Chapter Summaries

Daemon arrived at Tidehead Island and saw the wealth of Hull and Spicetown and the marble city Corlys Velaryon was building. Remembering the city’s future destruction in the Dance of the Dragons, Daemon resolved to try to protect it and its people before meeting Corlys at High Tide.

• Daemon and his companions arrived at Hull, where Rhaenys welcomed them with Laena and Laenor.
• Rhaenys led Daemon’s party through the thriving ports and shipyards of Hull and Spicetown toward Corlys’s unfinished marble city.
• Daemon recognized the new city as High Tide City and remembered that it and Spicetown would be destroyed in the future war.
• Gael noticed enslaved workers being whipped in Spicetown, and Daemon reflected that slavery was widespread across the Narrow Sea.
• Daemon decided he would try to prevent the coming war and protect the people and places he cared about, then entered High Tide and embraced Corlys.

Daemon attended a family banquet at High Tide, where Rhaenys teased him about his closeness with Gael and accidentally sparked a family quarrel. Later, Corlys was thrown out of his room by Rhaenys and ended up sharing Daemon’s room, leaving Daemon to sleep beside Gael and Mysaria in Gael’s room.

• Corlys sent the Braavosi merchants away, and Rhaenys teased Daemon about being beaten by Baelon and about his relationship with Gael.
• Rhaenys joked that she had once planned to marry Laena to Daemon, prompting Daemon to choke, Corlys to spray wine over Laenor, and Rhaenys to angrily scold Corlys.
• Daemon escaped to the guest rooms with Gael and Mysaria after Rhaenys’s outburst at Corlys and Laenor.
• Corlys arrived late at night and asked Daemon for a lift toward Crab Island, explaining that Rhaenys had thrown him out and barred him from other rooms.
• Daemon gave Corlys his room and moved with Gael and Mysaria to Gael’s room, where he reflected that marrying someone as strong-willed as Rhaenys would make life difficult.

Daemon and his companions left High Tide aboard Corlys Velaryon’s fleet, beginning their voyage toward Crab Island. As the fleet sailed across Blackwater Bay, Daemon found comfort in traveling alongside Gael and Mysaria.

• Rhaenys teased Daemon and Gael over their night together at breakfast, then allowed Daemon and Gael to take Laenor and Laena dragonriding.
• Daemon carried Laenor on Glutton while Gael took Laena on Dreamfyre, and Laenor excitedly praised Daemon and Glutton.
• Three days later, Corlys’s fleet of twenty ships set sail with Daemon’s party aboard the Lord of the Tides and the two dragons flying overhead.
• As they passed Dragonstone, Corlys described the bay and its islands, including Crab Island, their destination.
• Daemon shared a quiet moment with Gael aboard the ship and told her he was lucky she was with him.

Daemon and Gael arrived at Crab Island, where Bartimos Celtigar tried to win Daemon’s favor with lavish hospitality and offers of allegiance. Daemon rejected Bartimos’s attempt to draw him into a challenge against Baelon, but considered whether the scheming lord might prove useful later.

• Corlys Velaryon warned Daemon that Bartimos Celtigar was a shrewd merchant who sought to exploit Daemon’s Targaryen blood and dragons.
• Bartimos welcomed Daemon and Gael to Crab Island and boasted of House Celtigar’s wealth and loyalty to the Targaryens.
• At the feast, Bartimos offered House Celtigar’s allegiance, his son Clymont, and his daughters and nieces for Daemon’s service.
• Bartimos urged Daemon to join forces with House Celtigar and House Velaryon against Baelon’s family, but Daemon refused and left the hall with Gael and Mysaria.
• After Gael recovered in their chambers, Daemon reflected that Bartimos’s schemes might someday serve as a weapon in his hands.

Daemon visited Crab Island, where Bartimos Celtigar tried to steer him toward overseas ambitions and Vale politics. After accepting Bartimos’s nephew Colin into his service, Daemon chose to sail next to Gulltown.

• Bartimos asked about Daemon’s plans to cross the Narrow Sea, but Daemon said he would first finish touring the Seven Kingdoms.
• Colin Celtigar defeated Rayford and Mys in sword contests before losing to Lubert Crabb.
• Colin challenged Daemon, lost in three exchanges, and swore fealty to him; Daemon assigned him to follow Lubert.
• Bartimos suggested routes through the Vale and hinted that Daemon could ally with House Royce against Daemon Targaryen.
• Daemon chose the route to Gulltown, and Bartimos offered Celtigar ships for the voyage.

