Cannibal

Biodata

Appearance

• Coloration: Coal-black, with pitch-black wings 15 453.
• Eyes: Eerie green, compared to ghostly flames 453.
• Length: Initially described as just over one hundred meters, smaller than Vermithor despite his great age. A later dragon reference instead gives a length of seventy to eighty meters and a wingspan of 150 meters. After being tamed, he is described as ninety meters long, and a subsequent reference lists him as over ninety meters with a wingspan of 230 meters. These measurements are not entirely consistent across the narrative 15 302 453 499.
• Scales: More weathered and tougher than Vhagar’s, providing exceptional protection 24.
• Build: Less bulky than Vhagar, allowing greater agility 24.
• Jaw and tusks: A congenitally malformed, unusually large lower jaw gives him an underbite. Two exposed, blade-like tusks grow from it and serve as weapons in combat 456.
• Battle injuries: Deep chest wounds, back wounds exposing bone, and a wing tear more than ten meters long during his early battles. The Colossal Wyvern later cracks his scales with a powerful blow 15 24 460.
• Rejuvenation: His aging body shows signs of rejuvenation after absorbing energy from blood sacrifices on Great Morak Island 545.

Personality

Cannibal is savage, cunning, and intensely vindictive. Danyla initially avoids provoking him even while feeding Dragonstone’s other dragons, and Jaehaerys warns that a temporary retreat will not prevent him from seeking revenge once the royal dragons leave 2 16.

His aggression is tempered by patience and self-preservation. After his first defeat, he remains out of sight for more than a month while the island is guarded. During his second battle, he recognizes that exhaustion and mounting injuries could prove fatal and abandons the fight 22 23 25.

Captivity makes him particularly vicious. After regaining consciousness, he vents his rage through sustained dragonfire; even his eventual calm is treated as potentially deceptive 32.

During his captivity, he shows no special mercy toward people of Targaryen blood and particularly loathes Danyla for having him chained. Her presence above him on Dreamfyre is enough to provoke renewed fury 66.

His eventual acceptance of Otheryon ends his long riderless captivity. He soars excitedly above Holy Flame Island after being unchained, and repeated hunts with his rider make his fighting more polished and methodical 424 456.

History

Dragonstone’s ancient predator

Cannibal is one of Dragonstone’s oldest dragons. Legends claim that he predates Balerion the Black Dread, though his exact age is not established. His reputation includes devouring both young dragons and island inhabitants 15 26.

He discovers the shelter of three young wild dragons on Dragonmont, leaving them unable to return safely. Danyla suspects that, without her intervention, the black and green youngsters would have been eaten and disappeared from later histories; this remains her inference rather than a confirmed event 15 20.

His reputation also includes eating dragon eggs. Markris later cites this habit when warning Sevan that Seasmoke might be interested in consuming his egg, and reminds him of the scars Cannibal left on him 156.

First dragon battle

When Cannibal pursues the three youngsters, Danyla sends Dreamfyre to intercept him. Despite Dreamfyre’s rider-directed maneuvers, Cannibal initially holds the advantage through counterattacks and ambush tactics. The young dragons escape into the clouds while Danyla keeps Dreamfyre at a safer distance 15.

Rhaenys and Meleys join the battle, allowing Dreamfyre to gouge Cannibal’s chest. When Jaehaerys arrives on Vermithor and Daemon on Quicksilver, Cannibal drives his opponents back with dragonfire and retreats. The three reinforcing riders follow him until he enters his lair 15.

Jaehaerys subsequently stations Daemon and Quicksilver on Dragonstone to protect the hatchlings. He expects the danger to diminish when Cannibal enters Dragonmont to sleep in autumn. The threat also prompts Viserys to consider taming Vhagar to protect Danyla 16 17.

Second attack and capture

After more than a month of inactivity, Cannibal appears over the orchard on New Dragonstone Island during a family picnic. Danyla intercepts him while the three young dragons lead Myracis toward a narrow cave that Cannibal is too large to enter 23.

Dreamfyre draws him away from the islands and toward Dragonmont. Danyla hopes Vermithor or Silverwing will intervene, but neither emerges. Sheepstealer instead attacks after Cannibal approaches her cave closely enough to threaten her territory 24 38.

