A Storm of Swords — Daenerys I

Aboard Balerion a Sorrowful Man's manticore nearly ends the dragon queen; Arstan Whitebeard's staff is quicker, and the course is set for Astapor — for an army.

The chapter retold

Aboard her ship Balerion, Daenerys Targaryen nearly dies for the crime of being worth killing. A gift box presented by a supposed well-wisher conceals a manticore, a small scorpion-thing whose sting is death within the hour, and only Arstan Whitebeard's quick staff between Dany and the creature keeps the assassination attempt from working. The hired killer is called a Sorrowful Man in Qartheen slang, a professional whose employer is never named on the page, and the attempt only sharpens Dany's course rather than deterring it: onward to Astapor, where slave-soldiers called Unsullied are sold like livestock and where an army, if she can afford one, is finally within reach.

The near-miss does double work — it confirms that Dany's growing legend has made her a target worth Essos's attention long before she has an army to answer with, and it deepens the mystery of Arstan Whitebeard, whose instincts and swordwork are far too good for a hired old man's staff. Nothing about the scene is subtle about where the book is steering: an army, bought in blood or fire, is the only kind Daenerys is going to get.

This movement: Wolves at the Crossing

• Brienne rows the Kingslayer downriver under a flag of lies; the banter starts sharpening into respect.
• Robb returns to Riverrun with a Westerling bride and a broken treaty; the Freys go home cold.
• Beyond the Wall, the survivors of the Fist stagger to Craster's; Sam earns the name Slayer with a dragonglass dagger.
• Dany sails for Astapor, where an army that feels nothing is sold by men who feel less.