Game of Thrones: Chapter 16: Eddard AKA Truth & Justice?

This chapter opens with Eddard being told that Arya has been found by Jory after being missing for the last four days. Turns out both she and Mycah ran off after what happened at the Trident with Joffrey.

Arya was taken directly to the King once Jorry and her arrived. We also learn that they entire group has moved to the castle of Ser Raymun Darry who had actually fought against Robert in the rebellion. Tensions are running high as it’s just an unusual and uncomfortable situation.

But before going on lets take a closer look at House Darry and why tensions are so high.

First the Darrys were Targaryen loyalists and did very well under the old regime. As said before during Robert’s Rebellion they fought on the side of the king and against the Rebels who included House Tully the liege lords of the Riverlands.  

Being on the wrong side of History cost the Darry’s greatly. Ser Raymun lost three of his older brothers at the battle of the Trident where Robert famously slew Rhaegar Targaryen. In addition to this it was Ser Willem Darry who also smuggled Viserys and Daenerys Targaryen from Dragonstone to Braavos effectively keeping them out of the reach of King Robert.

The loss of family wasn’t the only thing House Darry suffered as a result of Robert winning his Rebellion. They also lost half of the lands they held, a great deal of their wealth and nearly all of their power.

House Darry was so loyal to the Targaryens that Viserys names them specifically as one of the houses he can count on to support him upon his return to Westeros.

So things are pretty tense as there is a lot of bad blood between the hosts and clearly the uninvited guests.

Regardless Ned finds Arya with Robert and the rest of the court in the Darry audience hall. Arya is in the center of the room with Jorry when Ned enters. Fortunately she isn’t hurt and we learn she was just living off wild berries for the last few days.

Robert asked that Arya be brought before him immediately as he wanted to get things taken care of as quickly as possible. Most likely this is born of the uncomfortable situation of being hosted under House Darry that was his foe just a few years prior.

Here we learn that Joffrey lied about what happened days prior. He is present and his arm is in a bandage from the wound inflicted by Nymeria. Joffrey claims that Arya and the butcher's boy attacked him with sticks while Nymeria was set upon him. This is of course different from Arya’s version of the events.

Renley actually laughs when Arya relates that Joffrey was disarmed. He gets kicked out by his older brother Robert but on his way out he bows to Joffrey and does manage to deliver a really good line before departing.

Renley: “Perchance you’ll tell me how a nine-year-old girl the size of a wet rat managed to disarm you with a broom handle and throw your sword into the river.”

The only other person who was present and is brought forth is Sansa. Ned knows the truth of what happened as Sansa told him prior. Sansa however says she doesn't know what happened as it all happened so quickly and she didn’t see.

This ticks off Arya who calls Sansa a liar and attacks her. Arya is quickly pulled off and Robert decides he had enough of this and decides that no real lasting harm was done and chalks it up to children just being children. He decides that Ned should discipline Arya and he will do the same with his son.

Cersei is not happy and asks about the dire wolf that attacked Joffrey. Jory says that he found no trace of Nymeria, which seems to satisfy Robert. Cersei offers a reward to whomever brings her the pelt of Nymeria and Robert doesn’t feel like paying for it and tells her she can pay for it herself.

Cersei shows how her influence over Robert works in this scene. She not only calls him cheap but also says the though the king she married would have laid the wolf's pelt before her by sundown. When Robert says he doesn’t have a wolf Cersei knows she has him and points out they do have a wolf. She of course is referring to Lady.

After a bit more of discussion and argument it is decided that they will put Lady down as punishment. This is of course upsetting to all the Starks who feel this is an injustice as Lady wasn't even present.

King Robert: “Enough, Ned, I will hear no more. A direwolf is a savage beast. Sooner or later it would have turned on your girl as the other did on my son. Get her a dog, she’ll be happier for it.”

This actually brings a smile to Joffrey’s face. He is described as “beaming” at the decision. In the end Ned does the deed himself, but he denies Cersei her prize by instructing Jory to have four of the Stark men to take the body of Lady back to the north and bury her at Winterfell.

The chapter ends with Ned coming across Sandor Clegane as he returns with the body of Mycha wrapped up and slung over the back of his horse. Ned looks at the body and notes that Sandor rode the boy down nearly cutting him in half.

So a few things in this.. First the demand for a wolf pelt from Cersei seems to harken back to the first Tyrion Chapter:

“The queen shuddered. “There is something unnatural about those animals,” she said. “They are dangerous. I will not have any of them coming south with us.”

