Chapter Summaries

Aemon discovered that Dragon Silk Root was sprouting at First Flame Peak, while Aemond found the Valyrian Steel sword Red Rain in Grey Shadow’s catch. In Sunspear, Qoren woke paralyzed after the Battle of the Shipwreck and gave up on continuing the war, leaving Dorne’s future uncertain.

• Aemon explained that Dragon Silk Root could thrive at First Flame Peak and benefit dragons, but could not be transplanted to Dragonstone.
• Grey Shadow swallowed Aemond’s shellfish and a bent sword, which Aemon recovered and identified with Corlys as House Drumm’s Valyrian Steel sword Red Rain.
• Aemon gave Red Rain to Aemond, and Corlys said Qohor’s smiths could reforge and recolor the blade.
• Qoren awoke in Sunspear unable to feel his legs after a crab injured him during the Battle of the Shipwreck, while the maester warned that his condition could be lasting.
• Qoren learned that Dorne’s fleet had been destroyed and judged the war hopeless, so he ordered his vassals not to raise troops and asked to speak with Alexandra.

Aemon used Guidance Once to discover that Qohor’s smiths might know the lost Dragonstone techniques needed to build a bridge across the sea, and he resolved to seek them out. In King's Landing, Rhaenyra confronted Elayne with Mysaria’s evidence and revealed that Dorne’s delegation had arrived while Aemon’s forces surrounded Sunspear.

• Aemon held his forces back while considering how to pressure Dorne and build a bridge across the strait.
• Aemon used a Sweet Fruit card, gaining increased constitution, magic, and poison resistance, and shared the fruit with Helena and Aemond.
• Aemon used Guidance Once and saw a Qohor smith repairing Dark Sister, leading him to suspect Qohor held the Dragonstone secrets needed for bridge construction.
• Aemon decided to visit or conquer Qohor to bring its skilled smiths under the Dragonlord’s control.
• Mysaria accused Elayne of arranging a letter that exposed Corlys’s bastards and helped set up Ser Laenor’s assassination.
• Rhaenyra told Elayne that Dorne’s delegation had reached King's Landing while Aemon’s and the Sea Snake’s armies surrounded Sunspear.

Arick and Geralt arrived in King's Landing to ransom Olifer and arrange the Targaryen-Dorne marriage alliance, while rebellions spread and the Iron Throne's forces advanced through Dorne. After Corlys captured the Greenblood River and Aemond was sent to attack Lemonwood, Aemon and Helena entered the Smoking Cave, where one of Silverwing's dragon eggs began to hatch.

• Viserys welcomed Arick and Geralt, returned Olifer, Elayne, and An'an to them, and refused their request to leave King's Landing immediately.
• Lord Dalt seized control of Sunspear's defenses, while House Ironwood rebelled against Qoren and attacked the Unsullied besieging the city.
• Aemon received replies from Houses Fowler and Manwoody offering neutrality or passage, and he accepted their overtures while identifying other Dornish houses as enemies.
• Corlys and Vaemond defeated the Dornish forces at the Greenblood River, but Corlys blamed Aemond's dragon for forcing the enemy to fight to the death and ordered him to capture Lemonwood.
• Aemon and Helena climbed to the Smoking Cave, where they found Vermithor and Silverwing nesting beside three dragon eggs, and one egg began to crack.

Aemon welcomed Silverwing’s newly hatched dragon before coordinating the campaign to take Sunspear and secure Dorne through Qoren’s surrender and marriage alliance. As the Unsullied attacked the city, Aemon infiltrated it and ordered Qoren and his family taken so he could stage a counterattack in Qoren’s name.

• Silverwing’s yellow hatchling emerged from its egg, breathed fire, and was sheltered by its mother as Aemon and Helena watched.
• Aemon reassured Aemond about his conduct at Lemonwood and assigned Aemond and Helena to support the campaign while Corlys planned attacks on Dorne’s passes and interior.
• Lord Dalt planned to escape Sunspear through secret tunnels, while Qoren urged Alexandra to accept the marriage alliance and avoid a devastating war.
• The Unsullied assaulted Sunspear under Dreamfyre’s aerial attack as Aemon infiltrated the city with the Gold-Nosed Rat.
• Aemon ordered Robb, Ke En, Aemond, and Vaemond to take Qoren and his family, then use Qoren in a staged counterattack the next day.

