Contents
TYRION — Chapter 28
Overview
Tyrion arrives in Volantis as Jorah Mormont’s chained captive, witnessing Benerro’s fiery sermon and the city’s slave-dominated tensions. At the Merchant’s House, rumors say the Golden Company sails for Westeros. The Widow of the Waterfront arranges passage on the Selaesori Qhoran toward Meereen after Penny’s failed knife attack. The widow bids them carry a plea to Daenerys from Volantis’s slaves.
Summary
Tyrion enters Volantis bound to Jorah Mormont’s saddle, trading barbs as they pass from decayed quarters to richer districts. A mass rally at the red temple reveals High Priest Benerro’s apocalyptic sermon exalting Daenerys, alarming Tyrion about how a second Targaryen claimant would be received. Jorah sells his horse, shackles Tyrion as a slave to silence him, and forces a crossing of the Long Bridge amid executions and election pageantry.
They lodge at the Merchant’s House. Jorah chains Tyrion to a wall upstairs, then brings food and ale, describing Volantis’s ten-day elections and recalling his own exile. Tyrion suffers a cramped night, then is hauled to breakfast, where talk in the inn claims the Golden Company is sailing west for an exiled lord.
Jorah seeks the Widow of the Waterfront, a shrewd power broker. He offers gloves and asks swift passage to Meereen, revealing to Tyrion Jorah’s true aim: delivering him to Daenerys. The widow dissects Volantene politics, predicts war against Daenerys, and notes Benerro’s growing influence and planned crackdowns.
As Jorah insists he seeks to serve and protect Daenerys, the widow challenges his motives and brands Tyrion a Lannister kinslayer. Tyrion offers his wit and counsel and vows vengeance on Cersei. Before terms are set, a dwarf disguised as a man—Penny—charges Tyrion with a knife, blaming him for sailors killing her brother after mistaking him for Tyrion. Jorah disarms her; the inn erupts briefly, then calms.
Impressed or moved, the widow orders Penny cared for and decides to help. She directs Jorah and Tyrion to board the cog Selaesori Qhoran in two days, ostensibly sailing for Qarth but, per Benerro’s fires, fated otherwise. She warns them to leave before the tigers act and sends a message for Daenerys from Volantis’s slaves: they are waiting; she must come soon.
Who Appears
- Tyrion LannisterChained captive brought into Volantis; observes Benerro’s sermon; learns Jorah aims for Meereen; survives Penny’s knife attack; secures passage via the widow.
- Ser Jorah MormontCaptures and shackles Tyrion; navigates Volantis; seeks the Widow’s aid; declares intent to serve Daenerys; arranges passage on Selaesori Qhoran.
- The Widow of the Waterfront (Vogarro’s whore)Influential fixer in Volantis; probes motives, outlines politics, and secures Tyrion and Jorah passage; sends a plea to Daenerys from the slaves.
- BenerroHigh Priest of R’hllor; delivers a fiery sermon exalting Daenerys and foretelling dangers, stoking tensions in Volantis.
- PennyDwarf performer from King’s Landing; attempts to stab Tyrion over her brother Oppo’s murder; is disarmed and taken to the widow’s care.
- Widow’s scarred bodyguardHeavily scarred enforcer who emerges on signal, underscoring the widow’s power during negotiations.