Recaps

Viserys outlined a plan to use House Frey as a public shield while House Darry quietly expands in the Riverlands, and to keep Edmure Tully in King's Landing to weaken Riverrun's influence. Varys reported that Edmure and the Blackfish were on their way, then brought Viserys a letter in which Walder Frey asked about House Frey's future role.

• Viserys told William to let House Frey attract the Riverlands' attention while House Darry established itself and prepared to exploit a Frey succession struggle.
• Viserys explained that he would keep Edmure Tully in King's Landing as a Small Council member, leaving Riverrun without its heir and discouraging the Riverlords from resisting.
• Viserys ordered William to find former Targaryen supporters in the Riverlands and bring them back to help House Darry.
• Varys reported that Edmure Tully had left Riverrun for King's Landing with Brynden Tully, the Blackfish, and Viserys welcomed the chance to show him the city.
• Varys gave Viserys a letter from Walder Frey asking what role House Frey would have in the Riverlands, and Viserys remarked that Walder had grown impatient.

Viserys arranged for Roslin Frey to stay in the Red Keep as a quiet warning to House Frey, while ordering Varys to watch Lyman closely. After a warm evening with Daenerys and Rhaenys, Viserys watched Lyman bring Roslin into the Red Keep the next morning.

• Viserys told Varys to house Roslin in the Maidenvault and ensure the Riverlands learned she was staying in the Red Keep.
• Viserys ordered Varys to have the Little Birds watch Lyman Frey, suspecting Walder Frey had other plans and contacts in the Riverlands.
• Daenerys and Rhaenys invited Viserys to supper and talked with him about Acmot and the other dragons growing stronger.
• Viserys suggested that he, Daenerys, and Rhaenys sleep together, and they shared a bed that night.
• The next morning, Lyman brought Roslin to the Red Keep in a Targaryen wheelhouse, and Viserys watched her arrive.

Viserys received Roslin Frey at the Red Keep and arranged for her to live in the Maidenvault and receive lessons. Roslin settled into her new room and watched Viserys’s dragons circling above the keep.

• Varys brought Roslin to Viserys, who sent Lyman Frey away and admitted her alone.
• Viserys reassured the nervous Roslin, asked about her grandfather and life at the Twins, and promised to arrange lessons for her.
• Viserys led Roslin to the Maidenvault and gave her a room overlooking Blackwater Bay.
• Roslin watched the dragons above the Red Keep as Viserys introduced them to her.

Viserys visited Roslin in the Maidenvault after House Frey sent her to attend to him, and she nervously accepted his advances. The chapter ended with Viserys carrying her to bed and climbing in beside her.

• Viserys asked Roslin whether she feared him, and she admitted she was only afraid of failing to serve him well.
• Roslin recalled Old Frey's instructions to give Viserys whatever he wanted on behalf of House Frey.
• Viserys returned to the Maidenvault that evening and approached Roslin as she stood by the window.
• Roslin gradually relaxed as Viserys kissed her and undressed her, then tried to unfasten his robe herself.
• Viserys carried Roslin to the bed, laid her down, and climbed in beside her.

Viserys and Roslin spent the night together, and the next morning he told her she belonged to him and would begin life in the Red Keep. Two days later, Edmure Tully and his party arrived safely in King's Landing.

• Viserys and Roslin became intimate, and Roslin fell asleep exhausted in his arms.
• Roslin woke to a dragon's roar, and Viserys told her she belonged to him and encouraged her to meet Daenerys and the others.
• Viserys left to attend the council meeting after telling the servants to delay it by half an hour.
• Two days later, Edmure Tully rode into King's Landing with twenty guards and Brynden the Blackfish beside him.

Edmure Tully and Brynden the Blackfish arrived in King's Landing to meet Viserys, where House Tully pledged fealty. Viserys then challenged Edmure over his father's past betrayal of House Targaryen.