Aemon secured Dorne’s surrender after Qoren urged Sunspear to open its gates, and Viserys prepared to accept the submission while weighing whether Qoren could continue ruling Dorne. In King’s Landing, Alexandra pursued Aemond as Aegon’s forces advanced toward Skyreach.

• Aemon and his companions entered Qoren’s bedchamber, while Aemond captured his eight-year-old fiancée Alexandra.
• Qoren called on Sunspear’s soldiers to surrender, and mutinous guards captured Lord Dalt and delivered him to Aemon, who ordered him hanged.
• Qoren bent the knee to Aemon in Sunspear, and Viserys celebrated Dorne’s submission before learning that Dornish nobles still resisted.
• Qoren asked Viserys to let him return to govern Dorne after Aemond married Alexandra, and Viserys said he would consider the request.
• Alexandra followed Aemond through the Red Keep despite his threats to feed her to a dragon.
• Earl Donald told Aegon that Qoren had reached King’s Landing and ordered an assault on Skyreach that night.

After Dorne submitted to the Iron Throne, Viserys arranged hostages and political safeguards while Aemon and Rhaenyra welcomed their son. The chapter ended with Aemon preparing to reveal a remarkable item as Viserys was summoned back to the Small Council.

• Viserys's council agreed to keep Quentyn Martell in King's Landing as a hostage and to impose other restraints on Qoren's rule.
• Aemon gave Rhaenyra and the children gifts, while he and Rhaenyra discussed Rhaenys, Laenor, and the plans for the Stepstones and Volantis.
• Viserys and Qoren formalized Dorne's submission, arranged Alexandra and Aemond's betrothal, and redistributed lands and titles among Dornish lords.
• Half a year later, Rhaenyra gave birth to a healthy boy, whom she named Lucerys Targaryen at Laena's request.
• Aemon exchanged two cards from his panel and stored them in his Spatial Ring, then said he had something remarkable to show.
• Ser Harrold summoned Viserys to the Small Council, interrupting the family as Aemon prepared to reveal his item.

Viserys and the Small Council debated who should oversee Qoren in Sunspear and how to manage Dorne's Arm, while Corlys exposed Lyonel's shortcomings as Hand. The meeting ended with Viserys postponing both disputes and assigning Aemon the tax collectors for his fief.

• Tyland raised the need for a trusted official to oversee Qoren in Sunspear, but the council members avoided volunteering for the dangerous post.
• Aemon warned that nobles from the Seven Kingdoms and Dorne might clash during Aemond's approaching betrothal ceremony.
• Corlys proposed establishing ports and collecting taxes in the Firepeak Strait, while Aemon said he had his own plans for Dorne's Arm.
• Tyland proposed appointing a tax official, and Corlys claimed the matter fell under the Master of Ships before Lyonel challenged his ability to take on more duties.
• Corlys questioned Lyonel's preparation for the betrothal ceremony and foreign guests, leaving Lyonel speechless until Viserys defended him.
• Viserys postponed the Sunspear and betrothal discussions and assigned Aemon to handle tax collectors for Dorne's Arm.

Aemon handled intelligence and political concerns while visiting Driftmark with Rhaenyra and their children. He gave Jaehaerys a mysterious blue egg to hatch and prepared to meet visitors gathered for Aemond’s betrothal.

• Aemon ordered White Worm Xiao Mei to send a Black Rose group to Qohor and considered expanding his influence and intelligence network.
• Elayne asked to accompany Aemon to Driftmark, but he refused after recognizing her possible desire to return to Dorne and rebel.
• Aemon and Rhaenyra arrived at Driftmark with their children, where Bartimos welcomed them and Aemon planned visits and meetings.
• Aemon invited the recovering Laenor to dragonride and agreed to meet visitors who admired him.
• Aemon gave Jaehaerys a blue egg and told him it was a rare chicken egg to hatch.
• Bartimos told Aemon that a visitor had arrived, and Aemon turned to meet him.

