Recaps

Viserys used Blackflame and King Ghidorah to defeat Astapor’s slavers and inspire the Unsullied to rebel. After the Unsullied liberated the city, he offered them freedom and a choice to fight for his planned Valyrian Freehold.

• Viserys urged the Unsullied to reject their masters and take back their dignity and freedom, while Grazdan ordered the sellswords to attack him.
• Blackflame and King Ghidorah arrived and attacked the sellswords and Good Masters, scattering their forces and terrifying the crowd.
• Viserys commanded the Unsullied to kill the slavers, spare children, and free the other slaves, and the Unsullied marched into battle.
• The Unsullied defeated the remaining Good Masters and sellswords, while Viserys and the dragons helped secure Astapor.
• Viserys declared the Unsullied free, destroyed the Harpy Scepter, and offered lands and titles to those who chose to fight for him.
• The Unsullied silently began striking their spear butts against the ground in a growing rhythm as Viserys signaled for quiet.

Viserys declared Astapor free and called on its people to defend their liberty as the New Valyrian Empire took control of the city. He met Missandei, learned of her past, and appointed her to work as his translator and record keeper.

• Viserys promised the freed slaves that Astapor would remain free and urged them to join the Free Folk Legion.
• The freed people rallied behind Viserys, and that evening they raised New Valyria’s banner and burned their shackles and whips.
• Ser Arthur reported that Astapor was largely under control, while Viserys ordered scouts to gather news from Yunkai and Meereen.
• Missandei told Viserys about her training, her lost family, and why she wanted to serve him.
• Viserys appointed Missandei to work by his side as a translator and record keeper, and promised to introduce her to Daenerys and his niece.

Viserys planned to conquer Yunkai before Meereen’s forces could join its defenders, and traveled to the sellsword camps to negotiate with the Second Sons and Stormcrows. As King Ghidorah descended over the Stormcrows’ camp, the commanders saw that the rumors of dragons were true.

• Viserys told the council that Yunkai had nearly twenty thousand defenders and Meereen was preparing to send a larger force against Astapor.
• Viserys ordered Ser Arthur Dayne to lead ten thousand Unsullied and five thousand Free Folk toward Yunkai, while Ser Alliser Thorne remained in Astapor with the reserves.
• Viserys said he would approach the Second Sons and Stormcrows, whose commanders included Mero the Cautious, Ben Plumm, “Bald” Pello, and Daario Naharis.
• At the Stormcrows’ camp, Daario argued for breaking the contract and fleeing, while Ben Plumm and Pello discussed the danger and the rumors about Viserys.
• King Ghidorah appeared over the camp, leaving the sellswords staring in alarm and awe as she descended with a figure on her back.

Viserys Targaryen persuaded the Stormcrows to serve him by demonstrating King Ghidorah’s destructive power, then used them to force the Second Sons to negotiate. Mero accepted Viserys’s terms and swore the Second Sons’ allegiance to him.

• Viserys offered the Stormcrows a choice between fighting for Yunkai, leaving Slaver’s Bay, or serving him, then demonstrated King Ghidorah’s power by annihilating a patch of ground.
• Daario, Ben Plumm, and Pello agreed that the Stormcrows should serve Viserys, and Daario pledged the company to House Targaryen.
• Viserys ordered the Stormcrows to capture the Second Sons’ commander, Mero, alive.
• Daario confronted Mero in the Second Sons’ command tent and urged him to serve Viserys rather than die fighting for Yunkai.
• Viserys offered Mero the Stormcrows’ terms and promised the Second Sons would receive the money the Wise Masters had pledged.
• Mero agreed to serve Viserys and knelt to swear the Second Sons’ allegiance.

Viserys prepared an assault on Yunkai, using mercenaries to feint at its northern and eastern gates while the Unsullied attacked from the south. King Ghidorah erased Yunkai’s Scorpions and part of the southern wall, leaving the defenders in panic as the attack began.

• Viserys returned to Ser Arthur’s camp with news that Yunkai had fewer than twenty thousand defenders and that four thousand mercenaries had joined his forces.
• Viserys ordered the Second Sons and Stormcrows to feint at Yunkai’s northern and eastern gates while the Unsullied attacked the southern gate.
• Kraznys persuaded Yunkai’s Wise Masters to arm the city’s defenders and promised freedom and rewards to those who held the city.
• Ser Arthur assembled ten thousand Unsullied and five thousand Free Folk outside Yunkai as the Stormcrows reported that their feint was drawing defenders away.
• King Ghidorah destroyed twenty incoming bolts, several Scorpions, their crews, and part of Yunkai’s southern wall with her Golden Ray.