• Edmure and Brynden heard rumors about their arrival as they traveled to the Red Keep.
• Varys welcomed the Tullys and said Viserys wanted to meet Edmure and receive House Tully's pledge of fealty.
• Edmure grew uneasy as Varys led them through the Red Keep, while Brynden urged him to stay calm.
• Edmure and Brynden entered the reception hall, knelt before Viserys, and swore House Tully's fealty.
• Viserys asked Edmure what his father's choice to support Robert and betray House Targaryen meant to him.

Viserys forced Edmure Tully to accept the loss of much of House Tully’s land and a stay in King’s Landing to attend the Small Council. He then rejected Balon Greyjoy’s demand to preserve the right to raid, leaving the Iron Islands’ envoy to carry his terms home.

• Viserys demanded that House Tully cede the lands east of Riverrun to House Darry and that Edmure remain in King’s Landing to attend the Small Council.
• Edmure accepted Viserys’s demands, then left with Brynden for their assigned quarters.
• An envoy delivered Balon’s letter asking Viserys to recognize the Ironborn’s right to raid in exchange for limited submission.
• Viserys agreed to recognize House Greyjoy’s rule and certain Ironborn customs but ordered the raids to stop, warning that King Ghidorah would attack if Balon refused.
• The envoy agreed to deliver Viserys’s terms and prepared to return to the Iron Islands.

Balon Greyjoy received Viserys Targaryen’s ultimatum to end the Ironborn raids and submit to the Iron Throne, forcing him to weigh defiance against the threat of dragonfire. He summoned Asha, Theon, and Victarion to discuss the terms, and Asha arrived as Balon studied the letter.

• A raven from King's Landing delivered Viserys Targaryen’s demand that Balon stop the raids, end the Iron Islands’ independence, and swear allegiance or face dragonfire.
• Balon recalled his failed rebellion against Robert Baratheon and feared that submission would make the Ironborn see him as a coward.
• Balon resolved to summon Asha, Theon, and Victarion, though he knew Viserys was unlikely to negotiate.
• Asha entered, recognized the three-headed dragon sigil on the letter, and asked Balon if it had come from King's Landing.

Balon Greyjoy gathered Asha, Victarion, and Theon to discuss Viserys's demand that the Ironborn stop raiding and bend the knee. Asha urged caution while Victarion called for resistance, and Balon ended by asking Theon for his opinion.

• Balon showed Asha Viserys's letter, which demanded that the Ironborn abandon raiding and submit to the crown.
• Victarion and Theon arrived, and Theon read the letter before arguing that its terms were not especially harsh.
• Victarion accused Theon of having grown soft in Winterfell, and Balon stopped their quarrel to discuss the Iron Islands' response.
• Victarion declared that the Ironborn should fight, while Asha questioned whether their fleet could withstand Viserys's dragons and urged them to weigh the cost.
• Balon listened to their disagreement and asked Theon what he thought.

Theon argued that the Iron Islands could not defeat Viserys’s dragons directly but could preserve their people and ships through scattered raids and a war of delay. Balon chose to fight rather than bend the knee, while Asha remained wary of the plan.

• Theon warned Balon and Victarion that Viserys destroyed cities that refused to surrender and would not compromise with the Iron Islands.
• Victarion rejected surrender, insisting the Ironborn would not abandon the Old Way and arguing that dragons could be avoided at sea.
• Theon proposed scattering the Iron Fleet among the islands and harbors so dragons could not destroy every ship, then raiding the coasts to prolong the conflict.
• Balon agreed with Theon’s strategy and declared that he would not bend the knee again.
• Victarion urged the Ironborn to raid the Westerlands, the Reach, and the North, while Asha warned that Viserys would send dragons after them and remained uneasy.

Balon ordered the Ironborn to prepare their fleet and unite against Viserys, whose dragons threatened the Iron Islands. He accepted Theon's claim that he was a Greyjoy and ended the chapter resolved to challenge the dragons with iron ships.