Aemon met Lang Wu, a shaman from Yi Ti, and hired him to teach Xiao Jie and his sisters after discovering his breadth of knowledge and magical ability. The chapter ended with Rhaenyra uneasy about the new tutor, while Aemon assured her that Lang Wu had been investigated and Xiao Jie was protected.

• Aemon questioned Lang Wu, who offered a collection of rare books from Yi Ti, Ancient Valyria, and the Rhoynar instead of treasure.
• Lang Wu described Yi Ti’s political chaos, its peoples, and his own Shu heritage and former role as tutor to the Son of Heaven.
• Lang Wu demonstrated a small flame and explained that he knew divination, medicine, astronomy, and mysticism, so Aemon appointed him to teach Xiao Jie and his sisters.
• Rhaenyra worried that Lang Wu might pose a threat, but Aemon said he had investigated him and arranged guards for Xiao Jie, with Ser Steve teaching the prince swordsmanship.

Aemon displayed the Targaryens’ dragons on Driftmark and promised Bartimos a role in tax affairs, while planning to strengthen House Celtigar as a loyal ally. A robbery and murder by Gold Cloaks in King’s Landing enraged Viserys, exposed the fallout from Harwin Strong’s former command, and left the king resolved to change the Small Council.

• Aemon, Laenor, Laena, Rhaenyra, and the other Dragonriders staged a dragonriding exhibition on Driftmark that impressed the assembled lords and Dornish envoys.
• Aemon promised Bartimos priority consideration for the tax affairs of Firepeak Strait and decided that House Celtigar could help him strengthen royal centralization.
• Ser Lorent informed Aemon that Gold Cloaks had robbed and murdered a Dornish noble and his family in King’s Landing.
• At the Small Council, Ross Lygett revealed that four veteran Gold Cloaks had committed the crime after resisting his stricter discipline and longing for their former commander, Harwin Strong.
• Viserys confronted Lyonel over the connection to Harwin, then told Alicent he had decided the Small Council needed to be changed.

Aemon arranged for Adam and Alyn to serve Jaehaerys, then inspected King's Landing and began planning improvements to its water, security, and food supply. The chapter ended with Lang Wu observing the princes and princesses practicing meditation and recognizing Jaehaerys's unusual aptitude.

• The Sea Snake asked Aemon to let Adam and Alyn serve Jaehaerys, and Jaehaerys welcomed them as companions who would study and train with him.
• Aemon had Clement Celtigar guide him through King's Landing, where he inspected the crowded streets and learned that the wells supplied foul water.
• Aemon visited the newly reclaimed fields and considered how the capital could improve its water supply, security, and grain production.
• Aemon planned to strengthen control over the Reach and send Aemond there after his betrothal to help secure the capital's grain supply.
• Lang Wu led Baela, Rhaenys, Daeron, Little Aegon, and Jaehaerys in a meditation exercise and recognized Jaehaerys's unusual aptitude.

Viserys removed Lyonel Strong as Hand of the King and left the replacement undecided while the council debated Lyonel’s future post. Otto sought Alicent’s help to regain the office, then warned Viserys that Prince Qoren Martell’s stay in King’s Landing required stronger safeguards.

• Viserys dismissed Lyonel Strong as Hand and reprimanded Thaddeus, who agreed to fund twenty wells after Aemond proposed the compensation.
• The Sea Snake pressed Viserys about Lyonel’s council position, and Otto proposed sending Lyonel to serve as ministerial advisor at Sunspear.
• Jaehaerys told Aemond that he enjoyed studying with Lang Wu, while Aemond urged him not to work too hard.
• Otto asked Alicent to help him reclaim the Hand’s office, but she doubted Viserys would appoint him.
• Otto visited Viserys at night and warned that Prince Qoren Martell’s prolonged stay in King’s Landing made relying on one council member unsafe.

Aemon publicly acknowledged Gaemon as his son during the royal wedding celebration, bringing the boy into the royal family and easing tensions among the gathered nobles. The chapter ended with Aemond and Alyssandra completing their betrothal dance after he insulted her, leaving her furious and determined to remember his words.

