Chapter Summaries

Rogue and his mercenaries seized merchant ships by turning their enslaved guards against their owners, expanding their force and capturing valuable weapons. At a hidden inn, a veiled woman forced the Pentoshi spice merchants to sign enormous promissory notes, offering valuable intelligence as a way to repay their debts.

• Rogue used an ornate whip to order the Unsullied and slave soldiers to bind the Pentoshi spice merchants, then sent the merchants and women to a secluded inn.
• Rogue led his growing force in seizing ships from Qarth, the Summer Isles, and other Free Cities, suffering heavy casualties against gladiators and skilled archers.
• Rogue’s force grew to more than five hundred men as captured merchants were brought in batches to the inn.
• A veiled woman threatened the Pentoshi spice merchants with Hounds and demanded that they sign promissory notes for five million Gold Dragons plus a million Gold Dragons in annual interest.
• The veiled woman told the merchants they could repay their debts with valuable intelligence and warned them that House Hightower would take whatever it wanted.

Danyla led the dragons in crushing Oldtown’s riots, then turned Dreamfyre on Hobart Hightower and his forces when they approached her. After the slaughter, the dragons grew stronger by consuming the dead, and Danyla flew toward Earl Hightower’s room as he fled.

• Hobart Hightower armed House Hightower’s knights and soldiers, then led them out into a city consumed by dragonfire and chaos.
• Danyla called Hobart and his men toward Dreamfyre, then ordered the dragon to burn them alive.
• Danyla and the other dragons killed the remaining rioters, while the blood sacrifice also strengthened the weirwood and the dragons.
• The dragons ate thousands of corpses, and Danyla sensed that Dreamfyre and Myracis had gained substantial magical power.
• Danyla rode Dreamfyre toward Earl Hightower’s room, and Earl Hightower fled for the door.

Danyla plundered House Hightower’s wealth and records while her followers forced merchants and foreign nobles in Oldtown to sign debts and unequal contracts. As the chaos spread, Lisandro Rogare persuaded his father to approach Danyla’s fleet for help.

• Danyla entered Earl Hightower’s study, seized valuable deeds and secret letters, and learned that House Hightower had helped Princess Senyra escape and influenced the Great Council.
• At the Mysterious Inn, Pentoshi spice merchants were made to sign IOUs, then sent away with a single gold dragon each.
• The Masked Woman’s agents forced more visitors to sign debt agreements, including Myr merchants who promised skilled artisans and Summer Isles princes who pledged resources at low prices.
• Rouge’s force at Oldtown’s docks grew to more than a thousand and accelerated its seizure of merchant ships.
• Giovanni Rogare questioned whether approaching Danyla’s people was too risky, but Lisandro Rogare had already persuaded him to steer their ships toward the Holy Flame Fleet.

Danyla searched the Hightower for Earl Hightower and confronted him and his family in the Septon's Hall. She accused House Hightower of exploiting the unrest against her, and Earl Hightower agreed to pay any price as she proposed discussing the matter further.

• Danyla searched the Hightower with Dawnlight, found no one, and headed for the Septon's Hall while Myracis flew ahead.
• Myracis wrecked the garden and smashed open the Septon's Hall doors, where Danyla found Earl Hightower, his family, and their remaining guards.
• Emily and Alyssa pleaded that House Hightower had not attacked Danyla, while Ode Hightower swore the house had no intentions against the royal family.
• Danyla accused Ode Hightower of using septons to stir up the poor and pressure the royal family, and Ode admitted they had acted to protect themselves.
• Emily accepted responsibility on House Hightower's behalf, and Ode offered to pay any price if Danyla believed them innocent.
• Danyla agreed to find somewhere to discuss the matter with the Hightowers.

Danyla negotiated House Hightower’s surrender of wealth, control over Oldtown’s defenses, and most dock-tax revenue in exchange for the family’s protection and continued place in Oldtown. Earl Hightower signed her agreement, leaving House Hightower under the Crown’s growing control.

• Danyla urged Earl Hightower to protect his family and help restore order in Oldtown, and he agreed to meet her demands in return for protection.
• Danyla demanded House Hightower surrender its treasury and help secure Citadel branches in King's Landing and on Holy Flame Island.
• Danyla took permanent Crown authority over Oldtown’s defenses, despite Emily questioning the scope of her demand.
• Danyla assigned dock-tax collection to the Garrison and promised House Hightower forty percent of the revenue for relief and stability.
• Earl Hightower signed and sealed the agreement, accepting Danyla’s three conditions.

Ygr led the Oldtown mob in breaking into the Starry Sept and executing its noble-born prelates under the guise of the Seven’s judgment. After dividing the sept’s visible riches, the exhausted rioters went home, while Ygr and his men knew where its hidden treasury lay.