Daemon and his party arrived in Gulltown, where Lord Colton Grafton welcomed them and showed them the port’s shipyards and the Maris Sept. The chapter left Daemon setting out to visit Gull Tower, with more of Gulltown still to discover.

• Daemon and his party sailed from Crab Island to Gulltown aboard the Red Claw and learned about the city and House Grafton from Colin Celtigar.
• Lord Colton Grafton welcomed Daemon and Gael at the docks and hosted them at a feast in his castle.
• Daemon recounted the battle at Whispering Castle, praising Lubert Crabb and Berna Brune for their bravery.
• The next morning, Lord Grafton took Daemon’s party to Gulltown’s shipyards and explained the city’s trade and shipbuilding.
• Daemon and his party visited the Maris Sept, where an elderly septa described how the girls were taught prayers, sewing, and reading.
• Lord Grafton suggested visiting Gull Tower, and Daemon agreed to go with him.

At a banquet in Gulltown, Edwin Arryn sought Daemon’s support against Yorbert Royce and offered his son Esenbar as a squire, while Daemon kept his response cautious. The next morning, Daemon’s party left for Runestone with gifts and provisions, and he suspected the road ahead would bring trouble.

• Edwin Arryn criticized Yorbert Royce’s rule and offered Daemon support for future undertakings.
• Edwin Arryn presented his son Esenbar as a potential squire, and Daemon promised the boy could seek him out in King’s Landing after his return.
• The head of House Shett offered Daemon the help of his house, while Daemon considered the Vale’s political tensions after the banquet.
• Lord Grafton gave Daemon a sapphire-set dagger, Edwin Arryn gave him gold for Esenbar, and the Shett lord supplied provisions for the journey.
• Daemon’s party departed Gulltown for Runestone as Glutton and Dreamfyre flew overhead, and Daemon felt the journey might not be peaceful.

Daemon arrived at Runestone and learned that the Mountain Clans had revolted and besieged Moon Gate Keep, where Lord Yobert and Lady Jeyne were trapped. He offered his help and ordered his party to prepare to leave with Rhea Royce’s forces.

• Daemon and his party encountered groups of men traveling toward Runestone and found a large army mustered outside the castle.
• Rhea Royce told Daemon that the Mountain Clans had crossed the mountains and surrounded Moon Gate Keep.
• William Royce explained that Lord Yobert and Lady Jeyne were trapped at the keep and that the Vale’s lords had been summoned to rescue them.
• Daemon offered to join the campaign and said Glutton could help break the siege.
• Daemon ordered Rayford Rosby to have the party rest, inspect their weapons, and depart in half an hour.

At Heart's Home, Daemon took command of the Vale’s allied army and assigned the lords their roles in a campaign against the Mountain Clans. The army marched toward Moon Gate Keep to rescue Lady Jeyne and Regent Yobert.

• Daemon arrived at Heart's Home as the Vale’s lords argued over who should command the allied army.
• Daemon declared himself commander, and the gathered nobles—including Rhea Royce, Edwin Arryn, and Count Corbray—swore to follow him after Glutton and Dreamfyre roared overhead.
• Daemon assigned Count Corbray to cut off the Wildlings’ retreat, Rhea to lead a frontal assault, and William Royce to protect villages and supply lines.
• Daemon shattered the stone table and warned the lords against further power struggles that could endanger the campaign.
• Daemon led the allied army out of Heart's Home toward Moon Gate Keep.

Daemon led the Vale's allied army and Glutton and Dreamfyre in a decisive assault that freed Moon Gate Keep from the Mountain Clans. After capturing the fleeing clan chief and rescuing Jennie Arryn, Daemon organized a week-long pursuit that drove the clans deep into the mountains, while he recognized that his campaign was only beginning.

• Daemon coordinated the allied army's attack on the Mountain Clans as Glutton and Dreamfyre burned through their camp and flank.
• Yorbert Royce led the defenders out of Moon Gate Keep, joining the allied army in a pincer attack that broke the clans' resistance.
• Daemon pursued the fleeing clan chief and forced him to kneel, while the last wildlings were defeated and Moon Gate Keep's drawbridges were lowered.
• Yorbert brought Jennie Arryn to Daemon, and she praised him as better than Daemon and better-looking.
• Daemon divided the army to hunt the remaining clans for seven days, driving them deep into the Mountains of the Moon.
• Daemon stood with Gael at Moon Gate Keep and considered the victory the beginning of a larger campaign.