• Balon asked Victarion how many ships could sail, then ordered the smiths to prepare the Iron Fleet and load the ships with supplies.
• Balon told Asha to contact the island lords and stop the Ironborn from fighting among themselves.
• Balon ordered Theon to requisition merchant ships and convert them into longships, then asked whether he felt he was a Greyjoy.
• Theon told Balon that he knew who he was, and preparations for war spread across the Iron Islands.
• Balon reflected on his past losses and imagined the dragons destroying his fleet before resolving to test his iron ships against them.

Balon, Asha, Victarion, and Theon prepared the Iron Islands for war against Viserys, though Asha hoped their resistance might lead to negotiations. Balon remained set on fighting, and the pirate chiefs accepted that they would face the Dragonlord rather than kneel.

• Asha reported that Victarion was counting warships and Theon was overseeing merchant-ship conversions, then urged Balon to use Theon's plan to resist Viserys and seek better terms.
• Balon dismissed Asha to rest, and she promised to stand by him whatever he decided.
• Victarion inspected the ships and ordered the Sea Snake to take on another hundred arrows.
• Theon told a carpenter to patch the Sea Swallow instead of transferring its supplies, then remembered his former life at Winterfell.
• Balon told his pirate chiefs that they had no alternative to war, and they faced the prospect of fighting Viserys rather than surrendering.

Balon Greyjoy prepared the Iron Fleet for conflict with Viserys, ordering raids on the North and the Reach while keeping Theon at Pyke. As the ships prepared to sail, Balon insisted the ironborn should plunder and flee rather than face the king’s dragon.

• Balon assigned Asha a hundred ships for the south, Victarion fifty ships for the north, and kept Theon and the remaining forces at Pyke.
• Viserys told Varys that he expected Balon to submit, but threatened to show him the real Old Way if he refused.
• Balon received word from King's Landing and dismissed his shaken envoy before discussing the next steps with Asha and Victarion.
• Balon ordered Victarion to raid the North but avoid White Harbor, whose fleet and location made it too risky.
• Balon ordered Asha to plunder the Reach quickly and leave, despite her concerns about Viserys's dragon and the Redwyne fleet.
• Balon refused Theon's request to sail and instructed Asha and Victarion to flee if the dragon appeared.

Balon Greyjoy sent Victarion and fifty longships north as part of his gamble to preserve the Iron Islands’ independence, while Asha led the younger elite raiders toward the Reach. The fleet departed Pyke, leaving Balon to pray for victory against Viserys.

• Balon Greyjoy summoned the captains and committed the Ironborn to a campaign rather than submitting to Viserys.
• Balon assigned Victarion and older Ironborn to raid the North, while Asha took the elite raiders toward the Reach.
• Theon visited Victarion aboard the Iron Victory and offered to switch places, but Victarion refused and told him to learn his craft.
• Asha promised to teach Theon to sail if she returned, warning that the sea might not give her back.
• Victarion led fifty longships out of Pyke toward the North as Balon watched them depart and prayed to the Drowned God for victory.

Victarion Greyjoy led Ironborn longships to raid the North while Asha Greyjoy sailed toward the Reach, and Viserys ordered the coastal lords to defend themselves rather than send dragons after the scattered raiders. He also directed Varys to monitor the Citadel’s secret removals, planning to move against Oldtown once the Seven Kingdoms were stable.

• Victarion Greyjoy led fifty longships toward the North and ordered them to scatter, raid, and leave quickly.
• Varys told Viserys that Asha Greyjoy had taken a hundred longships toward the Reach and that both fleets were targeting coastal settlements.
• Viserys ordered coastal houses to strengthen their defenses and told House Redwyne to patrol the waters around the Iron Islands.
• Viserys instructed the lords to assess raid damage and rebuild their villages at their own expense.
• Varys reported that the Citadel was secretly moving books and possibly magical artifacts, and Viserys ordered him to intensify the investigation.

Viserys shared a tender moment with Rhaenys and checked how Roslin was adjusting to life in the Red Keep. After encouraging Roslin’s studies and kissing her, he joined the women for dinner, while Rhaenys invited Roslin along.