Cannibal catches Sheepstealer’s wing in his jaws, exposing himself to Dreamfyre’s diving attack. Dreamfyre tears open his back and wing, and Sheepstealer rejoins the assault. Their coordinated attacks leave Cannibal badly wounded and exhausted, forcing him to flee toward the Narrow Sea 24 25.

Vhagar ambushes him beside a coastal cliff, seizes his body, and slams him onto the beach. Cannibal loses consciousness, but Danyla stops Vhagar from killing him. Unable to move his enormous body, the Dragonkeepers secure him where he falls with heavy dragon-restraint chains anchored to nearby rocks 25.

Viserys bonds with Vhagar after the battle. Daemon’s absence during the crisis leads to a confrontation with Viserys and later allows Danyla to negotiate five unconditional promises of dragonback assistance from him 25 26 27 28.

Captivity and controlled feeding

Cannibal remains unconscious for several days. After awakening, he is weakened by hunger but still dangerous enough that no one dares approach to feed him. His dragonfire turns nearby sand and stones glassy 32.

Danyla delivers food using blindfolded elderly cattle carrying roasted livestock on their backs. Cannibal burns and swallows both the cattle and their loads. She then orders the Dragonkeepers to provide only one scrawny old ox each week, deliberately withholding enough food to restore his strength 32.

Attempted theft and political repercussions

Cannibal’s furious roar later alerts Danyla to an intrusion at his place of confinement. Arriving on Dreamfyre, she finds the guards lying in pools of blood and two Blood Dragon Guards beaten, bound, and gagged. Cannibal has set more than a dozen apparent mercenaries ablaze, while surviving intruders retreat toward boats 64.

The incident is subsequently revealed to involve Princess Senyra’s sons, who hoped that taming Cannibal and becoming Dragon Warriors would strengthen their claim to the throne. Gaemon, a descendant of a Targaryen bastard, helped guide the outsiders. Danyla imprisons the suspects and places Senyra’s three sons under close watch 66 88.

When Danyla returns to inspect Cannibal, he is devouring the people killed by his dragonfire and straining furiously against his chains. Weapons abandoned within his reach include a Valyrian steel great axe. Danyla distracts him from above on Dreamfyre while blindfolded cattle and old horses are driven toward him, allowing the Wolfor Brothers and Kai to retrieve the weapons 66.

Otto Hightower later attempts to bring the affair before the Small Council. Danyla argues that the council has no authority over Holy Flame Island’s private affairs or its dragons. Grand Maester Runeter and Lyman Beesbury support her position, with Beesbury emphasizing that dragons belong to House Targaryen rather than the Seven Kingdoms. Jaehaerys rules against council interference 75.

A subsequent investigation exposes a maester’s assistant secretly reporting information from Dragonstone Castle to the Citadel. His disclosures identify the people who disturbed Cannibal as one of the Citadel’s subjects of interest. Danyla later obtains letters and a written confession implicating House Cuy of Sunhouse in Senyra’s sons’ mission 77 88.

Prolonged confinement and eventual taming

Cannibal remains riderless and chained by the sea, effectively under Danyla’s control. His growth slows considerably after his restraint, though he remains exceptionally dangerous; an assessment at this stage states that only Vhagar can overwhelm him in battle 164.

Later comparisons emphasize the advantages enjoyed by well-fed, trained dragons. Cannibal is overtaken in size by younger dragons, and the dragon reference eventually describes him as unclaimed on Holy Flame Island’s beach, awaiting a suitable rider 267 302.

After years of confinement, six-year-old Otheryon secretly leaves Holy Flame Castle on Nefemoon and successfully tames Cannibal. Once unchained, Cannibal soars excitedly over Holy Flame Island, astonishing observers. The achievement makes Otheryon the youngest warrior in House Targaryen’s history and greatly pleases Daemon 424 499.

Otheryon subsequently rides Cannibal on frequent hunts over the Narrow Sea and Shivering Sea. These expeditions refine Cannibal’s combat techniques. His appetite increases enormously after gaining a rider, and his growth begins accelerating again 456 499.

