Upon returning to his quarters, Lo Quen immediately issued orders to summon Qyburn and Marwyn.
The two arrived swiftly.
Lo Quen gestured for them to sit and spoke in a low, grave voice. "Maester Qyburn, Archmaester Marwyn, I witnessed several prophetic visions in the House of the Undying. I need your help interpreting them."
He went on to describe the scenes from the three visions in detail.
After listening, Qyburn muttered to himself, "A city buried beneath yellow sand, burning flames… This sounds like a civilization long forgotten by time. Could it be… the Old Empire of Ghis? The empire that once rivaled the Valyrian Freehold, only to be reduced to scorched earth by Dragonfire?"
Marwyn slowly shook his head, his eyes narrowing. "No, Qyburn. The Old Empire of Ghis was indeed destroyed by Dragonfire. The flames melted their stonework and shattered their legions. But the lands around Ghiscar City were strewn with salt, sulfur, and bones, not turned into a sea of yellow sand."
Qyburn lifted his head, confusion flashing in his eyes. "Then among known history and legend, which ancient civilization was clearly buried beneath sand?"
A smile curled at the corner of Marwyn's mouth. "Heh heh. According to legend, the great hero Azor Ahai left no flourishing bloodline in Westeros after the Long Night. Instead, his descendants established the Patrimony of Hyrkoon on the fertile lands east of the Bone Mountains.
"It was a mighty and prosperous nation. Yet one day, without any warning, a cataclysmic sandstorm swept across heaven and earth, burying it completely. Rivers, forests, and city-states alike were all swallowed by the yellow sands.
"It was a mighty and prosperous nation. Yet one day, without any warning, a cataclysmic sandstorm swept across heaven and earth, burying it completely. Rivers, forests, and city-states alike were all swallowed by the yellow sands.
"After countless ages of erosion by wind, that region became what we now call the Great Sand Sea in the eastern reaches of Essos. It is said that sandstorms rage there without end, and any water that flows into it is instantly evaporated. It is a true forbidden zone of life, where even the most drought-resistant scorpions can barely survive."
Lo Quen picked up the map and studied the vast, indistinct expanse east of the Bone Mountains. His gaze eventually settled on the area marked "Great Sand Sea."
He pondered aloud, "The House of the Undying showed me this vision… Could this prophecy be guiding me to the Great Sand Sea? What could possibly be hidden in that barren land?"
Marwyn leaned forward slightly. "Your Grace, since the founder of Hyrkoon was a descendant of Azor Ahai, and based on our earlier research, the so-called Azor Ahai was likely nothing more than another name for the Bloodstone Emperor, then beneath the thick yellow sands of the Great Sand Sea, what lies buried may not only be the ruins of Hyrkoon, but also the true secret behind the origin of the Long Night."
"After the Bloodstone Emperor slew his sister, the Long Night descended. This is an ancient truth revealed by the Old Gods. Yet the most widely told story claims that Azor Ahai forged Lightbringer and ultimately drove away the Long Night. If we assume that Lightbringer was the very blood-magic sword the Bloodstone Emperor used to kill his sister…
"Then why is it that, after fulfilling the will of the Lord of Light and successfully ending the Long Night, the true catastrophe spoken of by the Old Gods never came to pass? Something must have changed. Something known to the Old Gods, yet deliberately concealed or forgotten by the followers of the Lord of Light."
Lo Quen carefully pieced together all the clues he had gathered so far.
In the words of the Old Gods, the Long Night was described as the creation of the Cold God.
But if Azor Ahai's killing of his wife had been orchestrated by the Lord of Light to achieve some greater purpose, then that act should have brought about consequences far more terrifying than merely ending the Long Night.
Otherwise, would the Lord of Light not truly be the god who saved humanity?
That conclusion stood in complete contradiction to the Old Gods' account.
"Either the Old Gods lied, or the legends are wrong. And if the Old Gods did not lie, then something must have happened that they chose not to reveal."
Lo Quen spoke in a low voice, sensing a mystery slowly taking shape.
"Then what about the second prophecy?"
Qyburn pressed on, his fascination with supernatural mysteries as boundless as ever.
This time, Marwyn answered almost at once.
He let out a rough chuckle. "Your Grace, the river you described is far too familiar to me. It is the River of Ashes, the cursed waters that flow through Asshai and the Shadow Lands. By day, it is nothing more than a filthy black current, foul and reeking of corruption.
"But when night falls, pale green phosphorescence dances across its surface, like countless wronged souls burning along the riverbed, seeping an indescribable sense of dread. If the mountains you saw were so dim and lifeless, then that can only be the deepest reaches of the Shadow Lands, a region even Asshai Shadowbinders dare not enter.
"As for that city like a tomb… if my learning has not failed me, it must be Stygai, the legendary city of the dead in the Shadow Lands. It is said to be guarded by ancient shadow creatures, wardens of the city's greatest secret. There are rumors in Asshai that the entire place may itself be a tomb."
Lo Quen frowned. "Has anyone ever truly reached that city? Asshai has so many who are proficient in shadow and death magic."
Marwyn shook his head. "Perhaps some have. But those people either never returned, or returned only to remain silent. At the very least, during my long years of study in Asshai, I never met anyone who claimed to have reached Stygai and come back safely.
"That said, the depths of the Shadow Lands are not entirely lifeless. Strange beings known as the Shadowfolk dwell there, creatures adapted to eternal darkness. There are even ancient tales claiming that dragons reside there, as well as demons from the depths of the earth, or from other realms altogether."
Lo Quen nodded. "Dragons are the product of blood magic. That much makes sense. If Valyrians, or even earlier peoples, left dragon eggs in that region, it is entirely possible they survived and bred. The Shadow Lands may well resemble the ruins of Valyria, a place with a magical environment beyond the reach of the outside world."
He suddenly froze as a thought flashed through his mind.
The Shadow Lands… and the ruins of Valyria.
Both places were thick with ghost grass. Could it be…
A terrifying possibility took shape.
The Shadow Lands might once have suffered a catastrophe of extinction on the same scale as the Doom of Valyria.
Marwyn spoke again. "As for the final image in the prophecy, it is simply too vague. That dwarf by the sea… does it refer to some episode in the history of the Iron Islands, or something else entirely?"
Lo Quen and Qyburn exchanged glances, each seeing the same confusion in the other's eyes.
The prophecy pointed nowhere clearly.
"At any rate," Lo Quen said at last, "let's set it aside for now. We don't have enough information to draw any conclusions."
He rose to his feet and swept his gaze over the two maesters. "In that case, our immediate objective is clear. We must head east of the Bone Mountains, and at the same time uncover the secrets of the Great Sand Sea and Stygai."
Marwyn offered a warning. "Your Grace, our eastern campaign is likely no longer a secret. Yi Ti has probably already heard whispers of it. We must act carefully."
A faint smile appeared on Lo Quen's face. "I've already heard Luo Wen's intelligence report. Yi Ti is nothing but a shattered mess. Warlords, sorcerers, bandit companies, and nobles styling themselves Magisters each carve out their own territory, fighting one another without end.
"The so-called God-Emperor's decrees probably don't even make it beyond the walls of Yin itself. There's no need for empty courtesies. We'll overwhelm them with sheer force. We land at Asabhad, advance along the fertile coast of the Jade Sea, and strike straight for Yin. Any petty warlords along the way who know their place can be absorbed. Those who stand in our way will be crushed."