• Ygr directed the mob to build a battering ram after their swords failed to break the Starry Sept’s bronze doors.
• The rioters broke into the sept, and Ygr stopped them from attacking the poor-born septons before they searched for the hiding prelates.
• Ygr accused the richly dressed prelates of serving House Hightower and ordered them judged with fragments of the fallen stars.
• The mob stripped the noble-born prelates and stoned them to death with the blackened fragments.
• Ygr organized the gathering of the dead and divided the Starry Sept’s visible treasures among the rioters, while he and his men kept the hidden treasury’s location known to themselves.

After Rouge seized Oldtown’s merchant ships, cargo, and workers, he secured the docks while the city descended into widespread looting and arson. Merchants from the Free Cities gathered near the Holy Flame Fleet seeking the Dragon Princess’s protection, while Westerosi nobles remained confident House Hightower would answer for their losses.

• Rouge ordered his men to guard the docks and warehouses, rest in shifts, and prepare for possible attacks by bandits.
• Rouge’s forces transferred valuables, shipwrights, sailors, and captured guards onto more than three hundred large ships, which they moved away from the docks under Unsullied guard.
• Merchant shipowners signed promissory notes and unequal agreements before fleeing into poor neighborhoods and refugee areas for safety.
• Merchants inferred that the rioting reflected a conflict between House Hightower and the Dragon Princess, and more than thirty Free Cities ships gathered near the Holy Flame Fleet.
• Westerosi fleet leaders speculated about House Hightower’s motives and expected to claim compensation from whoever won the conflict.
• Criminals took advantage of the chaos as looting and arson spread through Oldtown’s wealthy and commercial districts.

House Rogare’s merchant convoy approached the Holy Flame Fleet and offered its goods in exchange for Princess Danyla’s protection, while Lysandro wondered whether House Hightower had truly caused Oldtown’s unrest. Elsewhere, Dax and Ygr secured captured bandits and the Starry Sept, then sought Danyla’s orders about its locked treasury.

• The Holy Flame Fleet fired a powerful ballista bolt into House Rogare’s leading ship and ordered the convoy to stop.
• Lysandro signaled that House Rogare would offer its possessions to Princess Danyla for protection, and the fleet agreed to hold its fire while awaiting her decision.
• Lysandro asked Giovanni and Dezelaco to rest while he kept watch over burning Oldtown and questioned whether House Hightower had instigated the unrest.
• Dax and his men brought more than a hundred captured bandits and their stolen loot to a courtyard, then hurried to the Starry Sept.
• Ygr’s group confined the surviving septons and found the sept’s treasury, but left it unopened because a septon had locked it; Ygr sent Danyla a report by giant eagle.

After signing a contract with Earl Hightower, Danyla slept and dreamed of a weirwood draining a sea serpent beneath the Hightower, while fire dragons burned monsters in Oldtown. She woke refreshed, learned her allies had secured the Starry Sept and docks, and went to Weirwood Square, where Amoros had dug a huge pit.

• Danyla noticed Dawnlight and Firefall had grown hotter and more powerful after her sacrificial incantation, then fell asleep.
• Danyla dreamed that roots pulled her from a dark ocean as a weirwood drained a pursuing sea serpent beneath a tower resembling the Hightower.
• Danyla saw fire dragons burn monsters and green dragons over Oldtown, turning the city's cold energy into a warm current that flowed toward her and the weirwood.
• Myracis woke Danyla, and Danyla received a letter reporting that her allies had secured the Starry Sept and the docks.
• Danyla dressed and went to Weirwood Square, where dragons were eating the rioters' bodies and Amoros had dug a deep pit near the weirwood.

Danyla discovered magical iron, a sea serpent skeleton, and five dragon eggs near the weirwood, then flew to the Starry Sept to seize its treasury and take control of Oldtown’s docks. Rouge reported that the ships and their owners were secured, while the Holy Flame Fleet-bound vessels had escaped.

• Danyla found magical iron scattered around the weirwood and discovered a sea serpent skeleton, two magical pearls, and five dragon eggs inside a cave.
• Danyla had Dreamfyre remove the sea serpent skeleton, took its pearls, and planned to experiment with forging its bones and the iron into weapons and armor.
• Danyla flew to the Starry Sept, had Dreamfyre break open its treasury, and ordered Dax to remove the septons and secretly move the treasure after dark.
• Rouge arrived with Unsullied and slave soldiers and told Danyla that they controlled the docked ships, while more than thirty ships had escaped toward the Holy Flame Fleet.
• Rouge swore his life belonged to Danyla, who praised him for his service.