• King Ghidorah flew freely above King’s Landing as Viserys watched through their mental link.
• Rhaenys invited Viserys, Dany, and the others to hunt wild boar in the Kingswood the next day, and Viserys agreed to join her for dinner.
• Viserys asked Roslin whether she had settled in, and she told him the maids and princesses had treated her kindly.
• Roslin explained that she was studying court etiquette, House Targaryen’s history, and High Valyrian with Daenerys.
• Viserys kissed Roslin, praised her studies, and told her to keep learning.
• Rhaenys calmly linked arms with Roslin and invited her to dinner with Viserys and Daenerys.

At dinner, Daenerys told Viserys that Ser Lyman Frey was growing impatient to meet him, while Roslin quietly struggled with her family’s plans and her growing affection for Viserys. After dinner, Viserys went to Rhaenys’s room, and they spent the night together.

• Daenerys told Viserys that Ser Lyman Frey had repeatedly asked Varys when he could meet the king, and Viserys said House Frey needed to learn patience.
• Roslin paused when Daenerys mentioned House Frey, then continued her meal while reflecting on her grandfather’s plans and her fondness for Viserys.
• The Stark sisters discussed their training at dinner, with Sansa focusing on etiquette and Arya on swordsmanship.
• After dinner, Viserys went to Rhaenys’s room while Daenerys returned to her quarters and Roslin was escorted back to the Maidenvault.
• Viserys and Rhaenys kissed and spent the night together, eventually falling quiet after midnight.

Viserys promised Rhaenys that they would live together peacefully in Valyria after the Seven Kingdoms were pacified. Meanwhile, Victarion Greyjoy led Ironborn raids along the North’s coast, leaving local lords struggling to defend the villages.

• Rhaenys told Viserys she wanted to stay with him, Dany, and Ashara forever, and Viserys promised they would return to Valyria once the fighting ended.
• Viserys awoke to dragons circling above the Red Keep and went to his study to plan the day’s affairs.
• Victarion Greyjoy led the Ironborn in raiding a coastal village, ordering his men to take what they could and burn the rest as a warning to the northmen.
• Earl Glover arrived with two hundred soldiers after the Ironborn had escaped, finding the village in ruins and its people dead.
• Ironborn raids struck villages from Saltstrand to Widow’s Watch over the next two days, while northern lords sent warnings and tried to strengthen their defenses.

House Mormont and House Glover struggled to defend the North’s coast from swift Ironborn raids. After the Ironborn devastated a village south of Deepwood Motte, a survivor revealed that the raiders were heading for Bear Island.

• Maege Mormont sent Bear Island’s longships to patrol the coast, but Ironborn raiders slipped past them, stole sheep and women, and burned fishing boats.
• Maege ordered fishermen to carry weapons and light beacons if they saw Ironborn ships, and rallied Bear Island’s people to defend their home.
• Earl Glover learned that a village south of Deepwood Motte was burning and sounded the alarm.
• A knight of House Glover reached the village after the Ironborn had left and found its people, homes, and grain devastated.
• An old man told the knight that three ships bearing golden krakens had raided the village and that the Ironborn planned to attack Bear Island next.
• The knight ordered his soldiers to prepare to pursue the raiders north and sent word back to Deepwood Motte.

Galbart Glover prepared Deepwood Motte for an Ironborn attack after raids had scattered most of his defenders. Victarion Greyjoy led thirty-nine longships ashore, and the battle began with the Ironborn climbing the castle walls.

• Earl Glover ordered more pleas for reinforcements from Winterfell and sent men to search burned villages for survivors and bury the dead.
• At dawn, Galbart Glover spotted thirty-nine Ironborn longships approaching Deepwood Motte and ordered the archers ready and the women and children into the cellars.
• Robett led men through the rear gate to flank the Ironborn, while fewer than two hundred defenders remained inside the castle.
• Victarion Greyjoy led the Ironborn ashore and ordered them to plunder, burn, and kill as they charged through the Wolfswood.
• Galbart ordered the archers to loose arrows, but the Ironborn reached the walls and began climbing with grappling hooks.