Viserys used King Ghidorah to break Yunkai’s defenses and urged its enslaved soldiers to turn against the Wise Masters. With the city falling, he confronted Kraznys in the pyramid and declared that the slave trade would end.

• King Ghidorah froze defenders and blasted open Yunkai’s gate while Viserys called on the city’s people to fight for their freedom.
• After hearing that Astapor’s slaves had truly been freed, Yunkai’s slave troops mutinied and helped the Unsullied enter through the south gate.
• Viserys saw the Unsullied advancing and the mercenaries gaining ground at the other gates, then flew to the city’s largest pyramid.
• Kraznys offered Viserys gold and bedslaves in exchange for sparing the Wise Masters, but Viserys refused and announced the end of the slave trade.
• Viserys ordered the guards to seize Kraznys, then approached him and said, “Power is power.”

Viserys consolidated control over Yunkai and ordered a devastating response after Maroq’s Meereen fleet attacked his supply ships. He trapped the fleet between King Ghidorah and Blackflame, and the battle began with the dragons setting ships ablaze.

• Kraznys and his chief supporters were tried by Yunkai’s provisional assembly, sentenced to public execution, and stripped of their property.
• Viserys established a temporary administration in Yunkai and learned that Meereen’s army had retreated.
• Maroq led nearly a hundred Meereenese warships to raid transports and blockade the waters between Astapor and Yunkai.
• Viserys summoned Blackflame and rode King Ghidorah to attack Maroq’s fleet from opposite sides.
• King Ghidorah froze, burned, and destroyed ships on the fleet’s western flank while drawing its attention.
• Blackflame struck from the east and engulfed three warships in dragonfire.

Viserys and his dragons destroyed Meereen’s navy, while the Great Masters answered with brutal executions that hardened the conflict. After consolidating Yunkai and Astapor, Viserys marched on Meereen with an army determined to break the city’s defenses and avenge its victims.

• King Ghidorah and Blackflame annihilated Meereen’s fleet, sinking the flagship Raging Tide and leaving no ships to escape.
• Eraz persuaded Meereen’s Great Masters to reject negotiations and execute suspected rebels, displaying their corpses along the coastal road and city walls.
• Viserys spent a fortnight consolidating his rule in Yunkai and Astapor before planning an assault on Meereen with Ser Arthur and his commanders.
• Viserys assigned Ser Arthur and the Unsullied and Free Folk Legion to attack the southern gate, while mercenaries would engage the other gates and the dragons would clear the walls.
• Viserys’s army dismantled and buried the victims displayed along the road, strengthening the troops’ resolve as they marched toward Meereen.
• Eraz and the Great Masters mobilized roughly fifty thousand defenders, concentrating their best troops and equipment in the inner city for a final stand.

Viserys conquered Meereen with the help of King Ghidorah, Blackflame, and a slave revolt, then established the Free Bay Province under New Valyrian rule. The empire consolidated its control by abolishing slavery, appointing officials, and strengthening Valyria's garrison.

• Viserys attacked Meereen with King Ghidorah and Blackflame, crippling its defenses as a slave revolt erupted inside the city.
• Ser Arthur led New Valyria's army into Meereen while Viserys and the dragons supported the assault against the Great Masters' troops.
• Viserys ordered King Ghidorah and Blackflame to burn the Great Master Eraz's pyramid after its defenders rejected his ultimatum.
• Viserys tried and executed Meereen's Great Masters, abolished slavery, and united Astapor, Yunkai, and Meereen as the Free Bay Province.
• Viserys appointed Ser Arthur Dayne as the province's hereditary duke and granted titles and duties to Ser Jon Darry, Ser Willem Darry, Ser Alliser Thorne, and other loyal servants.
• Viserys transferred five thousand Unsullied to Valyria, strengthening the empire's garrison as New Valyria established control across Essos.

Duke Arthur Dayne learned that Khal Ogo's massive Dothraki khalasar was approaching Meereen and prepared the city's defenses. Viserys spotted the riders through his birds and flew toward Meereen on King Ghidorah, leaving the threat unresolved.

• Arthur Dayne received a report that nearly forty thousand Dothraki, led by Khal Ogo, were heading toward Meereen with Lhazareen captives.
• Arthur ordered scouts to track the khalasar, strengthened the city's defenses, and sent word to Valyria.
• Viserys saw the Dothraki through the eyes of one of his birds and recognized their bloody arakh banners.
• Viserys asked Ashara to look after Daenerys, Rhaenys, and Missandei, then flew toward Meereen on King Ghidorah.

