Chapter 23

Drogo and his companions passed through the foul-smelling alleyways, their path flanked by the deep red bricks of the city, until they arrived at Proud Square. There, the sheer grandeur of the architecture took them by surprise.

At the center of the square stood a red-brick fountain that gave off a dense sulfurous steam. Rising from its center was Astapor’s defining symbol: a massive bronze statue of a harpy, over twenty feet tall, exuding an aura of oppressive awe.

The statue bore the face of a beautiful woman—luxurious golden hair, ivory eyes, and bared fangs. A murky stream flowed from a disturbingly weighted place between her legs. Her arms were bat-like wings, her legs those of an eagle, and from her back trailed a coiled, venomous scorpion’s tail. Grotesque and seductive all at once.