So it seems Cersei has been looking for a chance to be rid of the Direwolves and certainly took this opportunity as it presented itself. This again continues to show that the Queen and Joffrey are more interested in flexing and abusing their power than they are in justice.

Perhaps Cersei sees this as asserting dominance over the Starks. The notion being that perhaps if she sets the expectation that they are there to serve her and the rest of the royal family without question things will go easier. That this is the first real disagreement that wasn’t handled between Ned and Robert is of some significance and maybe Cersei just wants to make sure the Starks understand that message. She could have been counting on Sansa to not be truthful as it may put her betrothal to Joffrey at risk. In such a case the only one who would have been able to prove Joffrey a liar would have been Mycah who we know was killed by the Hound.

In the prior chapter we have the following quote:

Joffrey: “He’s my mother’s dog, in truth. She has set him to guard me, and so he does.”

So perhaps The Hound was sent out with orders to kill Mycah instead of bringing him back.

Also Roberts words of “Get her a dog, she'll be happier for it.” is a bit of foreshadowing to Sandor’s interactions with Sansa in the future as he becomes her protector in some instances.

Lastly what I think most readers miss is what Jory did for Arya.

The king stopped, turned back and frowned. “I’d forgotten about the damned wolf.”

Ned could see Arya tense in Jory’s arms. Jory spoke up quickly “We found no trace of the direwolf your grace.”

Robert did not look unhappy “No? So be it.”

Now all of the Stark children are rarely ever mentioned in the book without the direwolves near by at this point in the story. Hence the reason for Arya becoming tense as Nymeria is still free. It seems Jory has lied about Nymeria.

Game of Thrones Chapter 3: Daenerys

This chapter is the first point of view of Daenerys Targaryen who is presently across the Narrow Sea in Pentos. This chapter also introduces us to a number of additional characters and a recurring theme in the series. But lets start with the POV character Daenerys Targaryen (AKA Dany, or Daenerys Stormborn)

Daenerys was born as Roberts Rebellion was coming to an end. She was born on Dragonstone amidst a great storm that caused the destruction of a good number of ships in the royal fleet. (Hence how she got the name “Stormborn”) Her mother, the queen and sister-wife of the Mad King, died in childbirth. Both these events are significant. First it foreshadows the massive destructive effect she will have upon the world as will be revealed in later chapters/books represented by the storm. Martin also has this as a theme or at the least a common history of mothers dying in childbirth for a few characters.

Is this mere coincidence? Unlikely considering how Martin like to write, certainly it was somewhat common for complications leading to death occurring in childbirth in such times but keeping in mind this is a fantasy tale it’s unlikely that Martin just looked up some historical data and randomly applied it to characters..

In addition the words for House Targaryen are “Fire and Blood”

While the death of her mother provides the blood aspect the storm provides the fire as it’s likely the destruction of the fleet wasn't without lightning strikes.

By this time the war was all but over and won. Robert Baratheon had claimed the Iron Throne and the only known living heir to the Mad Kings Throne is her brother Viserys Targaryen. Some of the men at Dragonstone, seeing the war ended had planned on selling the two to the new King Robert. But before that could happen they were spirited away across the Narrow Sea to the city of Braavos by Sir Willem Darry.

There they lived for several years, in a house with a red door and a lemon tree viewable from her window in her room. This seems to be the only place that she really knew as a stable home.

Unfortunately after Ser Willem dies of a sickness her and her brother are robbed by the servants and left to make their own way.

There is even a bit of a list as to where the two of them have gone in their travels. The timeline seems to be as follows:

Dragonstone - Where Daenerys is born amidst a storm that destroys the remains of the Targaryen fleet.

Free City of Bravos - Where they live under the care of Ser Willem Darry for about 8 years.

Myr - Unknown amount of time.

Tyrosh - Unknown amount of time

Qohor - Unknown amount of time

Volantis - Unknown amount of time

Lys - Unknown amount of time.

Pentos - Currently staying with Magister Illyrio Mopatis

What we do know from this chapter is that her brother Viserys kept them moving from place to place as he was paranoid that King Robert had sent assassins after them.

Viserys is an interesting character and like his sister also introduces some history as well as a repeated theme throughout the series.

First there are notions that Viserys isn’t exactly stable/sane. In this chapter alone we learn that he kept himself and his sister moving from place to place out of fear of assassins. Second he’s constantly wielding fear in order to make Dany do his bidding. Often he says “You don’t want to wake the dragon do you?” and that tends to cause Daenerys to obey whatever it is he wishes to as she has grown up to be subservient to him.