Battles against the wyverns

At Hadak Manor, Cannibal circles warily above the family’s carriage as approaching dragons cause the group’s mounts to prepare for combat. Isilia recognizes the arrivals as her own dragons, and Otheryon and Aurelion emerge to calm their mounts before Danyla arrives on Myracis 453.

When five Longwing Dragons ambush Cannibal and Otheryon from behind a waterfall, Cannibal twists his neck to seize and crush the neck of an attacker more than thirty meters long. He then swings his head to slash open a second attacker’s throat with his oversized tusks. Otheryon blinds the other three with Starlight Radiance, and Cannibal engulfs them in green dragonfire while Termit and Nefemoon attack 456.

After consuming the slain wyverns, Cannibal and the other dragons reinforce Danyla. Cannibal and Vermithor break through the flock, crushing wyverns in their jaws and setting others ablaze. Larger opponents leave wounds on both dragons, but do not stop their advance 459.

The appearance of the flock’s ancestor, a Colossal Wyvern more than 120 meters long, interrupts their dominance. Cannibal and Vermithor meet her together, but she evades their combined dragonfire and uses a powerful gust to turn the flames back and stagger them 459.

Cannibal later exploits an opening created by the princes’ magical swords to bite the Colossal Wyvern’s leg. She strikes him away hard enough to crack his scales, but he immediately returns to the attack and sets part of her wings ablaze. He subsequently works with Vermithor, Myracis, and Hognara to wound and restrain her before she breaks free and pursues Danyla 460.

Great Morak Island and blood sacrifices

Following Otheryon’s occupation of Great Morak Island, Cannibal carries him through the southeastern forests. Giant Crocodiles, Jade Anacondas, and giant bats become favored prey; their bodies contain traces of magical energy valuable to dragons. As these creatures multiply and grow larger, Otheryon spends much of each day patrolling the edges of human territory and killing beasts that approach settlements 545.

When the island’s white cattle begin producing fire-breathing calves that kill their mothers, Otheryon orders the destruction of the Stone Bull temples. During a blood-sacrifice ritual, Cannibal transforms the gathered idols into great masses of dragonstone. Rune-carved Cremation Towers are then erected across the island, and Otheryon sacrifices mutated cattle and worshippers who have descended into madness 545.

Both rider and dragon absorb energy from the sacrifices. Their magical energy surges, and Cannibal’s aging body shows signs of rejuvenation 545.

Otheryon’s later campaigns and kingdom

Cannibal carries Otheryon during the expedition supporting Isilia’s expansion into northern Yi Ti. Accompanied by Daemon on Quicksilver and Isilia’s Royal Legion, they first bring the Jogos Nhai of the northern grasslands under Isilia’s rule rather than immediately advancing to the Five Forts 593.

Otheryon also rides Cannibal to Sothoryos with his Royal Legion. His forces eradicate or absorb the pirates of the Basilisk Isles, clear ancient blackstone ruins, and plant weirwoods. With Cannibal and his increasingly powerful Spotted Wyvern mount, Shadowblade, Otheryon establishes the Otheryon Kingdom in the continent’s north 593.

Cannibal circles above the kingdom’s capital while Shadowblade regularly patrols its borders. Otheryon rarely needs to deploy his dragons in battle, but their presence deters the continent’s awakened races. Those who trespass against his realm become food for Cannibal and the other dragons under his command 593.

Power Progression

Abilities & Skills

Dragonfire

Cannibal breathes thick, sickly green dragonfire 15 32.

• Uses fire to repel multiple opponents and cover a retreat 15.
• Clashes directly with Dreamfyre’s sky-blue flames 25.
• Produces enough heat to vitrify surrounding sand and stones while restrained 32.
• Coats targets in viscous flames resembling scalding paint. During the wyvern battle, this fire behaves like wildfire: once it adheres to the wyverns, they cannot extinguish it 456 459.
• Sets part of the Colossal Wyvern’s enormous wings ablaze despite her tough hide 460.
• Transforms gathered Stone Bull statues into dragonstone during a blood-sacrifice ritual 545.

Close-Quarters Combat

His jaws, claws, and experience make him dangerous even against ridden dragons 15.