Danyla freed the Unsullied, who chose to serve as her guards, and appointed Black Rat to help secure the Starry Sept. She then offered a Dothraki warrior a place as Blood of My Blood and challenged him to accept her oath.

• Danyla destroyed the Unsullied's gold whips, cut off one man's slave collar, and declared them free to choose their own lives.
• The Unsullied swore allegiance to Danyla and selected Black Rat as their leader; he chose to keep that name because it represented his new life.
• The Unsullied removed their collars and formed ranks behind Danyla, who ordered Black Rat to guard the Starry Sept and gather the rioters' bodies for cremation.
• Rouge presented Danyla with a Dothraki gladiator and a Valyrian steel arakh called Scarlet Steed.
• Danyla asked the warrior to become Blood of My Blood, gave him an oath of courage and honor, slapped him, and asked whether he accepted.

Danyla restored order in Oldtown, cremated the riot’s victims with Dreamfyre, and moved the city’s seized wealth onto her ships. Afterward, she told Lysandro that he could sail safely with the Holy Flame Fleet, and he offered his cargo to help Oldtown recover.

• Danyla accepted Mungo’s blood oath and sent Dax, Ygr, and Rouge with over a thousand slave soldiers to suppress the riots, disarm the city, and collect the victims’ bodies.
• Dax and his men captured more than five hundred bandits, confiscated weapons and valuables, and announced that Danyla had ordered the effort to restore order.
• Danyla brought the sea dragon bones to the Starry Sept and used Dreamfyre’s dragonfire to cremate thousands of victims, melting the confiscated steel and much of the bones.
• Rouge arranged boats to carry the seized wealth and the Starry Sept’s treasury to the fleet, while Danyla loaded iron from Weirwood Square onto the ships.
• Danyla met Lysandro aboard his ship, told him the crisis was over and he could leave safely, and accepted his offer to give his cargo to Oldtown.

Danyla evacuated Oldtown’s captured wealth and merchant ships to Holy Flame Island, while Earl Hightower learned that she had seized House Hightower’s fortunes and property deeds. Comforted by his wife and daughter, he accepted that his family’s survival mattered more than its losses but wondered how House Hightower had fallen into such a predicament.

• Danyla rode Dreamfyre over the detained merchant flotillas and persuaded their traders to follow the Holy Flame Fleet to Holy Flame Island.
• Danyla returned to the Starry Sept as the looted wealth was loaded, and Wolf and his brothers led the fleet and merchant ships out of Oldtown.
• Dax and his brothers sailed behind with five hundred slave soldiers and more than two hundred treasure-laden ships carrying Oldtown’s plunder to Holy Flame Island.
• Danyla’s haul included more than twenty million Gold Dragons, valuable ships, House Hightower’s Free Cities property deeds, and molten steel infused with magical energy.
• Earl Hightower’s wife and daughter Emily reassured him that Danyla’s seizure had spared their family, and he lamented that he could not understand House Hightower’s downfall.

Danyla arranged compensation and protection for the civilians killed in Oldtown's riot, then ordered Rouge to strengthen the garrison, secure the city, and manage the impounded ships. She returned to the Hightower as Oldtown remained eerily quiet and the dragons continued feeding on the dead.

• Danyla ordered Rouge to compensate the victims' families, provide monthly support to vulnerable households, and watch over their children.
• Danyla confirmed the magical energy in the solidified steel had not faded and realized it could be forged into weapons and armor like Valyrian steel.
• Danyla told Rouge to recruit three hundred soldiers, rebuild the Oldtown Garrison, reopen the docks, and guard the roads against House Hightower's arriving vassals.
• Danyla ordered Rouge to return ships belonging to the Seven Kingdoms' houses with a year of tax-free trading on Holy Flame Island, while owners from the Free Cities could buy back their ships at half price.
• Danyla ordered five of House Hightower's ships to carry the cooled metal and sea serpent skeleton to King's Landing, along with the gifts seized from the Hightower.
• Danyla walked back to the Hightower with her guards, saw that Oldtown was nearly dark and deserted, and found Amoros still feeding on corpses in Weirwood Square.

Danyla returned to Oldtown and told Earl Hightower that Ser Hobart and his men had been killed or fled after plundering merchants, while Rouge had restored order. The next morning, Earl Hightower surrendered House Hightower’s treasury to Danyla, who urged his family to go to King’s Landing and seek the king’s mercy.