• Aemon ignored Elayne's provocations as nobles arrived for the wedding celebration, then went to greet Johanna Swann and Gaemon.
• Aemon embraced Gaemon and introduced him to his younger siblings, while Johanna made clear she wanted her son recognized.
• Laena brought Gaemon before the nobles, and Aemon publicly called him his son and declared him a royal prince and protector of his siblings.
• Gaemon and Jaehaerys warmly accepted each other as brothers, and the nobles accepted Gaemon's place in the royal family.
• Viserys and Qoren traded barbs about their grandchildren and the Targaryen name.
• Aemond insulted Alyssandra during their betrothal dance, and she vowed to remember what he had said.

A brawl at the royal engagement feast turned deadly, and Aemon used force and magic to restore order before the vows were completed. After Viserys fainted, Aemon took charge of the Small Council and appointed Lyonel and Larys to posts in Dorne, leaving the choice of Hand unresolved.

• Geralt and Cole fought at the feast, sparking a brawl between nobles from the Seven Kingdoms and Dorne.
• Aemon stopped the fighting with Illumination Art, killed a Dornish noble who defied him, and ordered Geralt and Cole imprisoned after a dragon's roar silenced the hall.
• Aemond and Alyssandra exchanged betrothal tokens in the sept, and Viserys fainted during the ceremony.
• Aemon temporarily presided over the Small Council and appointed Lyonel as Sunspear's assisting minister and Larys Strong as its chief of intelligence.
• When Corlys pressed for a new Hand, Aemon challenged him by asking whether he was worthy of the office.

Aemon reshaped the Small Council by appointing Corlys as Hand and bringing Johanna and Bathimos onto the council, while Viserys confirmed the changes and Otto became Foreign Minister. The royal party then left King's Landing for the Reach, where Aemon planned to secure the nobles' support and investigate Giant Chestnut's ties there.

• Aemon threatened Qoren with dragonfire if Dorne broke the peace, and Qoren sailed home burdened by his family's hostages and the sacrifices required to maintain submission.
• As the Small Council debated the vacant Hand position, Aemon appointed Corlys as Hand, Johanna as master of intelligence, and Bathimos as Master of Ships, establishing a royal alliance with Houses Velaryon and Celtigar.
• Rhaenyra explained that Viserys supported the Dragon Knight Order, while Otto accepted the role of Foreign Minister after Aemon rejected him as Hand.
• Viserys approved Corlys's appointment and agreed that Otto would serve as Foreign Minister, while Aemon recalled Tyland's and Corlys's conditions for seeking the Hand's position.
• Aemon departed King's Landing with his family and companions for the Reach, bringing Aegon and Aemond toward their fiefs and sending Giant Chestnut to the region after he sensed ties to his kin.
• Laena noted that the continent had grown hotter since Dorne's Arm appeared, and Aemon attributed the warming to First Flame Peak instead.

Aemon visited White Garden City, secured agreements to buy Reach grain, and planned a network of large granaries to protect the realm from shortages. The banquet was interrupted by an urgent report from a Green Apple soldier, leaving the nature of the trouble unresolved.

• Aemon and his family arrived at White Garden City, where Jaehaerys carried his blue egg and watched a hen brooding over eggs.
• Aemon arranged for Count Caswell to make Bitterbridge the main hub for grain exports to the royal family.
• The Merryweathers and Fossoways offered grain, and Count Caswell negotiated a deal to trade half of their houses’ annual production for goods and treasury compensation.
• Aemon asked Giant Chestnut to remain in White Garden City as a castle guard, while Lang Wu confirmed Giants and Children of the Forest might have crossed south of the Wall.
• Aemon decided to build several large granaries and set an initial goal of buying five hundred tons of grain and constructing ten storage buildings.
• A Green Apple soldier rushed into the banquet hall, startling Ser Raymon.

Aemon accepted a group of Children of the Forest and two Giants as workers after learning they could help preserve food and farm. Jaehaerys hatched a blue chick and formed a new rune through meditation, while Rhaenyra brought the captured Giants to White Garden City, where several dragons confronted them.