Daemon attended a victory feast at the Eyrie, welcomed young nobles who wanted to serve him, and arranged aid for the Vale’s people. The night ended with William offering him Yorbert Royce’s tactical notes and Daemon reassuring Gael and Mysaria of his loyalty.

• Daemon visited the Eyrie’s sky cells with Jennie Arryn and reflected on how even strong castles could not withstand dragonfire or keep people from going home.
• At the victory feast, Lyonel Corbray and the Hunter boy asked to serve Daemon, while Rhea Royce mocked two young men from a cadet branch of House Royce.
• Marquess Sunderland urged Daemon to marry Lady Jeyne, but Daemon instead described plans to assess village losses and buy grain for the Vale.
• William gave Daemon Yorbert Royce’s tactical notes, but Daemon returned them after recognizing William’s divided loyalties to his family and ambitions.
• Daemon sent Mysaria to comfort the angry princess and told her to assure the princess that his sword and heart would not change.

Daemon led his growing party through the Bloody Gate and into the Riverlands, where he reunited with Daemon Targaryen and received a supportive letter from Baelon. He decided to continue his tour, planning to visit Quiet Isle the next day.

• Daemon passed through the Bloody Gate with Gael and his followers after Ser Lyonel welcomed them and explained the gate's defenses.
• A string of knights, squires, bastards, and a merchant's son joined Daemon's party as it traveled toward Saltpans.
• A messenger met Daemon at Saltpans, and Daemon Targaryen arrived on Caraxes to deliver a letter from Baelon.
• Daemon read Baelon's letter, which praised him, dismissed Otto Hightower's and Lyman Beesbury's complaints, and urged him to continue his tour.
• Gael made Daemon Targaryen return to the inn to rest, while Daemon said he would remain in Saltpans and visit the harbor the next day.
• Daemon reread Baelon's assurances at the inn and planned to visit Quiet Isle before continuing through the Riverlands.

Gael, Daemon, Mysaria, and their companions visited Quiet Isle, where penitents lived under strict silence, and explored the island before departing. Daemon reflected on the island’s quiet and the brief peace he shared with those beside him as they headed toward the Riverlands.

• Daemon arrived at Saltpans with Caraxes and joked with Gael about joining the visit despite his injured leg.
• Ser Harwick explained that most people on Quiet Isle could speak only one sentence every seven days, and the Elder Brother welcomed the visitors.
• Gael and Daemon explored the island’s eastern hillside and discussed the dangerous Path of Faith.
• Gael caught Daemon Targaryen instructing a penitent in wood chopping, and he hurriedly defended his actions.
• As the ferry departed, Daemon Targaryen admitted that Quiet Isle had not been so bad, while Daemon considered the quiet peace ahead of their journey through the Riverlands.

Daemon and Gael arrived at Lord Harroway’s Town, where Earl Roote welcomed them and warned that Harrenhal was cursed. Gael and Mysaria sought comfort from Daemon that night, while he reflected on the castle’s history and the dangers of political struggle.

• Daemon and his party reached Lord Harroway’s Town, where Earl Roote greeted them and showed them House Roote’s horse, River King.
• At dinner, Earl Roote praised Ser Ryam and recounted the tragic fates of the houses that had held Harrenhal, calling the castle cursed.
• Gael grew angry when Daemon Targaryen flirted with Earl Roote’s daughters and dismissed the Harrenhal curse.
• Gael and Mysaria came to Daemon’s room, frightened by stories of Harrenhal and the families that had been destroyed there.
• Daemon comforted Gael by explaining that human choices and war, not a curse, had caused those houses’ downfalls, then wondered whether Harrenhal might truly be cursed.

Daemon and his party arrived at Harrenhal, where Daemon Targaryen provoked House Strong during the feast before Daemon stopped him and apologized. That night, Daemon, Gael, and Mysaria spotted an eerie green light in the Godswood, leaving Daemon suspecting Harrenhal’s curse was real.

• Daemon and his party reached Harrenhal, where Earl Bywin Strong welcomed them and led them into the Hall of a Hundred Hearths.
• At the feast, Daemon Targaryen mocked House Strong and Ser Lucamore’s many children, angering Harwin, Bywin, and the castle’s guards.
• Daemon struck Daemon Targaryen with Blackfyre’s pommel and had Jarman Waters and Mys Rivers remove him from the hall.
• Daemon apologized to Bywin, while Gael explained that Daemon Targaryen was injured and muddled; Bywin accepted the apology and spoke of his heir Leonno forging his chain at the Citadel.
• On the Kingspyre Tower terrace, Daemon discussed Harrenhal’s curse with Gael and Mysaria, then saw an eerie green light flickering in the Godswood.