Galbart and Ser Robett drove the Ironborn from Deepwood Motte, while Maege Mormont prepared Bear Island's defenses against Victarion Greyjoy's approaching fleet. The chapter ended as Victarion ordered his men ashore, unaware that the Mormonts had evacuated the northern villages and planned to ambush the raiders.

• Galbart held Deepwood Motte's walls until Ser Robett Glover attacked the Ironborn from behind and wounded Victarion, forcing the raiders to retreat to their ships.
• Galbart warned that the Ironborn would return, then ordered casualties counted, wounded treated, and urgent messages sent to Winterfell for reinforcements and supplies.
• Maege told Dacey that the northern villages had been evacuated and ordered her to lead a hundred men through the woods to harass the Ironborn and cut off their retreat.
• Victarion sailed toward Bear Island aboard the Iron Victory and ordered his men to burn and plunder before returning to Deepwood Motte.
• Victarion raised his battle-axe and ordered the Ironborn to go ashore for the Drowned God.

Asha Greyjoy led her fleet in a successful raid on a House Hightower merchant convoy, then escaped pursuit by House Redwyne. She ordered the Ironborn north toward the border between the Reach and the Westerlands to continue raiding safer coastal targets.

• Quenton told Asha Greyjoy that five heavily laden House Hightower merchant ships were ahead, and Asha ordered a quiet attack.
• Asha's fifteen longships captured all five merchant ships, killed the young knight commanding their escort, and seized grain, wine, cloth, and glassware.
• Quenton warned Asha that at least twenty House Redwyne warships were approaching, so she ordered the fleet to retreat north.
• Asha's fleet escaped the Redwyne pursuers before nightfall, and Asha decided to raid along the border between the Reach and the Westerlands.

Viserys encountered Sansa tending blue roses in the Red Keep garden and reassured her about her place there and Arya’s happiness. Sansa thanked him for caring for her family and cried as he comforted her.

• Viserys went to the garden to see the blood orange trees Oberyn had brought as a gift from Arianne.
• Viserys found Sansa pruning blue roses and told her she could tend the Red Keep’s gardens as she wished.
• Viserys asked Sansa whether Arya had settled into life in the Red Keep, and Sansa said Arya was happier and enjoyed sword practice and feeding dragons.
• Viserys told Sansa that he needed her and House Stark, and Sansa thanked him for caring for Arya and showing mercy to her house.
• Sansa began to cry, and Viserys gently wiped her tears as she looked up at him and smiled.

Sansa asked Viserys why he treated House Stark and its daughters so well, and he told her that House Stark deserved his support and that he wanted to keep her by his side. The next morning, Viserys watched Arya train and gave her advice that improved her sword strike.

• Sansa asked Viserys why he was good to House Stark, and he said the house deserved it and admitted he wanted to keep her by his side.
• Sansa left the garden to find Arya and said she would see Viserys at dinner.
• Viserys rose early and went to the Red Keep's training ground, where Arya was sparring with an instructor.
• Arya greeted Viserys and returned to practice while he watched her footwork and swordsmanship.
• Viserys told Arya to put her waist into her strikes and steady her footwork, and her next attack drove the instructor back.

Arya asked Viserys to spar with her, and he used the bout to demonstrate her weaknesses and teach her swordsmanship. After nearly an hour of practice, Arya vowed to keep training so she could protect the people she cared about.

• Arya challenged Viserys to spar, and he quickly disarmed her and stopped his practice sword near her throat.
• Arya attacked again, and Viserys parried her while pointing out that her slow footwork and lowered gaze revealed her intentions.
• Viserys struck Arya's sword wrist and taught her to hold her sword firmly without gripping it too tightly.
• Viserys adjusted the pace to Arya's improving skill and stopped the spar after nearly an hour when she became exhausted.
• Arya praised the training, and Viserys encouraged her progress while warning her to practice consistently.
• Arya promised to keep training until she was strong enough to protect her loved ones and prevent her family from being hurt again.