Chapter 264

Roughly a hundred years before Aegon’s landing, a catastrophic disaster struck: fourteen great volcanoes erupted in unison. In the aftermath, Valyria was utterly destroyed—the Valyrian Freehold collapsed and ceased to exist.

That apocalyptic calamity split the land around the former cities into countless islands, and between them formed the Smoking Sea.

Today, that region is believed to be haunted by demons. Most people fear going anywhere near it, because legend says the Doom still exerts a powerful influence over Valyria.