Arthur defended Meereen against Ogo Khal’s Dothraki, killing Robb and holding off the Khalasar until Viserys arrived on King Ghidorah. The dragon attacked Ogo’s forces and targeted the Khal, whose fate remained unresolved.

• Arthur refused Robb’s demands for tribute and slaves, then killed the Bloodrider in a duel and sent his body back to Ogo Khal.
• Enraged by Robb’s death, Ogo Khal led the Dothraki in an assault on Meereen, but Arthur’s defenders held the city and raided the enemy camp.
• Ogo Khal prepared a major charge against a repaired section of wall as Viserys arrived on King Ghidorah.
• King Ghidorah’s appearance terrified the Dothraki, and Viserys ordered her to attack Ogo Khal and disrupt the army’s command.
• King Ghidorah’s Dragonfire and Frost Breath devastated Ogo Khal’s forces, while the Khal survived and defied the dragon as golden light gathered in her central head.

Viserys defeated Ogo Khal and forced the surviving Dothraki to choose between exile and serving the New Valyrian Empire. After thousands swore fealty, he ordered their integration into an imperial cavalry force and arranged aid for the Lhazareen captives.

• King Ghidorah's Golden Ray annihilated Ogo Khal, his last Bloodriders, and the ground beneath them, breaking the Dothraki army's will to fight.
• Arthur launched a counterattack as Viserys demanded that the Dothraki surrender, cut off their braids, and kneel.
• Viserys offered the surrendered warriors a chance to become the Gale Warriors of the New Valyrian Empire, and Ko Moso led the first Dothraki in pledging fealty.
• Arthur reported Meereen's casualties and the numbers of surrendered Dothraki, their dependents, horses, and Lhazareen captives.
• Viserys ordered Arthur to reorganize the Dothraki into loyal cavalry units, care for the Lhazareen, and investigate whether someone had armed Ogo Khal.

News of Viserys’s conquest of Slaver’s Bay and the Dothraki spread, drawing the attention of religious powers and the royal court in King’s Landing. The chapter ended with Robert dismissing reports of dragons as lies, despite his council’s warnings.

• Kinvara showed High Priest Benerro visions of Viserys and said his fate was veiled, though he was not Azor Ahai.
• Kinvara urged the Red God’s priests to watch Viserys and send emissaries who might guide or aid him against the coming Long Night.
• Reports linked a wealthy Qartheen merchant to the Dothraki attack, while powers in Asshai and Qarth also turned their attention toward Viserys.
• Petyr Baelish warned Robert Baratheon that the Crown faced mounting debts, and Varys reported that Viserys had taken Slaver’s Bay.
• Jon Arryn told Robert that reports described real dragons, but Robert laughed and dismissed the claims as fabrication.

The Small Council discussed Viserys Targaryen’s growing power in Essos and prepared for the possibility that he would invade Westeros. In Sunspear, Doran Martell chose to wait for more information, while Arianne suspected she was betrothed to Viserys.

• Varys reported that Viserys commanded Unsullied, sellswords, and Dothraki survivors, and that he might also have dragons.
• Jon Arryn warned that Viserys could attract support in Essos, while Littlefinger and Pycelle raised concerns about Dorne and renewed Iron Islands rebellion.
• Jon Arryn advised verifying the eastern reports, strengthening coastal defenses, and seeking reconciliation with Dorne through a possible marriage alliance.
• Robert approved the preparations, and Varys arranged for Ser Ralph Royce to investigate Slaver's Bay in disguise.
• At Sunspear, Arianne told Doran about the reports from Norvos and asked about Oberyn, while Doran urged patience and continued observation.

Viserys received Jon Connington, who used the alias Earl Griffin, and heard that New Ghis was plotting with Golden Company commanders to attack Slaver’s Bay. Jon offered to help win the company’s support, while Viserys kept Young Griff in Valyria as proof of their trustworthiness.

• Viserys reviewed reports of unusual Golden Company movements and New Ghis strengthening its defenses and meeting with foreign ships.
• An Unsullied brought four detainees to the castle, including their leader, who called himself Earl Griffin, and Viserys ordered that they be held under guard.
• Jon Connington revealed his identity and warned Viserys that New Ghis was trying to recruit Golden Company commanders for an attack on Slaver’s Bay.
• Jon said the Golden Company was divided and offered to help bring its Targaryen-sympathetic members to Viserys’s service.
• Young Griff identified himself as Jon’s adopted son, and Viserys said he would verify Jon’s claims while keeping the boy in Valyria for his education.