Daemon went to Harrenhal’s Godswood at night, where Larys Strong offered his services and introduced him to Alys Rivers. Alys recognized Daemon as a “Black Dragon from the future,” leaving him with his sword drawn and the encounter poised to turn dangerous.

• Daemon investigated the Godswood after suspecting House Strong was hiding something.
• Larys Strong met Daemon by the Heart Tree and offered to serve him in exchange for an opportunity to prove his worth.
• Larys revealed Alys Rivers, whom he said had lived at Harrenhal since before his father was young.
• Alys called Daemon the “Black Dragon from the future,” and Daemon drew Blackfyre on her.

Alys Rivers put Daemon to sleep and showed him visions of Harrenhal’s doom, the Targaryen civil wars, the Dance of the Dragons, and the Red Grassland. The visions ended with Alys telling Daemon Blackfyre that his life’s suffering was not the end.

• Alys Rivers smothered Daemon with her embrace and used her touch and words to send him into a vision, while Larys Strong watched from the Heart Tree’s shadow.
• Daemon witnessed Aegon the Conqueror burn Harrenhal and House Hoare, while Alys spoke of black blood being burned away.
• Daemon saw Aegon the Uncrowned and Quicksilver fall to Maegor and Balerion at the Gods Eye, with Daemon appearing beside the man wielding Lady Forlorn.
• Daemon watched Daemon Targaryen leap onto Vhagar and kill Aemond with Dark Sister before both dragons fell into the Gods Eye.
• Daemon saw the aftermath of the Red Grassland, including the deaths of his sons and allies and his own corpse beneath Bloodraven’s arrows.
• Alys held Daemon tightly and told him that the suffering he had lived through was not the end.

Daemon dreamed of Robert killing a silver-haired Targaryen prince at the Trident, then confronted Alys Rivers about whether she had shown him the future or a future altered by his actions. He left Harrenhal on Glutton, determined to discover the truth and rewrite what he had seen.

• Daemon dreamed of Robert and Rhaegar fighting at the Trident, where Robert killed the silver-haired knight and shattered the rubies on his armor.
• Daemon awoke in Alys Rivers's embrace with his shoulder brand burning, then demanded to know who the two men were and why the battle lacked dragons.
• Alys told Daemon the vision was his future and pointed out the Heart Tree's blood-red sap, while Glutton roared in agitation.
• Daemon declared he would rewrite the future, then rode Glutton away from the Godswood as Alys said he would return.
• Alys watched Daemon depart and whispered to the Heart Tree, while Larys questioned what she had shown him.

Daemon visited the Isle of Faces with Alys Rivers and met Leaf, who guided him through a dream revealing dragons and a White Walker in the future. He learned that his return had stirred the White Walkers and that preserving the dragons could prevent their early advance, then left determined to face the threats ahead.

• Daemon and Alys Rivers traveled by dragon to the Isle of Faces to seek answers about his vision of the future.
• Leaf identified Daemon as the Black Dragon and explained that the Greenseer saw many possible futures, then led him to a spring to dream.
• Daemon dreamed of a silver-haired girl with three dragon hatchlings and of a White Walker transforming an infant in the frozen north.
• Leaf told Daemon the White Walker was from two hundred years in the future and that his rebirth had stirred it from its slumber.
• Leaf warned that the White Walker could revive early and cross the Wall if the dragons became extinct, and Daemon flew back toward Harrenhal with Alys Rivers.

Daemon and his companions departed Harrenhal for Riverrun, with Larys Strong joining them on a gray donkey and Alys Rivers riding with Gael on Dreamfyre. As the dragons flew over the Gods Eye, Daemon noticed signs that Larys and Alys might be concealing plans of their own.

• Daemon mocked Larys Strong for arriving on a donkey, while Larys played along with the joke and joined the departing party.
• Alys Rivers brought Larys a wooden chest, then asked to travel with Gael so she could speak to her about what she saw in the flames.
• Daemon Targaryen mistook Alys's call for him and joked about her appearance before Gael silenced him.
• Daemon helped Mysaria onto Glutton, while Alys embraced Gael from behind and rode with her on Dreamfyre.
• The three dragons departed for Riverrun, and Daemon noticed Larys's knowing smile and Alys tapping Gael's waist as if sending a secret signal.