• Counters an attempted rear attack by twisting, kicking upward, and targeting Dreamfyre’s chest oil sac 15.
• Catches Sheepstealer’s wing in his jaws during aerial combat 24.
• Regains control in flight after coordinated attacks leave him wounded and temporarily off balance 25.
• Uses his unusually large lower jaw and exposed tusks as specialized weapons. Against the Longwing Dragon ambush, he bends his neck at an unusual angle to crush one opponent’s neck, then slashes another’s throat with a swing of his head 456.
• Develops more systematic fighting techniques through repeated mounted hunts with Otheryon 456.
• Crushes wyverns in his jaws while charging through their flock alongside Vermithor 459.
• Exploits a momentary opening to seize the Colossal Wyvern’s leg, then resumes attacking after being thrown away 460.

Ambush Tactics and Durability

Cannibal combines unusually tough scales with calculated attacks 15 24.

• Uses flame and smoke as concealment for a surprise bite 15.
• Forces Danyla to avoid dense clouds that could conceal another ambush 15 24.
• Suffers almost no meaningful damage from Sheepstealer’s initial surprise blast 25.
• Is slower and has less stamina than the well-fed Dreamfyre during their second battle; hunger significantly limits his endurance 24 25.
• Is later assessed as capable of potentially holding his own against Vhagar if he avoids a direct contest of physical strength 241.
• Continues fighting despite wounds inflicted by larger wyverns and a blow from the Colossal Wyvern powerful enough to crack his scales 459 460.
• Is not invulnerable to superior opponents: the Colossal Wyvern’s wing-generated gust deflects his and Vermithor’s combined dragonfire and staggers both dragons 459.

Magical Energy Absorption

Cannibal benefits from consuming magically enriched prey and from receiving sacrificial energy 545.

• Hunts Giant Crocodiles, Jade Anacondas, and giant bats whose bodies contain traces of magical energy 545.
• Absorbs energy from the blood sacrifices conducted by Otheryon at Great Morak Island’s Cremation Towers 545.
• Experiences a surge in magical energy and partial rejuvenation of his aging body after those sacrifices 545.

Relationships

• Danyla Targaryen — Principal opponent and eventual captor; protects his intended prey, spares his life, and controls his feeding. Cannibal particularly resents her during captivity. After his taming, he accompanies her family and fights alongside her dragons against the wyverns 15 25 32 66 453 459 460.
• Otheryon — His eventual rider, who tames him at six years old and ends his long confinement. Their frequent hunts refine Cannibal’s fighting, and the pair later patrol Great Morak Island, share sacrificial empowerment, and establish Otheryon’s rule in northern Sothoryos 424 456 499 545 593.
• Dreamfyre — Repeated combat rival whose attacks inflict many of his most serious wounds 15 24 25.
• Little Balerion, young Vhagar, and Grey Ghost — Young dragons he hunts, forcing them to abandon their Dragonmont shelter 20 22.
• Sheepstealer — Opponent who joins Dreamfyre against him after he threatens her territory; prior bullying is suggested but not confirmed 25 38.
• Vhagar, the adult dragon — Ambushes and incapacitates him during his retreat; stops short of killing him at Danyla’s command 25.
• Meleys — Helps Dreamfyre drive him back during the first battle 15.
• Vermithor — Helps drive him toward his lair during the first battle; later fights beside him against the wyvern flock and the Colossal Wyvern 15 459 460.
• Termit and Nefemoon — Otheryon’s birth-bonded dragons and Cannibal’s later hunting and combat companions. Otheryon reaches Cannibal on Nefemoon before taming him, and both dragons help defeat the Longwing Dragon ambush 424 456.
• Senyra’s sons — Would-be dragonriders who attempt to tame him to strengthen their political prospects. Their failed venture leads to imprisonment and Danyla’s investigation of House Cuy 66 88.
• Sevan/Saewan — Bears scars attributed to Cannibal; Markris later reminds him of the encounter when discussing the danger of dragons eating eggs 156.
• Shadowblade — Otheryon’s Spotted Wyvern mount and a fellow protector of his Sothoryosi kingdom; Shadowblade patrols the borders while Cannibal circles above the capital 593.

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