Clinton revealed that Young Griff was supposedly Aegon Targaryen, Rhaegar and Elia’s surviving son, and proposed that he and Viserys join forces to reclaim the Iron Throne. Viserys challenged the claim and demanded a test by dragonfire, which Aegon accepted before demanding that Rhaenys marry him.

• Clinton told Viserys that Varys and Illyrio had rescued the real Aegon and that he had raised him as Young Griff.
• Aegon urged Viserys to unite their claims, dragon, army, and the Golden Company against the Usurper.
• Viserys questioned Aegon’s identity and challenged his claim that Targaryens did not fear fire.
• Viserys proposed that he and Aegon each stand in Blackflame’s dragonfire to prove their identities.
• Aegon accepted the test and demanded Rhaenys as his wife, prompting Clinton to order him to be silent.

Viserys tested Aegon’s claim to the Targaryen name by having Blackflame bathe him in dragonfire, which killed him and left Clinton devastated. Viserys reminded Clinton that Rhaegar and Elia’s deaths still mattered, and Clinton began to regain his focus.

• Viserys summoned Aegon and Clinton to the training yard and proved he could survive Blackflame’s dragonfire.
• Viserys challenged Aegon to face the flames, and Aegon, terrified but driven by pride, rushed into the yard.
• Blackflame burned Aegon to death, leaving only charred remains as Clinton watched in despair.
• Viserys told Clinton that Aegon had been a puppet and asked what he intended to do next.
• Clinton said he felt his years of sacrifice had meant nothing, but Viserys reminded him that Rhaegar and Elia’s deaths remained real, stirring Clinton from his despair.

Viserys persuaded Jon Clinton to abandon his despair, recruit the Golden Company for the Targaryen cause, and hand over three dragon eggs. With Clinton returning to the company and Viserys preparing to manipulate Westerosi spies and Lannister interest in Bright-Roar, the story left him ready to send messages to the nobles of Westeros.

• Viserys convinced Jon Clinton that Rhaegar’s blood debt still mattered, and Clinton pledged his sword and promised to win over the Golden Company.
• Clinton offered Viserys three dragon eggs Illyrio had given Young Griff, and Viserys accepted them for safekeeping.
• Clinton planned to claim that Young Griff had died in an accident on the way to Valyria, then left Dragonwing Castle to take control of the Golden Company.
• Ser Alliser told Viserys that rumors of Bright-Roar had spread through Westeros, and Viserys ordered him to exploit Tywin Lannister’s interest in the lost sword.
• Ser Alliser reported that Ser Ralph Royce had been caught spying for the Iron Throne, and Viserys ordered him brought in to witness the Unsullied and the dragons.

Viserys Targaryen showed Ser Ralph Royce the strength of his dragons and empire, then offered House Royce a chance to rise in the Vale if it backed his claim. Ralph swore personal allegiance to Viserys and promised to persuade his cousin Earl Yohn, leaving Viserys to await the results of the new alliance.

• Ser Ralph Royce entered the Council Chamber shaken by the dragons and military power he had witnessed.
• Viserys told Ralph to report that the New Valyrian Empire had risen and would challenge Robert Baratheon.
• Viserys offered House Royce a greater role in the Vale if it supported his return to the Iron Throne.
• Ralph swore allegiance to Viserys and promised to tell Earl Yohn everything and urge him to support the true dragon.
• Viserys released Ralph to return to the Vale after resting, welcoming him to report the truth to Robert as well.

Viserys tried to find a way to hatch dragon eggs before the magical tide arrived, giving three fossilized eggs to Daenerys and taking nine living eggs to a volcano for experiments. His first method increased the living eggs’ vitality but did not hatch them, leaving him to seek a faster approach.

• King Ghidorah told Viserys that the three dragon eggs from the Shadow Lands were completely dead and could only be revived through a miracle or the sacrifice of many lives.
• Viserys gave the fossilized eggs to Daenerys, who named them Vermax, Viserion, and Acmot and began spending her days talking to them.
• Viserys reassured Rhaenys that she would have first choice among the nine living dragon eggs once he found a way to hatch them.
• Viserys told Ashara he planned to take the nine eggs and King Ghidorah to their volcano, then shared an intimate moment with her before leaving.
• Viserys and King Ghidorah tried using Targaryen blood and magical guidance to awaken the living eggs, but the method was too slow and none of the shells cracked.