Antoher theme is the results of incestous relationships. As  pointed out both are the products of a union between brother and sister. This is again repeated down the line in later chapters among royals/nobles with the result being mental instability in one or more of the offspring.

But for me and the most interesting aspect of this chapter and proof of Viserys being delusional is that he does truly believe that the houses in Westeros will rise up and support him upon his return to claim his rightful place upon the Iron Throne. He specifically names House Tyrell, House Darry, House Greyjoy and the entire Kingdom of Dorne.

If the patronizing way Magister Illyrio doesn’t convince you that Viserys is delusional this map should.

Dorne and the capital of Sunspear is located in the Southernmost part of Westeros. Lys, Tyrosh and Myr are all easily reachable via ship. Now the Iron Islands are on the other side of Westeros, but they are well known as being excellent sailors.

Now if so many houses with access to the sea support the return of the Targaryens why the hell would they allow them to end up going broke and earning the future king of Westeros the name “The Beggar King” in the meantime? But alas we learned in this chapter that Viserys had to sell off his mothers crown for he and his sister to get by.

It seems EXTREMELY unlikely that Dorne wouldn’t have at least sent a care package or at the least provided some securities for the future king. After all Dorne really lost out as a result of Robert's Rebellion. Princess Elia and wife of Crowned Prince Rhaegar was killed after being rapted by the Mountain that Rides Gregor Clegane, who also in service to House Lannister killed her two children. Immediately after the war Robert Baratheon weds Cersei Lannister the daughter of Tywin who more than likely ordered Clegane to kill off the royals. If any house in all of Westeros has good reason to support the return of House Targaryen it’s House Martell of Dorne.

Now perhaps Magister Illyrio is being used as a proxy for one of the houses that does support Viserys claim to the Iron Throne. Lets take a look at what we know of him from this chapter.

Essentially Illyrio is a rich merchant who trades in spices, gemstones, dragon bones and other things. According to Viserys Illyrio is helping the wayward Targaryens out for money. Lets keep in mind this is Viserys talking who frankly has issues with reality. So I think it’s pretty safe to assume that the guy with jeweled rings on every finger who is wealthy enough to afford a large manse, and provide Daenerys with everything needed to make her an attractive bride to Khal Drogo is in this for something more than just profits.

But if not money than what? Power, titles, lands, marriage to a noblewoman from Westeros? At this point we just don’t know, but it’s safe to assume that Illyrio isn’t doing this out of the kindness of his heart.

We do know that Illyrio has brokered the deal to see Daenerys wed to the Dothraki warlord  khal Drogo. In return Drogo will provide Viserys the men he needs to return to Westeros and take back the Seven Kingdoms.

Perhaps Illyrio also talked Drogo into not sacking Pentos again. We know Drogo has a lavish manse in the city as it was given to him as an offering. Illyrio even says

“It’s not that we fear these barbarians The Lord of Light would hold our city walls against a million Dothraki, or so the red priests promise… yet why take the chance when their friendship comes so cheap?’

Considering Drogo commands roughly 40,000 raiders it might be a safe assumption of the latter.

However this may be a hidden clue as to what is truly motivating Illyrio. Perhaps Illyrio is a follower of the Lord of Light as he made two references in this chapter to him. Once in discussing options in dealing with Drogo and his horde and another as a sort of blessing upon seeing Daenerys readied for her to meet her future husband.

Illyrio certainly has lived a good life and has prospered greatly. If he believes the the Lord of Light has somehow influenced his life then his motivations may be spiritually motivated as opposed to motivated by wealth.

Lets keep in mind that Westeros has two main religions. The Old Gods who the Starks worship and the Seven that is the dominant religion of Westeros.  The worship of R’hllor the Lord of Light is not widely done.

Now here we get a bit of prophecy and again find another recurring theme. R’hllor is the god of fire, light and life while his foe in the religion is the “Great Other” the god if Ice and Death. According to the texts this struggle will only end when the hero Azor Ahai returns wielding the flaming sword Lightbringer and “raises Dragons from stone”.

OK the entire series is “A tale of Ice and Fire” so this seems like it could be part of the prophecy coming to pass. If Illyrio believes this to be true and if he knows that the Lands Beyond the Wall in the North of Westeros are always winterlands then he may truly believe bringing a Targaryen back to Westeros to rule could be the key to fulfilling the prophecy.

The phrase “raises Dragons from stone” could refer to the Targaryen lineage who have a three headed dragon as it’s house sigil and the traditional family home was the island of  Dragonstone.