• Danyla told Earl Hightower that Ser Hobart and his men had provoked the mob by looting merchant caravans, and their fate was uncertain.
• Danyla revealed that the merchants’ promissory notes might be in Ser Bart’s hands and warned that House Hightower had made powerful enemies.
• Danyla said Rouge had brought the riots under control and received authorization to establish a new Oldtown garrison.
• Danyla returned to her room with Alyssa while the Hightower maester treated Mungo’s injuries, and Myracis guarded her through the night.
• After breakfast, Rouge sent for ships, and Earl Hightower handed Danyla House Hightower’s collected wealth.
• Danyla advised Earl Hightower to send his wife and relatives to King’s Landing to settle the family’s affairs with the king.

Danyla consolidated her control over Oldtown, strengthened her bond with the dragons, and arranged compensation and trade benefits for those harmed by the unrest. House Hightower prepared to leave for King's Landing while Oldtown began returning to normal under Danyla's influence.

• The Earl of Hightower told Emily to look after the family in King's Landing and warned her to avoid taking unnecessary action.
• Danyla visited Weirwood Square, where Amoros guarded her five eggs and the nine dragons recovered after devouring the rioters' corpses.
• Danyla sensed that the dragons' energy and her telepathic bond with them had grown stronger, while the strange black stones beneath the Hightower rapidly lost energy.
• Rouge returned merchant ships to their owners and granted houses a year's tax exemption for trading on Holy Flame Island.
• Some nobles questioned whether the Oldtown riot had been manipulated, while the Garrison verified families who had lost God-Touched relatives and began paying compensation and monthly subsidies.

Danyla faced Oldtown’s anger over the deaths caused by the riots, promised to restore order, and then enforced the ransom terms for foreign merchants’ fleets. She left the merchants with a choice: sign their contracts and depart Oldtown, or lose their ships.

• Danyla stopped Mungo and the Unsullied from arresting a holy fool who accused her of bringing disaster to Oldtown, and she promised that normal life would return under a new Oldtown Garrison.
• Danyla inspected Oldtown’s main thoroughfares despite the hostile looks of its residents.
• At the docks, Rouge refused to lower the ransom terms for foreign merchants seeking to reclaim their ships.
• Dreamfyre landed between the merchants and Danyla, driving them back as Danyla ordered them to sign their contracts and leave Oldtown with their fleets.

Danyla forced the Essosi merchants in Oldtown to sign promissory notes, then helped the city recover from the riots. During a visit to the Citadel, she touched a sphinx statue and experienced a vision of Oedipus and the Sphinx.

• Danyla and Dreamfyre pressured the merchants into signing promissory notes worth more than ten million Gold Dragons, and the merchants sailed away from Oldtown.
• Rouge's garrison aided riot victims, organized the city's defenses, and added three hundred young men to its ranks as Oldtown returned to normal.
• Danyla visited the Citadel with Earl Hightower and her Personal Guard and examined the sphinx statues at its gate.
• Danyla touched a sphinx statue, fell into a daze, and Myracis swooped down in response.
• Danyla's vision recounted the plague in Thebes, Oedipus's journey, and his answer to the Sphinx's riddle before he became king and married the queen.

Danyla reflected on prophecy and how belief could make predictions come true, then visited the Citadel in Oldtown. She browsed the Scribe’s Hearth and found popular books whose unofficial accounts of Targaryen history differed sharply from the royal version.

• Danyla considered how prophecies could shape people’s actions and noted that she had built her power by knowing what she wanted.
• Myracis called Danyla back to her senses before the Citadel’s gates, where the two Sphinx statues had become lifeless bronze.
• Danyla soothed Myracis and decided not to attack the statues unless someone provoked her.
• Danyla explored the Scribe’s Hearth, where acolytes offered writing services and sold books copied from the Citadel’s library.
• Danyla found that books about Targaryen dragons and the royal family sold well among visitors to Oldtown.
• Danyla read an unofficial account claiming Maegor’s queens had strangled him and staged his death on the Iron Throne, rather than the official story that the throne had killed him.

Danyla visited the Citadel with Earl Hightower and confronted Doctor Vaegon after he insulted her maternal grandmother. She prepared to tour the Citadel under Seneschal Waghram’s guidance, while her agents continued secretly monitoring and infiltrating its ranks.

• Danyla bought three sailing-log volumes from an assistant maester after recognizing her intelligence organization’s secret mark in one of them.
• Danyla reflected on how her agents had infiltrated the Citadel and Faith of the Seven, gathering intelligence and copying books for Holy Flame Island.
• Mungo announced Danyla’s many titles to the gathered maesters, who bowed as she arrived at the Citadel’s inner tower.
• Seneschal Waghram welcomed Danyla, and Doctor Vaegon insulted her maternal grandmother.
• Danyla rebuked Vaegon by invoking her family’s dragons and his vows as a maester, then asked Waghram to lead her through the Citadel.
• Waghram led Danyla and Earl Hightower onward as Myracis circled above her, worsening Vaegon’s distress.