaming new armor that caught the sunlight.
His voice rang across the battlefield with youthful fire. "The enemy has gathered such a massive fleet — their target isn't just the Stepstones. They mean to strike straight for Tidehead and Dragonstone!
We have to stop them here at the gateway of the Narrow Sea. They must not advance another inch!"
"You… all came?"
Logar was genuinely stunned for a moment before his composure returned. He looked at the six mighty dragons now dominating the sky, then at his own small fleet of barely a dozen ships behind him.
"Before, with just my men, holding the Gullet would have been impossible."
He paused, a fierce grin spreading across his face as he gazed at the six dragons.
"But now, with all of you here… I'm completely confident.
We're going to make these bastards who sailed all this way taste dragonfire and send every last one of them to the bottom of the sea!"
"Well said! Send them to the bottom!"
Leading dragonriders into battle for the first time, Jacaerys' cheeks flushed with excitement, young blood boiling in his veins.
He clenched his fist and gave the order in a ringing voice:
"Addam! Hugh! Ulf! Nettles! Hear me!
Mount your dragons and fight alongside Lord Sea Burner! Let every ship of the Three Daughters find its grave in these waters!"
"Uh… I'll do my best, Your Highness!" Ulf the White slurred from Silverwing's back, still clearly half-drunk.
Hugh Hammer rode Vermithor with a brutal, savage expression. He shot a quick glance at the blood-covered Logar, a flicker of jealousy and rivalry in his eyes.
He hadn't come all this way just to rescue the Sea Burner. He was here for real battle!
After becoming a dragonrider, this was finally his chance to prove himself and Vermithor in true combat.
He swore he would shatter the enemy fleet and unleash all the frustration he'd been holding back.
"Lord Sea Burner." Addam guided Sea Smoke nimbly to Logar's flank, eyes bright with excitement. "We finally get to fight side by side. I've been looking forward to this for a long time."
He had long been curious about the man his younger brother had sworn to follow. Today, he would finally witness the Sea Burner's true power.
"Lord Logar." Nettles guided Sheepstealer to Logar's right side, her voice trembling with barely contained joy. "Sheepstealer is a wild dragon, but he listens to me well.
I'll fight right beside you. I promise I won't hold you back!"
Sheepstealer clearly feared the savage aura radiating from the Cannibal — the natural dominance of the king of wild dragons.
The brown dragon shifted uneasily, claws flexing, but calmed under its rider's gentle touch.
Not just Sheepstealer — Vermax, Sea Smoke, and Silverwing all instinctively kept their distance from the Cannibal, as if the air around the black dragon carried a terrifying pressure.
Only the ancient Vermithor could somewhat match the Cannibal in size and presence.
Yet the old Bronze Fury seemed half-asleep, movements slow and lazy, as if still waking from a long slumber.
"Good!" Jacaerys sat tall on Vermax, looking at the six dragons arrayed across the sky, their shadows blotting out the sun, power radiating like a storm about to break.
"All dragonriders — hear my command! Full attack!"
"Cannibal — attack." Logar gave the order calmly, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
He patted the hard black scales on the dragon's neck.
ROAR—!!
An earth-shaking bellow exploded across the sea, the sound wave rolling outward and churning the waves into massive surges.
The Cannibal threw back his head, black body carving a terrifying arc through the sky like a storm cloud descending. He led the charge, diving straight toward the enemy fleet below.
The savage fury of the king of wild dragons was on full display.
Sheepstealer followed right behind, brown-grey form radiating wild ferocity.
Sea Smoke streaked forward like a silver arrow, incredibly fast.
Vermax advanced steadily, each wingbeat making the sea tremble.
Silverwing and Vermithor lagged slightly behind. Ulf and Hugh exchanged a glance before spurring their dragons into the fray — one like moonlight, the other like a falling mountain.
Six dragons of different shapes and sizes — the greatest power in the known world — unleashed their full might as they dove toward the sea in succession.
Wings beat the air into a hurricane. Waves rose dozens of feet high, smashing the enemy warships and throwing them into chaos.
---