So if Illyrio is trying to fulfill the prophecy then this would be his motivation beyond just money and really would make a lot more sense.

This chapter ends with Daenerys, Illyrio and Viserys going to the manse of Drogo where she is presented to him, just after she notices Ser Jorah Mormont who is in attendance at this party as well.

But I will leave Jorah and other speculations for my next post.

Backstory Pt. 1 (AKA Why King Robert really hates the Targaryens)

One thing about the world of Game of Thrones takes place if that there is a great amount of history to it. A lot of this history not only has played a significant build up to the current situation but also has implications on future events. Additionally a lot of theories being floated also weigh heavily on this. So lets take a look at a bit of the backstory now prior to moving forward with the next chapter.

As we learned in the prior chapter King Robert Baratheon and Ned Stark were both wards of Jon Arryn. The Mad King Aerys Targaryen II demanded their heads Jon opted to go to war instead of turn over his charges. But why?

To learn this we have to go back to when Ned was 18. (He’s 35 when the books begin.) A great tournament is held at Harrenhal castle and the joust tournament was won by the crown prince Rhaegar Targaryen.

The victory was quickly followed with scandal however. Normally a victor will present a crown of flowers to a woman and name her “Queen of Love and Beauty”. This is usually an indication of romantic interest.

At the time Rhaegar was married to Elia Martell of Dorn who had borne him two children. Traditionally a married victor will present the crown to his wife, but Rhaegar opted instead to present the crown to Lyanna Stark who was engaged to Robert Baratheon. Even more scandalous is that both Robert and Elia were present when Prince Rhaegar did this.

A year later Rhaegar kidnaps Lysa, and her brother Brandon Stark rides to Kingslanding and demands justice. Unfortunately his demands are heard by the Mad King Aerys Targaryen who arrests him and his companions for treason.

The King summoned the fathers of the accused to court and promptly had them all executed. Ned’s father Rickard Stark demanded a trial by combat as was his right. The Mad King named Fire to be the champion of the crown and suspended Rickard from the rafters over a burning blaze. To make matters worse Brandon was brought in with a cord about his neck and a sword was placed just out of reach. He was told should he attain the sword he could free his father. But every attempt he made to grab the blade tightened the strangling cord and eventually Brandon strangled to death attempting to save his father who roasted alive.

Wishing to purge his kingdoms of all traitors the Mad King then called for the heads of Robert Baratheon and Ned Stark who at the time were the wards of Jon Arryn. Arryn refused and Robert and Ned who was now Lord of Winterfell went to war.

Now some significant events occurred here. Robert returned to the Stormlands and called his bannermen. Ned returned to the North and raised his armies as well. In addition Ned also was able to attain the loyalty of House Tully by agreeing to take the place of his older brother Brandon whom she had been betrothed to.

Eventually the rebel and loyalist armies met at the trident and Robert slew Rhaegar at the battle of the trident. After this battle Robert declared his intentions to usurp power from the Mad King and to take the throne. He did have a weak claim as a grandmother was a Targaryen, but not nearly as good as that of any of the grandchildren of the Mad King.

Robert was unable to continue to fight on as he had suffered wounds at the Battle of the Trident. Thus command  was given to Lord Eddard Stark who went on to Kings Landing.

As the Rebel forces marched upon the capital city the forces of House Lannister arrived first. Declaring loyalty to the crown they were welcomed as allies by the Mad King and under command of Tywin the Lannister men began to sack the city. Jamie Lannister who was part of the Kingsguard was ordered by Mad King Aerys to kill his own father.

Jamie had other ideas. Instead he slew the Mad King in his own throneroom and earned the name “The Kingslayer”. The Lannister men then sought out the rest of the royal family and put them to death. Most notably Ser Gregor Clegane killed Rhaegar's son Prince Aegon, then raped and killed Elia Rhaegar’s wife before killing Reagan's daughter as well.

When Ned arrived he found Jamie upon the Iron Throne with the Mad Kings body dead at his feet. When Robert arrived the bodies of the Targaryens were presented as proof of fealty to King Robert which he accepted.

Following this Ned set out to the tower of Joy and confronts the remaining Kingsguard who were guarding Lyanna Stark. After the conflict he finds Lysa who, before dying makes him promise her something. This isn’t immediately revealed but many theories as to the nature of the promise have been put forth, which I’ll get to later.

At the end of the rebellion Robert is King, who marries Cersei Lannister, as Lyanna is dead. Viserys Targaryen and Daenerys fled across the Narrow Sea to Braavos.