Viserys and King Ghidorah tried to hatch the nine Dragon Eggs by creating a magical tide and awakening the hatchlings, but Viserys had to stop when exhaustion threatened him. They left the eggs in the volcanic cave to recover and grow, unaware that the dark red egg had begun to crack.

• Viserys and King Ghidorah heated the Dragon Eggs with dragonfire, which increased their energy absorption but did not make them hatch.
• King Ghidorah proposed filling the cave with magic while Viserys used his bloodline and mental power to rouse the sleeping hatchlings.
• Viserys and King Ghidorah sustained the magical tide for days, and the hatchlings began stirring, with the deep red egg responding first.
• King Ghidorah urged Viserys to stop when blood loss and mental strain left him close to collapse, and Viserys agreed to rest and give the eggs more time.
• Viserys and King Ghidorah left the nine Dragon Eggs in the cave under Blackflame's protection, and a crack appeared on the dark red egg after they departed.

After recovering at Dragonwing Castle, Viserys discovered that a dragon egg had hatched and brought Rhaenys to meet the hatchling. The ruby-red dragon chose Rhaenys as its companion and was named Meleys, while three other eggs showed signs of hatching.

• Viserys returned to Dragonwing Castle, reunited with Rhaenys and Ashara, and studied ancient texts about dragon hatching and Valyrian magic.
• Viserys learned through his shared vision with Blackflame that a dragon had hatched, then took Rhaenys to the volcano to meet it.
• Viserys introduced Rhaenys to the ruby-red Hatchling Dragon, which approached him before warming to Rhaenys.
• Rhaenys formed a bond with the Hatchling Dragon, and Viserys named her Meleys.
• Viserys noticed that the three remaining dragon eggs had developed cracks.

Viserys brought Rhaenys and her newly hatched dragon, Meleys, back to Dragonwing Castle, where Rhaenys began caring for and training her. A week later, three more dragon eggs hatched in the volcanic cavern, and the black hatchling immediately approached Viserys.

• Viserys returned to Dragonwing Castle with Rhaenys and Meleys, and Missandei, Ashara, and Daenerys admired the hatchling.
• Viserys assigned Missandei to record Meleys’s habits and growth, then arranged a stone chamber as her temporary Dragonpit.
• Rhaenys fed Meleys cooked meat and trained her to follow simple Valyrian commands as the hatchling grew rapidly and showed an affinity for fire.
• Viserys rode Blackflame to the volcanic cavern with Daenerys, where three remaining eggs hatched into black, bronze-and-green, and copper-yellow dragons.
• The black hatchling approached Viserys and gently bumped its head against his shin.

Viserys named the three newly hatched dragons Balerion, Vhagar, and Meraxes, introduced them to his inner circle, and used dragon flights to build confidence and unity across Valyria. Two months later, Balerion and Vhagar revealed unusual magical properties in their dragonfire, suggesting the hatchlings could surpass ordinary dragons.

• Viserys comforted Daenerys about her unhatched eggs, named the three hatchlings Balerion, Vhagar, and Meraxes, and helped her touch them.
• Viserys brought the hatchlings to Dragonwing Castle and presented all four young dragons to his inner circle, whose members celebrated their return.
• Viserys trained with the dragons and took Ashara, Rhaenys, and Daenerys on flights over Valyria to prepare them for riding and inspire the people.
• During a fire-breathing exercise, Balerion produced flames that left dark purple ashes, and Viserys suspected they were corrosive.
• Vhagar later breathed golden dragonfire with a slight annihilating quality, leading Viserys to suspect that the hatchlings had unusual potential because of King Ghidorah's magic.

Viserys trained the Hatchling Dragons as five more eggs hatched, bringing the total to nine. Tessarion chose Ashara, while the dragons’ growing appetites left Viserys facing a difficult food supply problem.

• Viserys and Rhaenys trained the Hatchling Dragons to control their growing powers.
• Five eggs hatched, and Viserys named the new dragons Syrax, Caraxes, Vermithor, Tessarion, and Meleagor.
• Viserys brought all nine dragons to Dragonwing Castle and housed them in the expanded shelter.
• Tessarion approached Ashara, accepted her touch, and appeared to choose her as her companion.
• Viserys recognized that the dragons’ enormous need for meat could not be met sustainably by transporting food from Free Bay.