• A soldier reported a nine-foot-tall monster destroying crops near New Barrel City, and Ser Raymon hurried away to investigate.
• Yezi asked Aemon to shelter three Children of the Forest and two Giants, explaining that the Children could preserve food and the Giants were willing to work after being beaten.
• Aemon agreed to take them in, assigning the Children to granary work and the Giants to labor and training at White Garden City.
• Jaehaerys formed a glowing lion-shaped rune during meditation, then woke to find that he had hatched the blue egg into a chick.
• Aemon sensed Jaehaerys's new rune and began teaching him the Illumination Art as a reward for hatching the chick.
• Rhaenyra brought the giant father and son to White Garden City, where Syrax and other dragons appeared and a dark green dragon confronted the newcomers.

Aemon accepted Mag the Strong, Little Mag, and three Children of the Forest into his service, but his plans to travel to Highgarden were interrupted when Stormcloud went missing. Before flying back to King's Landing, Aemon received a magical Mushroom Tree seed from Yezi.

• Mag the Strong told Aemon how he lost a battle beyond the Wall and crossed south with Little Mag, while Giant Chestnut's reunion helped them communicate.
• Yezi explained that the Giants and Children of the Forest had sent vanguards to seek a place to live, and Aemon agreed to take them in while warning them not to try to reclaim Westeros.
• Aemon assigned Mag the Strong and Little Mag to guard White Garden City and work with Giant Chestnut, while Flower, Spore, and Meera were to go to Harrenhal.
• Aemon ordered Aemond to stay in White Garden City, then received an urgent letter reporting that Little Aegon's young dragon, Stormcloud, had disappeared from Dragonstone.
• Yezi gave Aemon Spore's magical Mushroom Tree seed and advised him to plant it on Dragonstone or Lonely Mountain, where dragons could protect it.
• Aemon canceled the trip to Highgarden and flew on Vermithor toward King's Landing to search for Stormcloud.

Aemon learned that Stormcloud had been abducted by the wild dragon Urrax and was nesting safely at First Flame Peak, then approved Corlys's grain-trade plan and prepared to travel to Dorne's Arm. The chapter ended with Rhaenyra and Aemon settling plans for the journey and Aemon promising to find Elayne something to do.

• Aemon learned that Stormcloud was safe at First Flame Peak with Urrax, and he agreed to send Dragonkeepers to protect and care for the hatchling.
• Corlys proposed buying Reach grain at a reduced price through a new trade system, and Aemon approved the plan and assigned Thaddeus to assist.
• Corlys told Aemon that construction at Dorne's Arm could not be delayed, and he arranged to survey the site and organize materials during their journey.
• Aemon visited Viserys, who praised Corlys and asked about Cole and Geralt; Aemon decided to keep them imprisoned for now and delay returning Dawn to House Dayne.
• Alicent and Rhaenyra argued over feeding Lucerys, and Viserys ruled that Rhaenyra should breastfeed him first, with a wet nurse as a fallback.
• Rhaenyra told Aemon they would leave for Dorne's Arm the next day and raised concerns about Elayne bothering Alyssandra and Quinn; Aemon promised to give Elayne a task.

Elayne arrived in Myr and was assigned as Dai Anna’s secretary, while Aemon and the Unsullied repelled a pirate raid on Dorne’s Arm with Vermithor’s help. At First Flame Peak, Aemon discovered that Stormcloud had grown dramatically after eating Dragon Silk Root.

• Dai Anna made herself steward of Myr and assigned Elayne to be her secretary, leaving Elayne overwhelmed by paperwork.
• Grey Worm led the Unsullied against pirates attacking Dorne’s Arm and drove them back toward their ships.
• Aemon arrived on Vermithor and burned the pirate ships and the pirates who fled into the sea, then learned that gaps in naval patrols had allowed repeated raids.
• Aemon, Rhaenyra, Laena, Corlys, and the children gathered at First Flame Peak, where Little Aegon spotted Stormcloud circling the mountain.
• Aemon saw Urrax feed Stormcloud Dragon Silk Root and realized that the vine had helped Stormcloud grow to more than five meters long.